Evening, Last week I went to the bank and got $25 worth of pennies. To my surprise most of them were hand rolled with some ladies name and address all over them, an Edna something. That's not the point though. I came out of the experience with 54 wheaties, lots of Pre-82 copper, some oddly good looking, some average. Most however were coated in some kind of oily substance that is tacky and smells something like packing grease from an old SKS or Mauser. So my question is should I clean them with some warm water and dawn or keep whatever it is on them? Or clean them with some other method? Thanks and hope this isn't too much of a newbie question, Matt
If they are only worth copper value, or very common dated wheaties, clean them. Just don't be too harsh.
Well I wouldn't use soap of any kind because soap leaves behind a residue that will in time be just as harmful as whatever is on them now. And normally I wouldn't recommend that you try to clean them at all. But the exception to that rule is when leaving them alone will itself be harmful. And from your description, that is the case you have. Just soaking the coins in pure acetone may do the job, or it may not. It depends on what the substance is on the coins. But if acetone doesn't do it, then try xylene. But whichever product you end up using, make sure that you soak/dip each coin in 3 different containers of solvent. And don't re-use the solvent. You can put multiple coins at he same time in the first two containers. But make sure you dip each coin individually in clean solvent in that last container.
I think there's a good chance that that oily substance might be very old olive oil. Back in the '60s, at least, some collectors believed that coating copper coins with olive oil would help to preserve them.
Thank you for the replies. GDJMSP: I suppose using my wife's nail polish remover would be a no-no? C1966: I think you sure could be right on! I could imagine rancid 50 year old olive oil smelling like this. When compared to other wheaties I have these only seem darker brown. I don't think it's eating away at them but I could be wrong.
Absolutely ! It's got a bunch of stuff in it that is not acetone. You need to go the hardware store and get pure acetone. Olive oil is acidic, of that there is no doubt. It's main use by coin collectors has always been as a cleaning agent. There are many who still use it even today. But various other oils have been used over the years by collectors to "protect" their coins. There are even commercial products that contain oils like Blue Ribbon and Coin Care and many collectors use these. So it could be almost any type of oil on the coins. Collectors are always coming up with "home remedies". The one trait that all of these oil remedies have in common is that they make the coins look a darker brown. And the oils often fool even knowledgeable collectors into believing that a coin is a higher grade than it really is.
I believe you could use soap and water. The only caveat I would have is while they are in contact with the soap leave them in the water, and when you are done rinse them in plain water to get the worst of the soap off, then soak in a basin of distilled water. Leave them in the distilled water an hour or two, then take them out and put on a cloth to dry. Your danger here sir is the chlorine. You do not want any part of it to remain on the copper, as this can lead to bronze disease. I have done hundreds of ancients the way I describe and have had no problem. I do believe its best to remove the oil from the coins. Chris
Speaking of "bronze disease", is that the green spots that are on some bronze and copper coins (and generally reveal a pit of some kind if scraped off)? Obviously this is something one does want to get rid of. Any good tips on what's effective? A week in acetone doesn't seem to faze it. Is there any chemical that does in bronze disease without attacking the metal substrate?
Yes it is. I kept this link someone posted here 6-9 months ago. I apologize I do not remember who posted it, but I did not find it myself: http://www.crescentcitycoinclub.org/seminars_and_programs/Bronze Disease.pdf Nice article about bronze disease. Chris
"Bronze disease" is simply another name for verdigris. It has three stages: light, moderate and heavy. Heavy verdigris generally should not be removed because the result will be a completely stripping of the patina, loss of detail and pits. Light and moderate verdigris are fairly easy to address with VERDI-CARE. Acetone (or other organic solvents) will not remove verdigris regardless of how long you soak. Olive oil is somewhat effective, but the acids will harm the coin and it can take months to work. It also tends to leave behind red spots in the areas of the corrosion.
Be aware that the removal techniques outlined in that are for ancient coins. The specified methods are very harsh will result in a cleaned coin. If you're working on ancients, that's fine, but for modern coinage the results will not be pleasant.
Fair enough point. I guess being in ancients I do nto much care for particulars modern collectors worry about.
Yea, ancient collectors have little choice. Most of the time you either have an unrecognizable blob of metal or you have something that you can actually make out the markings on. LOL
THIS COIN IS AN 1880 1/4 ANNA FROM british india.. DOES THE COIN HAVE BRONZE DISEASE OR ITS SOMETHING ELSE....... PLZ REPLY
