Hi, I'm new to this and have been seriously collecting for only about three years although I have been "saving" coins all my life. I have a bucket of pennies I've been going through and come across a 1962 coin that looks like a very good condition, high luster coin, only it is silver colored. I know at that time they were still mostly copper, and I see no evidence of copper at all. The planchet doesn't seem to be small enough for a dime, although the l in is stamped right on the rim, you can just make it out. The reverse stamping seems normal, however. It weighs .002 kg on my bird scale, so I'm not sure how accurate that is. Doesn't sound like a dime plancet, does it? How can I find out for sure?
Worst case, it could be coated with mercury. If it feels oily or greasy, get rid of it. Mercury is highly toxic and can be absorbed through the skin. And don't heat it. If it is mercury it will vaporize and then you have a toxic gas.
I also have a silver colored penny. It's just like a regular penny except for the silver colored. The edge of the penny is smooth like the newer 2016 sheild stamped pennies but it's not small enough to be a dim. No it's not oily or greasy it feels just like a regular penny. How do I know if it's an actual penny made with a silver colored metal?
Toxic, yes. Highly toxic? In it's liquid metallic form not really. As a gas yes. Compounded with other chemicals, yes! Absorbed through the skin? No. Pretty much everyone that get poisoned by mercury gets it by breathing fumes or ingesting mercury compounds. I wouldn't recommend chewing on a mercury coated coin, and you should probably wash your hands after handling one, but that's about it.
