Hiya all, Been away for awhile. Just got this set. I'm really bummed because there's old tape on it. All the coins look to be in MS quality but with the old tape on them they have discolored. Took out just one row from the folder they were in. Took the tape off and the linncoln are darkened on all the high points and have adhesive still on them. My question is, do I clean them up in hot water to see if I can get any of it off? or throw them in acetone, which stinks to high heaven? Is there any way to bring back the color? I know everyone says to leave them as is but these coins deserve much better. Ron PS- wish I knew how to scan them so you can get a picture
No way! It might not hurt them, but it absolutely will not help. That's one of the reasons acetone has to be used in a well ventilated area. An acetone rinse is generally considered "conservation", not "cleaning" and is really the only solution for two specific evils - PVC gunk and adhesives. Be sure to use the pure stuff obtained from a paint, hardware or home improvement store or a pharmacy/chemical supply house. The acetone sold as nail polish remover generally has additives (including "stink pretty" stuff) which could possibly affect the coin's metal surface. After a short acetone bath the coins need to be rinsed in de-ionized water and allowed to air dry on a soft cloth. Never wipe them with anything, including fingers. If you want to totally destroy their numismatic value and prevent them from ever acquiring any more, there are many chemical treatments and/or metal polishes that can change the color to a red or red-brown coppery tone, but they all involve artificially damaging the surface. Actually, they're your coins, so feel free to experiment, but don't do anything rash until you've made sure that the coin(s) you are working on are the ones worth 1.5-2¢, not prize pieces.
After all of that very sound advice you gave on removing gunk from coins, I have one more question that is unrelated but about to drive me nuts. Is the Avatar you use an old salt's way of getting a "call to quarters", or are you a editor in real life and just like to have things checked?
That dingus is a telegraph key used for sending morse code. Us old-time ham radio operators use the code to communicate. The intermittant dots and dashes displayed are morse code for CQ, which is an advisory that we are on the air, looking for someone to chat with.
