CU-1C-1945S-09 Cud

Description

Ninth documented cud for the 1945 San Francisco Mint Lincoln Wheat Cent, CU-1C-1945S-09 records a rim fracture that occurred during the final year of World War II production. Cross-referenced under its catalog designation by Cuds on Coins, this variety represents the San Francisco facility's contribution to the surprisingly robust 1945-S cud catalog, which has accumulated at least nine documented rim fractures. The 1945-S cent was struck on recycled shell casing brass — the same composition used in 1944 — at San Francisco's historic facility overlooking the city's financial district. San Francisco produced approximately 181.77 million cents that year, and the shell casing brass composition, while closer to standard bronze than the 1943 steel alloy, still had subtle metallurgical differences from the pre-war 95% copper formulation that may have contributed to die wear patterns. Each cud in the 1945-S sequence documents a unique rim fracture location, and collectors attribute specific cuds by matching the position, arc, and extent of the raised featureless mass against the catalog description. The progression from CU-1C-1945S-01 through CU-1C-1945S-09 traces nine separate instances of catastrophic die rim failure at the San Francisco facility during 1945, providing a statistical sample of die fatigue behavior during late-war production. The transition back to standard bronze composition would come in 1947, after a brief continuation of the shell casing alloy through 1946.

Attribution History

• Discovered by Marvin L
• CU-1C-1945S-09
• Expert attribution by Cuds on Coins

External References