First hunt since April I got shielded.

relic lover

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First hunt since April I got shielded and a half eagle.

I got out dirt fishing for the first time in a long time. It took me 3 hours to find a non-ferrous signal in my severely pounded but very conveniently located spot. I decided to dig all of the shotgun shell signals that I left behind. They were all shotgun shells except for one. A nice crusty Shield nickel was my reward for 3 hours of bushwhacking. There was no visible date even with oblique lighting. I have messed up Shield nickels in the past so I was very careful and used my new technique that I developed for fat Indians and Flying Eagles. Enjoy the transformation that's if the pictures load in the correct order LOL. I was quite certain I was never going to get a date I could tell it was under the crust but my preliminary cleaning seemed to obliterate it. But then I was able to use a little finesse to bring out the date 1872. This is a major first for me I have never pulled a shield nickel I could get a date off of they are always pitted beyond belief. This one was located in the muck in front of a spring that is perpetually wet perhaps the lack of wet and dry cycles helped preserve it in at least decent condition. I wish I had the kind of soil some people have pulling these things out pristine. But I'm not complaining about this one super stoked to have a date. Too bad it's not in 1880. By the way this thing looks much better in the hand than it does in my pictures thank God.
 

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Looks pretty good to me! Congrats on such a great first in good condition. What may I ask is your new technique? Nickels can be so tricky to clean.
 

I soaked it in liquid wrench for 5 minutes at a time. Then I would gently rub it between my fingers dry it with a soft cloth put a drop of 3 in 1 oil on it rub gently with a soft cloth checking with a magnifying glass after each attempt to get a date. It took about 5 repetitions of this cycle to get enough of the green corrosion off without destroying the date. Definitely never put water on a nickel or other coin containing a lot of nickel like the flying eagle or fat Indian. I probably could do more of the same process but I like it the way it is. I just wanted to get the date without destroying it. And especially without making the area around the date look different from the rest of the coin which I hate.
 

Just had another little surprise cleaning up what I thought was a broken button that I got on this same hunt this morning. It's not a broken button it is half of a flying eagle Cent 1857. Not exactly in mint condition but interesting can't imagine how you break a penny. I guess even more weird is that I would clean a broken button LOL
 

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Sweet find. I wish they came out of the ground in PROOF condition, but then I woke up. Ya done gud...
 

both my shields this season are toast. both my FE cents came out with no date but good details using short 1/2 hour electrolysis with a wet rub of worn #800 grit. all 4 coins were farm dug. sad how much iron can muck up nics & coppers.
 

both my shields this season are toast. both my FE cents came out with no date but good details using short 1/2 hour electrolysis with a wet rub of worn #800 grit. all 4 coins were farm dug. sad how much iron can muck up nics & coppers.

Fertilizer doesn't help either
 

Nice find. Ive gotten eight shield nickels from my seated field this year. Only one or two have a legible date. I dont dare try and clean my coppers/nickels anymore though
 

Congrats on the shield nickel and the first FE half cent I've seen
 

Congrats on the shield nickel and the first FE half cent I've seen

Yeah I'll bet if I would have used the term half eagle in the title I would have got a lot more traffic in my thread LOL
 

Any Shield you can read the date on is a good one RL! Glad you got out and dug it. WTG, Q.
 

Ahhh the find that STILL eludes me! Really nice find ! I hunt the same type soil, V, Buffs, Jeffs, all get toasted. You got some nice detail!

Congrats and HH
 

Ahhh the find that STILL eludes me! Really nice find ! I hunt the same type soil, V, Buffs, Jeffs, all get toasted. You got some nice detail!

Congrats and HH

Thanks , I'm going to try one more technique to improve the overall look. I will post the final result tomorrow.
 

Still looking for my first shield, so it's good to see that some are still out there! Nice clean up, and thanks for sharing.
 

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