coin cleaning

Hey all,
I haven't gotten many responses to my previous posts concerning cleaning coins w/lighter fluid and whether anyone knows for sure the ramifications of that particular method of cleaning. I've got some large cents/small cents with the green disease and some additional small cents w/gook/blotches on them. I'm just searching for a simple, SAFE, method for doing this. If using lighter fluid, should I soak and for how long? Appreciate some input.

Thanks again Kiss

 

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Pretty much everyone's advice will be to leave the coins alone. If you want to read the several reasons for this, you should search some of the older threads on coin cleaning.

Welcome to CT! :high5:

 

I can only imagine how Garrett's Mom will take this thread? :mouth: I can see it now . . .

Garrett soaking an old copper in lighter fluid then sticking it in the microwave on high power.

Poor Missie! :bigeyes:

Ribbit

 

Sounds fun. Will acetone work?

 

Thanks for the reply. Ihave read alot so far, and I agree, concensus is not to clean at all. I got started on this whole cleaning this when my childhood best friend , who has been into the hobby since we were kids, insists light fluid does no harm and I kinda trust him, but, sorta not really, since everyone else says not to clean. Problem is I can't really find much information specific to lighter fluid in particular, which means he may be right, since I can't find anything to the contrary. I questioned him repeatedly about this method and he eventually it seemed like he got offended, so I dropped it, but, I still want to try and verify his claim before I try it on my good coins.

Thanks,

 

If all the very experienced collectors and dealers here on CT say cleaning is bad, and they include pretty much every method of cleaning, and I suppose that includes fluids that are made specifically to clean coins. Why would lighter fluid be any better than coin cleaning fluid?

However, if you're talking about coins you don't care about, it doesn't harm to experience it by yourself. Try it with dirty or oxidated pocket change, for example. You should take before and after pictures and post them here.

 

Cleaning is bad not conservation.

 

I will clean active corrosion off my coppers but I will not use lighter fluid. I don't think a petroleum product is wise to use on a coin but I can't say for sure it isn't, it just doesn't "feel" right.

Ribbit

 

Understood Luis. I get what you're saying. Again, I guess I was just kinda hoping he was correct so I could clean some of them up, especially the green large cents. Oh..and I guess I don't really have any coin I don't care about cause I luv em all! I guess I'll just try different wheaties and see what they look like. Thanks again.

 

Not something an amateur, much less a beginner, can do properly.

 

Update...I just tried and I'm mildly surprised. The victims were a 1958D and 1946 wheaties. Both seem clean with no signifigant color or luster changes. Only major difference I can see is the rims are very shiny/bright. Initially, the coins looked like they changed color (brighter), but after sitting a few minutes, they darkened right back up. I don't have a microscope to put them under but they seem pretty uniform/unchanged under my magnifying glass. I wouldn't say I'm ready to execute this paln of the rest of my coins but, at least initially, it looks promising. Peace!

 

Welcome Tom,
My opinion is in the minority but I do not like junk on my coins. That being said, I hurt the value of my 1909 S VDB EF 40 $1200-1400 coin and devalued it notedly by jumping in with limited knowledge- see my post title "my whacked 1909 S VDB and dellars darkener". Also do a search on the word "cleaning". I personally use mineral oil and a fresh rose thorns to remove gunk. Hard encrusted areas get tx with a product called "Verdigone"- Bad Thad sells here but I would only use on a coin worth a least $20 bucks or more- too expensive to use on low value coins. 90% of the people out there will tell you to properly store coins in Mylar flips or airtite brand holders (depending on value of coins) and do nothing more. Pure acetone will remove PVC but I doubt you could differentiate that based on your post- it's hard for me to tell. But acetone for a brief dip won't hurt coins. Grime won't hurt your coins either, but verdigris will and they aren't the same. You could look up "rose thorn" as well. I have posted extensively on this subject myself, but I am a novice compared to others here. If you try this method try on poor to fine low value common wheat cents or even Lincoln memorials. You will scratch coins with this, I assure you, so make sure they are not worth more than pocket change. It drives me insane that I over acetoned (in a foolish attempt to remove verdigris -acetone won't remove) my S VDB and tried to fix with Dellar's Darkener. The darkener clumped up and the sulfur in it had seperated from the petroleum and spotted the coin dark colors. My only hope at this point is NCS- whom I don't even trust, but have nothing to lose now. Good luck and let us know what you decide and how it turned out.

PS- definitely don't use lighter fluid. Not something anyone uses to my knowledge.

 

Most lighter fluids main components are Naptha octanes and nonanes. These are liquids at room temperature and not to be confused with butane (gas) lighters which are much more common these days. These are slightly larger molecules than the hexanes/heptanes which were/are used to immerse stamps to look for a watermark. Being heavier, they evaporate more slowly and thus the reason the coins looked different for a while.

I think that pure acetone has less problems both chemically and healthwise, and I would recommend over the lighter fluid. Many stamp collectors, myself included have used Ronson ( preferred brand) for watermarking, and they give much more of a headache or respiratory problems. They are used because they will stay liquids longer to find the elusive watermark.

The use of acetone is called "cleaning", but I don't feel it is appropriate due to common useage of the term normally involves physical action or chemical reaction with the coin.....which acetone does not do, only with organic material on the coin. I feel it is properly conservation. IMO.

Jim

 

Right on Jim, I love having chemist on this site. Go you and Thad. Long live the chemists. Re: lighter fluid I have heard people use WD-40, and over course xylene which is the best. So perhaps lighter fluid is not that much different. Xylene will generally remove oils the best, but smells terrrible and more unhealthy based on MSDS data verses acetone Jim explained.
:bow: :high5: :high5: :high5:

 

Thanks very much for the replies guys! I appreciate it. Gem, are you saying then that health issues aside, lighter fluid doesn't do any permanent damage to the coin? It seems like the longer these coins have sat next to me, the more normal they now look (even the rims) . Would older coins possibly react differently than they did in my "experiment"? Can I tell my buddy the he may be right, or, is he definately wrong, in your opinions. Thanks for the posts!

 

All cleaning substances aside, please watch that program on TV called the Antique Roadshow. If you do you would note they mention many, many, many times about cleaning, washing, etc anything old. Old furniture, coins, guns and/or anything old. Older items could, might just fall apart. Some of the corrosion, toning, tarnishing or whatever may already be part of the coins. Most of these problems with coins are from a chemical combination with other substances such as Oxygen, Flourine, Chlorine or many others. When they are removed they take away some of the metal. Yes you may end up with a new looking coin but it will be known, classified, tagged as a cleaned coin. If and when you or anyone attempts to sell such coins, you will notice a massive reduction in price.
A really good thing to do is use the search portion of this forum for cleaning coins, Acetone, polishing coins and/or other related subjects.
If you do use the lighter fluid, place outside and light it. :whistle: If enough fluid, no more problems.

 

Thanks Boss! I agree about the gunk and I'm definately not confident enough to try it on an S-VDB. (assuming of course, I had one). My buddy insists that it works better than even acetone, but, it's pretty hard to argue with chemists. I might give him a phone call tonight, see if I can tick him off again. LOL. Thanks for your time. Much appreciated!

 

Thank you Sir. Quick side note. During my "experiment", I also tried "E*Z*EST on two other victim wheats and that left the coins looking rather pale. The lighter fluid ,like I said, wasn't very noticable (least to my untrained eyes).The guy at my local coin shop said it wouldn't damage coins but sure didn't do much for the wheats. Maybe it's better on silver. I agree with you on the corrosion being part of the object being cleaned, hence, my definate hesitation to clean my "better" coins.

 

By the way, is it any less of an issue with circulated coins versus non circulated?