Seperating 1982 copper pennies from the other copper?

[Ziggurat]

I assume this would be the right forum to post this in. So I've decided to save pre-1982 copper pennies for their copper content. I know that some pennies from 1982 are copper and some are zinc, so I only keep the copper 1982s. So here's my question. Should I keep my copper 1982 pennies seperate from the pre-1982 pennies? If/When it becomes legal to melt them down, do you think whomever I sell them to would not accept any 1982 pennies because some were minted as zinc? Do you think they'd want them seperate to sort through? I know there are large-scale sorting machines out there that could verify that all the pennies are copper...but I don't know of any scrap yards that have one of those.

 

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[Bobbypins]

If it were ME sorting pennies by hand, I wouldn't even bother with any of the 1982's and just collect everything 1981 and below. You're right in that the mint changed the composition in 1982, but given the roughly 50/50 split on the 82's being coper vs zinc, I would just go for the sure thing. It'll save you time, and that 'pesky' 3rd pile of cents you'll have to keep track of.

 

[hobo finds]

Drop the 82's on a table you can tell the copper ring vs a zinc. Speaking of pennies what are you doing with your canadian ones now that they are going to stop making them? I know you will still keep the copper ones but what about the others?