1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel
The 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel is a Canadian nickel struck for circulation with 24.8 million made. Value band: face value. Here is how to recognize it, what makes one worth more and what to check on yours.
- Year
- 1943
- Circulation mintage
- 24,760,256
- Value band
- Face value
- Composition
- Tombac (88% copper, 12% zinc)
Original illustration of the coin's shape and metal. Tap to flip. Not a picture of the actual design.
Face value · Small premium · Collector premium · Significant rarity. We use bands because prices change daily.
What is a 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel worth?
With 24.8 million made, the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel is common and worth face value in circulated condition. Only uncirculated coins with full luster, recognized varieties and genuine errors interest collectors.
What would make yours worth more:
- Sharp detail with original luster
- A recognized variety for the date
- Professional grading for a key date
For market prices, look at recent sold results for the same coin in the same condition, not asking prices.
Quick answers
- Is the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel rare?
- No. 24.8 million were made, so circulated examples are worth face value.
- How many 1943 Tombac Canadian nickels were made?
- 24,760,256 were struck for circulation.
- What is the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel made of?
- Tombac (88% copper, 12% zinc). It weighs 4.54 g and measures 21.2 mm, with a 12-sided shape.
- Is the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel still legal tender?
- Yes. Canadian 5-cent coins are legal tender.
The 1943 nickel in context
The 1943 Victory nickel is one of the most interesting coins Canada ever made. Instead of the beaver, the reverse carried a wartime morale message. A large V for Victory stands behind a flaming torch and around the rim runs a line of dots and dashes in Morse code spelling out We Win When We Work Willingly. The coin was meant to remind everyone who handled it that the war effort depended on them. Few coins anywhere have carried such a direct message.
The mint struck 24,760,256 Victory nickels in tombac in 1943, by far the largest five cents mintage up to that point. Wartime wages and full employment meant people had more money in their pockets and needed more coins. The brass alloy and the 12-sided shape continued from late 1942. In 1944 even copper and zinc were needed for the war, so the Victory design moved to steel, leaving 1943 as the only Victory nickel in tombac. Its huge mintage means it is easy to find, but it remains one of the most collected Canadian coins of the war.
How to recognize it
Thomas Shingles designed the Victory reverse. The torch is set over a large V, with CANADA, the value and the date arranged around them. In place of the usual beaded border, a ring of Morse code circles the design. It reads We Win When We Work Willingly. The obverse has the bare headed George VI by Paget. The coin is tombac, a brass of about 88 percent copper and 12 percent zinc, with 12 sides. Fresh coins were bright brassy yellow, but most have now darkened to brown. The 12 sides carry on from the tombac beaver of 1942. It is not magnetic.
1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel by the numbers
Measured by how many were made, the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel ranks 94th lowest of 161 Canadian nickel dates and varieties from 1858 to 2024. The next scarcer is the 2017 150th Anniversary Canadian Nickel (20 million); the next more common is the 1971 Canadian Nickel (27.3 million).
For scale, the most common is the 2008 Canadian Nickel with 278.5 million, about 11 times as many. The scarcest is the 1884 Canadian Nickel with 200,000, 124 times fewer than this one.
Compared with the dates around it, the 1943 output was 7.3 times the 1942 figure and 2.1 times the 1944 figure.
Over the 1940s the Mint produced 127.6 million five cent coins across 12 dates and varieties; the 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel accounts for 19% of that.
What to check on your 1943 Tombac Canadian Nickel
- Try a magnet. Tombac (88% copper, 12% zinc) is not magnetic, while the plated steel coins of later years are.
- Confirm the variety: tombac (brass) wartime alloy. Use a magnifier and compare with a reference picture before you assume you have the scarcer one.
- Never clean it. Rubbing or polishing leaves fine scratches and an unnatural shine that collectors avoid.
- Look at the high points of the portrait and the design. Wear there sets the grade. The grade in turn drives the value of older five cent coins.
The 1943 is common, so look for quality. A brassy coin with sharp Morse code and a clear torch flame is far more appealing than a dark, worn one. Tombac tends to spot and streak, so even color matters. It is fun to try reading the Morse code yourself; on a crisp coin every dot and dash should be distinct. Look also for the tip of the flame, which is the first area to wear. Coins with dents on the edges or deep scratches across the V are best avoided.
Wartime tombac and steel nickels (1942 to 1945)
The Second World War took the nickel out of the nickel. The metal was vital for armor plate and munitions, so partway through 1942 the mint stopped using it. The first replacement was tombac, a brass of about 88 percent copper and 12 percent zinc. Because a brass coin could be confused with a worn cent, the new piece was made 12-sided. The first tombac coins of 1942 kept the beaver. In 1943 a new reverse by Thomas Shingles appeared: a flaming torch over a large V for Victory.
Around the rim of the Victory reverse runs a line of dots and dashes. It is Morse code for the slogan We Win When We Work Willingly. Copper and zinc were also needed for the war effort, so in 1944 and 1945 the Victory design was struck on steel plated with nickel and chrome. The 12-sided shape stayed. These coins look silvery like normal nickels but are clearly magnetic and tend to rust where the plating is broken.
The 1942 round pure nickel coin and the 1942 12-sided tombac coin are both common in worn condition, but they are worth separating since they are different metals. Tombac darkens to a brown that can look like copper; a coin that still shows bright brassy color is the one to want. The steel coins are hard to find without spots or pitting, so a clean, fully plated example deserves attention. Check that the Morse code on the Victory coins is sharp.
Mintage chart
Specifications
| Country | Canada |
|---|---|
| Denomination | 5 cents |
| Issuer | Royal Canadian Mint |
| Year | 1943 |
| Circulation mintage | 24,760,256 |
| Composition | Tombac (88% copper, 12% zinc) |
| Weight | 4.54 g |
| Diameter | 21.2 mm |
| Shape | 12-sided |
| Edge | Plain |
Frequently asked questions
What does the Morse code on the 1943 nickel say?
It spells out We Win When We Work Willingly, a wartime slogan meant to encourage Canadians on the home front. The message runs around the rim of the reverse in place of the usual beaded border.
Is the 1943 Victory nickel rare?
No. Over 24 million were struck, so it is common. It is popular because of its design and wartime story. Bright, sharp examples with clear Morse code are the ones collectors look for.
Mintage figures: Nickel (Canadian coin) (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0), compiled from Royal Canadian Mint figures. How we build these pages.