what kind of coin flips have no pvc? I want to open up a bag of half dollars I got from the mint and put them in flips for long term storage and sell some here and on e-bay so I want to have them as inexpensively as possible.
The more rigid they are the less PVC they have... PVC is a plastic softener... so the soft floppy ones are bad.
Sorry Matt, but PVC is polyvinyl chloride which is a plastic. It can be (and usually is) softened with a plasticizer, but does not have to be. And it is the plasticizer that causes the problem. And the stiff ones generally are the non PVC non-plasticized flips. As for the OP's question, the one you want to buy say "non-PVC" or "PVC free". If they do not say that, do not buy them.
Maybe I am just lucky, but for small quantities (<1000), buying them from my local shop is cheaper than paying the shipping from anywhere on the net. He charges a few cents more than I can find them on the net, but the no shipping more than makes up for the difference.
Hmmmm, I was under the impression that PVC was the plasticizer. I guess you learn something new every day. There is a test to see if your flips have PVC in them... it has to do with burning it and looking at the color of the flame... anyone care to explain this one as I don't remember exactly how it works.
I think I'll just buy the ones that say PVC free , with my luck I'd probably just end up burning the house down , but thanks for the link anyways , you never know when a McGiver emergency for PVC will come . LOL rzage
That is what he asked for. I did not say he should use it. If he is really interested, there are machines out there that make it real safe - and they make the buyer real broke.
If the storage time is less than a year or so, then you might wish to balance the negatives. Plasticized PVC flips are dangerous in the long term, but in my experience it takes several years of neglect. They are however softer and gentle to the coin edges when sliding might occur if they are being handled in the flip or shipped. Mylar ( non-PVC) flips are very safe, but they are stiffer and harder and can rub the edges of coins, especially square edged proof coins. This might not be a problem if the coin is circulated. They are also more expensive. Jim
My guess is that you do not have the problems others do is because of your humidity. I do not think that Oklahoma qualifies as humid, but it started on mine if about a year.
Since we are on the subject, I would love to have a description and a photo of how to determine if a coin is damaged by PVC. Lack
I use SafeFlips and have been very happy with the brand name. I believe you can purchase these at Amos Publishing store and also Brooklyn Coin and Stamp Gallery carries them, as well as many other sources, I'm sure.
That is a very good point~ that any storage method can be variable depending on environmental factors, and I should have mentioned that one's results might vary. I wish I didn't have a humidity problem, but I can't use the "dry heat" saying the Arizona natives are so fond of using. We are way below sea level with the Salton sea 30 miles away, the Gulf of Baja about the same and the huge acreage of irrigated farmland year around. During the summer with the A/C on, the condensate floods the walkway. But God is it nice now!!!!! :thumb: Jim
Plasticizers in flexible PVC (esters of phthalic acid) can migrate from the plastic to surrounding objects ( coins) and with humidity from the atmosphere form an acid that can start to react on the coin. With copper coins, it usually forms a greenish mucus appearing specks that can eventually react with enough copper and other atmospheric chemicals such as sulfides, chlorides, oxygen , etc, which forms a "permanent" verdigris. In the early stages, acetone can remove the "pvc plasticizers", once other chemicals come into play, it can't remove verdigris. Silver coins, and even some copper can start with a haze on the surface which then can progress from there. Most noticeable on proof finish coins in early stages. On high percentage silver coins, the color is usually not as green, but more gray/violet mucus appearing. My son once said it looked like a bug "pooped" green droplets on the coin Unfortunately the damage can start invisibly for some time until the metal affected can be seen. I hope I don't have any PVC plasticizer damaged coins but if I find one, I will photo it. IMO, and I know some disagree with me, so think, but I rinse every coin that comes to me from unknown places or people with acetone before putting it into a mylar flip. IMO. Jim
Rather than ever accepting the word of anyone over the internet that you don't know, never see, have no idea who they are, do this. Go to a coin shop. Ask to see any of the flips you are figuring on purchasing and only if there is a manufacturers name on the package, box, etc. If so, then write it down. Go back home and look up that manufacturer via the internet. Either contact them on the internet and/or if they have a toll free number call them. Mention this conversation may be recorded for clarity, which is what they usually do. Then simply ask them if thier product contains PVC or any substance that will or could damage a coin. I've done things like this with organizations that make Zip Lock bags, Whitman Albums, Littleton products, Dansco and many others. They all gladly will assist you with correct, not hypothetical, answers. Almost all flips made for coins today are free of any contaminates or substances that could or will effect metal of any kind.
