how do I clean coins safely?

[Sapper724]

OK, before everyone yells at me and tells me its never right to clean coins, I am asking because I'm finding a lot of wheat pennies that are so corroded or petinad that I can't find a date on them. I just want to know what do others do to find out these dates, and how to get them to at least recognizable condition? I don't want them shiny and new looking, I just want to see that they are old Wheaties or other coins. Thank you!

 

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[mr helton]

IF you have time, soak them in mineral oil for a couple months. A couple days will help too.

 

[50cent]

Simple answer is you don't, professionals generally resort to a Q-Tip to gently remove dirt. For aesthetics or your own personal selection look up how to clean a coin, there are many methods but they mostly resort to permanent numismatic damage. If you want a shine and to ruin a good coin go for electrolysis........

 

[Groovedymond]

Everyone is right. In order to have ANY collector's worth, cleaning is a huge No-No.

However, for your own collection, or in order to pull a date off of older wheats and such, I usually use a warm Hydrogen Peroxide bath. Pour a small bowl of it, warm it up in the microwave for 30 seconds to 1 minute (no coin in it at that time). Once it's out of the microwave, drop the coin in the solution and watch the magic start.

After 10 minutes or so, I usually take it out, use a q-tip (or toothpick when heavily crusted) to remove debris.

Rinse and repeat as necessary.

However, keep in mind... ANY form of unprofessional cleaning is a sure fire way to lose ANY numismatic value what so ever.