A question for thought!!

Being fairly new to collecting I have been wondering what the rationale is behind never cleaning a coin. I know that a brand new coin has the mint luster and the perfection behind the original beauty. What I really have a problem with is that once a coin has been circulated it's value deminishes in conjunction with it's wear.

Think about this!! Most circulated coins prior to say 1980 were exposed to large amounts of cigarette smoke. Get ahold of a coin from the 20's or 30's and it has a sticky surface, which I am guessing is at least partly Tar and Nicotine. Why not clean that crud off and bring out the fine details that are lost to everyday crud attached to the coin along with the cigarette smoke residue.

 

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I think the issue is that almost any cleaning degrades the metallic content of the coin.

 

I agree, any cleaning will degrade the coin. I don't think it would really matter however if your cleaning a coin that isn't a key date and is covered in junk anyway. In that case the coins value is deminished enough that cleaning probobly won't hurt the value much.

 

The rationale behind not cleaning a coin is:
1. Decreases the value
2. The coin is no longer original
3. It wipes clean the coins natural patina
4. if you want a shiney coin, buy an uncirculated coin and don't mess with the originals and make it hard for the rest of us.
5. Cleaned coins are more likely to tarnish faster than those that haven't been cleaned, so do you clean the coin once a month? eventually the rubbing will scrape away metal bit by bit.
6. Certain cleaning methods ( most all ) leave behind a residue, even Acetone can in fact leave behind a film.
7. All collector value is lost except for those who might give you metal spot price for it. MAYBE THAT.
8. It shows people how much you actually care for preserving coins ( a big fat 0 )

All in all, the only reason that a coin should be cleaned, is if the coin has some type of chemical that can possibly harm the coin further, such as PVC slime. In most cases, leave it up to a proffessional if you need to have a coin cleaned.

 

Unless it is really bad, I prefer the look of uncleaned coins. It gives the coin character and authenticity.

 

Here's some food for thought. When you have a coin in your collection, it is yours to do with as you please. From that point of view, you can do whatever you think is best for the coin. When I was 6, I had a small collection of Indian Head cents and I polished each one up to a sparkling shine with an eraser.

From another point of view, even though you are the current owner of the coin, in reality you are only the temporary caretaker of the coin. It will some day be passed on or sold to another collector, then another, and another, and so on. As the current caretaker of a collectable that will be passed down to future generations, it could be viewed as your responsibility to ensure that the coin in your possesion is passed on to the future collectors in as good a condition as it was when you received it.

Unfortunately, the Indian Head cents I had as a kid are ruined for future collectors. They will forever carry the little tiny scratches/hairlines from the polishing with the eraser and will eventually tone to a very unnatural color. (I don't do that anymore.)

On the other hand, as has been mentioned in previous posts, there might be cigarette smoke, PVC residue, or any of a number of other harmful substances coating a coin. In a case like that, thinking about the collector 100 years from now, would it be better to risk permanently altering the coin by cleaning or removing the harmful substance (and some of the natural surface of the coin) or not. That can be a tough decision. In addition, cleaning a coin is as much an art as it is a science, so it wouldn't be too hard to do more damage than the original residue might have caused.

Don't know if this will answer any questions about cleaning coins, but it might give you a different perspective to ponder while making your choices.

P.S. - Most of the sticky crud on coins these days is the PVC residue from 40 years of thinking that was the ultimate way to store and preserve coins.

 

Lets take an example I have here at my home! 1877CC half dollar which would have a value of around $300 if someone hadn't taken the time to harshly clean the obverse so now it would probably make an XF grade at half the money. The coin is, to the naked eye, an outstanding example of a Carson City half which would probably make AU very easily but get out the glass for a close look and the obverse, which apparently had gathered a little dust and dirt thru the years, has been really cleaned thus scratches remained! This actually makes me sick to see such a wonderful, high grade coin damaged probably with the best of intentions years ago. Please don't clean coins as it destroys their value and like it or not, someday we all may indeed sell our collections. If you don't well someone in your family probably will so do them a favor as well!

 

I'm sure there would be no one who would consider cleaning a mint state coin, but is it more attractive and appealing to look at a circulated coin which is covered with who knows what, or a coin that has been carefully cleaned to remove the dirt and grime from the intricate areas and brings out the true beauty.

If the coin has been in circulation, then it is a given that it has scratches and whatever, but once the circulated dirt is removed you may have scratches, but at least they are clean scratches.

The reason I made this post in the first place was my daughter ask these questions and I thought this would be a good place to solicit feedback. She did have a point regarding the degeneration of the metal, and that was, once it is clean for a collection it should be preserved for future appreciation. (Circulated coins only)

 

Of course there is the third party grader and certifier that believes that cleaning can be done. They just don't happen to call it cleaning. I believe they call it "conserving". And they are one of the big four conpanies. What say you to these facts?

 

Check out what I did to some of my coins back in 1999 when I was 12. I used a wire brush on these! And no I didn't put the hole in the quarter, someone else from years past sure did though. hehe
This is pretty much the best I can do due to size limits.

 

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Probably should have had someone carve something on these instead of whizzing them. Would have been much more collectable. I suspect you have thrown you wire brush away by now..??

Too bad about the 1830 dime. Experience is a hard teacher. It tests first and teaches afterward.

 

Why would anybody want to clean or polish a beautiful old coin??
Patina makes old coins attractive.

 

Well I used the brush so much that eventually the brissels fell out. I have shown here what I did all those years ago so this ghostrider can see why not to clean them!! hehe

 

i have only cleaned 2 coins in my life (Kennedy halves) and i actually dont know which ones they were i hope nothing happens to the rest or something

 

Back in 1999 I cleaned a whole bunch including those pictured. I cleaned a dime from 1855 if I recall correctly, a few Barber dimes, and several Mercury dimes. All with a wire brush!! See no one told me about cleaning coins and I didn't think they looked good looking all original with the "dirt" that is on them. There should be pamphlets in coin stores right when you walk in for those that are new to collecting. hehe

 

thats gotta suck thinking about doin that as u were little NOS

 

Yes I have had many regrets but thought they looked sooo nice when I cleaned them at the time! I don't think they will ever tone back since I can see all the little scratches in them from the metal brush.

 

It's not the rest of the collectors fault if someone doesn't decide to pick up a book before they start collection..... The world has grown into a group of halfway folk, they either don't do it the right way, or they do it half way. A while back I got a phone call, someone wanted to know if I still sold coins, of course yes, an hour later here comes a mom and her 8 year old daughter.... The first thing that the 8 year old asked me was if I had a coin book, the only one at the time was 1,001 more frequently asked questions, her mom paid for it, and she told me they would be back once she knew a little bit about coins before buying any with her allowance.... How many ADULTS, actually buy the book before the coin? I'm willing to bet 30 out of every 100 .

 

Excuse me sir but you are trying to pick a fight there but I will not fall into your trap. I have many books and only one even talks about cleaning on 1 page. I was TWELVE at the time. You think I was interested in reading books cover to cover first? NO sir I wanted to go out and buy some coins!!!