Hazy substance on coins ?

Hey folks
I have a few unc mercury dimes that appear to have this hazy type substance on the surface. I came across a thread here , talking about similar issues. So it seems that acetone and or a coin dip will take care of this. I've been searching and found this bottle of acetone , it says it's 100 percent acetone but it's sold for use as a finger nail polish remover . Is it ok to get this type as long as it's pure acetone?

 

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I'll let the others chime in but from what I've read here, Acetone is used mostly on copper coins, not silver, to get rid of the gunk build up. I would think a cleaning if necessary would be better done with distilled water but wait and see what the others have to say first.

 

You can go to Home Depot and get a quart. $7.48

 

I use acetone to remove PVC residue from ALL coin alloys.

 

That acetone looks OK as long as it says 100% and doesn't have any fragrance or oils. Some claim that acetone can discolor copper.

 

I've yet to personally observe that, but I do find it plausible.

 

Acetone removes the organic gunk that builds up in/around the devices on a circulated coin; to my knowledge, type of metal is irrelevant to acetone's effectiveness.

That said, acetone will destroy aluminum coins (been there done that), and I've also encountered issues with discoloration on brass or brass plated (don't recall if one or the other or both) coins.

 

Some nail polish removers contain an added ingredient to smooth or protect the skin. No telling what it might do to coins.

I'd be interested to know how or why aluminum coins are affected.

 

[watch me try to ask this question and keep it kind of on topic]

Ahem.

Speaking of hazy stuff on coins, what is that hazy slime on "brown" Ike's, and what safely takes it off?

 

Probably some kind of plasticizer; that's nearly 40 years ago, when no one thought much about long-term storage and preservation.

As you can see, it was originally intended for nickels, but had such drastic results, it, um, migrated to all denominations.

 

Yep. I know NCS will take it off, but I'm wondering if anyone here knows what they use.

 

Ha! I improved my post.

 

So do you suggest the acetone or some type of dip? I found this coin care solution online , says it's safe to use on silver

 

I have no idea what NCS uses, but e-z-est works extraordinarily well for this type of hazing.

 

That really depends entirely what the contaminant is more than the coin's alloy. For PVC, acetone is aces. For many other types of organic schmutz, acetone is still the choice. Dips are the choice for ugly sulfide toning on silver. Most sulfide toning should be left alone. People like it. Go figure. I am utterly unfamiliar with using xylene, and I won't use it until I do more "book learnin'" about it. That's just the way I am. Acetone is a good final bath, after a solid water rinse, no matter what else you monkey with. It leaves nothing behind. Even a bloodhound with the PCGS sniffer cloned onto him will not detect a residue of acetone. I have no idea what Coin Care is supposed to do, because I use NO brand-name anything, not even e-z-est. For my dip, I use my own modification of a published formula once used to clean silver sulfide stains from darkroom towels - Kodak Stain Remover S-10. The formula will appear with a Google search. I dilute it further. It works slowly and doesn't harm luster even after LONG soaking.

 

Coincare is a limonene distillate with oils. Put it in a spray container and you have a good wood furniture polish. Use of acetone after coincare would remove any protection from the first. Limonene is a natural biologic that is found in citrus fruit peels and various formulations of "Citrus " cleaners that are manmade, even though some purists believe they are made from citrus rinds.

Here is the MSDS:
http://www.translinesupply.com/PDF/MDSSHEETS/CoinCare7532.MSDS.pdf

 

So what's it do? Fill porosity on coppers? Just curious. Maybe a preservative for old European zinc issues?

 

.

 

Oh, Barber dime 94s? If you even THINK about using ANYTHING on your avatar coin, I WILL hunt you down and smack you upside the head. Are we clear? I may even come at you through this screen. Watch for bulges.

 

Seems to be similar to ms70 ,
e-z-est and other coin cleaners on the market.