Am I the Only One Never Heard of a 'HOBO NICKEL' Before?

Reaganite Republican ^ | 06 October 2015 | Reaganite Republican

[Reaganite Republican]

 

Certainly no lack of historical curiosity in my noggin, but this one's new on me.
Hard to imagine how I missed it, because it's a delightful folk art form to be sure- pure Americana.

Due to the relative cheapness, softness, portability, and (adequate) thickness for sculpturing,
the US 5-cent coin proved perfect for carving into highly-creative works that can be carried around in your pocket. 

Alterations of coins had occurred in Europe, S. Africa, and the US in the 18th and 19th century -in cruder forms-
but introduction of the 'Buffalo' nickel in 1913 brought about a surge in popularity of the sculptures, as the large, raised Indian on the coin allowed plenty of material to work with. 

I remember as a young coin collector that the too-high date on the lower left of the Indian wore off faster than any coin,
leading inevitably to dateless nickels- the buffalo nickel design was flawed from that standpoint. But the thick, raised Indian relief was what made it so ideal for hobo nickels.

The 'hobo nickel' term itself is generic, as they've come to include all denominations of coins, US and otherwise.
The art form enjoyed a significant renaissance in the 1980s in the wake of a book published on the topic by a numismatics expert... thus the modern variants:

[gallery]

[Jamestown1630]

https://www.youtube.com/results?search_query=coin+ring+making

[TBP]

I don’t know what a hobo nickel is, but that sure looks like President Reagan.

[Reaganite Republican]

Would be nice to get him on the 20 dollar bill...

[Oatka]

I’m guessing the silver coins were a lot easier to work with than today’s coins.

It really wasn't sculpturing, but a Korean War buddy of mine said that when they were sent home, it was via a 30-day troopship "cruise".

With plenty of time on their hands, the guys started making silver rings out of 50c pieces. They'd swipe a soup spoon from the galley, go topside and sit cross-legged on the deck. Using the heel of their combat boot as an anvil, they'd begin turning the coin, using the spoon as a hammer and tapping the rim until it peened over. When it was wide enough to pass as a ring, they'd get the ships machine shop to bore out the middle.

He said it reminded him of a Chinese workshop with dozens of guys patiently tapping away all day, day after day. After 20 days of hearing "tink, "tink", "tink" he stayed below decks until they reached port to keep his sanity. The practice got so popular, the ship ran low on soup spoons and forbade their use elsewhere.

Dunno what else they used for a hammer, but being Americans, you know they'd come up with something else.

What bothers me is how many scarce dates/mintmarks were lost that way.

[Rodamala]

This thread reminds me of one of Bob & Ray’s “The Do-It-Yourselfer” pieces where Fred Falvy teaches the listeners how to make a washer out of a quarter using a ball-peen hammer, a 10d nail, and a rat tail file.

[TBP]

Create a $25 bill.

[uglybiker]

Or this.