1943 steel cents are U.S. one-cent coins that were struck in steel due to wartime shortages of copper. The Philadelphia, Denver, and San Francisco mints each produced these 1943 Lincoln cents. The unique composition of the coin (low-grade steel coated with zinc, instead of the previously 95%-copper-based bronze composition) has led to various nicknames, such as wartime cent, steel war penny, and steelie. The 1943 steel cent features the same Victor David Brenner design for the Lincoln cent which had been in use since 1909.
The copper cents differ from their steel counterparts in four ways:
Genuine 1943 copper cents will not be attracted to a magnet. Copper-plated steel cents will exhibit a strong magnetic attraction.
Copper cents weigh 3.11*grams. Steel cents weigh 2.70*grams.
The numeral 3 in 1943 has the same long tail as the steel cents. Alterations from later-dated copper cents will be noticeable when compared side-by-side with genuine steel cents.
The quality of the strike is exceptionally sharp, especially around the rim, because the soft copper planchets were struck with the same (higher) pressure used for the steel cents.
