I just speak from my experience. That's all. There are some extremely knowledgeable collectors here that had seen, and touched more coins than I will probably ever hope. Some have seen less.
It is your decision to weigh all the variables; but an extra $20, or, whatever in conservation by professionals is a drop in the bucket in regards to something that may be forever lost.
@jafo50 said: @Insider2 I had read about the negative effect of acetone on these early coppers. I have distilled water so I'll give that a try first.
Thanks
I'm not a copper guy but to my understanding the only time acetone itself can effect the surface of copper is in conjunction with sunlight. If you are in a dimly lit bathroom without a sunroof light you should be fine.
Dropped it in boiling water and a lot of the gunk loosened up. I was able to gently push chunks of glue off with a toothpick. There's still a lot glue stuck in the crevices which I hope a xylene soak will take care of.
I adjusted the coin color to match the color of the coin in hand.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
I have no idea why I posted a closeup of the Y instead of the L but here is the L. It looks like an over strike or even doubling but I think that may be normal for this Newcomb variety.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
I just want to go on the record here that Xylene is some nasty stuff. Definitely use outdoors. Even the smallest amount on the coin when washing the Xylene off leaves a strong chemical smell in the room.
This may be as good as it gets.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Here's the results from a dip in the big 'A' - acetone.
The coin is chocolate in hand. The photo is as close as I can get it to the original based on my photo skill set. Overall I'm pleased with the results.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
The 1825 is on its way to be professionally conserved. I'm afraid to tackle that one on my own. The good news the '25 is not nearly as degraded as the other Large Cents.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
@thefinn I have used rubbing alcohol before and I have gotten poor results. Acetone does a much better job without the residue.
I'm sure people have personal lists, but I think it would be a great idea for the community to put a thread together outlining what the best things to use on certain metals (coins) and what chemical works best at removing glue, grime, PVC, tape, ink etc...
@Walkerguy21D said:
Darn - I have a like new Dansco album for large cents that needs a good home....anyway, sounds like you have a good start on the set.
Does Dansco still sell albums like this? For some reason I recall that Danco has slowed down production of albums for a while.
Don't know - I don't even recall where I came by mine, but I've had it a while.
I decided to keep my large cents in slabs or in 2x2 holders, even though they would look
good presenting them all in an album.
Pleased you had better luck than I did using xylene. Acetone wouldn't remove the silver sheen I had on mine, maybe I should have boiled it? IDK- smart that you're sending out the 1825 for conservation. Too nice of a coin to chance any mistakes.
@thefinn I have used rubbing alcohol before and I have gotten poor results. Acetone does a much better job without the residue.
I'm sure people have personal lists, but I think it would be a great idea for the community to put a thread together outlining what the best things to use on certain metals (coins) and what chemical works best at removing glue, grime, PVC, tape, ink etc...
Personally, Methylene chloride is my go-to solvent, along with Chloroform if I can get it.
Here are the before and after photos of the next coin I worked on. I skipped the Goo Gone, Mineral Spirits and Xylene steps this time because they had little or no effect and did the following instead:
Dropped the coin into boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes. I checked the clue with a toothpick to make sure it was softened in multiple places on the coin. This also broke up the continuity of the glue across the surface of the coin.
After the coin cooled the glue re-hardened but I was able to lift pieces of the hardened glue from the coin using a wooded toothpick.
I soaked the coin in an Acetone bath overnight and used a Q-tip gently rolled over the coin to remove any glue residue.
Here are the before and after results. The date is 1819 and the photos are pretty close to the coin in hand but not exact.
Before
After
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
@jafo50 said:
Here are the before and after photos of the next coin I worked on. I skipped the Goo Gone, Mineral Spirits and Xylene steps this time because they had little or no effect and did the following instead:
Dropped the coin into boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes. I checked the clue with a toothpick to make sure it was softened in multiple places on the coin. This also broke up the continuity of the glue across the surface of the coin.
After the coin cooled the glue re-hardened but I was able to lift pieces of the hardened glue from the coin using a wooded toothpick.
I soaked the coin in an Acetone bath overnight and used a Q-tip gently rolled over the coin to remove any glue residue.
Here are the before and after results. The date is 1819 and the photos are pretty close to the coin in hand but not exact.
@Insider2 said:
Probably not. I don't think gasoline will hurt it either. I cannot believe it is still on the coin. I'd like to get my hands on one of them.
Gasoline is ok, but not acetone?
Acetone is great. I have nothing against it and use it. That is just another step. I did not wish to post this or disagree with the folks who wrote that acetone should be avoided. That statement is nuts!
You just have to be sure you are getting high-grade stuff devoid of stabilizing agents. Pure GC/MS-grade or Optima is much more expensive and difficult to get if you aren't able to order chemicals from suppliers.
Acetone is a fairly pure industrial solvent as supplied at the hardware store in tin cans. There is no reason to get reagent grade, and there are no denaturants or stabilizers in acetone. It's pure and high grade already, it just hasn't been certified.
Good job with the boiling water and acetone. My only concern with acetone is that there does seem to be a difference in the color on the "after" pictures compared to the "before" pictures. To be sure, the crud is gone and the appearance is 100% better.
Each type of adhesive or surface contaminant has it's own properties, and each one might require a different solvent. The question will always be "what removes the contaminant best without affecting the coin's surfaces?"
Your outcome is way up on the scale of good outcomes. Congrats!
Q: Are You Printing Money? Bernanke: Not Literally
Coins with a heavy or thick residue benefited by boiling the coin for a few minutes to soften up the clue followed by an Acetone soak overnight.
Coins with a light or moderate residue skipped the boiling step and went straight to the Acetone soak. The Acetone softened and ultimately dissolved the glue residue rather quickly, within a few hours.
All of the surfaces suffered no ill effects from the glue or the chemicals that were used.
I believe that instead of going straight to Acetone the process that I followed using , Goo Gone, Mineral Spirits, Xylene and finally Acetone produced controlled results for this particular set of coins. After the agent that actually worked was found I could then go straight to that agent for the remainder of these coins.
Thanks for all of the input and I'll post the results of the 1825 coins once I get them.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
IMO, CA is a really screwed up state! Beautiful, full of history, fun attractions, pretty women, great cars and wine, plus every type of environment you could wish for; yet really screwed up.
So NCS performed the conservation on that coin.... if I recall, that was one you were sending in?
Nice score!
That is a tough date in XF and above....check the pops on how many AU's are around
@Walkerguy21D said:
So NCS performed the conservation on that coin.... if I recall, that was one you were sending in?
Nice score!
Yes, I didn't want to mess with it because I thought it would grade pretty good and I didn't want to screw up the coin. The other cents in this thread came out OK also but their monetary values were a lot less so the risk was minimal.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Comments
@PocketArt That's my plan but since everyone posting here have been extremely helpful I'd like to see if I could make some progress on my own.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
I just speak from my experience. That's all. There are some extremely knowledgeable collectors here that had seen, and touched more coins than I will probably ever hope. Some have seen less.
It is your decision to weigh all the variables; but an extra $20, or, whatever in conservation by professionals is a drop in the bucket in regards to something that may be forever lost.
JMO, and btw, nice set!
I'm not a copper guy but to my understanding the only time acetone itself can effect the surface of copper is in conjunction with sunlight. If you are in a dimly lit bathroom without a sunroof light you should be fine.
Acetone can turn copper blue under some conditions. It will also strip off the oils that help make copper lustrous.
Dropped it in boiling water and a lot of the gunk loosened up. I was able to gently push chunks of glue off with a toothpick. There's still a lot glue stuck in the crevices which I hope a xylene soak will take care of.
I adjusted the coin color to match the color of the coin in hand.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
I like that ‘25 a lot!
I'd try boiling in that distilled water.
I have no idea why I posted a closeup of the Y instead of the L but here is the L. It looks like an over strike or even doubling but I think that may be normal for this Newcomb variety.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
The large cent book calls it die polish. I looks like a doubled "L."
I just want to go on the record here that Xylene is some nasty stuff. Definitely use outdoors. Even the smallest amount on the coin when washing the Xylene off leaves a strong chemical smell in the room.
This may be as good as it gets.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Here's the results from a dip in the big 'A' - acetone.
The coin is chocolate in hand. The photo is as close as I can get it to the original based on my photo skill set. Overall I'm pleased with the results.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Often it is the application of several chemicals used over and over one after the other that works best. You have done a beautiful job.
Thanks for detailing your methods and progress.
Now let’s see that 1825!
Patience is required. The OP has a few more coins to practice on before the "Big One."
Now he can start soaking a few at a time.
The 1825 is on its way to be professionally conserved. I'm afraid to tackle that one on my own. The good news the '25 is not nearly as degraded as the other Large Cents.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
I would try 2-Propaol, aka rubbing alcohol, 70%.
@jafo50 Great thread, thanks for sharing.
@thefinn I have used rubbing alcohol before and I have gotten poor results. Acetone does a much better job without the residue.
I'm sure people have personal lists, but I think it would be a great idea for the community to put a thread together outlining what the best things to use on certain metals (coins) and what chemical works best at removing glue, grime, PVC, tape, ink etc...
Does Dansco still sell albums like this? For some reason I recall that Danco has slowed down production of albums for a while.
Don't know - I don't even recall where I came by mine, but I've had it a while.
I decided to keep my large cents in slabs or in 2x2 holders, even though they would look
good presenting them all in an album.
Pleased you had better luck than I did using xylene. Acetone wouldn't remove the silver sheen I had on mine, maybe I should have boiled it? IDK- smart that you're sending out the 1825 for conservation. Too nice of a coin to chance any mistakes.
Great thread thanks for keeping us updated. And good luck on the 25.
Personally, Methylene chloride is my go-to solvent, along with Chloroform if I can get it.
I've been using acetone for years to get undesirables off, and it works just about every time.
@basetsb_coins on Instagram
.
Here are the before and after photos of the next coin I worked on. I skipped the Goo Gone, Mineral Spirits and Xylene steps this time because they had little or no effect and did the following instead:
Dropped the coin into boiling water for 1 to 2 minutes. I checked the clue with a toothpick to make sure it was softened in multiple places on the coin. This also broke up the continuity of the glue across the surface of the coin.
After the coin cooled the glue re-hardened but I was able to lift pieces of the hardened glue from the coin using a wooded toothpick.
I soaked the coin in an Acetone bath overnight and used a Q-tip gently rolled over the coin to remove any glue residue.
Here are the before and after results. The date is 1819 and the photos are pretty close to the coin in hand but not exact.
Before
After
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Nice save! I like acetone. Works on all coins to dissolve nasty residue. Peace Roy
BST: endeavor1967, synchr, kliao, Outhaul, Donttellthewife, U1Chicago, ajaan, mCarney1173, SurfinHi, MWallace, Sandman70gt, mustanggt, Pittstate03, Lazybones, Walkerguy21D, coinandcurrency242 , thebigeng, Collectorcoins, JimTyler, USMarine6, Elkevvo, Coll3ctor, Yorkshireman, CUKevin, ranshdow, CoinHunter4, bennybravo, Centsearcher, braddick, Windycity, ZoidMeister, mirabela, JJM, RichURich, Bullsitter, jmski52, LukeMarshall, coinsarefun, MichaelDixon, NickPatton, ProfLiz, Twobitcollector,Jesbroken oih82w8
Well done!!
Excellent job! Professional
@basetsb_coins on Instagram
You just have to be sure you are getting high-grade stuff devoid of stabilizing agents. Pure GC/MS-grade or Optima is much more expensive and difficult to get if you aren't able to order chemicals from suppliers.
Acetone is a fairly pure industrial solvent as supplied at the hardware store in tin cans. There is no reason to get reagent grade, and there are no denaturants or stabilizers in acetone. It's pure and high grade already, it just hasn't been certified.
Good job with the boiling water and acetone. My only concern with acetone is that there does seem to be a difference in the color on the "after" pictures compared to the "before" pictures. To be sure, the crud is gone and the appearance is 100% better.
Each type of adhesive or surface contaminant has it's own properties, and each one might require a different solvent. The question will always be "what removes the contaminant best without affecting the coin's surfaces?"
Your outcome is way up on the scale of good outcomes. Congrats!
I knew it would happen.
Results so far:
Coins with a heavy or thick residue benefited by boiling the coin for a few minutes to soften up the clue followed by an Acetone soak overnight.
Coins with a light or moderate residue skipped the boiling step and went straight to the Acetone soak. The Acetone softened and ultimately dissolved the glue residue rather quickly, within a few hours.
All of the surfaces suffered no ill effects from the glue or the chemicals that were used.
I believe that instead of going straight to Acetone the process that I followed using , Goo Gone, Mineral Spirits, Xylene and finally Acetone produced controlled results for this particular set of coins. After the agent that actually worked was found I could then go straight to that agent for the remainder of these coins.
Thanks for all of the input and I'll post the results of the 1825 coins once I get them.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Acetone is a great solvent and useful chemical that California has seen fit to keep out of the hands of the unwashed public.
IMO, CA is a really screwed up state! Beautiful, full of history, fun attractions, pretty women, great cars and wine, plus every type of environment you could wish for; yet really screwed up.
Here's the before and after photos of the 1825 that was conserved and graded. It came out pretty good considering the original condition.
Before
After
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Fake news, Learn the truth and stop watching that stuff, it is rotting your mind ...... Geeeeeez
Facts matter and here is a fact, home depot sells Acetone in California ..... 47 in STOCK at just one of many stores ....
So NCS performed the conservation on that coin.... if I recall, that was one you were sending in?
Nice score!
That is a tough date in XF and above....check the pops on how many AU's are around
Yes, I didn't want to mess with it because I thought it would grade pretty good and I didn't want to screw up the coin. The other cents in this thread came out OK also but their monetary values were a lot less so the risk was minimal.
Successful BST transactions with lordmarcovan, Moldnut, erwindoc
Superb- good results! Interesting, and informative journey. Thanks for sharing.