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 Replies: 17 / Views: 2,820 |
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New Member
United States
5 Posts |
can anyone tell me how I can clean an 1863s sitting liberty dime I found
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3294 Posts |
I think that almost everyone here would recommend against cleaning, polishing, scrubbing, or dipping the coin in anything as doing any of those things can make a $500 coin a $20 coin. If you could post some pictures so we know what we are up against, we could recommend so ideas that would not cause damage and might remove the worst of whatever is on the coin, but a dirty coin is far more tolerable for collectors then one that has been cleaned (and we can tell).
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
12437 Posts |
 If you attempt to clean it, you will almost certainly devalue the coin. Pictures are a must because one man's "dirt" is another man's toning. How did you find this, metal detecting? |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
8904 Posts |
PLEASE don't clean your coin!!  I REALLY think you'll be sorry!  With a low mintage of 157,500 of this type, you could be wrecking a true treasure! There are LOTS of discussions on this forum that discuss this topic. PLEASE read them before you do anything to your coin! |
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New Member
 United States
5 Posts |
yes I found the 1863s sitting libity coin while metal detecting I will have my husband help me post a picture of the coin.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1304 Posts |
Please do not clean the coin!!!!!!!!
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10982 Posts |
Post a pic before attempting to do anything with the coin. Abrasive cleaning damages coins but there are many conservation techniques available that we could help you with after seeing the coin.
P.S. They are know as "Seated Liberty" dimes.
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New Member
United States
5 Posts |
this is the 1863s liberty dime I hope I did it ok
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Valued Member
Canada
464 Posts |
I can't see the photo!
Try uploading the image to imageshack.us and then pasting the link for us.
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New Member
United States
5 Posts |
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Pillar of the Community
United States
968 Posts |
I don't really see much about that coin that requires cleaning. The dark areas look like some tarnishing of the silver, but you are probably better off leaving that alone. Did you do any cleaning to the coins already?
Anyway, pretty cool metal detecting find!
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New Member
United States
5 Posts |
Someone told me to stick in a regular potato but that didn't do anything I haven't tried cleaning it with anything else and a couple months ago I found a Half Dime metal detecting as well no cleaning was done on it. |
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Rest in Peace
United States
4849 Posts |
Great finds! As all have said, keep them as they are. When/if you decide to sell them. they will CERTAINLY bring in more money if you haven't cleaned them. guarenteed!
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Valued Member
Canada
464 Posts |
Maybe you can put that dime in a glass of distilled water for a few weeks?
Distilled water contains no chemicals, the dirt should slowly dissolve off the dime. This method is used for cleaning ancient coins which have been in dirt for hundreds/thousands of years. When the glass becomes foggy, you can replace the water.
What do the other members think about this? Would PCGS/NGC slab a coin as "cleaned" if this method was used (could they even tell?)?
Edited by gawd0wns
12/08/2009 8:29 pm
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Bedrock of the Community
United States
10982 Posts |
This is a great detector find and as such I'd carefully clean it with a mild detergent and water. Do NOT rub the surfaces of the coin. Allow it to soak for an hour or so, then rinse it in running water and pat dry. Always hold the coin by it's edges.
Seems to have VF details and might be worth $30-$40 if conserved. Good Luck!
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Valued Member
United States
124 Posts |
 That's a great find! I think it looks pretty nice as it is  |
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Replies: 17 / Views: 2,820 |
Posted 12/08/2009 1:03 pm
