Why does everybody call them clad coins?

[Fix]

I've been a coin collector all my life and I've always thought that newer quarters and halves and dimes are clad coins. Pennies are copper and nickels are, well, nickels.

Why does everybody call pennies and nickels clad? Is it a given that metal detectorist just call them clad to save ink?

Just curious.

 

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[jeff of pa]

I call them Gas rebate

But actually pennies are clad .
they are Zinc with a tasty Copper Coating
( 97.5 percent zinc and 2.5 percent copper)

Nickles are the only thing unchanged if you don't count the silver clad war years.
or that they are Composed of 75% copper and 25% nickel not .900 Silver
or .950 Copper.

of course Nickels have always been Clad in my opinion of the word "Clad"
as it Pertains to coins

 

[Icewing]

Clad in metallurgy is sort of another word for plating.
1983 and later pennies are copper plated zinc.
In short any coin with no melt value beyond its face value is referred to as clad.

 

[Loco-Digger]

macht nichts. Do you drink soda or pop? Is it pot, grass, weed, maryjane? I use the term clad for coins that are not "keepers".

Keepers are wheat pennies, Nickels (1962 or older), silver coins and all other coins that pre-date 1965 that are no longer minted. If it's not a keeper, it is clad in my eyes. I hope the terminology police do not come in the middle of the night to arrest me.

 

[G.I.B.]

Personally I like to use the word as Coins Lost And Detected.

There is a TV commercial where they are ripping people off for the gold buffalo nickel (copy).

They use the word CLAD in the commercial, hidden quietly at the end, but it's there.

The con link Beware of This Gold Coin Scam

The final issue price was to be set at $50 per proof, but during our special release, this 24k pure gold clad masterpiece can be yours for only $9.95.

 

[Trezurehunter]

My definition of clad is "Any coin that is not a keeper, & with no precious metal value".

 

[releventchair]

Because they are clad.
Wrapped or filled with something other than a whole of lesser value than previous models.
They are cheap sandwiches vs a real unadulterated piece of meat..or toufu , whichever you prefer.

 

[ivan salis]

for a couple reasons -- clad means basically "plated" -- a common cent of 1983 or newer is a great exsample --a thin copper coating over a zinc base ...as are dimes and quarters ..a copper core with "pressed on" sides --that's why they look like a sandwich when viewed from the side ... nickles are often lumped in with the other "clad" coins .. because of their low metal value ( except for the 1942 -1945 35% silver ones) .... most detectorist view coins as gold / silver (valuable) and other metals ( aka - clad - not so valuable) ...with exceptions being made in the case of rare old coins (collector type coins)

 

[GA_Boy]

As others have stated---------------"Anything that isn't a keeper". Just a shortcut instead of actually describing the find.
Marvin

 

[Fix]

Thanks for the replies. So pretty much everybody has their own idea what a clad coin is. Which answers my question.
I agree with Jeffro from an old Treasurenet post.
http://www.treasurenet.com/forums/general-discussion/67792-when-did-coins-become-clad.html

 

[Limitool]

I have dug (with coins also) clad horseshoes. This includes 1/2 clads, 3/4 clads and occasionally the WHOLE clad horseshoe. Clad to me means... worthless. Unless I find a gold coin along with my first "Golden Horseshoe" their CLAD!

Jeff is right... mostly coins with mixed metals. And they don't last near as long in the ground as the old coins.... PERIOD!

 

[GA_Boy]

A gold one ---------------yes. Never heard of a clad Horseshoe.
Marvin

 

[coinman123]

And they don't last near as long in the ground as the old coins.... PERIOD!

On the bright side, we now have biodegradable pennies, way better for the environment

 

[Limitool]

A gold one ---------------yes. Never heard of a clad Horseshoe.
Marvin

Well you have now Marvin... !!!!