Gold color on 2005 and newer quarters

[Hopecoin]

Why do newer quarters have a gold tone on some coins and is this special.  I am a new collector and have been going though boxes of coins from my bank. Thanks for any help.

[Conder101]

If the gold color is faint and "transparent" it is probably just toning.  If it is a heavy gold it is probably gold plated by an outside source after it left the mint.  The TV hucksters sold tens of thousands of gold plated sets of quarters and now that their owners are learning they wasted theor money and the coins are only worth face value they are being spent.  Also these sets tend to come along for the ride when dealers buy the stuff that these people bought from the TV hucksters, they just dump them at the bank or hand them out in change.

[Hopecoin]

3 hours ago, Conder101 said:

If the gold color is faint and "transparent" it is probably just toning.  If it is a heavy gold it is probably gold plated by an outside source after it left the mint.  The TV hucksters sold tens of thousands of gold plated sets of quarters and now that their owners are learning they wasted theor money and the coins are only worth face value they are being spent.  Also these sets tend to come along for the ride when dealers buy the stuff that these people bought from the TV hucksters, they just dump them at the bank or hand them out in change.

Thanks, color is toning...is that done at the mint and why is it not on all the quarters. I have looked at several thousand quarters and have only a few with this beautiful color.

[Conder101]

No it is not done at the Mint, it is just something that sometimes happens as a reaction between the metal of the coin and various gases in the atmosphere.  The color and how quickly it develops is dependent on what gases are present, the relative humidity, and the ambient temperature.  Oil films that were on the planchet at the time it was struck may also help keep the toning from developing, or can result in the color being uneven. (the planchets are lightly oiled to help keep them from sticking or jamming in the feeding equipment of the coining presses.)