water and soap

is it OK to clean coins with a wash cloth, water, and soap? Opinions?

 

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No

 

even coins that are not of real value and you want to put in a folder?

 

When I was a kid I cleaned all my coins for my albums because I like them nice and shiny. I reduced a collection worth several hundreds down to face value (about $50). No dealers wanted them at all.

 

Soap and water will do the same damage as a hammer and chisel.
It will reduce any value your coin may have had to face or melt.

 

Nonsense. A mild soap and water bath is harmless (no wash cloth or hard rubbing). It is usually not very helpful, though. Use a gentle liquid soap and rinse well. Final rinse in distilled. If you are concerned about any residue then dip in acetone.

What is it you're trying to remove? There are better treatments.
Lance.

 

Everyone is going to have their own opinion, but I think Doug pretty much covered this in the cleaning coins thread pretty thoroughly. The only way I think anyone will ever truly learn is to keep submitting coins for grading until you get tired of spending money and having them come back in a body bag.

 

DO NOT CLEAN YOUR COINS!! I found a 1992 D Close AM.. I was soooo excited!!!! I immediately rinsed the coin with water and wiped down with a cotton swab to see/detect the details better to make sure my eyes weren't playing tricks on me. I verified it was a CAM and sent it to PCGS.. I DID NOT use any cleaning solution of any sort! not even soap!! The coin is coming back as Genuine not gradable with a 92 code on it.. 92 code means "Cleaned" ... I'M SOOOO TICKED OFFF! so do we just send them in with hunks of mud on the coins? the coin has no discoloration of any sort.... In the future I'll send all coins in with mud/guke on them I guess

 

Whoa....that really sucks! It's a catch22, they won't grade them with chunks of them and they won't grade them if they've been cleaned. Unless you can skillfully conserve a coin and leave no obvious trace behind, don't attempt it. In the case of valuable coins, the job is best left to NCS.

 

How much does NCS charge to clean a coin and if they clean the coin wouldn't the surface be free of dirt/debri considering it "cleaned" still? I'm so confused... I could of punched holes in the wall yesterday.. My heart was broken..

 

I haven't rec'd the coin back yet but the online update thing showed me the outcome/update on the coin..
this is what it states:
Line #Item #Cert #PCGS No.CoinDateDenominationVarietyCountryGrade1119536071391427 1992-D1CClose AMUSGenuine (92 - Cleaned)

 

well that didn't post like I copied it.. ugh.. anyway, I think you get the general idea... I could of got shot in the knee and felt better afterwards

 

NCS doesn't clean coins, they conserve them. Unless you're Doug, there's a big difference between cleaning and conserving.

It depends on the coin, but it starts at $25 + extras, from what I've read. Keep in mind they reject many coins. If they feel they cannot conserve it properly, they'll send it back to you. Also, they cannot "unclean" a coin. Many collectors ask if NCS can "fix" a coin, nope, they cannot....once a coin is damaged from an improper cleaning, it will always be that way.

Conservation is an acceptable practice, when properly done, NGC and PCGS will still slab a coin. Thousands of conserved coins reside in the major TPG holders. In fact, most experienced collectors agree that the majority of blast white silver coins in slabs have been dipped.....but "properly" dipped.

Well, don't be too sad about your CLAM. I'd rather have one in a details/genuine slab than not have one. Honestly, I don't think it will significantly hurt the value because these are so rare.

 

thank you.. you've picked up my spirits considerably!!

 

NO soap will leave residue upon your coins and/or you will end up with the results Tinkerbell did.
Tinkerbell click the blue numbers in your link it works :s. Well but with being a low pop coin you still may get something for it.

 

I'm glad I made your Friday! This is the case with all very rare coins. Collector demand is high and supply is low so even damaged/cleaned example tend to fetch money that is close to a pristine example. In fact, many collectors flock to them hoping to get them at a discount. How the coin looks also plays a part. Collectors tend to buy the coin and not the slab on problem coins. If you can barely make out the problem, it will fetch dollars VERY close to a non-problem coin.

Extremely rare problem coins are not like a regular coins where they can lose 90% of their value! I suspect you'll get good money out of this coin should you decide to sell it. If I were you, I'd send it to NGC or ANACS next so you can get a details grade.....or you might even get lucky and they'll miss the cleaning put it in a regular slab.

 

cool, didn't realize the blue link worked..
oh my gosh! should I take it out the slab when I get it back and send it to NGC or ANACS? geez, my head is zinging now! hahaha
Thanks,
Penny

 

I'd bring the coin to a coin show and get some expert opinions. The main thing to avoid in any way, shape or form is contacting the surface with cloth or any abrasive. Running water over the surface of a coin will not abrade it. Acetone is available at hardware stores and may be useful removing things that water will not--but again, any abrasive contact to the surface may damage it. Nail polish remover has acetone, but also other problem chemicals.

NCS charges a percentage of the value of the coin or a minimum. They called me once on a submission with copper spots that they removed cheap. Sure beats using strychnine which some people use.