OK, at the Anaheim show one of the dealers had a bowl of 1-oz rounds and I went through it and selected a couple I liked. Now since these are bullion, who cares the shape, however I thought it would be good for a dipping experiment. The first two are the coins before the dip and the last two are after the dip: I know I am a terrible photographer, but I think the dip helped.
Its a good idea to practice on rounds. I did that a lot when I first played with the stuff. A good dipper needs to know what strength and what time to do it, and then how to stop the reaction. However, the biggest thing they need to know is which coins will benefit from a dip and which won't. That is the hardest part. I have an idea, but do not consider myself the best at it. Did you use full strength? For how long?
The term "dip" is most commonly understood to describe using a chemical stripping agent, most normally thiourea-based, to remove the first few layers of molecules from a coin's surface. This removes any toning.
Yep, I used EZest full strength. I first washed my hands thoroughly, seeing as how I am not one of those humans with oil-free skin. I then did a quick acetone rinse holding each coin (individually)in my fingers and letting the acetone go into a sink with running cold water. I then placed each coin in the sink so that hot water would run over the coin. I rinsed the coins using 2-3 bursts of hot water. I placed each coin in a small plastic basket I could dip in the EZest solution and dipped each for approximately 1 second two times. I then returned the coin to the hot water rinse 2-3 times and then placed it on a towel and blotted it dry. The discoloration to the right of the wolf was not removed, so I tried putting a drop of EZest directly on the spot and letting it stay 5-10 seconds, to no avail...hot water rinse and blot dry and I stopped.
THERE's the answer! Thanks. "Thiourea" sounds like a really scary chemical, kind of like "Thalidomide." I like the sound of E-Zest better... I thought the "spot" next to the wolf was part of the coin design, like the moon. I see a similar spot next to the elephant. That's supposed to be there, right?
E-Zest is thiourea/sulfuric acid, and if it takes off a lot of toning/corrosion you can really smell the H2S (rotten egg gas). The spot I am talking about is to the right of the wolf, almost to the rim and above the R in PUR.
