How to restore the surface of a cleaned copper coin?

Discussion in 'Coin Chat' started by pasasap2, Dec 6, 2013.

  1. pasasap2

    pasasap2 New Member

    I pulled a Large Cent out of a discount box at a coin show. It had nice details at spots, but at other spots it was covered with a thick layer of corroded green crud. I placed it in ketchup to get rid of the crud, but now the surface is extremely dull and does not reflect light well. In other words, you cannot see the details unless you place it under strong light. I probably left the ketchup on too long so it stripped the surface, but the coin is still light brown in color and does not look cleaned. Under high magnification, I can see the coin is covered by tiny holes where the green crud was embedded in the surface. I did what I did because I could not read the date or get the crud off. It was like concrete and very hard. I was actually surprised the vinegar in the ketchup dissolved it. When you put olive oil on the Large Cent, the surface shines allowing me to see the details and the date. It just so happens that the Large Cent is dated 1857, and is the small date variety in VG+ condition. So, it is a great buy and find, and something I need in my collection. So, how do I restore the glossy circulated surface, so the details show in a coin flip under normal light? This coin will not be sold, but it will go into my book.
     
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  3. C-B-D

    C-B-D Well-Known Member

    Ketchup and olive oil. Mmm. That's a tasty 57! My advice is to leave it alone & be don't press your luck with such a key date.
     
    BRandM likes this.
  4. green18

    green18 Unknown member Sweet on Commemorative Coins Supporter

    You can't. To be quite blunt, you've ruined the coins surfaces by improperly cleaning it.
     
  5. saltysam-1

    saltysam-1 Junior Member

    The dealer knew the crud coundn't be removed without additional damage. That's why he had it in the discount box.
     
    BUncirculated likes this.
  6. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Once a coin becomes a problem coin, regardless of what it is that makes it a problem coin, it is a problem coin forever ! There is no such thing as fixing it.

    And by the way, your coin was a problem when you bought it.
     
    Kentucky and BUncirculated like this.
  7. Conder101

    Conder101 Numismatist

    Put it in your pocket and carry it around with your other change for two or three years and wear it down to AG - G. That should give you smooth surfaces again.
     
  8. Collect89

    Collect89 Coin Collector

    Although I have never done it personally, I've heard that the other change & items in your pocket should be soft old items like the old coin. Supposedly, you should include things like silver dimes & cloth handkerchiefs. You should allegedly avoid including harder clad coins in the mix.

    [Please let me know if this is valid & useful information].
     
  9. Tom B

    Tom B TomB Everywhere Else

    You can't.
     
  10. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    I carried this coin in my jeans pocket, every day, for 7 years. In the same pocket I also carried pocket change (clad coins) and my pocket knife, every day. I did the exact same thing with several other 1 oz AGE's in previous years.

    AGE.jpg


    AGE rev.jpg



    Point being, it doesn't matter what you have in your pocket.
     
  11. pasasap2

    pasasap2 New Member

    Well, guys, the coin's date was not visible at all, so I would not have known it was an 1857 if I had not cleaned it. I could have soaked it in Olive Oil, but that would have taken years to have worked, if at all. I have seen dealers selling black colored Large Cents on eBay, so I know something exists for reconditioning surfaces of cleaned Large Cents. I have also heard the term "Sheldonizing," used on this Forum. Mr. Sheldon apparently cleaned and reconditioned his Large Cents. Wearing my coin down is another realistic option. Thank you for the suggestions. I do agree that cleaning is not the way to go in most cases, but I just turned a $3 nothing into at least a $40 key date.
     
  12. jloring

    jloring Senior Citizen

  13. desertgem

    desertgem Senior Errer Collecktor

    Elemental sulfur in a petroleum base. like vaseline. Easily detectable by experienced collectors and sniffer machines :) To use on freshly cleaned copper is horrible in my opinion. Let the copper develop a patina from the air for a couple of years and dilute the product with more vaseline before use.
     
  14. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    That's the mistake in your thinking. You've turned a dirty $3 coin into a clean $3 coin.
     
    Kentucky and Mainebill like this.
  15. Collect89

    Collect89 Coin Collector

    Thank you muchly for the info.
     
  16. BadThad

    BadThad Calibrated for Lincolns

    The damage is done, the coin will never be the same.
     
    Kentucky likes this.
  17. pasasap2

    pasasap2 New Member

    Problem is that you think the coin was just dirty. If it had dirt on it, I could have washed it off with a mild soap and distilled water or even dropped into distilled water to remove the dirt. The green corrosion was rock hard and clearly embedded into the surface of the copper. I actually took it to my local dealer and he tried a few coin cleaning agents he had to no avail. The green crud remained defiant and stuck onto the coin. Soaking it might have worked after many years, but other than that I do not know anything that could have worked. Maybe you can enlighten me on what I should have done. The coin had no value to me at all without a date, but with a 1857 date, it means it can fill my hole in my book without having to payout $300 to a dealer for a coin that list for $45 in the Blue Book in VF. So, I do not care if it has been cleaned to some degree, I just want the coin to reflect light, so I can see the date. It is not red, it does not look like a cleaned coin, it is simply extremely dull and porous.
     
  18. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    Your comment was that you turned a $3 nothing in a $40 key date.

    My point was that you did not do that at all. Instead you turned a $3 unknown coin into a $3 known coin.

    If you are happy with the coin I certainly have no problem with that, I'm happy you are happy. But I thought it important to make known to you that you did not change or increase the value of the coin by doing what you did. If it was worth $3 before you did it, then it is still only worth $3 after you did it. I'm sorry, but that just the honest truth.
     
  19. C-B-D

    C-B-D Well-Known Member

    Thus sayeth, OZ the Great and Powerful; whose reasoning is beyond mere human minds, and whose words maketh sense only to the gods.....

    Whatever the debate of "worth," it'll still sell for $75-$100 on eBay. Congratulations!
     
    Last edited: Dec 9, 2013
  20. Conder101

    Conder101 Numismatist

    Hard to say what it wouldsee for because we don't know what it actually looks like. I would bet it is worth significantly more than the $3 Doug claims, I would also suspect it would sell for well less than CBD thinks.
     
  21. GDJMSP

    GDJMSP Numismatist Moderator

    The $3 is not the point. The point is the coin is worth no more now than it was before.
     
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