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 Replies: 14 / Views: 2,410 |
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
2805 Posts |
Picked up a lot of world silver today:  Since they were melt and I had nothing to lose, I unleashed the ultrasonic cleaner (for science). It's so cheap that even though it's the "base" model, you can feel the holes where the parts of the "premium" model go on the control panel.  And the end result...  The lighting changed in my original setting thanks to some fast-moving clouds, so I tried my best with a high-intensity LED. Unfortunately, they ended up looking different anyways, so these pictures are only good for seeing really obvious grime removed or details exposed. Oh well... I like the deep tone on the sixpence, and it's reassuring to know it's not just pocket grime. It also helped reveal crucial details on those two old slicks you see there! I was actually able to identify and date the 5 kopeks (1892), and it pulled back enough of the grime on the 3d (not sure about denomination) to show "1837" instead of "18(curve)7", although honestly I could have just worked it out based on the monarch. I find that this helps the most with high points - these get the most stuff rubbed on them and so they usually get a bit discoloured. I had a melt half that had some nasty gray areas on Elizabeth, but the ultrasonic cleaner actually completely removed them. As for the metal abrading - I don't imagine the cleaner doing it during operation very much (the water is impelled to move, so the whole basinful receives the effect), but taking your coins out might rub them a bit. I wouldn't go tossing BUs in here, but it works pretty well for everyday junk... |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3079 Posts |
Go to any fabric or craft store that sell those yarn picture kits and the plastic canvas bases for the yarn art. buy a plastic canvas and cut it to fit the bottom off the tank. It will keep the coins from bouncing off the metal tank floor. If you think the actions might damage the coins. And don't forget to flip the coins over and run them through on each side.
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Pillar of the Community
Canada
2781 Posts |
would love to see more of these 'experiments' but with duplicated lighting. even changing the background color will throw off the results substantially.
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Pillar of the Community
United Kingdom
4208 Posts |
You should try some uncleaned roman coins!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7840 Posts |
I really like that 1940 Dutch Gulden!  But of course any found coin is a keeper!  Edited by oih82w8
06/12/2013 10:00 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8515 Posts |
If you do it again keep the background and lighting exactly the same. How much did you pay for the cleaner and where did you get it ?
Oregon coin geek.....*** GO BEAVS ! ! ! ***
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Pillar of the Community
United States
7840 Posts |
Edited by oih82w8
06/12/2013 2:17 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
624 Posts |
The downside of sonic (or any other cleaning)... if you remove some old stains that have settled into ridges in the coin (e.g., the fasces in the reverse of a Mercury dime) there could be discoloration or uneven wear. I love shiney coins, but cleaned coins are like bad dentures on a supermodel. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8515 Posts |
Acetone in the ultrasonic cleaner instead of water...the mind boggles !  Oregon coin geek.....*** GO BEAVS ! ! ! ***
Edited by 52Raymo
06/14/2013 10:02 am
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3079 Posts |
Quote:
Acetone in the ultrasonic cleaner instead of water...the mind boggles !
Edited by 52Raymo
Today 1 Hr 3 Min ago DO NOT UNDER ANY CONDITIONS USE ACETONE OR ANY OTHER FLAMMABLE SOLVENT IN ANY TYPE ULTRASONIC CLEANER That is a sure way to a disaster, Use only water and a small amount of degreaser or detergent. |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8515 Posts |
What if you got an extension cord and sat it in the middle of a field and then plugged it in ?
Oregon coin geek.....*** GO BEAVS ! ! ! ***
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Pillar of the Community
 Canada
2805 Posts |
Quote:The downside of sonic (or any other cleaning)... if you remove some old stains that have settled into ridges in the coin (e.g., the fasces in the reverse of a Mercury dime) there could be discoloration or uneven wear. I love shiney coins, but cleaned coins are like bad dentures on a supermodel. That Mercury was in the melt bucket (note: usually, mercs that nice go in 2x2s in Canada) because of some odd black lines on the heads side - but the fasces side had only one of those lines line. So I thought "since it has a D mint-mark, I can put it in the 1916-D hole of my folder!". The black lines cleaned right off, and now I can pretend I own a key date. (For base-metal, I take a 2012 coin and stamp the key date into it) Quote:
What if you got an extension cord and sat it in the middle of a field and then plugged it in ? The socket on this thing is ridiculously unsafe. It doesn't have a ground and it's missing those holes on the ends of the prongs that most normal plugs have. The result is that it visibly sparks whenever you plug it in - and the furthest away you can get the cleaner full of flammable and volatile fluid from this spark is about three feet... Edited by nalaberong
06/14/2013 3:31 pm
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Moderator
 United States
23522 Posts |
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What if you got an extension cord and sat it in the middle of a field and then plugged it in ? Only if you also have HD video capability. |
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Valued Member
United States
459 Posts |
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and the furthest away you can get the cleaner full of flammable and volatile fluid from this spark is about three feet... Why not just plug the cleaner into the extension cord, then plug the extension cord into the outlet. You should be able to get as far away as you want, depending on the number of extension cords you have.  |
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Bedrock of the Community
United Kingdom
17896 Posts |
The worn 1837 coin is a groat (4 pence) - it should have the portrait of King William IV on the obverse.
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Replies: 14 / Views: 2,410 |
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Posted 06/11/2013 11:14 pm
