Buffalo Retoning Question. - Coin Community Forum

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

Author	Replies: 5 / Views: 1,793
vanbroj Valued Member United States 450 Posts	Posted 11/29/2013 9:23 pm I picked up a nice details 14d buff with a full horn. Once I received it in the mail I noticed that the obverse has been lightly cleaned. I put it in the window sill to expose it to the air, but I am concerned with all the moisture in the air it might develope a carbon spot. Any ideas on how to safely tone this coin down a little ? Thanks ! Report this Post to the Staff

vanbroj Valued Member United States 450 Posts	Posted 12/02/2013 09:50 am When I have left silver coins exposed to the air, they have toned nicely. My concen with nickel is that they can get carbon spots. Has anyone on the forum ever tried to retone an old nickel and what were your results ? Report this Post to the Staff
52Raymo Pillar of the Community United States 8516 Posts	Posted 12/02/2013 10:57 am I did it with a War Nickel and it turned out gorgeous but that was summer time. Oregon coin geek.....* GO BEAVS ! ! ! * Report this Post to the Staff
AES Valued Member United States 452 Posts	Posted 12/02/2013 11:41 am I've never specifically tried but I packed away a partial set of details/cleaned/damaged buffs in the attic (so I wouldn't have to look at them), inside a cardboard folder. Over several seasons they toned lightly, with blue overtones. It gets kind of hot and humid up there during the summer. I also improperly stored a set of War Nickels in a damp basement once. They were on a holed cardboard "coin card" with obverses shrink wrapped in plastic. When I opened them up, the reverses appeared to have black pox everywhere there was a hole in the cardboard. Needless to say it didn't improve eye appeal. Edited by AES 12/02/2013 11:50 am Report this Post to the Staff
hesgut Pillar of the Community 1028 Posts	Posted 12/04/2013 02:17 am Any coin will tone with heat, but that is not something I would do on a valuable buffalo as the toning pattern is very unpredictable due to the way those planchets were mixed. AT can also be achieved with sulfer, but I wouldn't really do that either. Unless the cleaning is absurd looking, it's probably best to leave it alone. You have a cleaned coin now. At best what you will end up with is a cleaned coin with AT. At worst is a coin that can be better described as messed up at its end result. Are you sure it hasn't been polished. Especially since you mentioned as only having had the obverse worked on, it might just be polished. I only rarely come across a cleaned buffalo in the traditional sense. Collectors rarely cleaned those coins, but everyone and their mother was polishing them for non-numismatic purposes back in the day. I hope you didn't overpay as a one-sided polished buffalo will lose a large amount of its value. At least it's a key date in what is probably XF, tough to find. Report this Post to the Staff
vanbroj Valued Member United States 450 Posts	Posted 12/04/2013 7:44 pm I don't think polished, lightly buffed with a jewelers cloth would be my guess. I will let it sit in the window sill for awhile ad see what happens. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 5 / Views: 1,793

To participate in the forum you must log in or register.

All Forums Category: US Coins and Currency Forums Forum: US Classic and Colonial Coins

Silver Gold Bull US is the United States leading bullion dealer. We deliver gold coins, gold bars, silver coins, silver bars and precious metals to your door. Order today!

The First Dollar, your premier source for bullion and rare coins. See our bullion list on the site and the coin inventory on ebay.

Disclaimer: While a tremendous amount of effort goes into ensuring the accuracy of the information contained in this site, Coin Community assumes no liability for errors. Copyright 2005 - 2026 Coin Community Family- all rights reserved worldwide. Use of any images or content on this website without prior written permission of Coin Community or the original lender is strictly prohibited.
Contact Us | Advertise Here | Privacy Policy / Terms of Use

Coin Community Forum

It took 0.23 seconds to rattle this change.