A Penny saved might just be 2.5 cents melted.

Copper hit $3.66 a pound today on the COMEX exchange – that’s a lot. Copper is heavier than iron, and the weight really adds up quickly. I know this as I just got done moving several thousand pounds of copper bars to a better location for them.  Coper is approaching silver in value. How crazy is this?

For example, it only takes 146 pre-1982 pennies to make a pound. Yes, that means you can make $2.20/lb. by melting down your pennies. Except, of course, it is explicitly illegal to do so.

At current rates, A cubic inch of copper is worth a little over a dollar; a cubic foot is (get this) worth over $2000.

Verizon, a telcom provider, recently had vandals steal over $300,000 in copper from their cell phone towers last year, and that was just in California!  All over you hear of people having their AC systems stolen, for the copper.

Lock up your piggy banks!

Side note, for those that collect smashed pennies (you put in 2 quarters, and 1 penny, and turn a crank that makes a elongated penny as a souvenir )   Pre-82 pennies are the only ones you want to use for this, since 82 and older are mostly zinc and look like crap.