How Does Wear Or Cleaning Affect Coin Weight?

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Author	Replies: 5 / Views: 2,772
KenKat Pillar of the Community United States 4085 Posts	Posted 06/23/2009 5:58 pm I almost posted this in another thread but didn't want to "hijack" that one. But here is my question: How much does wear or cleaning affect the weight of a coin? Is a 1/2% to 1% loss a reasonable range? Case in point, after reading the Counterfeit Trade dollar thread, I wanted to weigh my Seated and Trade dollars. Exhibit #1 - an 1860-O Seated dollar that I cracked from an ANACS slab. Marked Cleaned/Corroded EF40 Details, Net VF 20. Weight is 26.45g. Standard Weight is 26.73g. Exhibit #2 - an 1872 Seated dollar bought raw from a reputable source. Does not look to have been cleaned - I'd grade VF35-EF40. Weight is 26.68g. Exhibit #3 - an 1878-S Trade dollar that I cracked from an ANACS slab. Marked Cleaned EF45 Details, Net VF 30. Weight is 27.06g. Standard Weight is 27.2g. Are these coins (especially the two slabbed ones) in a reasonable weight range? Does cleaning affect weight? It seems like it would. I bought the two slabbed coins specifically because I was worried about counterfeits, but I must admit the counterfeit slab problem makes me worry a bit. Here are some not so great pics of two of the coins in my 7070. The 1872 wasn't there yet: Ken My 7070 US Type Set My 7100 Lincoln Cent Set (now with updates!) Report this Post to the Staff

Napoleon31ft Pillar of the Community United States 528 Posts	Posted 06/23/2009 6:30 pm those are good weights. I dont think that cleaning would affect the coin weight at all. Report this Post to the Staff
Gilbert New Member United States 12 Posts	Posted 06/23/2009 6:51 pm I would agree that clean would not effect the coin weight, but not cleaning may cause a coin to weigh more. I have had coins that were very oily and dirty and I just removed the surface grim. I did weigh two and they were over the standard weight by a tenth or slightly more. I hope this helps. Report this Post to the Staff
BH1964 Bedrock of the Community United States 10982 Posts	Posted 06/24/2009 12:21 am It's not unusual for a heavily worn coin to lose 5% of it's nominal weight. I've heard of extreme cases where authentic coins were 10% under weight when very heavily worn. The weights you've posted are all reasonable. And yes - dipping a coin does remove metal but you'd have to really over-dip a coin to lose much weight. ANA #R3154474 Report this Post to the Staff
SeatedNut Pillar of the Community United States 2797 Posts	Posted 06/24/2009 08:27 am Ken, good question. All of the weights you've provided are within acceptable tolerances. My examples of counterfeit Seated dollars weigh in around 21~22g, much less than the authentic 26.73g. The size of these counterfeits is correct, but the metal composition is not. Common-date contemporary counterfeits (made during the coins circulation) were meant to fool merchants, not collectors. No precious metals were used (what would be the point). Counterfeiting to fool the collector was much more sophisticated by comparison and includes attempts to duplicate the coin blank as well as the design. If the weights and sizes are correct, but you are still concerned, you could test specific gravity of the metals using a relatively simple test link to KurtS explanation - https://goccf.com/t/39666 Cleaning (unless done with a grinding stone or wire wheel) doesn't reduce the weight to a concern level (weight loss greater than 5%). Wear is what takes away the metal. A P01 Seated dollar (near slick) will weigh in around 25g and an AU should not be below 26.5g. You can extrapolate the weights by grade within this range. Edited by SeatedNut 06/24/2009 1:56 pm Report this Post to the Staff
KenKat Pillar of the Community United States 4085 Posts	Posted 06/24/2009 1:48 pm Thanks everyone for the helpful information. I've always had a nagging worry about the possibility of counterfeit slabs but I feel pretty good at this point that I've got real ones. I will probably skip the specific gravity check for now - but it is good to know for the future! Note, the specific gravity link is: https://goccf.com/t/39666 SeatedNut, your link had an extra zero on the end. Ken My 7070 US Type Set My 7100 Lincoln Cent Set (now with updates!) Report this Post to the Staff
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