2009 Cents

Some hints here
http://coins.about.com/od/uscoins/f..._to_zinc.htm
http://www.lincolncentresource.com/...es/1982.html

I have lots of the 2009, not seen many recently, but you wouldn't want them unless you collect heavy circulated and filthy coins. I went through about 10 boxes looking and found the missing D ones in pocket change.

By lots, I mean maybe $2 worth, and they are mostly all blackened from zinc rot already. Funny thing is I ordered from some ICC or something a new penny book and got all 8 with it, and they were speckled when they arrived, AFTER I found a good looking on in change.

1982 I haven't even gone through all mine to find what I have and might need that link above to see what I even want to try to find other than the 4 I know of.

The more boxes of pennies you go through, the more 2009 you will find.

The 82 small and large date are fairly obvious if you have them side by side. However, there are much fewer small dates, so it may take a while to pull one. Once you do you'll know.

As for copper vs zinc, I do the ring test.

I hoard all my 2009 and 1982 but iam weird like that

From my experience, about 70% of '82 cents are the large date variety and about 90% are copper. I keep all the copper ones for my copper bucket and zinc ones either go in the reject pile or into my collection (hoard) if they are in good enough shape.

I still find 2009s in my change from time to time. The series is artificiallying rare due to hoarding--even I am guilty of having about $16-20 in BU rolls stashes away. The LP4 (presidency) is the rarest at about 130 million per mint if memory serves--about on par with 1930s production figures. In all my years I have found 1 P and 2 Ds. They are all out there, but finding them in circulation will not be a simple task.

I went through two boxes of nickels last year without finding ANY 2009's; and found limited amounts of Lincolns (many in less than desirable conditions). Perhaps the government spit out another million 2009's from their vault since the last time I looked for then. I eventually ended up buying the nickels, and I got all 8 Lincoln cents as a bonus when I bought a set of State Quarters.

As far as the 1982 cents, I used a small jewelry scale to separate the copper from the zinc types. After that, I used my 3rd eye-ball to separate the large-vs-small dates. Before hand, I studied for hours how to exactly tell the differences.

It's a shame that the mint never kept track of how many of each '82 variety was produced... I would love to know the actual statistics. I read somewhere that they were only authorized to switch to zinc in about November '82, which would explain why ~90% are copper. What does not make sense is why there are any small/large date varieties within the zinc cents at all...why would they utilize the large date master die for so long, switch to the small date die, and then go back after the composition change? Unless they just made a certain number of each and switched back and forth throughout the year.

Another 1000 cents searched and not a single 2009 variety. Although it wasn't a great 20 rolls. 3 wheats 1944, 1951d (hole filler) and 1957d. 2 Canadian and 1 Bermuda, my first (1993). Lots of fun searching!