Question About Acetone Use - Coin Community Forum

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

Author	Replies: 5 / Views: 1,583
Garoyn Pillar of the Community United States 513 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 12:04 pm So you have a coin with stuff on it that may or may not be removeable with acetone. A quick acetone dip doesn't take the stuff off. A five-minute soak and careful encouragement with a toothpick doesn't remove it. A soft swab with an acetone-laden Q-tip doesn't remove the stuff. The electric sander finally does the job and removes the stuff. Does stuff that will come off with acetone usually come off with a quick dip or quick/initial gentle encouragement with an acetone-soaked Q-tip? Or is a longer soak often needed? How long? 5 minutes? 24 hours? A week? Is there really a benefit to soaking for 4 hours instead of just ten minutes? The chemical interaction/removal process really doesn't need that long, does it? I know, I know, it depends on the specific "stuff," how much is present, how long it has been there, and whether Aquarius is in the first house or the second house. But, in general, is there a recommended length of time to acetone soak (or not) a coin having stuff? My experiments indicate that if stuff is going to come off, it's going to come off right away, or with a very short soak. Soaking a coin for any length of time does not seem to aid in removal of the stuff. But I have a limited sample size. What are your thoughts? Report this Post to the Staff

edweather Pillar of the Community United States 7375 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 12:18 pm What was suggested to me, was an overnight soak, preferably with the coin standing on edge in a small glass, so any crud falls down and off the coin. Am sure others have different suggestions. Edited by edweather 08/04/2016 12:20 pm Report this Post to the Staff
just carl Bedrock of the Community United States 20753 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 12:29 pm I've done a lot of experimenting with Acetone and coins. 1. Acetone will work in a matter of minutes. After that, your wasting your time. 2. I've put coins in Acetone for hours, days, even weeks and after the first few minutes, no big change. 3. For lots and lots of info on Acetone, just use the Search tab in this forum for Acetone, coin cleaning, cleaning coins, etc. Report this Post to the Staff
Sap Moderator Australia 16831 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 5:41 pm I agree with just carl, and your own observations: if it doesn't at least start to come off after a few seconds in acetone, then acetone ain't going to make it come off, no matter how long you leave it there. Acetone is a chemical, not magic. It will dissolve quite a lot of "gunk" you're likely to find on a coin, but it won't dissolve everything - if it did, they'd have trouble finding a bottle to sell it to you in. 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
Pacificoin Pillar of the Community Canada 5394 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 5:52 pm Acetone ......any more than ten minutes is not helpful. As an aside yesterday had some crud on a low grade Morgan dollar. Tried acetone no help . Let it soak for a couple of minutes in Goo Gone it worked . Never used Goo Gone before hmmm. Report this Post to the Staff
NoPoMoCo Valued Member United States 403 Posts	Posted 08/04/2016 6:18 pm If nothing is known about the gunk, I understand that you should try the following sequence of 10 minute soaks in a shot glass: water, then acetone, then xylene. That's from BadThad's polarity ladder. Don't know the polarity of Goo Gone but to wash it off the coin you need water then acetone. Report this Post to the Staff
	Replies: 5 / Views: 1,583

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

All Forums Category: General Numismatic Forums Forum: Main Coin Forum

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

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!

View Last 100 New Topics

View Last 100 Active Topics

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.