| Author |
 Replies: 34 / Views: 7,163 |
Page 3 of 3
|
|
|
|
Valued Member
United States
134 Posts |
I soaked some no date buffalo's in white vinegar for about 2 weeks and now they have dates.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
 United States
3276 Posts |
i just threw a dateless buffalo I found in a box in some vinegar. i'll check in a week or two for the date.
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
United States
12437 Posts |
If you use vinegar on copper, it will end up pink and ugly  |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3755 Posts |
Vinegar is acid, so using Nic A Date on the date will bring it out on a Buffalo without eating away at the other parts of the coin like a vinegar soak would.
But that nickle came out awesome considering what it was. I hadnt thought of using vinegar, but I have some I will try it on now.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
if you rib ketsup all over a copper penny it will shine it right up, its incredible. but... it also makes the penny look ugly and pink, like biokemist said that vinegar would do.
|
|
Moderator
 United States
188420 Posts |
And just what is in ketchup?  (If you guessed vinegar, you are correct.) |
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
haha, I had no idea what was in ketchup because I hate it. haha. but no wonder it has the same effect of vinegar! I just remember before I ever collected coins my wife showed me the ketchup trick. but boy did the penny look ugly with its new color.
|
|
Bedrock of the Community
Australia
21786 Posts |
Verdigris is always a destructive and perplexing problem for coin collectors.
The composition of verdigris is a variable mixture of corrosion products of copper:
1. copper carbonate
2. copper oxide
3. copper hydroxide
4. copper hydroxycarbonate
Fortunately, they are all susceptible to reaction with vinegar (acetic acid).
Acetic acid reacts with all of the above compounds, and soluble copper acetate is formed.
With copper carbonate and copper hydroxycarbonate, CO2 is liberated and should be visible in the form of tiny gas bubbles. With copper hydroxide and copper oxide, water is formed and the copper acetate just goes into solution.
I have written out the reactions, to make sure that they are atomically balanced.
It is a bit taxing to me. I have had to make use of old high school chemistry I have learned, and that was over 40 years ago, so I stand to be corrected if my chemical equations are not right. If anybody is interested, I will post the chemical equations I have found to work.
The problem with verdigris (copper disease) as most of us know, is that it can leave nasty corrosion pits on a copper or copper alloy surface. The mechanical damage so caused cannot be repaired.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
i don't get how vinegar can retrieve the date on dateless coins, buffalos for example. how on earth does that work?
|
|
Moderator
United States
188420 Posts |
I believe it works because the date is compressed differently than the surrounding area, so the acid etches the metal at different rates.
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
|
|
New Member
United States
4 Posts |
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
1080 Posts |
Quote:
I believe it works because the date is compressed differently than the surrounding area, so the acid etches the metal at different rates. yep. As I recall, the raised areas end up with a higher copper content, so when the vinegar/nic-a-date/muriatic acid eats away the nickel, the raised areas become pronounced again. |
|
Valued Member
United States
175 Posts |
Man that vinegar soak did wonders for the looks of that Nickel. I would of never imagined!
|
|
Pillar of the Community
United States
3276 Posts |
i didn't scrub the nickel at all either. the scratches must have been from a previous cleaning... but all I did in the before and after pictures was let it soak for 1 day. lol.
|
|
Page 3 of 3
|
Replies: 34 / Views: 7,163 |
Page 3 of 3
|
First Page
Previous Page
Posted 05/26/2011 2:46 pm
