Quick Question About Woodies

I'm looking at several so-called woody wheat cents on fleabay and noticed that many (more than 1/2) only have the effect on one side. Is this normal or should it be on both sides?


Holiday Cheers
JP

 

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Quite often the marks made by the roller, that moves the metal sheet through the presses to achieve the blank thickness, are one side only. They also have the appearance of being same width and parallel to each other. A woody, or improperly annealed, has a more natural, random look to it.

 

I am always under the impression if the cent is improperly annealed, the wood grain effect would be on both sides and lines should run perpendicular when comparing obverse to reverse.

 

Here's my junk box woodie...

Not really perpendicular, but opposed.

 

I think it should be on both sides equally and run parallel. In other words, the lines be like the one above from @Kentucky. when you flip the coin over the lines will run the other direction since they are parallel. The improper mixture goes all the way through the metal.

 

I thought I had a woodie that I could share here but can't seem to find it. Story of my life!

 

I like it when toning follows the mis-annealed path

 

woodies are due to improper alloy mixing. they are not uniform and can be on one side only depending on the issue with the alloying of the metal.

Before Zincons, the alloy was either 95 percent copper and 5 percent zinc, or 95 percent copper and 2.5 percent each, tin and zinc.
when properly alloyed, it all tones at the same rate, if improper and there are streaks of the base metal thoughout, it will tone at different rates causing the woodie.

even if you cleaned a woodie and re-toned it, it would manifest again and again in the same pattern, because the streaks are rolled out inclusions of different levels of brass and bronze from the improper alloying of the metal.

I've beat a dead horse with these pictures on here, but why not, any excuse to put them up again since it's the only woodie I own.



The effect can be on one side, what it shouldn't be is UNIFORM on both sides.
it should have a wood grain "swirlish" appearance to it not uniform but on a flip the lines moving in the same general direction from it being rolled out and hopefully pleasing to the eye and not simply lines on both sides.

that all said and done, I looked at 7 pages of ebay listings for cent and woodie woody, I didn't see a single one that was eye appealing, and most weren't even woodies in my opinion, just streaked, well circulated coins without luster, or roller lined 70s and 80s cents.

 

Respectfully speaking, I have some but can't find any pictures of them.

 

I have both. They are nice and also different. Thanks for sharing.

 

Well, I did a quick survey of my stuff and found 36 woodies. I didn't even know I had them until shortly after I joined CT. I collected for 70 plus years based upon Date, Mint Mark and Eye Appeal. I put a coin up one time and Mr. @paddyman98 identified it as a Woodie and described the process. I had a habit as a youngster to just keep stuff that looked different. Some of those different things are now labeled as Woodies. I think I will sort through them and try to put together a few nice shots, if there are any.

 

Thanks tons for everyone's input. Sounds like its ok to be one-sided. I'll post photos of my new acquisition(s) when I receive them.

 

It depends so it can be one sided or both.

 

Not just cents, right?

 

I've heard of wooden nickels but not woodie nickels.

 

Another thing I've noticed over the years is that Woodies and Laminations are quite frequently related. If you have coins with laminations, look close and you may see that they are woodies. This is especially true with the rim-to-rim laminations. The laminations will follow the lines of the woodgrain. I have some that I will post later.

 

this is what is commonly seen on the edge of one-sided woodies.

 

@Insider nice shot, thanks.

 

So the composition of the top layer in the coin shown is different from the bottom layer.

 

Yes, one side has a streaked alloy and the other looks normal.