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I have just discovered what is meant by a "dirty box". I got a box of pennies and about 90% of the rolls showed a 2011 penny on top and bottom, but a few rolls showed older Lincoln Memorial pennies. I went ahead and sorted just those rolls and found about 2 or 3 coppers at most. Then I decided just to test out the theory that if a top coin and bottom coin was a 2011, that all in between would be. Boy, was I wrong. About 50% of time, maybe more, that was the case, but other times there was 1 or 2 or sometimes 10 memorial cents mixed into a roll (and very few were copper). What a pain! The copper percentage was terrible. To top it off I saw something that I wouldn't have believed if it hadn't happened to me. I found 1 1941 wheat penny in a roll that was otherwise all 2011s (maybe 2010s were mixed in, I didn't check, but they were all union shields). This was a very disappointing batch. I went through 3 boxes like this and have 2 more to go. I don't want to just take them back unsorted at the same place where I dump using a coin sorter. I guess I'll just crack 'em open and take 'em back loose. I'm half tempted to not even send them through the Ryedale because the wear on the machine is hardly worth the few coppers I'll find.

I had a similar experience recently. I had a brinks box (with clear rolls)and flipped open the lid to see about 90% bright shiny pennies. I hand sort and had to break them open anyways so I pulled the darker coins only from each roll and others went straight to the return bucket. Of the darker coins, about 20% were copper. After 10 rolls the rest were put straight into the return bucket.
500 searched 9 coppers. Luckily I have only seen 1 box like this in the 20 or so searched.

Guys you can do a nearly instant screen on these by weight without cracking them open.

68Camaro wrote:Guys you can do a nearly instant screen on these by weight without cracking them open.

Yes, if my memory serves me i think 126 grams and below will be all zinc, and above 126 grams will have copper(s).

Nick

Yes, but you won't know if you have a "pure" box. I have about 6 boxes set aside that appeared to be all 2010 Ps, but now I'm not sure. The weight will only tell me that they are all zinc, not whether they are all the same year. A pure box could be sold on eBay.

Yeah i dont even bother cracking them anymore unless
they weigh at least 130

CardsNCoins wrote:

68Camaro wrote:Guys you can do a nearly instant screen on these by weight without cracking them open.

Yes, if my memory serves me i think 126 grams and below will be all zinc, and above 126 grams will have copper(s).

Nick