Acetone On Proof Quarters? - Coin Community Forum

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Author	Replies: 6 / Views: 2,409
Chinesehorse New Member Canada 42 Posts	Posted 10/30/2012 4:58 pm I recently obtained a proof 1952 U.S. quarter that my friend owned. He didnt know how to hold coins. The quarter, even though still very "Shiney" and has a full luster but has very obvious fingerprints that make it look "funny". I know acetone works on regular coins fine and cleans them but will using them on PROOF coins devalue them in anyway? Thanks! Report this Post to the Staff

clairhardesty Pillar of the Community United States 1027 Posts	Posted 10/30/2012 5:36 pm Acetone won't hurt your proof coins at all, just don't rub them with anything. If all you do is soak and agitate them in the acetone you will be fine. I always find it best to finish with a good distilled water rinse followed by a blow dry with very clean air (super filtered compressed or from a can). Report this Post to the Staff
jbuck Moderator United States 188213 Posts	Posted 10/30/2012 5:47 pm There is no need for a distilled water rinse! The best thing is one final rinse in fresh acetone. Acetone evaporates really fast, so there is no need to blow dry. Coin Collector Since 1978 Avatar Old Avatar 7070 Eisenhower Australia Canada World CCF Members on eBay CCF eBay Search Engine Report this Post to the Staff
just carl Bedrock of the Community United States 20753 Posts	Posted 10/31/2012 08:18 am Quote: There is no need for a distilled water rinse! The best thing is one final rinse in fresh acetone. Acetone evaporates really fast, so there is no need to blow dry. Wouldn't lighting it with a match make it evaporate faster? Probably shouldn't say that since there is always someone that would try that. There is a reason many do rinse with distilled water. Sometimes the Acetone absorbs dust in the air and when it evaporates it leaves that as a residue. However, contrary to that, so does the water. Report this Post to the Staff
upstate Pillar of the Community United States 3283 Posts	Posted 10/31/2012 12:58 pm Let us know if the finger print goes away. If it has been there a while it probably will not. Report this Post to the Staff
mdpmedia Pillar of the Community United States 3546 Posts	Posted 10/31/2012 2:07 pm Quote: if the finger print goes away. If it has been there a while it probably will not. The reason fingerprints remain on coins is because all humans are composed of amino acids (among other chemicals) that are also present as very weak acids on the surface of fingertips. When handling any proof coin, for example, without wearing cotton gloves these 'mild' acids will actually chemically etch the surface of a coin producing the common 'fingerprint'. Attempting to remove one of these 'older' fingerprints is simply an exercise in futility and can actually end up producing undesirable hairline scratches which will severely devalue a valuable proof coin for example. mdpmedia Report this Post to the Staff
smokeriderdon Pillar of the Community United States 3755 Posts	Posted 11/01/2012 08:05 am As long as you do not rub the coin, using the acetone and NOT water as jbuck said, you won't damage the coin. As mdp said though, if it is an old fingerprint that is etched in, you won't see an improvement. Doesn't hurt to try. carl, LOL. That WOULD work and likely not do anything to the coin. A flammable liquid does not actually burn itself. The vapors it releases are what burns. So, the liquid on the coin would not burn just the vapor above the coin, therefor no heat would be affecting the coin. Now, this is simply a theoretical discussion, NOT an encouragement for anyone to try this. Someone burns down their house and comes back with "Carl and Don said you could do this..." Just my luck. LOL Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 6 / Views: 2,409

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