If I were to wipe the film off of a coin with a micro fiber cloth, would that be considered "cleaning"?
That might ruin your coin, I wouldn't do it. Show a pic of the coin, maybe we can help you once we see the problem.
If the coin has no grit or other debris on the surface, wiping should be undetectable. If it is undetectable, the coins hasn't been "cleaned"
Microfiber cloth is a plastic cloth and is a remarkably useful tool. Because it is a plastic cloth, it does scratch surfaces slightly.... I learned this lesson the hard way when I had to replace eyeglasses that I wiped with microfiber several times a day for a year. It was like I was looking through a fog. The worse they got, the more I wiped with the microfiber cloth I kept in my pocket..... I would keep microfiber and coins in separate rooms myself.
A microfiber cloth can leave hairline scratches on your coin. They could hurt the coin and lower its value. Soak it an industrial acetone as that won’t hurt the coin. Do not try fingernail polish remover. The will trace coin surface apart.
No to microfiber. Just give it a bath in industrial Acetone from The Home Depot, for example. Do the dipsy do!
