I recently bought this Uncirculated 1964 Kennedy Half Dollar in an acrylic triangle and I wanted to break it out. Here's how I freed it. 1) Using a hand drill I made a series of holes directly above the edge of the coin. I repeated this process on the bottom continually checking that I'm not hitting the coin with the drill bit. 2) I cut two grooves on either side of the block to connect the end holes. I also cut across the two sets of holes. 3) Using a hammer and a screwdriver as a wedge, I started to crack the block. Using light taps I was able to crack it in two. My goal is not to force the screwdriver all the way through (and thus, damaging the coin), but rather to create tension and allow it to break on it's own. 4) The coin is still stuck fast, so I used the same process to now split the half-block. 5) This being successful, I was able to remove the coin with a gloved hand from the clinging remaining chunk using light pressure and pulling. Viola!
Yes... but why? You had a cool paperweight... now you have a generic half dollar. I don't understand why you chose to do this.
@Mr. Numismatist …that is a waaay cool rescue! I was always of the opinion that coins entombed by lucite, epoxy or resin were irretrievable, but you really have a good solution. I thought the substances adhered to the coins’ surface and that the coin would be destroyed if removed, and I’m thinking substances other than lucite/acrylic may have that exact problem. I’d never seen or heard of coins being recovered from these substances before today and your post. Spectacular success! BTW,…I don’t see someone doing this on the acrylic toilet seat with embedded pennies…unless you saw a 1982 Denver Small Date in there somewhere. You would have to do all the work just to weigh it to find out…Spark
Just a thought. Would acetone react with the Lucite? Maybe another way to extract something entombed? Then again, if so, the reactive nature might damage the coin?
I enjoy it more as a coin than a paper weight. Also, I wanted to experiment if it could be done without damaging the coin.
Good job! I have had the fun and challenge of removing coins and paper money from lucite/acrylic blocks. I used a hacksaw to break the block into several pieces. Acetone will break down the solid plastic , but I found it a very slow and messy process.
Those are all die polishing lines. You can even see them in the first picture when the coin was still incased.
I see said the blind man. Just like those mint workers. Can't leave well enough alone, sort of like me.
Yes, acetone would dissolve the acrylic Pure acetone won't damage metal coins. Wouldn't use it on colorized coins though. Would take some time and a lot of acetone unless much of the plastic was mechanically removed first. Mike
I took a medium size chunk of acrylic that was left over and dropped it in a jar of acetone. A few hours later I was left with a half-solid plastic goo-ball floating in some sticky, thick, nasty syrup in a glass jar beyond redemption. I concluded I will NOT be using acetone to remove coins from acrylic paperweights any time soon...
Yup. Methacrylate polymers dissolve slowly in acetone, but they will dissolve completely if enough acetone is used. Helps to pulverize the plastic first and to circulate and warm the acetone. I’ve done it in a lab that had nothing to do with coins. Mike
Years ago they used to have clear toilet seats that had coins imbedded into the acrylic. Some also had seashells imbedded.
I bought an eBay lot years ago that had several clear toilet seats and lids. One lid had a fan of $1 bills, and I think there was a lid and seat with clad coinage and a lid and seat with silver. I paid around silver melt plus non-silver face value for the lot. I ruined a hobby jigsaw trying to chop up the clad seat (as an experiment). I managed to smash up one piece enough to free a couple of coins, but they came out bent. They'd also been polished before they went into the resin. I figured I could free up everything with acetone, but the cost of the acetone would probably exceed whatever I could get for the coins. Between that cost, the time it would take, and the non-zero risk of fire or narcosis - well, it's all still sitting in storage. Maybe I'll see if I can find a sticker, erm, buyer at the November show.
