Why Are New Coins So Beaten Up These Days?

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 8 / Views: 923
Cuprozakium New Member United States 9 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 09:51 am As the title says, what's the deal with new coins being so scratched and riddled with contact marks straight out of the Mint? It seems to be affecting every denomination too. I got a brand new roll of 2021 cents while coin roll hunting the other day and I was kinda shocked seeing the condition of them all. Cents especially, since in addition to the previously mentioned scratches they're also plagued with carbon spots. Report this Post to the Staff

John1 Moderator United States 56855 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 10:04 am . Also, water spots are a big issue. It is just poor-quality control. When the mint makes coins for circulation, they are more concerned in quantity than quality. Another problem is they are now minting proof coins with a lot of issues as well. John1 ( I'm no pro, it's just my humble opinion ) Searched 6.5 +/- Million Cents Since 1971 Report this Post to the Staff
BadThad Bedrock of the Community United States 19520 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 11:02 am Agree with John, it's quantity over quality. Lincoln Cent Lover! VERDI-CARE™ INVENTOR https://verdi.care/ Report this Post to the Staff
nick10 Pillar of the Community United States 3197 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 11:21 am Judging by the big gashes on nickels, my guess is freshly minted ones drop downward from some height into a bin containing others. Perhaps in the past some sort of chute allowed the coins to slide into the bin with less of a drop. Such a chute would need frequent height adjustment as the bin filled, so may have been eliminated as a cost saving measure. Report this Post to the Staff
Big-Kingdom Pillar of the Community United States 1667 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 1:22 pm yeah, they are meant for circulation, not collectors, they don't care how banged up they get at the mint during transportation, at the distribution hubs where they are dumped and rolled. just not their top concern, same reason they wear dies out before changing them. good is good enough for them. pretty sure it's always been this way and more damage and mess as time goes on like when they upgrade machines for speed, or outsourced distribution to armored carriers instead of the Federal Reserve banks doing it. I don't think it's about cost savings, as it is about speed and efficiency, just like they have a weight tolerance, they have an acceptable tolerance for appearance also I'd suppose. Report this Post to the Staff
captainrich Pillar of the Community United States 959 Posts	Posted 02/17/2022 6:47 pm I guess if the US Mint cared about durability and longevity, it wouldn't produce cents made out of zinc. My 7070 My NGC Registry Sets: https://coins.www.collectors-societ...eopleID=9216 Report this Post to the Staff
just carl Bedrock of the Community United States 20753 Posts	Posted 02/18/2022 08:18 am This way less and less people will take them out of circulation. Report this Post to the Staff
Ballyhoo Pillar of the Community United States 1451 Posts	Posted 02/18/2022 10:30 pm And this is a good thing for those of us who collect the modern clad coinage. Fewer high mint state examples, higher values in the long term. What can I say, I see the positive in everything. ANA member - PAN Member - BCCS Member There are no problems only solutions - the late, great John Lennon Report this Post to the Staff
jbuck Moderator United States 157704 Posts	Posted 02/20/2022 3:15 pm Quote: I guess if the US Mint cared about durability and longevity, it wouldn't produce cents made out of zinc. If they cared about anything they would not make them at all. Coin Collector Since 1978 My Avatar My Old Avatar My 7070 My Eisenhower Dollars CCF Members on eBay CCF eBay Search Engine Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 8 / Views: 923

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: US Coins and Currency Forums Forum: US Modern Coins

Royal Estate Auctions - $1 Coin Auctions

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2025 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.36 seconds to rattle this change.