Can I Wash A Little Dirt Off Of An Unc Coin?

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Author	Replies: 7 / Views: 1,695
edweather Pillar of the Community United States 7375 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 2:52 pm Please don't beat me up for this question. I'm kinda new at this, and probably know the answer already, but thought that there might be a instance where one should clean an uncirculated coin "a little." Specifically, I recently found 2 SBA wide rims in an old roll of uncs. They look nice. Probably MS65, and possibly 66. The roll is in a plastic screw top tube. Over the past 35 years, a little mold crept into one of the tubes and put a haze on a few coins. Is it ok to rinse it off? Maybe just running it under a little warm water? I'd hate to detract from the value of a coin for a little dirt? Or does dirt not detract from the value when graded? Does a grading company ever clean a coin in any way, before grading it? I have my football helmet on so you can hit a little hard. Thanks. Ed. Report this Post to the Staff

John1 Moderator United States 56855 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 3:48 pm I would start out with a quick dip in acetone,not nail polish remover but 100% acetone.Read up on the use of it here on CCF.Type it in the search box upper left of page. John1 Report this Post to the Staff
sel_69l Bedrock of the Community Australia 21786 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 10:07 pm Whatever solvent you use, be it distilled water or acetone, rinse the dirt off, DON'T rub it off. Report this Post to the Staff
nalaberong Pillar of the Community Canada 2805 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 10:15 pm My gut response would be to kill it with fire. But acetone should do the trick. Report this Post to the Staff
Sap Moderator Australia 16809 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 11:12 pm I seriously doubt it is actual mould; most coinage metals are pretty good fungicides. Mould certainly cannot attack a coin directly. From the sounds of it, it's more likely to be PVC damage. Acetone will get rid of the PVC goo, but not the hazing - that's caused by corrosion, and no amount of washing in water, acetone or anything else will get rid of it. But as a general rule, yes, you can simply "wash off" dirt - literal, mud-from-the-river dirt - in water. Preferably distilled/deionized water rather than ordinary tap water, especially for copper coins. Quote: Does a grading company ever clean a coin in any way, before grading it? Both the major TPGs have conservation services; if you think a coin needs cleaning/conserving before grading, use their service. If you don't use their service and send them in a dirty coin, they won't clean it themselves. I think the most they will ordinarily do is give it a blast of canned air to remove dust. Don't say "infinitely" when you mean "very"; otherwise, you'll have no word left when you want to talk about something really infinite. - C. S. Lewis Report this Post to the Staff
edweather Pillar of the Community United States 7375 Posts	Posted 09/21/2013 11:22 pm Very good responses. Thank you. Will search more about the acetone method. Yeah, it probably wasn't mold, like you said probably PVC damage from the plastic tube. I noticed about halfway down on one of the rolls that there was a black area that covered the edges of several coinn, and also crept in between the coins in the form of a grey film that took the luster away from the coin. Thanks again. Report this Post to the Staff
just carl Bedrock of the Community United States 20753 Posts	Posted 09/22/2013 7:33 pm Stick around here for a while. Cleaning coins is one of the most common posts on this or any coin forum. Report this Post to the Staff
BadToTheBone Pillar of the Community United States 1795 Posts	Posted 09/24/2013 11:18 pm If you don't want to use acetone a little alcohol(alcohol swab) lightly wiped does help one light dirt, especially tar. Rinse well with cold water and let dry on cotton towel or wash rag. I wouldn't do it on rare coins though. I have occasionally used this method without any damage as far as I can tell. Report this Post to the Staff
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