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 Replies: 11 / Views: 3,080 |
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Valued Member
Canada
464 Posts |
Many of the pennies in the roll I just bought are oily. I don't know why the pennies are oily, and whether or not it could damage the coins. Could this indicate they were dipped/cleaned? I have read that PVC holders can cause coins to become oily, though I doubt these pennies were ever placed in any PVC holders. Any ideas? See attached photos.    Still looking for the '55 NSF...! Thanks Edited by gawd0wns
05/27/2008 11:43 am
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Valued Member
United States
324 Posts |
Its hard to say on pennies that are over 50 years old. I had a roll of 1c coins from 1968, and even though the roll was sealed since 1968, all the coins had toning and discoloration on them. There was something in the paper that caused this. In fact, they looked something like in your images.
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Valued Member
 Canada
464 Posts |
The paper roll could be it. The roll was deterorating, I had to throw it away. I wonder if it would be a good idea to rinse these pennies with distilled water.
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Valued Member
Canada
351 Posts |
IMO thats a great condition coin to find in a roll, yes I imagine distilled water would be good for it
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Valued Member
Canada
464 Posts |
The only distilled water I found contains ozone. Is this safe to use?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2408 Posts |
Myself I use oil on older copper coin that have been etched (dipped or otherwise cleaned by novice collectors) as a method of restoring some luster and to help restore the coin's natural brown color when dipped into oil followed by water. Oil also improves contrast.
Perhaps dipping the coin in oil for extended period of time would also bring back full redness to lightly oxidized copper coins. I've never tried this myself but I think it is a better alternative than dipping the copper into Coka Cola...
So yes, presence of oil can be a sign that the coin has been manipulated.
Marc
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Pillar of the Community
United States
5318 Posts |
" The only distilled water I found contains ozone. Is this safe to use?"
Perhaps the chemists here can best answer, but I doubt a quick rinse would matter because ozone won't remain on a coin's surface. Just a guess! RB coins like these won't be harmed by a quick distilled water rinse.
Edited by KurtS
06/06/2008 4:36 pm
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2408 Posts |
The coins shown here looks good enough I would not risk potential damages caused by further manipulations.
I personally remove the excess oil with a damp tissue. But again, this is on an already oxidized copper coin. My guess is that if you expose copper to water it will tend to oxidize. Not a good thing here.
Marc
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Valued Member
Canada
464 Posts |
Thanks for the advice. I have since placed the pennies between two tissues, and laid a small book on top. This helped a little. I have also moved them to a new roll, maybe some of that oil will get soaked into the paper.
I am curious... How would you all grade the obverse of the penny in the center?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2408 Posts |
gawd0wns
The red looks original, so MS-60 or more? But the marks in front of the Queen's face are very distracting and there are a few rim nicks too.
It does not look like the coin circulated, so... the book says it qualifies for MS-60.
Marc
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Valued Member
Canada
351 Posts |
yah I'd say AU 55 to MS 60.
I wouldn't be worried about that, But dont try anything to make it more RED. Just dip it in warm distilled water and pat it dry with a cotton cloth. DON'T rub it. I don't think that oil is doing the coin any good
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2408 Posts |
gawd0wns
Yes as you saw the coin will remain oily. Warm (even boiling) water will not dislodge the thin film of oil entirely. I experimented a bit with oil and copper and... the only cheap yet effective way I found was with: DAWN dish-washing liquid soap. DAWN does not affect the pH, contains no acids and no oxidizers that could affect the surface.
If anything you try, try with a test coin first!!
Candidly speaking, the fact that there is oil in the first place could mean a deliberate attempt at concealing small hairlines, minuscule cracks, pits such as those caused by prior abrasion, dipping, rubbing, etc...
Good luck.
Marc
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Replies: 11 / Views: 3,080 |
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Posted 05/27/2008 1:21 pm
