Best way to clean a coin?

dennisbk77 · Jun 12, 2019

Brand new to MD and am curios what is the best way to clean a coin (any kind) to see its date? Thanks

BLK HOLE · Jun 12, 2019

Welcome aboard from Northern Virginia :skullflag:

Lots of different ways, depends on the coin. Personally I try to leave my coins alone as much as possible, it's on my list of things to do (coin cleaning) but I just haven't gotten around to it. There is lots of information on this site on different methods, I plan on experimenting one day.

Jason in Enid · Jun 12, 2019

the best cleaning method depends entirely on the type of coin and its age. You could use any method from a steel brush, to nothing more than running water depending on its potential value. Generally you start with the least damaging methods until you are sure you arent hurting a collectible.

BTW - too many people cry and yell about "dont rub coins" but they falsely believe everything warrants extreme care. The truth is that MOST coins have minimal worth to collectors and you arent going to do any harm for ordinary cleaning.

fistfulladirt · Jun 12, 2019

Try and make sure it’s not a key date coin to the best of your ability.
if it’s not, scrub away!

/s

Bootlegger137 · Jun 12, 2019

Hello there!

Cleaning coins to see the date isn't too complicated. Try soaking the coin in olive oil for a few hours or a day. The oil itself will permeate whatever layer of gunk that may be obscuring the date, and also has a little bit of acidity to help as well. After that has set, get a soft or extra soft tooth brush and a little bit of baking soda and work it around the coin as if you were brushing your teeth; small circles. Rinse the coin in warm water, and you should have no problem seeing the date.

Thanks.

fistfulladirt · Jun 13, 2019

Bootlegger137 said:
Hello there!

Cleaning coins to see the date isn't too complicated. Try soaking the coin in olive oil for a few hours or a day. The oil itself will permeate whatever layer of gunk that may be obscuring the date, and also has a little bit of acidity to help as well. After that has set, get a soft or extra soft tooth brush and a little bit of baking soda and work it around the coin as if you were brushing your teeth; small circles. Rinse the coin in warm water, and you should have no problem seeing the date.

Thanks.

Have to be careful with olive oil. I no longer use it, ruined several coins in the past. It darkens coppers to the point you can’t see the date or any detail. Olive oil is an acidic organic and corrosion begins unless neutralized. Mineral oil might be the better bet.

mick56 · Jun 13, 2019

I tumble all mine.

Bootlegger137 · Jun 13, 2019

I’ve been using this technique without issue for years. I used to use Blue Ribbon, until they banned it.

slide95 · Jun 25, 2019

If the coins in question are valuable or you are intending to sell them, I recommend contacting NCS to have them conserved. If they are not particularly valuable money-wise (so not worth the fees for NCS)and you are not planning to sell them, I would suggest an acetone bath.

Except for copper, pure acetone (not nail polish remover) should remove contaminants. You need to be sure that you are in a very well-ventilated area. And do not wipe them at all. Acetone will evaporate very quickly. Let them air-dry. I would not suggest this for anything other than damaging contaminants such as PVC residue or to stop corrosion. Copper will react in the acetone and change its color. I don't have a recommendation for copper.

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xcopperstax · Jun 27, 2019

For silver coins here is a great method: get a ceramic / glass / plastic bowl and put aluminum foil in the bottom. Dump in a few scoops of baking soda. Put the coin in or on top of the powder. Boil water. Dump the water on and let it fizz. Flip the coin over and replace the foil and powder and repeat. You can repeat this process multiple times. This method supposedly cannot and will not damage a coin. You can use a cotton swab to gently wipe the coin. I've had some great results and no exact measurement of foil baking soda or water is needed. Just guess.

Copper coins depending on the integrity of the surface there are several methods: Use a wood toothpick to scrape the dirt off. Brush with a dry plastic brush. This a minimally invasive method. If the coin surface is not heavily pitted you can buy Andre's pencils for about 20 bucks. These things are basically metal that is not supposed to scratch the coin. You can get mixed results. I've cleaned up some Indian Head Pennies really nicely, but if you are too vigorous you can scrape details off the coin. You can also heat peroxide or use it cold and drop the coin in to let it fizz for hours or days. Look up this method. Some people swear by it. Me I've only done it on one coin that was in a pretty fragile state. I'm unsure if it helped.

Have fun with it like others have said it is not likely that you will be ruining a coin worth big money. If you mess up a coin use it as a learning experience. I get pretty bummed out when I mess up a coin but that's just me!