Mr. Rawles,
Regarding the letter “Sorting Canadian Pennies“, I wanted to correct some errors for those Canadian nickel collectors out there.
The nickel from 1922 onwards to 1982 was made from – you guessed it – nickel (99.9% Nickel to be exact; with the exception of some years in the 1940s and 1950s when they were made of a either copper-zinc alloy (tombac) or chrome plated steel. This was because nickel was in short supply for the various war efforts.
The Canadian nickel’s composition changed in 1982 to the cupronickel composition used presently in the US (75% copper, 25% zinc); and it was changed again in 1999 to the present ‘faux nickel’, which is steel clad with a copper/nickel plating.
What does this mean for collectors?
A magnet will attract the 99.9% Nickel AND the steel-core nickels, effectively separating all cupronickel nickels, as this alloy is non-magnetic. The cupronickels are the same composition as present US nickels and are worth saving.
A quick visual scan will weed out the pre-1982 with the post-1999, either by the large date on one side or the difference in images of the Queen on the other.
So don’t let people discourage anyone from Canadian nickels. The sorting is simpler than Canadian pennies, and the dates are bigger and easier to see. Since it is illegal to export nickels from the US nickels in quantity, they are the only nickel available for collectors in Canada.
Here are some relevant files from from the Royal Canadian Canadian Mint.
Respectfully, – E.B.