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<p>[QUOTE="Hommer, post: 2106929, member: 73266"]Exactly. My intentions were to write an easily understood thread on identifying cleaning of a coin's surface, but to do that, an explanation of luster and how it is created needed to be defined.</p><p>The main reason I used lead as an example. Luster is removed from it very easily, with a slight rub of the thumb. How, why, because you are actually removing the layer of particles that were in tension.</p><p>Luster can be removed chemically on a coin without removing the flowlines. Someone on these threads explained it well recently, though I don't know if it was his intentions. When a chemical is used, it affects the entire surface, by removing or corroding away particles evenly causing the reduction of all the elements the same. In a sense peeling away the layers. If all layers were the same, then removing the outermost wouldn't effectively remove luster. But they aren't, luster itself is a layer.</p><p><br /></p><p>It troubles me when common wear is referred to as cleaning. Only a freshly minted uncirculated coin retains all of it's original luster as contact with any abrasive including in linings of a pocket will remove it. The difference in abrated wear and corrosive wear is that, as you pointed out, abrasive works to remove particles on the highest parts first, the top of the flowlines. The luster will remain in the crevices between untill such time that the flowlines are completely removed.</p><p>If there are flowlines but no or little luster then it would be apparent that the coin was dipped in a caustic solution effectively removing or reducing the luster throughout.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>
[QUOTE="Hommer, post: 2106929, member: 73266"]Exactly. My intentions were to write an easily understood thread on identifying cleaning of a coin's surface, but to do that, an explanation of luster and how it is created needed to be defined. The main reason I used lead as an example. Luster is removed from it very easily, with a slight rub of the thumb. How, why, because you are actually removing the layer of particles that were in tension. Luster can be removed chemically on a coin without removing the flowlines. Someone on these threads explained it well recently, though I don't know if it was his intentions. When a chemical is used, it affects the entire surface, by removing or corroding away particles evenly causing the reduction of all the elements the same. In a sense peeling away the layers. If all layers were the same, then removing the outermost wouldn't effectively remove luster. But they aren't, luster itself is a layer. It troubles me when common wear is referred to as cleaning. Only a freshly minted uncirculated coin retains all of it's original luster as contact with any abrasive including in linings of a pocket will remove it. The difference in abrated wear and corrosive wear is that, as you pointed out, abrasive works to remove particles on the highest parts first, the top of the flowlines. The luster will remain in the crevices between untill such time that the flowlines are completely removed. If there are flowlines but no or little luster then it would be apparent that the coin was dipped in a caustic solution effectively removing or reducing the luster throughout.[/QUOTE]
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