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<p>[QUOTE=&quot;imrich, post: 907707, member: 22331&quot;]<b>Erroneous Hyperbole</b></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><br /></p><p><b>I find the referenced article, prior to your statement, to be tripe, consisting of numerous statements which are contradicted by facts. One having a reasonable understanding of chemistry/physics, would know that some elements of our atmosphere and body chemistry have significantly greater potential for coin surface destruction than reasonable cleaning agents. I can post examples of permanently etched finger-prints on &quot;BU&quot; coins. Reasonable cleaning solutions/processes are considerably less destructive than &quot;bag rub&quot; and &quot;bag marks&quot; which are common on 19th century coins, so I&#039;ve observed dealers &quot;cleaning&quot; the coins prior to submission, informed to be a practice in the &quot;community&quot;. The &quot;cleaning&quot; when properly implemented, removes the objectionable appearance naturally generated by handling techniques, and is often undetected. It appears that TPG occasionally detect the removal process, and either note the condition, certify without a definite grade, certify as **, or &quot;body-bag&quot;. A brief search of eBay will show hundreds of these coins certified by &quot;first tier&quot; TPG. A more extensive search will probably reveal, I would guess thousands of 18th, 19th, and 20th century certified &quot;cleaned&quot; coins, which are appealing to many knowledgeable collectors. These coins often command great premiums, relative to the less than bullion value that self-serving dealers advocate. They publish articles similar to that referenced, advocating that &quot;cleaned coins&quot; are worthless, while often the &quot;community&quot; submits, or sells same. To state that the &quot;top tier&quot; TPG would only have certified &quot;vintage coins&quot; of exceptional rarity, with a long past &quot;cleaning&quot;, and that they become undesirable/valueless, is ludicrous. My statement is evidenced by the 20th Century coin, certified by PCGS, in eBay #120574232220, currently having bids of ~10000 times its&#039; bullion value. I could spend days posting similar examples, but I believe that one given example belies the essence of negative cleaning arguments, and reference articles.&nbsp; </b>[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

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