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 Replies: 9 / Views: 2,608 |
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Valued Member
United States
85 Posts |
I have a few coins that need cleaning very badly. One is a 1887 shield nickle and the other is a 1884 O Morgan, for starters
What's the best way to go about it ?
Thanks.
Oh, I got some 1943 Wheats that have rust too.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1291 Posts |
Aauughhh! Nooooo! Bad!! Put your hands over your head and back slowly away from the cleaning products!
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Pillar of the Community
United States
3076 Posts |
Soap N Water, Acetone bath.....cleaning coins will only hurt the value and collectability of the coins..removing grime is not the same as chemicals that "WILL REMOVE METAL" to make it look nicer/cleaned but destroy the value and easily noticed as cleaned....
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Pillar of the Community
United States
2757 Posts |
I'll tell you a quick story and I'm sure everyone in here has a similar one. An old relative had saved a bunch of old coins and passed away. A gem of his collection was an 1883 nickel that was clearly in MS condition. Next to the coin collection was a bottle of coin cleaner -- uh oh! We got out a loupe and found tiny abrasions on the surface - essentially cutting the value in half if you can even find a buyer or someone who wants a cleaned coin in their collection ... Yes, I am talking about the 'chemical cleaner' mentioned in the previous post. A little soap and water are usually ok as long as you don't rub the dirt you just loosened up across the coin and scratch the surface.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1418 Posts |
Pictures would help us say what needs to be done.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
651 Posts |
In dark realm of the hobby and as a former employee at a large and popular coin shop, I've seen and used the following:MS 70, Nic-A-Lene, Nic-A-Date, Olive Oil, WD-40, Acetone, Ammonia, Jewel Luster or dips, lemon juice, rust remover jelly, soap and water, and a few items that contained CFCs that are no longer on the market for obvious reason's.
Yes, I worked for the "Dark Side" of the hobby. Westnlas I am your father.
My advise- do not clean coins and stay away from them if you want a decent return.
But if you want to delve in the dark arts of cleaning here it is:
for the nickel and if it's really "rusted looking" then use lemon juice- no guarantee.
For the silver dollar-try ammonia an then rinse- no guarantee. All this takes practice.
After awhile you can easily spot these at shops and shows.
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Valued Member
Philippines
386 Posts |
fcraso is right, lemon juice is okay (mild acid bath) for at least an hour then rinse it with any distilled water - do not use mineral or tap water, because some impurities might make the coins spotted. And never wipe the coins, just mild tap and air dry. Acetone would fasten it to dry. Here in the Philippines, I use calamansi (local lemon) as a mild acid bath. No chemicals pls... goodluck on your first try.  |
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New Member
United States
16 Posts |
I think it's cool you folks actually answer the question. I'd have saved myself a lot of aggrivation had I started in this forum. This place is great! Now...did I ever tell you guys about lighter fluid? LOL..Peace.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
968 Posts |
Lemon juice and vinegar are the only two things I've found to get a really corroded nickel silver colored again. It has taken me up to 3 days of continuous soaking to clean them up.
How about posting some images of your coins. The knee-jerk reaction of "never clean coins" has developed because people will try to clean up coins with minor dirt or tarnish issues and end up hurting the value of the coin more than they helped it. But if you have truly ugly coins, like those I dig out of the ground while metal detecting, a good cleaning can make a coin with absolutely no value into one with some value. Understand that the coins I'm dealing with would probably be graded VG at best (usually Good or worse), so its not like minor abrasions or the effects of a mild acid are going to damage the coin much more than what has already happened to it. If you have a high grade coin that has dirt on it you may need to consider other options. But a low grade coin is a prime candidate for lemon juice.
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Pillar of the Community
United States
1409 Posts |
Soooo - brasso is a no-go? LOL j/k. Hot soapy water has done wonders for some of the grimier coins I've had. I've used vinegar on some Buffalo nickels, but you can tell that they've been in "something" when done, and unless its a mintmarked one that I'm hoping to reveal a great date on, I avoid that too now. I just don't like that flat silver look it left. |
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Replies: 9 / Views: 2,608 |
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Posted 04/16/2010 3:36 pm
