Help: Complete Instructions On Acetone Cleaning

^ I thought nail polish remover was mostly acetone. That's listed as the main ingredient in the stuff I used recently on a coin. Seemed to work o.k. So what is the difference and why can't you use nail polish remover?

Thanks, Mechman!

It's not a high value coin, just a circulated Bicentennial Ike, D Type I.

You may want to go to the Search Tab at the top and type in Acetone or coin cleaning or cleaning coins. There have been many, many posts about the usage of Acetone here.
Just to repeat a few.
1. Use in well ventilated areas.
2. Acetone is highly flamable so no smoking or fires of any kind in the area.
3. Use a CLEAN glass container. No metal, plastic, paper, etc. Just use glass. And make sure it is dry and clean.
4. Do not use nail polish remover or any other product that stipulates contains Acetone. Use only Acetone as purchased in almost any store that supplies painting products.
5. Keep away from your eyes with your hands if Acetone gets on them. Possibly wear safety glasses.
6. You should only dip the coin in the Acetone for a brief time. Prolonged soaking is of little values.
7. You should really have some Distilled water handy. I normally dip coins in that after the Acetone. Some do just the opposite.
8. Again, use the search tab and read as much as possible about Acetone.

You can leave coins in for as long as you want. The acetone will not harm the metal. The key is that it is of little value. Most everything that is going to be removed will be gone pretty quickly. There might be some small spots that are stubborn but most of the gunk will be gone. I think carl is just saying that so you don't set up a 37 day acetone soaking regime complete with two dozen different vats for the coins to go though.

My only comments, be careful that you don't scratch the coin on the bottom of the glass.

If you want to make sure you have pure acetone put some in the glass and let it evaporate. There should not be any gunk in the bottom.

Also, I would cover the glass container or it will evaporate quickly. In the summer I dump the acetone out on the sidewalk when I am done with a coin and most of the time it is gone in a second or two.

If I need to wash a coin with water Distilled is best. But I see no reason to use any H20 after using Acetone, the acetone will actually pull the water off the coin and it evaporates completely dry. Better than any application of H20.

Boy,, You guys think too much! You use the water rinse and I mean plain old tap water to get the crap that's in the Acetone mix away from the coin.! darn were not sending a rocket to the moon. If it's a $1000 coin this wouldn't be recommended but for plain old cleaning come on! Crap, you could use rubbing alcohol with good results and I'm sure someone in the choir will post after this and say how terrible this idea is.

Huh?