Problem with Coin Cleaning

Why didn't you just tell them to NOT clean in the first place??

 

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That works too, but I sympathize with those who have very dark unattractive copper coins. I would love to have a way to lighten and then preserve them.

 

You can't just tell people, you have to educate them, not push or yell, educate. Out of the 22 posts only about 4 actually tried to do so. Unless someone is educated about the idea of cleaning coins, how do they know? People scrub copper cookware, silverware, candlesticks, clean brass door knobs and gold ikons, so why are coins so different. Educate them gently and if they still want to clean them, that is their right. I know from experience some of you hate to be told what is "right" and you think not, so let it go, its their coins. Maybe they will wash and iron their paper money also

 

If you are planning to have a collection that will ever be worth anything, do not clean any of your coins. You are sharply decreasing their value. No serious collector wants to have anything to do with cleaned coins, many dealers won't buy them from you and most of the third-party graders will stick them in a slab with the death knell "improperly cleaned."

 

There you go !

 

Copper nearly impossible to clean well unless your a professional coin restorer. I leave the stuff alone other then using verdicare on it if it's growing moss. The stuff does work. But it won't cure corrosion. Had a spiked chin half cent with black crud on it acetone didn't touch. Used the vc on it several times and decided to try it. Before it was a no doubt enviro damage details coin. It went straight au 55. I leave silver coins alone as a rule too beyond acetone to remove crud dirt and pvc. I like coins with their original skin and surfaces and especially toning. And many other collectors do too

 

You are basically just making the coins worse by cleaning them over and over again. I, unfortunately learned about the DO NOT CLEAN COINS rule the hard way. Anyhow, the reason why they keep changing color is because copper does not respond well to cleanings, espeacially repeated cleanings. And also, cleaned coins are worth far less than uncleaned coins. I learned that the hard way too.
Hope that helps.
And anyway guys, I this is a COIN forum and we are talking about coins, not TV shows. There are children like me using this site too you know!

 

One word...DRANO!

You've all been trolled by a Ddick.

 

He prefers Dick ....

 

What I've learned from this thread....

1) Apparently, "new member" is synonymous with idiot. Never before I did realize the stigma of that horrid label so disturbing that an actual new member decided to label themselves as "not a new member" in an attempt to avoid it.

2) The best advice to give someone who has already cleaned his coins is.... to not clean his coins, not once but over and over and over again.

3) The mere mention of what was, among other things, an old television show is somehow worthy of reprimanded from, and damaging to, children.

 

Yeah that's a first for me..... I must agree

 

OP,

Do I understand you correctly in that you want the coins to permanently display that "freshly dipped" look?

 

Unless you are going to store them in a vacuum, the copper is going to react with carp in the air and change color. Cleaning chemical residue and tap water prolly don't help any. Copper loves to form compounds with other elements and makes all sorts of colors in the process. Generally, copper does not like to be in its stripped down pure state which is why it can patina relatively fast. The first element copper is likely to react with is oxygen forming copper oxide. This will darken the color or even turn black or red. Other chemical reactions can yield green, blue, and a variety of hues in-between.

Is there a specific reason these pennies need to be clean? What level of clean-ness are you after?

 

Here's another idea. Get rid of the cleaned coins. And buy slabbed ms red coins. And leave them alone!!

 

One of the reasons I like slabbed coins it does protect them from any uneducated morons that want to mess with or "improve" them it'll at least slow them down. Is a lot of work breaking the plastic holders just to shine them up

 

carp in the air? those must be the Asian variety.

 

True but that does take quite a long time. Being into earlier stuff anyway I prefer red & brown and brown as a rule anyway just as I prefer toned silver to blast white