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 Replies: 27 / Views: 3,108 |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3486 Posts |
Or, for the Americans and Canadians, dime wise and dollar foolish!
Look, I had a strange thought this morning concerning the "need" to use cotton gloves when handling coins. I have always laughed to myself about the necessity of using them.
But I figured, to each his/her own.
My thought was this: if you faithfully use cotton gloves BUT DO NOT USE A FACE MASK you are deluding yourself!
For the human breath, exhale specifically, contains not only water vapor but also carbon dioxide and bits and pieces of every chemical you ingested over the past several hours. Had eggs for breakfast? Your precious silver just got a blast of SULFUR!
Just something to think about. DO as you wish to do.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3253 Posts |
That's why I always examine my coins at the nearest Denny's, at the salad bar, beneath the sneeze guard.
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
548 Posts |
That's why on the rare occasions that I take my coins out of their plastic capsules I hold my breath for those few seconds.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8904 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1840 Posts |
This seems a little excessive to me. What about pollen or atmospheric pollution? Following this line logic means that I'll have to use the class 6 clean room at work when I want to work on my collection. I've browsed thousands of coins that were are at least 100 years old and still had full luster. I assume that they were handled and people breathed near them at some point since their minting.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
624 Posts |
I store my coins at a secret underwater location in the middle of Lake Michigan. The cold and lack of oxygen removes any breath or bare finger contamination and actually improves the grades of my coins. The only downside is the faint odor of fish after I retrieve them.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3253 Posts |
Probably smells better than the Denny's.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1200 Posts |
I've always preferred the Scott Air-Pak widely used by emergency fire services. I find the full-face mask more comfortable than a scuba mouthpiece.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
2805 Posts |
I bought an after-market Soyuz capsule so I've been storing my collection in low-Earth orbit. It really keeps the tarnish down!
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Pillar of the Community
 United States
3486 Posts |
snowman,
You have the right idea! There is a point at which the measures taken to "preserve" coins becomes a bit excessive.
Coins are like babies. The first baby is guarded around the clock. A sneeze is treated as The Plague. Diarrhea is treated
as an intestinal invasion Not so much with the second child. By the time the third baby arrives, the parents only respond during a commercial!
Both babies and coins are made of strong stuff.
You'll all sleep better if you remember this.
But, dear friends, I thoroughly love the humorous responses to my serious warning. It was not meant to provoke a panic,
but only to put things into perspective.
Wink.
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Bedrock of the Community
13014 Posts |
Quote:
Probably smells better than the Denny's. Not during Baconalia. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3486 Posts |
to nalaberong:
Of course, the lack of free oxygen reduces the possibility of tarnish. But does the lack of gravity also
prevent the coin from gaining a "rim bump?" After all, nothing really can fall in zero gravity!
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Pillar of the Community
Russian Federation
5172 Posts |
Back in spring 2011, I got a bunch of shiny red new 2010 euro cents (that's 2010, not 2011, so they must've seen some circulation) from a foreign guy who arrived at my university (he didn't need that small change, and I was happy to get some shiny stuff for my collection). By the end of the month they turned an ugly dark color, and I hated the very idea of me ever bringing them home  In more positive news, a shiny red 1955 Wheat cent that I got from a fellow CCF member back in August 2012 is still just as shiny and red as it was when I got it. Presumably this means that having a coin in a 2x2 helps in this regard  (no idea how he kept it red since 1955 though). |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3486 Posts |
Спасибо, январь!
2X2 работы для многи. монета.
Thanks, January!
A 2X2 works for many coins.
Too few collectors realize that coins are as much alive as flowers and trees. They change under certain conditions.
And as much as we would prefer that they remain static, the laws of Nature apply.
Happy to hear that your 1955 is behaving so well!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1195 Posts |
The whole white glove thing is a bit much. You wear them to keep hand dirt off the coin, but it will eventualy seep through if you dont wash them. Where do you put them when you're not using them to keep them clean?
I just wash my hands before I go to put newly aquired coins in 2x2's.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3486 Posts |
My thanks to argentum. If you want/need to wear white gloves, then go for it.
Just be aware that more than a few of us routinely handle coins worth $ and $$ and $$$ and $$$$ with bare hands.
We are comfortable doing so. BUT, we also use other safeguards. Such as a simple kitchen towel on the table over which we hold the coin.
So simple. Just do what makes YOU most comfortable.
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Replies: 27 / Views: 3,108 |
Posted 04/14/2013 1:32 pm
