Just curious - 1963 Nickel info

[Electronic 49er]

Hello,

Ok, I found my first non-clad coin today, a 1962 nickel. How is this coin different in composition from current nickels?

I also found a 1994 nickel in the same soil, close by, and it appears to be permanently browned and almost unrecognizable, while the 1963 is shiny and well defined.

Thanks!

[Wyatt Earp]

They are of the same composition.....75 percent copper and 25 percent nickel. Sometimes a recently dropped coin....will hide in the grass and fall in the hole while we're digging. That's the only way the surface of the nickel you found could NOT be permanently damaged. Tarn-X will clean the discolored one....and make it look like a nickel again.

Wyatt

[DiggerJohnPA]

49er,
There's no difference in the compostion of old nickels and new nickels. the only exception would be nickels from 1943-1946 with the large mintmark on the reverse above Monticello. Those nickels were minted using 35% silver during the war.
The pre-65 coins (non-clad as you call them) that you are looking for are dimes, quarters, half-dollars and dollars, which are al 90% silver. Also 1965-1970 half dollars are 40% silver.
Forgive me if I am telling you something you already know, but I've got friends who constantly bring me pre-1965 nickels thinking that they have foudn what I am always looking for. I always have to remind them that rule doesn't apply to nickels.

[Electronic 49er]

OK, that makes good sense. I am very glad to have that straightened out. I want to know when to get excited!

[pris]

Thanks! That was a great explanation. I haven't researched coins, but just from reading this forum, I kept hearing a bit of lingo. I wrote down the dates and percentages for my future reference.

I love this place!