Just What Constitutes "Cleaning" Of A Coin?

I do clean coins but first experiment on several of the same denomination and date which are not my intended keepers. If you kill those, no big deal as they were experimental. Get yourself a 5x and perhaps 10x loupe so that you can look at the results under magnification. When you feel you got the technique right for your keeper, proceed with caution. I found that even with pennies, there is a difference between years in what metals where used by the mint, I have gotten mixed results. Especially between a US 1 penny, versus nickel, versus dimes and quarters, major difference primarily due to hardness of the metal types.

For the record, I'll admit that I killed a few keepers.

You're gonna have to post some pictures to get an accurate response to your question and fill in some more details, like what is the coin, what is all this "debris" you are removing from it, and what is your goal with the coin. Best to start a new topic to get specific responses about your coin.

i sent several coppers in to both ANACS and PCGS several years ago as I was looking to sell them. all had soaked in verdicare. none came back cleaned. also, I think someone called it above. you not supposed to rub the coin using verdicare just let it do its thing

i would never use olive oil on a coin. whats the purpose of that? as far as I can see it would leave a film on the coin. acetone will remove any organic matter on the coin no rubbing needed.

a coin does not have to show any hairlines and it still could receive a details designation for cleaning if the coin was overdipped and it removed the original surfaces. theres a fine line you don't want to cross

If soap and running water or acetone is considered cleaning this is becoming ridiculous.

But I love it. Already found a very good coins cheaper because it was called cleaned.