1928 s Buffalo Nickel

Technically it's not a roll search but I got this 1928 s Buffalo in change today. Perhaps not the best condition but hey it's a Buffalo with a mintage less than 7 million.

 

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Fantastic!

 

Nice find and you don’t need nic-a-date to read the date.

 

Nice !!

 

Maybe somebody released it back to the wild just so you could find it again!

 

Does nic-a-date really work?

 

Yes, it eats the metal around the date away to reveal the date. It also damages the coin, permanently. But then if it doesn’t have a date?

 

I have a box full of no date and don't plan on putting them up for peer review. But it would be nice to know the dates.

 

Most are common dates but every once in awhile you find a good one. Around my area these types of coins are used to carve hobo nickels and make jewelry.

 

I've been releasing worn Buffalo nickels back into the wild for some time now. Maybe it's one of mine. LOL

 

Better than a sharp stick in the eye any day. Edit- I have no idea what that thumbnail is or how it got there.

 

I've never used it, but it does work. It's ferric chloride, the same acid that is used to etch copper during the manufacture of circuit boards. It eats the copper and leaves the nickel, thus revealing the date. And BTW, it's a lot cheaper to get ferric chloride at an electronics supply store than a coin shop, if you use it a lot.

 

Nic-A-Date does work but should be used sparingly and only for a short time, say 20 seconds and then quickly wipe away or it will leave a black spot that will not come off. If need be do this until you can or cannot raise a date, really, three times at most or a date just isn't coming up.

 

Yes. But so does white vinegar, and just as good.

 

Tommy, that’s a polar bear in a blizzard. It’s clear as can be. Hahaha

 

In change ? wow.

 

So, straight white vinegar for how long?

 

Not too very long. I would check after the first hour and see what you had. If left too long it will severely etch the coin or any nickel for that matter.

 

See? there is another tid-bit of knowledge I didn't know. Thank you folks. (damn I love this site)

 

It smoothes everything out. That’s how it brings up the date and the mint mark, as those are higher-set. On these no-dates, it’s inconsequential. I’d let this one alone though because the partial is enough to date it and the mint mark is clear. But in a true no-date, soak at full-strength for a night and check, and keep repeating, if necessary. When you get a partial (i.e., enough to identify the date and whether there’s a mint mark), you’re finished. At the high end, if nothing after about four nights, forget it, you’re just wasting the vinegar, nothing is going to turn up. This works. And, you’ll see, the coins aren’t worse off for it. There’s a trade-off in the surface, naturally, but you got a date and a mint mark you didn’t have. That’s why I use it on all my dateless ones. To try to get a date, lol.