1350 1500 2500 IHEAD WHERE ARE YOURS READING ?

[leventis72]

Fellow Garrett GTP and GTI users where on the notching display are your Indian Head pennies showing up ?
Thanks for your answers

 

[BigCatDaddy]

They should hit right around the Zinc penny notch as they are made of bronze. I've only found two but that's how both of them hit!!

 

[Monte]

[size=large]register as a modern Zinc cent. Naturally, this is in a 'perfect' situation, such as an "air test" or in very favorable ground conditions. Ground that has challenging mineralization and/or is wet and/or is very dry and hard, or other variables such as depth and position, might cause them (like any other target) to register a little higher or a little lower on the visual TID scale. But, as a rule, the above is true, regardless of the make or model.

Monte[/size]

 

[Goes4ever]

They should hit right around the Zinc penny notch as they are made of bronze. I've only found two but that's how both of them hit!!

during the first six years (1859 to 1864) Indian Head cents were made of 88% copper and 12% nickel, resulting in a slightly less coppery red-brown color. During the civil war many of cents were hoarded and disappeared from circulation. These copper-nickel Indian pennies were also called "nickels" or "nicks" at that time. This was before nickel 5 cent pieces were produced. When five cent nickel coin production began (in 1866) people started calling five cent coins nickels and the Indian cents lost that as their nick name.

In the middle of 1864 composition changed to 95% copper and 5% tin. The coin's weight also decreased and remained the same through the Lincoln cent series (until 1982).
.

 

[BigCatDaddy]

I stand corrected...but they still hit like a Zinc, more or less, must be that tin in them!!

 

[Monte]

[size=large]I believe it was due to impurities in the foundry process that resulted in less pure copper than what we had later. That's why the Indian Head's (most) and many wheaties from 1909 until about 1920

 

[cwilk]

The ground does funny things to coins. I have had wheat cents ring up from notch 7-9 on my GTI 2500. I have yet to find a buried IH Cent but in air tests they usually ring up on notch 7.5 (zinc cent) on my rig. The mint lists the composition of small cents from 1864 to 1962 as bronze. That is, 95 percent copper, 5 percent tin and zinc. I have no idea why IH cents don't register where wheat and pre 1962 memorial cents register but the usually don't. Maybe it is the ratio of tin to zinc or possibly the quality of the copper. I have never received a satisfactory answer to this question.

Chris

 

[Goes4ever]

well they ring up as zinc on my ace250 as well..........no problem I dig ALL zinc signals

 

[Uncle Willy]

Since they are mostly bronze - below the cent.

Bill

 

[Monte]

[size=large]them to b of the same composition, it might be a different mix of the tin & zinc, but I believe it had more to do with the foundry processing of the copper uses having more impurities. Almost all Indian head's I have found will register (and eject) similar to a modern zinc cent, and many early 'wheatbacks' from 1909 into about 1920

 

[Terry in PA]

I read a story a good many years ago about hunting IH pennys. The guy said that if he would get a pull tab signal that was 4 or more inches in the ground he would dig it
and most of the time come up with a IH penny. I started trying this at a older site that I had hunted to death and guess what ? I found a good many IH pennys that I walked over. Now with that being said. I did find a few pull tabs also but nothing like those closer to the top of the ground. I still hunt this way and yes it does work. Give it a try and see if you turn up anything.

 

[cwilk]

You sometimes get that answer when you read about the possiblity scrapping pre 1982 cents for their copper value. In my research the consensus is even modern memorial pennies were never made of the highest quality copper. The more I think about it the more I'm sure your response is correct.

Chris

Yes, I realize it was recently made illegal to scrap copper cents, and nickels too, but when the Treasury dept finally decides to get rid of the "penny" they will legalize it and they will disappear from circulation very quickly.