Missing Indian

[jt70]

Found this 1903 Indian Head this morning, but the Indian seems to be hiding quite well! I noticed on alot of the pennys i dig ther is far more crud on one side than the other. Anyone know why this is? Also i am still looking for a good way to clean up coppers like this. i have tried a few different ways like olive oil, even tried electrolysis but it seems to wear copper down quite a bit. Any suggestions?

Thanks
for looking
JT

 

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[bigrig40]

congrats on the ih!have you tried vinegar?it has worked fairly well on some of my coins.

peace,bigrig

 

[jt70]

Here is a look at the same coin after a brief (20-30 min) bath in peroxide and lemon juice.

 

[lonewolfe]

It's too far gone to bring out any detail.

Nice find no matter though!

HH

Lonewolfe

 

[allen]

listen to bigrig. he knows what hes talking about. keep on digging !!!

 

[jt70]

how exactly should you use vinegar/ do you dilute it at all? doyo soak it in vinegar or just put it on and rinse it shortly after?

Thanks

JT

 

[PRAIRIEWOLF]

Vinegar will get it off the green patina but , you will be left with a one color , micro pitted no charactor chunk of copper . I like the green patina better . Either way the penny isn't worth much but , the patina has some charactor value . But then ; What do I Know ?

 

[jt70]

i hear ya there PRAIRIEWOLF.

I looked up the coin and since it isn't worth much i thought I'd experiment a little to see what works well. I like the patina on coins too but sometimes i just like to have a look at whats underneath. Especially in a case like this when the coin is barely identifiable.

JT

 

[jt70]

Final Results

Not too shabby for a fast method.

I am new to this stuff so use at your own risk.

1. Heat a 75% Hydogen Peroxide 25% Lemon Juice Mixture in the microwave for 45 seconds or so

2. Drop penny in mixture and let soak for 15 mins.

3. Brush lightly with very soft toothbrush and rinse with water.

4. Repeat steps 2 and 3 as needed. (it took 2 soakings for this coin).

5. Put in a 12 volt electrolysis tank for 15 to 30 mins. Just check it after every 5 - 10 mins and brush, rinse, and return to electrolysis until you are happy with the results. Use distilled water and baking soda in the electrolysis tank to help neutralize any acid from the lemon juice that main still remain on the coin.

6. Give coin a light scrub with never-dull or a similar petroleum product to acheive a nice finish and to protect the coin from future corrosion.

good luck with your cleaning.

JT

 

[Kansas]

Thanks for the info JT and all.
~Kansas~

 

[Getty]

Thanx for the info ,I like the way it came out.I will try this method on some of mine.

 

[Mona Lisa]

Nice demo, JT. One side of my coins is more corroded that the other side of my coins, too. I think the side that's facing up would get more corrosion. Luckily, mostly it's been the tails side with more corrosion.

 

[bk]

There are things that will remove the copper oxide from a copper coin, but the condition of the coin will not be improved.
Have you ever tried household ammonia?
The solution turns into a pretty blue color and will remove the oxide, but makes the coin pink.