cleaning a Flying Eagle cent

[minton7]

hit a flying eagle cent.... back in completely smooth.... on the front u can see the eagle outline.. nuttin else.... is red.......... must be the nickle part of it making it turn red i nthe ground..... any one know how to clean this in hopes of seein a date??

[Neil in West Jersey]

OK, I was hoping to find an answer to this question. I dug what I believe to be an 1857 (hoping for an 1856) about an hour ago. I am afraid to use the Peroxide method. I am going to use distilled water unless someone can recommend another method. Anyone have any suggestions?

[BuckleBoy]

OK, I was hoping to find an answer to this question. I dug what I believe to be an 1857 (hoping for an 1856) about an hour ago. I am afraid to use the Peroxide method. I am going to use distilled water unless someone can recommend another method. Anyone have any suggestions?

Distilled water is probably the least destructive. I actually took my CN IH's and my last F.E. cent and scrubbed them with a toothbrush until they were perfectly red--then took a little oil from my fingers and went lightly over the high point of the design. I do the same with old Nickels that I find--but it all depends on soil type. Worked here for me, but didn't work on the same coins dug in Virginia soil.


Regards,


Buckleboy

[Neil in West Jersey]

OK, I was hoping to find an answer to this question. I dug what I believe to be an 1857 (hoping for an 1856) about an hour ago. I am afraid to use the Peroxide method. I am going to use distilled water unless someone can recommend another method. Anyone have any suggestions?

Distilled water is probably the least destructive. I actually took my CN IH's and my last F.E. cent and scrubbed them with a toothbrush until they were perfectly red--then took a little oil from my fingers and went lightly over the high point of the design. I do the same with old Nickels that I find--but it all depends on soil type. Worked here for me, but didn't work on the same coins dug in Virginia soil.


Regards,


Buckleboy

Thanks for the input. BB.

As far as cleaning goes, I guess you can say I learned the hard way, never having found a fat boy before. Due to the nickel content, I did not want to use my peroxide method of cleaning. I have had great success with the peroxide bath method on my copper and bronze coins.

I used a soak in distilled water and a light brushing with a soft bristled toothbrush. If there was any patina left on the obverse, it came off with the water. In the future I will use a dry soft brush to remove the sand. I am not sure if this would have helped, but it seems the water is what washed away whatever patina was left.

[BuckleBoy]

Still looks better than uncleaned. CN coins are tough, IMO. I don't use peroxide on them--but mainly because I've had such great luck here with actually removing the crust down to the red coloration and bringing out the details by gently rubbing the high points with a finger.

Here are some examples from the past month:










In some areas, with some soil types, it might be preferable to use peroxide. In my area, IMO, all copper coins are candidates for peroxide--but there is a color change (a darkening of the patina) that results from the use of that method. Sometimes when I find a nice "greenie" that looks like it will have no crud/crust problems, I just use water.


-Buckles