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I was going through nickels tonight and found a 2003 D penny (yes a penny in nickels) that is larger than normal. It is almost the size of a nickel.

If you line it up to a nickel, the 2003 Dpenny fits snuggly within the rim of the nickel.

If you line it up to a regular penny, the regular penny fits inside the rim of this 2003 D penny

It is obviously not a normal size; is this a mint error?

I don't know but I will give you a dollar for it sight unseen.

Very interesting. Weigh it and keep it safe in a flip or 2x2. Could be on a foreign or substandard planchet. Is it as thick as a nickel or thicker than a penny?

It is thinner than both a regular penny and nickel. It is greyish in color almost like it didnt get the copper top layer.

It is definitely metal

Larger than normal sounds like the collar die was not installed. Modern coin press machines have a lower die for one face, and upper die for the other face, and a collar die to form the rim. If the collar was not installed the paunchette will smear into a larger than usual size. If this is not a counterfeit, you have found a mint error. Could be worth serious bucks. Get an appraisal from a reputable rare coin collector.

I certainly think this sounds like a potential legitimate mint error. I initially expressed interest because it is an oddity from my daughter's birth year (see: viewtopic.php?f=30&t=129)
But yeah, if you maybe take it to a dealer you trust, they may tell you it's worth much more. If you do intend to sell it, here or on eBay or wherever, I would love to be apprised of that. Cool find.

look up broadstruck coins on ebay and see if they look the same as your coin. I'm a little sceptical though, with the extra diameter and missing copper it could just be damaged somehow. I hope it's a good one though!

Pennysaved wrote:I was going through nickels tonight and found a 2003 D penny (yes a penny in nickels) that is larger than normal. It is almost the size of a nickel.

If you line it up to a nickel, the 2003 Dpenny fits snuggly within the rim of the nickel.

If you line it up to a regular penny, the regular penny fits inside the rim of this 2003 D penny

It is obviously not a normal size; is this a mint error?

If you can take pictures of it, send them to Mike Diamond- he's the best coin error guy there is- and ask him for his opinion on what it is and what it's worth. He's the president of CONECA (website here: http://www.conecaonline.org/) and his e-mail address is mdia1@aol.com

Hadn't thought of Mike Diamond. I was thinking Ken Potter at koinpro.tripod.com or Charles Daughtrey and the guys at coppercoins.com, but yeah... good idea to ask someone who will take it seriously, whereas a lot of local dealers may not have the level of expertise.

I emailed Mike and he said it is a novelty penny called a "Texas Cent"

It is not a true error since lincoln is proportional to the size of the cent.

I asked him if he had a link to read up more on the "Texas Cent" but he did not.

Pennysaved wrote:I emailed Mike and he said it is a novelty penny called a "Texas Cent"

It is not a true error since lincoln is proportional to the size of the cent.

I asked him if he had a link to read up more on the "Texas Cent" but he did not.

This sounds similar:

http://www.coincommunity.com/forum/topi ... C_ID=71021