I have a few old coins (including 1921 s buffalo nickel) they look like they are in decent condition, but they have like rust or something on them is that a big factor that lowers value/ condition, or is that not a deciding factor?
Looks more like environmental damage rather than rust. Also see some pitting. Yes, that would affect value and appeal.
US coins (other than 1943 steel cents) don't actually "rust," FYI. Any time you see pitting like this on a coin, it's environmental damage, as @tommyc03 stated, and it decreases the value.
It was found in an abandoned car that my grandfather bought to restore from Minnesota it had been inside the car since 1939 so yea I was out in the environment for a long time. But it isn't very worn so it can't be the worst condition possible? Right?
What is the date? And I see a mint mark on the reverse also, what is the MM? Overall it appears to be in almost good condition so value would depend upon knowing this.
On the back of the coin you can still see almost all the detail and the front isn't too worn so it can't be to bad
You would need to look at a grading guide to determine what you actually have in hand as the pictures can sometimes be deceiving to look at here. This considered a semi key coin in this series so do NOT clean it. Grade it first.
It's commonly called rust when it's on steel. It's commonly called toning or tarnish when it's on silver or nickel or copper. All are due to oxidation of the metal, so rust is not an improper description of the surface damage.
Toning on silver coins is an ultra-thin layer of silver sulfide, not silver oxide. By no means is it even remotely related to "rust".
I made this mistake and spent 30 bucks on a 1915 S which was corroded it was a good AU condition but the corrosion soured the deal.
eBay is your friend - look in completed listings for one that /a/ sold and /b/ is about as beat up and pitted like yours... http://www.ebay.com/sch/Buffalo-191...San%20Francisco&LH_Complete=1&LH_Sold=1&rt=nc That will give you a ROUGH idea of whether it's worth $10s or $10,000s of dollars.
@doug5353 is completely correct here. There's a big difference between rust of the type that forms on iron or steel and toning we see on silver coins. Rust is flaky and does not adhere to the underlying metal, whereas the silver sulfide/oxide toning we see on coins does adhere to the coin. While a silver coin can be turned completely black due to the thickness of the sulfide/oxide layer not letting light through to the underlying metal, it's not coming off through any mechanical process short of literally filing or abrading it away. In this qualitative sense (although not chemically), rust on iron is more similar to bronze disease on ancient coins than it is toning on silver coins, and "lead rot" that one will hear miniature figure collectors refer to at times.
