so let's talk zinc

[atticus]

i've read the recent posts about the uptick in pushing the change of base material for the cent. let's set aside what may/could happen for a second, and discuss what the group might think would happen with the post-83 and later cents over the long haul.

what the frig is zinc used for these days? is there a possibility, even remote, that a zinc bullion market might develop?? i realize this is a shot in the dark but just curious

atticus

[baggerman]

I know it is used when galvinizing items and also is used for corrosion protection on boat hulls etc. Other than that I have no idea.

[doug]

Zinc is used in die casting too.

[jasmatk]

I have been wondering this also.My plan is to make my own zinc ingots here soon,I melt tire weights down into lead bars for later casting and alot of the weights are made of zinc so im going to start melting the zinc weights into bars instead of scraping them.Now if I could only find a use for the steel ones.

[jasmatk]

Maybe the seldom seen HZBTT will chime in on this one.

[Lemon Thrower]

when mcdonalds, walmart, and other shysters let you round to the nearest nickel, the days of the penny are numbered. i say zincs are gone within 5 years.

[PennysaverCP]

Imagine this- In the future the price of copper plummets while the price of zinc skyrockets. Zinc pennies suddenly are worth much more than copper. People start sorting for zinc and return the coppers. We all jump off a cliff together.

[tuleja]

Zinc is used for plating. Where I work we make a bunch of metal brackets and send them out in large tubs to be zinc plated as it's cheaper to mass zinc plate them instead of painting them all. Most screws and other hardware are zinc plated as it prevents oxidation.

[ZenOps]

Zinc oxidizes. Its used as cheap temporary rust protection, a zinc coated nail will eventually rust, but it will take a few years.

Nickel is used at about 5% in stainless steel to make permanently rust free steel. You can actually notice this in Canada, many early iron structures are mixed with a low grade nickel content and look exactly like the first day they were made. Start heading south (like into Detroit) and you immediately notice that every single metal structure is rusting - badly.

That the primary use of zinc is to "rust" so that it protects Iron, does not bode well for Zinc. Its terrible as a currency as like paper - it will eventually deteriorate (especially in saltwater)

Copper pennies tend to naturally "pit" after a century or so of exposure to air. Zinc pennies could potentially crumble to dust after a century.

[cesariojpn]

The Simpsons hilariously tells you.

[penny pretty]

zinc is the cheapest metal out there, I dont see FV being less than zinc.

[everything]

Same deal with concrete, rebar rusts and blows the concrete out, lasts 50-125 years, meanwhile the Romans built with un-reinforced concrete and it still stands.

From Wiki:
Identified world zinc resources total about 1.9 billion tonnes.[14] Large deposits are in Australia, Canada and the United States with the largest reserves in Iran.[12][15][16] At the current rate of consumption, these reserves are estimated to be depleted sometime between 2027 and 2055.[17][18] About 346 million tonnes have been extracted throughout history to 2002, and one estimate found that about 109 million tonnes of that remains in use.[19]

Was at an estate sale with a big pile of brass items, it's hard to understand the value of scrap items because it's a mix of cheap metals.
Nobody wants brass right now. I'm trying to research it, figuring if nobody will buy it then it's a good time to buy, but how to know all the different brass types/mixtures, it's a mess, but sounds like one way to collect zinc.

[rickygee]

Vas you never in Zinzinnati? Wat you do wit zinc is you make zincs with it. People has to have a place to wash der dishes an so far a zinc is the best place to dot it!

[dannan14]

The Simpsons hilariously tells you.

That Simpsons' clip was probably inspired by the "Zinc Oxide" commercial in "Kentucky Fried Movie". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DaDJdHPykEA

[hobo finds]

zinc is the cheapest metal out there, I dont see FV being less than zinc.

I get more for zinc than I do steel by me

[Madwest]

. . . Nobody wants brass right now. . .

Most years of 95% copper cents are technically brass. The metallurgic definition of brass is any Copper + Zinc alloy where Copper comprises more than 50% by weight.

The years where the alloy was 95% copper and 5% tin are technically bronze.

[uthminsta]

zinc is the cheapest metal out there, I dont see FV being less than zinc.

How much less expensive would they be if they were still zinc but weren't copper plated?

[theshoenlebens]

Zinc is used everywhere in electrical components. Just look at your waterheater elements for example. MANY electrical contacts are zinc plated...some clear(blue) yellow and even reds, black etc.. Zinc is the cheapest thing we do at the shop and really one of the most profitable also. The parts plate quickly, usually clean easy and zinc annodes are about $1 a POUND !! I plate silver so what I do is alittle more expensive but in high demand on high-end electrical components.

[Spikeanator6982]

zinc is the cheapest metal out there, I dont see FV being less than zinc.

How much less expensive would they be if they were still zinc but weren't copper plated?

from what I have seen with the copper plated ones with the plating damaged..I don't think think they would last very long/well.

[SilverEye]

I was wondering if we should be keeping out 82 zinc pennies, especially in nice shape. They are much more rare than the copper of that year, and zinc only needs to double in price for melt value to exceed face.

[Penny Pyramid]

Zinc is the first element in Group 12 of the Period Table. It makes up about 75ppm of the earths crust and is very abundant with many industrial uses. Copper is in Group 11 along with Silver and Gold. These metal elements are more important because of the chemical stucture being more ductile and having high thermal and electric properties. Without Copper we would not have our current standard of living today. Copper is the most critical element that provides our power grid and current way of living. Electical wire, cars, water heater, etc all use Copper in construction. Without it these products may not exist. But, Copper is abundent in the earth at about 50ppm so the future value in unknown. However, think of all the people in the third word country that want to live as well as we do today. I do not think that there is enough Copper to satisy this large demand. I am hoarding Copper pennies for two reasons: first, I do not think that any coins (money) will be made using real Copper again, and second, Copper prices should increase with the current fiscal/monetary policy being conducted by our fabulous political jokers. These should provide a real return on any savings. Just my two cents.