US war issued coins

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Steel cent� �

� � �After the sneak attack at Pearl Harbor in 1941, the US enter World War II. One of the ideas were to create a cent with a non copper composition and save the copper for artillery shell. There were many coin designs that were issued and the US mint chose the steel cent which was zinc coated steel. This is a commonly misunderstood coin and people who find them think that they are worth thousands. Over 1.1 billion were made and saved the country lots of copper. This coin is worth less than a dollar in circulated condition. They were made only in 1943. 1944 steel cents are worth lots more. There is also the 1943-D boldly doubled cent which is worth $20. A cool coin to own would be the 1943 copper cent. Overall, steel cents are still a cool coin to collect especially in MS-60+ condition with original luster.�

Shell Case cents�

�� �After the steel cent was made for a year. All the recycled artillery shell cases were melted down and turned into cents. From 1944-1946, these cents were made out of 95% copper and balance zinc. This also helped the United States recycle the copper and not waste any of it and also help the war effort. There are some very minor color differences between shell case cents and a normal wheat or copper cents. They are worth similar values as normal wheat cents.

War nickel

� � War nickels were made from 1942-1945 to save nickel for the war effort. The new nickel was made out of 35% silver and manganese and copper. This helped save nickel and copper. The mint mark was also moved to the top of the reverse and the P mint mark was for the first time put on a coin to distinguish it from a normal nickel. After the war, the US mint tried their best to get rid of them. But they can still be found in circulation. Some 1942 nickels were war nickels while others were normal nickels.

Reprocessed Cents

� � �Reprocessed steel cents were made after people removed a thin layer of zinc and coat it again, it makes the coin look a lot more shinier but isn't worth as much as a normal steel MS-60 cent. Reprocessed steel cents tend to have a not natural color like blue or purple. They also lack some original mint luster and don't look natural.�

Sources

"1943 1 Cent "Steel Cent" Reprocessed - Numista."�Numista.com, Numista, 2013, en.numista.com/forum/topic66507.html. Accessed 22 May 2023.

‌"Steel Cents, Silver Nickels, and Invasion Notes: US Money in World War II | the National WWII Museum | New Orleans."�The National WWII Museum | New Orleans, 4 Dec. 2020, www.nationalww2museum.org/war/articles/united-states-money-in-world-war-ii. Accessed 22 May 2023.

Joshua.�Thefuntimesguide.com, 2023, coins.thefuntimesguide.com/shell-case-pennies/. Accessed 22 May 2023.

War, Jefferson. "4 SILVER Jefferson War Nickels 1 GEM Steel Cent 3 Unique War Pennies Lot of 8 | EBay."�EBay, 2023, www.ebay.com/itm/314115931136. Accessed 22 May 2023.

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