Loading ...Been a coin collector all my life but was very disappointed in the quality of the penny coinage after 1982 and stopped collecting them. Gave my collection to nephew and urged him to finish out the modern penny series now that it’s going away.
The copper covered zinc is a poor choice of metals. It is a biMetal battery. Therefore it is self-deteriorating and rots easily with moisture and tiny bits of environmental acid. New pennies left in soil for a year simply dissolve. Only way to preserve them for collection is to catch them new & shiny and encapsulate in a dry, air tight container.
But I have many pounds of pre-1982 solid copper pennies stored in jars.