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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;GDJMSP, post: 643361, member: 112&quot;]Ya know Dru, it would be somewhat helpful, if when you talk about what I condone and what I don&#039;t condone, you would at least be accurate. </p><p><br /></p><p>Never in my life have I said that no coin can ever be helped or improved by conservation. What I have said is that no <u>PROBLEM COIN</u> can ever be helped or improved by conservation. Just a tad bit of a difference in those two statements.</p><p><br /></p><p>A coin having dirt and grime on it is not necessarily a problem coin. A coin having unsightly or ugly toning on it is not necessarily a problem coin. And yes, these coins can sometimes be helped or improved with conservation which may be defined as proper cleaning.</p><p><br /></p><p>There are many things that make a coin a problem coin. But dirt &amp; grime or ugly toning are not among them. There are yet other things which can sometimes make a coin a problem coin and sometimes not make it one, like the coin being coated with lacquer, shellac or clear fingernail polish. It all depends on if the stuff can be removed without altering the surface of the coin.</p><p><br /></p><p>Among the things that define a problem coin are harsh/improper cleaning, planchet flaws, altered surfaces, scratches, severe rim dings, environmental damage, corrosion, some types of artificial toning, etc. No amount of conservation will ever help or improve coins with these issues. Simply can&#039;t be done.</p><p><br /></p><p>Where I see the biggest problem is when people try to improve their coins themselves. Most of the time they have absolutely no idea what they are doing. And as a result, they most often turn a problem free coin into a problem coin by trying to improve it. That is why I always recommend that people leave their coins alone. If they want to know if it can improved, fine, send it to a professional and let them apparaise the situation and do the conservation.</p><p><br /></p><p>Now you are going to tell me that if somebody would write out all the directions and various methods used for conservation that people would then be able to do it themselves. I strongly disagree with this. Why ? Because it is no different than telling people that if they go to the library and look up how to perform a medical operation that they can do it themseleves. That if they go look up how to repair the engine of their modern car that they can do it themselves. That they can perform their dental work, make their own eye glasses or repair their own TV. All they need is the directions.</p><p><br /></p><p>Some things require professionals because when people try to do it themselves they screw it up. Learning how to conserve coins is one of those things. And this is &amp; has been demonstrated time after time after time right here on this forum and every other forum there is. And for every coin of your own that you can point to and say &quot;look what a good job I did all by myself&quot; - I can point to 10,000 that were screwed up. It is best left to the professionals. And that is what I recommend.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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