Aluminum 1993 Penny??

[vegasmtl]

Today out of the first roll of $25 in Pennies I found what I think is an aluminum or nickel 1993 Penny. Anyone seen one of these? I have seen the steel pennies, but this is obviously not one of those. It is in extremely fine condition, no mint marks. I will try to post some pics later. I don't have a scanner yet, so will have to try an actual pic. Any help appreciated.
vegasmtl

 

[bazinga]

Probably a penny that a little kid spray painted. I have a 1940's wheat penny in XF condition that is a nice bright silver color.

But then again, I could be wrong...

 

[JakePhelps]

The penny could have been heated with a torch and turned color, or it could be a real error, yes there are aluminum trial pieces. hey bscofield, you may have a wartime steel cent, is it 1943?

 

[bazinga]

Nope, it's not a 1943. I've got plenty of those. This one is like 1940 or something like that. I'll have to find it and take a pic of it.

 

[JakePhelps]

Strange, if these are lighter than a regular penny they may be trial pieces or counterfiets.

 

[Immy]

Most likely it's missing its copper coating, leaving the zinc core exposed. The only legit aluminum cents were experimental pieces in 1974. It can't be an error since aluminum isn't utilized in the minting process. It could be a counterfeit too.

 

[vegasmtl]

Well, I went to a reputable coin dealer that has helped me before, and sure enough, my fabulous penny that I was so pleased and exciting about finding is worth....1 cent.

A student somewhere pulled all the copper off the penny with some experiment and then polished it to a high sheen. He showed me an example of a zinc penny that was mis-laminated, and they weren't even close.

Oddly enough this has only got me more into this whole mess. And yes...I am keeping the penny!

HH
vegasmtl

 

[Klaatu]

I was gonna say I agreed with Immy - sounds like a zinc cent with the copper plating missing.

A 1993 cent is very easy to distinguis from a 1943 cent - the '43 is a Wheat Back and the '93 is a Memorial. And the '43 is made of steel.

 

[dirtdigger5054]

My 1993 no mark penny has another error, the o is missing on reverse side from of america.

 

[enamel7]

Strange, if these are lighter than a regular penny they may be trial pieces or counterfiets.

No.

 

[enamel7]

Not a trial. This comes up all of the time. Probably had the copper plating removed.

 

[enamel7]

My 1993 no mark penny has another error, the o is missing on reverse side from of america.View attachment 1264532

Didn't realize this was an old post added to by someone. First off, please try to start a new thread when possible. Second, I can actually see the O on you coin. This is actually quite common. Due to the large concave area on the obverse die that area on the coin usually has a weaker strike. Hope that helps!