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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;GDJMSP, post: 2292736, member: 112&quot;]And that&#039;s kind of the point, right there. What I mean by that is that almost everybody applies different definitions even to common, everyday words. In numismatics, it&#039;s far, far worse.</p><p><br /></p><p>For you Dave, you see the removing of metal, any metal, as damage. And in a purely technical sense you are absolutely correct. But what about the reality of the situation ? </p><p><br /></p><p>You see, in many, many cases a coin has already been damaged, by your definition, by the toning on it. The toning literally consumes the metal, changes its physical state from one substance to an entirely different substance. And it is an undeniable fact that if that toning is left alone, it will continue to damage the coin even more. </p><p><br /></p><p>However, if one were to dip that coin, the metal that is removed, isn&#039;t even metal anymore, but that different substance that is created by the toning. And the result is that the original underlying metal that has as of yet been unaltered or consumed by the toning is revealed. Thus exposing the coin&#039;s original beauty and at the same time eliminating the damaging substance.</p><p><br /></p><p>That being the case, how can dipping a coin be thought of as being a bad thing ? And that&#039;s what I mean by the reality of the situation. </p><p><br /></p><p>Now at the same time I will readily agree that there have been a great many coins dipped, that didn&#039;t need to be dipped. The toning on them had not advanced far enough to be harmful in other words. And while toning is inevitable and can never be stopped, with proper storage it can be slowed down to the point that no readily perceivable change will occur in one&#039;s lifetime. So if a coin is attractively toned then it best to just leave it alone and store it properly.</p><p><br /></p><p>And this is what Dave is talking about when he mentions &quot;knowing when&quot; to dip a coin. </p><p><br /></p><p>I also feel it is important make note of the fact that dipping a coin is always a crap shoot. You never, ever, know with any degree of certainty what the outcome will be. You might just as easily end up with a coin that was already ruined before you ever dipped it, the luster could have been totally destroyed by the toning. You might end up with a coin that has an old harsh cleaning revealed that was hiding under that toning. The coin might be covered with hairlines (not from a harsh cleaning, merely from previous rough handling). Or you might get lucky and reveal a gem hiding underneath. </p><p><br /></p><p>So while dipping a coin may indeed be quite beneficial, it may also turn out to be a disaster. One would do well to keep that in mind.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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