1943 cent

[scott in florida]

Hello all,

Recently Dad passed away and left me his collection. There are several rolls of 1943 cents. Looking through them I see several double dates and several with extra material on both sides of the coins. Where can I find data and possible values for these coins.

[DWLange]

The steel cents often show distortion of the date, mintmark and peripheral lettering that resulted from die erosion and/or drawing out of the zinc layer at the moment of striking. While interesting, such effects carry no added value.

The actual varieties known for 1943 cents are illustrated at NGC's VarietyPlus website: https://www.ngccoin.com/variety-plus/united-states/cents/lincoln-cents-wheat-reverse-1909-1958/

[scott in florida]

Thank you DW for the great information. I thought I really had something. There is still at least 10,000 more coins to go through.

[R_R_H]

10,000+ coins to go ...?!?!  You MUST be kidding. Of course, you're not. Now, you have to decide, "Am I a numismatist wannabe, or am I just trying to not give away a possibly valuable collection?" If even half of your father's collection is 'collectable', you may spend several years just getting 'up to speed' in the hobby. If your intent is just to liquidate said collection, I recommend that your first approach be to attack the Jefferson Nickel. If your father did not collect many of those, just educate yourself about whatever he did collect. The reason I mention the Jefferson Nickel is because there has been quite in increase in $$ interest in what has been a rather boring coin, so to speak. NO ONE was speaking of "Full Steps" or "Full Bell Lines" (Benjamin Franklin Halves) 40-50 years ago. Yes, I've been collecting that long. First off, the coin has to be MS60 or better. Just go through the Jefferson Nickels he may have collected ... (Wait, your father knew SOMETHING about coins?) and if they appear to be quite shiny (new), go buy a decent magnifying glass and check the 'reverse' of ALL of the Jefferson nickels you find. Just check PCGS or NGC for the difference between "FULL STEPS" and regular MS. The coins with Full Steps are worth 10-15 times as much.

Happy hunting,

RRH