Recieved some mercury dimes today that were sandwhiched in clear tape. There is really nothing special about these coins, just thier silver value. Although some have some neat toning...(guessing the tape helped that). There doesnt seem to be any residue on the raised points on the designs, but just on the rims. Is there anything I can do for them or are they doomed to my "junk" pile. I bought them for less than spot so either way does not matter. I just think some of the toning is neat if I could do something about the residue. Thanks.
100% Acetone should work. Had tape on some old mexican coins, worked like a charm but did have discoloration from where the tape was on it for years.
I concur on the acetone to remove sticky tape residue, with out changing the coins appearance. Make sure it is 100% acetone (paint thinner) from a hardware store and not something like nail polish remover. Just a few minutes with a couple of swishes should remove even the stubborn most residues.The clear acetone will leave zero residue on the coins surface as it evaporates. The vapors from acetone are hazardous, so this should be done in a well ventilated area, also wear eye and hand protection when handling these types of chemicals.
The only thing I had that worked was to lay the dimes in an aluminum foil lined dish and pour a boiling solution of 2 tablespoons baking soda with 1 tablespoon salt in 1 cup water over the dimes. It is said "this will ruin them", but for common Mercs, it removed the residue and I could watch the black tarnish melt away as the chemical reaction worked. But these were common Mercs that were in bad shape. I didn't scrub any at all. Rinsed in acetone and blew dry with compressed air. Cleaned them up pretty well, but it did change the appearance. Although for the coins I used, it was an improvement.
Sorry, it's an NGC--1922. It's graded MS64. Ever since the forum changed I can't post pics. I always assumed it was a tape stain. It has a dark rectangular stain across the front, like it was taped in a holder at one time.
We attempting conservation on ANY surface residue, you should always follow the solvent polarity ladder in order. 1) distilled water 2) acetone 3) xylene
Thanx for the grade info, I was curious what it was since you didn't say if genuine or numerical in the earlier post and I figured it made a huge difference in this situation. Sorry about the image posting problem. I strongly suggest using Photobucket as opposed to CT image upload, never have had a problem myself.
NCS is a sub-company of NGC and they can do it for a fee. I wouldn't bother with common date mercurys, though; I'm sure it would be too expensive for what they're worth. OTOH, if you have a 1929-S in XF or better I'll buy it from you!
I keep this just to show young collectors why using tape to make coins fit in a holder is not a good idea:
Someone recently posted a pic of an old coin folder with tape over each coin holding the coins in their holes. Really defeats the purpose.
Doug mentioned a good idea for those whose holders are loose, tape some saran wrap over the coins, and use a hair dryer, it will shrink the plastic tight
Several years ago I bought an old Whitman folder of Canadian cents with a few cents included, and some of them had been taped into the folder (tape placed across, rather than around, the coins).
