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Help! I Think I Messed My New Coin Collection While Trying To Clean It.

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Pillar of the Community
United States
869 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  11:30 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add flag4 to your friends list


Since you have nothing to lose at this point, I would say soak them in MS70. It would at least remove the pink from the silver coins. The copper ones unfortunately will never be the same.

Live and learn . .
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United States
3058 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  12:20 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add coinlover1899 to your friends list
DONT CLEAN COINS! Very big thing in collecting. You could have a $1M coin, clean it, and make it a $100,000 coin.

Welcome! To coin community!
Rest in Peace
10197 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  12:23 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Crazyb0 to your friends list
to the family!

Yea, oops! Those are most likely goners if they're copper, cupro-nickel clad/coated. Vinegar reacts to the copper within these alloys doing just what happened to you. In some case actually changes the properties of the upper layers into a slightly different composition,, that's why you can't go back to restore original. Sadly, sounds like you have to start over. What Earle42 said is spot on, but also remember that under that "crud" may leave an altered look, shiny or duller, just depends on how long it was on coin. Dishsoap works great on the "oily" grease, the acetone removes organic grime. Might also try a very long soak in mineral oil (-6 weeks), but no guarantees on that method.

If any are of silver content, a silver cleaner(dip) may help. Final thought would be try a sonic jewelry cleaner, it also might work, especially on those that "overlapped".



Flag4: Never heard of MS70, what is that? Something like WD40?
Edited by Crazyb0
04/04/2017 12:27 pm
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Norway
1358 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  12:33 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add UltraRant to your friends list


Well, it seems like you got yourself a fantastic excuse to come back to Europe and the US! Seems like you already got some 'dirty' change to spend, now. Honestly, these coins are written off when it comes to collecting, but they still are legal tender, so you can just spend them again. Just consider it 'learning money' as the Dutch call it.

Next time, just keep an eye on what you get in change all the time and use a few minutes every night to go through what you got during the day. Then pick the nicest ones, and update ones that you already got in case you got a nicer one. That's how I keep my collection of 'travel souvenirs': Coins are the only souvenirs I bring from countries I visited, and I visited 100+ of them. What I also do is a bit of preparation to find out which coins are currently circulating in a place and what varieties to look for. It's especially fun when you spot a certain coin you still lack in a cash till and ask the cashier if you can buy it. The look you get usually will be the same as when you declare that the sun rose in the west that day or that you just set water on fire.

Oh, and don't ever, ever, consider cleaning coins again. Just use a wooden toothpick to get rid of dirt that's attached to a coin and a soft cloth to wipe off finger prints: it's the only 'cleaning' I do as more would do irreversible damage to coins.

Anyway, good luck and welcome back to us in Europe!
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United States
10982 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  12:37 pm  Show Profile   Check BH1964's eBay Listings Bookmark this reply Add BH1964 to your friends list
I'm assuming these have no numismatic and are still worth face value of course. In the future don't clean any coins at all. This was likely a very inexpensive lesson.
ANA #R3154474
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 Posted 04/04/2017  1:18 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add mkman123 to your friends list
lets hope none of the coins were expensive
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3201 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  1:25 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add DL20K to your friends list
I cannot see any image but by the description alone I think I know what the result was. I remember reading that once they're pink that's it and nothing can be done to improve them (apart from polishing which just means damaging them further).

If it's just currently cicrulating change, it's best to spend them someday when you visit those countries again... preferably in vending machines (as some clerks may not want to take the pink coins - just as much as they don't want to take ground finds which have toned black).
Bedrock of the Community
Canada
10743 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  4:52 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add SHAFTA9a to your friends list
Aarrgggg, never, ever clean coins.
Bedrock of the Community
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 Posted 04/04/2017  5:01 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Coinfrog to your friends list
Indeed.

Anyway -



to the CCF!
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4211 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  5:06 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Debrajc to your friends list
Nantes!

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869 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  5:33 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add flag4 to your friends list

Quote:
Flag4: Never heard of MS70, what is that? Something like WD40?


It's been discussed here before . .

http://goccf.com/t/118885

Some folks like it, some don't . .

I've found it useful under certain conditions, if used properly . .
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189673 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  5:41 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add jbuck to your friends list
to the Community, Nantes!

I am sorry to hear what happened. For me it seems these coins had the additional sentimental value attached to your travels.

The important thing is to remember what you did wrong and start again. Hopefully it will not be too long before you can re-assemble a decent foreign collection.
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4212 Posts
 Posted 04/04/2017  6:18 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add fioti to your friends list
Vinegar---->salt----> metal cleaner

That's got to be the cleaning trifecta.

Sounds painfull, no pics is a good idea.

New Member
Brazil
2 Posts
 Posted 04/06/2017  09:52 am  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add Nantes to your friends list
Thanks for the replies and the warm welcome! After years of meditation, consultation with wise old monks in the mountains of Nepal, and peregrination around India, I have developed an incredible, miraculous technique to restore these previously hopeless cases! It involves the latest cutting edge in numismatic cleaning technology...

steel wool! Voilą: http://s1064.photobucket.com/user/K...show/?sort=9

Who would have guessed, right?
Bedrock of the Community
United States
20753 Posts
 Posted 04/06/2017  3:34 pm  Show Profile   Bookmark this reply Add just carl to your friends list

To start with try a bit of Acetone in a clean glass dish. Only put in one coin at a time. Let soak for a few minutes and remove. Place on a cotton towel to dry. More than likely most will not improve. Next try Jewerly cleaner from places like Walmart of Target. You don't have much to loose now so further cleaning will not hurt much more. IF you get that pinkish color off, place coins on a wooden block on a window sill for a few months. Again, not much to loose.
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