Toning Silver Video

Artificial Toning Silver Video

I think this is how they do it! I found the video pretty neat. I kind of want to do it to a few common coins for fun. Ignore the guy's ransom-like voice. The secret is revealed below!

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VrA7Jyw1uOs

 

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Interesting! Sure takes the mystery out of all those rainbow toned coins flooding the marketplace.

 

creepy voice.

 

Interesting video, mega-creepy voice.

 

Check out his other videos, to a nurd like me they are really cool!

 

woah, that explains a heck of a lot.

 

Yep, and this seller has a lot of these toned coins. Check out what he buy's.

 

Man that video is old and has been around in many other places. I do agree with GDJMSP that that is only 1 method and there are many other ways to do this junk out there.

 

Notice that the toning is the exact opposite of what you would find on a coin. In his video, toning from the inside-out would be a red flag on any coin, as NT occurs from the outside rim and progresses towards the center of the coin - thus keeping the blues/greens/magentas near the edge.

But as most of you might know, sulfur that's suspended in water is 99% of toning technique. The batteries are only there to speed up the process (as does heat).

 

A large proportion of older coins were once stored in envelopes, many specific for coin use, that unfortunately had a high sulfur content. This tended to expose the coin more from the raised points ( rims and center usually) that touched the paper, and not as much in the fields. The brown Kraft paper before the 1980s, when archiving info became better known is very suspect. I know collectors as chronologically challenged as me and others may still have some of these envelopes and enclosed coins. Moisture is always an important factor, so being stored in such envelopes did not always result in toning nor corrosion.

Jim

 

Guy sounds like a cereal killer!!......LOL

 

Om nom nom.

 

That guy is kind of cool, some neat chemistry demonstrations, all very basic. However, the potential to cause bodily harm is great. I don't want to know how many people have been injured trying to replicate his experiments....probably why he disguises his voice. LOL

 

Got to agree with that. Anytime someone suggests using dangerous items and so many little kids see that and try the same thing and without supervision, it is a horror story waiting to happen. That is to me one of the problems with the internet. No way to monitor who is watching and thier ages. Imagine a kid of about 8 to 10 trying this and getting some in thier eyes.
And as to toning anything Silver, there are so many simpler and safer methods.

 

What are some safer, easier ways to artificially tone? The reason I'm asking is because I recently purchased a few coins for my own collection, and they have all been polished and made blast white, so that there is no life to the coins I'd like to add some life and character back into them. How can I do that without having to wait 100 years for it to happen naturally?

 

"Blast white" and "no life" in the same sentence would be an oxymoron

But if by 'polished', you mean attacked with metal compounding agent and a dremel, they should appear mirror-like, but in a bad way. Unfortunately, there isn't much you could do to get that mint-state look back onto the coin. If you're willing to experiment, you might could try some fine grit sandpaper or tossing it around in a bag of sand and small rocks - although that could take some time and possibly wear your coins down to an undesirable state.

As for the toning, sulfur is the key ingredient to induce toning on silver or copper coins. But if you're wanting a more natural look, place the coins in a window sill for a few months.. or heck, you might even try the Taco Bell napkin technique.

 

Difficult to say without knowing what was used to polish or clean a coin. By polishing, one method is actually to use an auto polish. Not necessarily done to clean the coin, but used by many to demonstrate how great thier polishing product works. I've purchased such coins for experimentation purposes and have had some, not always, decent results. Not long ago I placed a pile of such coins in Acetone, then rinsed with Alcohol, then soaked in Laquer thinner, then rinsed in distilled water. All done to remove any possible wax or polish. Eventually placed on a kitchen window sill and still there. Very slowly all are starting to tone down and acquire a slight natural look. Of course all now appear cleaned but no longer shine like a mirror.
Another similar experiment with a pile of similar coins was to just leave in Acetone for an extended period of time to disprove the statements that long exposures to Acetone can effect a coin. Oddly enough two of the Copper coins became bright Red, not the red people say about a new penny, but an actual bright RED.
Back to what to do so not to wait 100 years. There are many things you could do pending just how much you care about your coins. Again if they are polished with a compound, that would have to be removed. Soaking in Acetone, Laquer thinners, etc will help there.
Gently heat them over a gas stove. Not burn, just heat slowly. Also, try placing in dish soap and allowing to dry in the Sun without rinsing. Different dish soaps will give different results. Additives in Finger Nail Polish removers will also leave a residue that will make the coins appear to be toned down.