I have a question?

I went and bought a gram scale and my granddaughter and I were learning together. So we weighed some quarters. Some weighed 5.22 grams and others were weighing 5.75-5.80 grams. So I thought we didn't do the calibrations correct. So I took them down to our Jeweler. They came out the same.

So I guess my question is why is there such a difference in the weights?

Thank you in advance.

 

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There can be a lot of different reasons. We would need photos and weights to really give you the best answer.

 

It depends on the amount of wear on the coin. Coins that are very hard to read or have lost all their detail actually lose slight amounts of metal. The wear on a coin is literally the result of people's fingers or hands touching the coin and slowly scraping bits of the metal off. You can take a new shiny quarter and an old faded one and they will literally not weigh the same. Also, quarters from 1964 or before were made of silver, which weighs just a bit more than the new material they started to use in 1965 called clad.

 

1964 and earlier quarters should weigh 6.25 grams. 1965 and later quarters should weigh 5.67 grams.

 

5.22 grams would be a really worn Washington quarter. I'm not sure I've ever seen a clad quarter worn down that far. I don't suppose there's any chance the light ones were Canadian?

 

No they are Washington

 

When I get back home this evening I will post pictures. Thank you!

 

I found this online. I assume it's accurate.

Quote:
Small cent 1856 - 1971 was 2 grains or +/- .13 grams
Small cent 1972 - 1982 was 1.9 grains +/- .12 grams
nickels 1855 - date 3 grains +/- .19 grams
dimes 1.5 grains +/- .09 grams

quarters 3 grains +/- .19 grames (notice it is geting stricter. Weight of coin up 2.5 times, tolerance up only 2 times)

Halves 4 grains +/- .26 grams (weight up 100% tolerance up 33%)

silver dollar 6 grains +/- .39 grams (weight up 100% tolerance up 50% compared to the dime the weight is up ten times, tolerance up four times.)

Ike dollar 40% or clad 8 grains +/- .52 grams This is the only clad coin not held to the same standard as the silver versions.

Gold coins were held to much stricter tolerances especially as the weight increased.

gold dollar .25 grains +/- .02 grams

quarter eagle .25 grains +/- .02 grams weight up 150% tolerance up 0%

three dollar .25 grains +/- .02 grams still 0% increase in tolerance

half eagle .25 grains +/- .02 grams still 0% increase in tolerance

eagle .5 grains +/- .04 grains ten times the weight of the gold dollar with only a doubling of the tolerance allowance.

Double eagles .5 grains +/- .04 grams Weight doubled again with no increase in tolerance.

 

@Conder101 posted this on another coin site many years ago.

 

So if I'm reading this correctly clad quarters should weigh between 5.48 and 5.86 grams.

 

The tolerance for clad quarters is double what it was for silver. From what I understand the Secretary of the Treasury has at his discretion the exact composition of clad coinage and it could change slightly from time to time.

 

Maybe, but changing the weight by that amount would break nearly every vending machine or checkout coin slot. It's not going to happen without a LOT of discussion.

 

According to the 8th edition of the Coin World Almanac quarter dollars from 1947 to1964 have a wieght of 6.25 grams with a tolerance of 0.194. Those from 1965 to date (2011) have a weight of 5.67 grams with a tol. of 0.227 except for 1976 which have a weight of 5.75 grams with a tol. of 0.200. The listed grains weight are 96.452, 87.500, and 88.736, respectively. Tolerance are listed as 3.00, 3.50 and 3.09, respectively.

I love books and especially books about coins.

 

Coin making involves mass production of millions if not billions of coinage from planchets that are mixtures of alloys and that have then been in circulation with varying amounts of wear. Fractions of grams difference should be expected. They just have to set a target weight to shoot for initially when producing them. Many are going to fluctuate either side of that target weight from the get go.

 

Is it okay to post a picture of a page out of a book without copyright infringement? I have listed the source above (Coin World Almanac). US coin specifications...

Edit: *posted for educational purposes only*

 

And we are back to photos of the light weight quarters. @Poolplayer2
With well focused photos I am sure it can be determined why the few quarters are light in weight.

 

That book has been cited here in the past. Does the book say where it got these figures?

It seems like the sort of thing that should be published in a legal document somewhere, but I've never been able to track it down for all coinage, only for certain issues.