Part V: Planchet Errors:

Plating Errors

Brassy Plating

Definition: brassy plated cents are the product of a zinc contamination within the copper plating bath. The presence of the zinc produces a plating that has a slightly yellowish appearance compared with the normal copper with a red, orange or pinkish appearance. The zinc contamination comes from trapped zinc planchets that are  retained and ultimately dissolved in the plating bath. They are often found on 1983 and 1998 Lincoln cents, but could hypothetically be found on any year plated planchets were used.

Below to the left is a 1998 Lincoln cent with a brassy plating. For a color comparison a normal 1988-D Lincoln cent is adjacent.

Illustration by J Cuvelier