It's the PRINCIPLE I tell you!

[Shalom]

what I thought was a copper slug but turned out to be an 1885 V nickel O_o (uniform heavy brown toning, but as far as details go I'd say the condition is fine or better)

1883 was the first year of issue for that nickel, and there are tales from back then of confidence men copper-plating them and passing them off as $5.00 gold coins to suckers who'd never seen either a real $5 coin or a new-issue nickel. They eventually put the word "CENTS" under the V to help prevent this sort of fraud.

I wonder if you've got one of these modified coins, which would explain the off-coloration..