Cleaning your coins.

Unless they have changed the formulation in recent times, Lava has a pretty serious abrasive in it. You might want to work with a dish-washing or dishwasher detergent.

 

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Yes, we use plastic, now...
Joe the Plumber, Plumbers and Pipefitters Local 202

 

Here is how I clean my coins.
Copper: take a "chocolate penny" or other old copper coin, Squirt some ketchup on a saucer, plunk the penny in it, squirt more ketchup on the top of the coin. come back in 15 minutes, mush it around in your finger to see if it's clean enough, if not immerse it in ketchup again and check later. Do not go more than 30 minutes. Then wash with cold water and dish soap. If you like high luster, rub it with jewelry cloth.
Silver or nickel: Buy a jug of Amonia. Fill the cap with pure amonia, drop the coin in, come back in 30 minutes and check it. Sometimes I use a Q-tip around the date, In God We Trust, etc. Don't scrub with the Q-tip, just "Twirl the end".
Now if you want to resell your coins, cleaning them is not the greatest idea, but I keep mine or make them into ear rings or neclaces, and many are foreign or World coins. Also, cleaning with these methods will not remove "carbon spots" or blemishes like that, it will only make them stand out more as the rest of the coin looks new.
Good Luck...give it a try.

 

I could not find the "edit" button, so I'll add this.
I use the Amonia outside in the yard...cause I'm careful.
The ketchup I just wash down the drain....go figure!
Oh, and when I say "twirl the Q-tip" I mean roll it between your fingers so the cotton slaps the area you seel to clean like a motor boat propeller.

 

yaiks, i use metal cleaners to shine the coins that i have...
o well, at least now i know better
thanks

 

I'm new to collecting and I have read this thread but it's just hard for me to believe that washing a circulated coin (soap and water) would ever down grade the coin. Say from XF to VF???

 

Even from AU50 to XF......

 

Since when has silver had been good for you if you put it in water!?!?!
Yum silver. :eating:

 

It has antibacterial/antifungal properties.

 

Anyone with me or am I just a stupid newbie....?

 

^but now, what do i do to salvage the coins that i've been ignorantly degrading?
even have those green thingies in some coins... yaiks

 

Admin Person.....

If your careful with the coins, how can a quick bath damage toning or detail???
Thanks for the help :smile

 

My opinion on cleaning, for what it's worth is a matter of what the coin is worth and what you're planning to do with it. If a silver coin is worth little more than the silver in it, go ahead and experiment. If you have a high grade 1928 peace dollar you plan on getting slabbed, DO NOT even attempt a cleaning. They can spot any lack of luster, or the slightest amount of wear or swirl marks. Even if you do get it slabbed as"cleaned" it will probably be worth only 60-70% of an uncleaned coin in the same grade. Hope this helps!

 

Firstly, I hope you don't think I'm being antagonistic, just trying to learn....

If you send a coin out to be cleaned by a "professional" and there is damage beneath, you still destroy the coins value

Should I take it that no matter the condition, a coin should never be cleaned?

 

I just GoOgLeD it and zinc does it to. And zinc is much cheaper.

 

You should never clean a coin if you are wanting its value to increase. Its value will pretty much always DECREASE.
http://www.wizardcoinsupply.com/products/cleaning-coins/
That is one of the places that sells the stuff. I would not do it if I where you because that is highly frowned upon in our hobby.
But if you just really want to experiment on dirty coins you find in circulation, or coins you find in a dollar bin (which I would not recommend) that is the website.


When professionals "dip" coins it is considered acceptable to the coin community. But only if they do it correctly. And many people will want the coin dirty because it tells the story of where the coin has been.

So the lesson here is to NOT clean coins.

Hope that helped

Freaky

 

OOPS never mind I just remembered there is such a thing as zinc PoIsOnInG.

 

Where did the "edit" button go?