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 Replies: 20 / Views: 11,530 |
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Valued Member
136 Posts |
Bought a tumbler from Harbor Freight a few weeks ago and I must say it is a gift from heaven. On account of the metal detecting...my coins are orange black and brown. After a day in the ol' tumbler, they are coming out better than some of my circulated change that's already clean. The contrast on the coins comes out a hundred times better and you can see every single fine detail on the coins.
Anyone else pick up one of these?
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2373 Posts |
 My kids have a sack of detector finds. What model and cost of the tumbler? nlp |
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Valued Member
 136 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2373 Posts |
Hey thanks for the link. I have a HF store about a mile from my place. I go by it nearly every day. nlp
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10284 Posts |
You know I was in Harbor Freight about two weeks ago and I was looking at the UltraSonic Cleaners. I even had the kid plug one in and put a Lincoln Cent in. It had a plastic basket inside and some kind of ultraviolet ray or something. I thought this might be a useful gadget to get trapped dirt in Coin lettering and mint marks free but after watching it work, I thought it would probably cause wear to the coin as well. Anyone use this. I know they are OK to use for dug and ancients but probably not a cure for higher grade coins. |
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Valued Member
136 Posts |
The regular rock tumbler does fine for me. It doesn't seem to leave any marks or signs of wear on the coins either. As for the Ultrasonic cleaner Wheezy I'm not sure. My dad wanted to try it out but with all the youtube videos on the tumblers and their remarkable results I figured I buy that one. All other potential buyers should search them on youtube also and you will see the difference of before using it and after. All you need is dish detergent/soap and or AJAX bleach and some aquarium rocks and then you just let it go for 24 hours. Also, a big plus is that you don't have to break the coin machines with filthy coins like I did a few weeks ago  |
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Valued Member
136 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3077 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
891 Posts |
I have been on the lookout for a tumbler for my finds. Didn't even think to look at harbor freight. Did you get it at the store or online? Guess I could call and see if they have any there.
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Valued Member
136 Posts |
I got this one at the store for about 30 bucks. They should have them there if you stop in.
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10284 Posts |
I think that is a miracle how that Lincoln cleaned up, but I am wondering, wouldn't any coin end up being pretty much in the same category as a "whizzed" coin after such a treatment?
Certainly, in some cases, this is probably the only method to actually clean some badly dirt infected coins.
But they are "cleaned".
I am not for or against it, just pondering the numismatic opinion on this.
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Valued Member
136 Posts |
Sorry but I'm not sure what you mean Wheezy  please elaborate... |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3077 Posts |
cleaned coins are considered a type of damage
example I bought what I was told was a BU merc dime for $4 brought it home did a scan of it and it showed me it was a whizzed coin and it is only worth the silver
i am out 3 dollars but I wont buy a "BU" coin unless I look at it w/ a 10x loupe
lesson learned
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10284 Posts |
For metal detecting people, a find is a find. I don't think mint conditions matter as they do to those who collect coins from circulation, coin shops, and want them in original condition. I understand that for metal detecting people, cleaning your coins may be an acceptable practice for you, but for the other collecting community, cleaned coins are considered altered and worth most times, less than the grade they were in before the alteration. I definitely don't want to be hollering over the fence about what is right to do to a coin or what is wrong. You guys find them, finders keepers. It's your prerogative to do what you want. What interest me in these tumblers and ultrasonic cleaning machines is what evidence is left behind when you look under a magnification. I don't want to buy cleaned coins personally, as I have yet to really find the perfect solution to cleaning them that does not almost always devalue them. I would like to know what to look for as a result of using these things and I would also like to know if they are worth using to maybe even be the way to go with hopeless coins. Late edit: I just noticed that the first image of the corroded coin is a 1969 D Lincoln Cent and the new and improved second Lincoln is a 1964 D. My first time I looked I thought this was a BEFORE and AFTER pair of images. I have seen many Indian Head cents and early Wheat cents that looked like the 1969 D in junk boxes and if I could make them look like the 1964 D I would run to get a tumbler today. I would re-sell the coins but mention that they are "cleaned". Edited by TNG
09/11/2009 10:24 am
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Pillar of the Community
Philippines
1156 Posts |
Metaldetectingtaylor that is a very interesting link. Please excuse these questions as this is my first look at a tumbler - What cleaning medium does the "tumbler" use? and how does it "tumble-clean" a coin?
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Valued Member
United States
341 Posts |
Can anyone with a tumbler here do an experiment with pics of the same coin?
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Replies: 20 / Views: 11,530 |
Posted 09/09/2009 8:34 pm
