Acetone dip event...

joeykoins

Here is a 1967 Canadian Dollar. This coin has a toning I'm not pleased with. So, I decided to "Dip" it! Only problem is that I'm a novice in this. Last time I tried this I destroyed a Jefferson nickel. Lol. Luckily, the nickel was insignificant. Just bought a new can of Acetone. Should I just place the Dollar in a glass jar with a small amount of Acetone and let sit for awhile? Thanks guy's!

Coinscratch

I don't think it removes toning but it does remove glue as I finally had a successful event myself. I'll post pics later once my son gets off my phone

joeykoins

What should I do to make sure I don't destroy this coin? I know, no q-tip and no rubbing, right? Should I let soak for an hour or sooner, longer? Thanks

JRocco

Put in in a glass jar with enough acetone to cover the coin.
Try a short soak for maybe 10 minutes to see how it looks.
You can always put is back for a longer soak if desired.
Good luck !

Coinscratch

I never dip more than a few minutes max. Even a few seconds can destroy a coin but if its not a big deal then its not a big deal, right. Honestly, if a coin has any significant value and has a nice luster the only thing I'm dipping it in is a flip.
Now, if its a beautiful coin but has a spot rendering it worthless well, let it soak.

TomB

Acetone removes organic crud, in general, from coins. It should typically leave toning alone on silver. Regardless, an acetone bath shouldn't last long at all since it is either going to remove the stuff or it isn't.

android01

I might suggest buying a bottle of MS70. It doesn't affect toning (unless it's AT), and get's rid of dirt/verdigris/haze/etc. I'd still use acetone for PVC and similar surface contaminants. MS70 also doesn't strip metal from the coin. MS70 is basically a concentrated detergent. It's not a "dip" in the traditional sense.

joeykoins

Ok, guy's. Thanks. Here I GO. Show you later.

ms70

Is there a doctor in the house???

joeykoins

After, should I NOT rinse w/water? or rinse w/water? Pat dry or NOT?

Smudge

Rinse with distilled water if you have it.

ShadyDave

When using acetone i keep it in a pyrex glass jar with a lid. Make sure to keep it in a well ventilated area with no sparks or flames around as it can combust easily. For circulated coins, I regularly use a q-tip to remove gunk or to softly remove PVC or something similar. Practice makes perfect...

Sometimes I leave coins for a few hours in acetone, sometimes for a few days depending on what I'm trying to accomplish. Using real acetone (NEVER use nailpolish remover) will not affect the surfaces of a coin. i've left silver coins in acetone for weeks before with no negative effects, by accident. Acetone could have an affect on the look of a coin depending on what it removes...if it removes glue/paint/rubber bands it could leave uneven toning since the surfaces were covered by the organic material for an extended period of time.

I normally rinse the coins after I dip them. I normally use distilled water (gallon jugs you can get for a $1 at the grocery store) to make sure there is no organic residue leftover but I have also run coins under luke warm water with no issues either.

I don't think your coin will be improved at all by using acetone, you will need to use a dip like "e-z-est" or something similar to alter the toning. It takes practice to correctly use dip and to figure out how to properly rinse a dipped coin.

joeykoins

Here is after 6 minutes dipped. No rinse. No patting dry. It looks worse!




HERE IS THE BEFORE PICS

joeykoins

Round 2; I'm placing back in the Acetone, maybe for a tad longer than 6 min. Here we GO...

Coinscratch

Here are some BU coins I recently found roll hunting. They look really nice until you turn up the magnification and realize they all have fatal flaws and not worth grading. Most of the reverses had glue and after a few minutes acetone removed it.

Before


Before


After - And unfortunately a large date but, is the floating roof worth something, I don't know...

joeykoins

Cool! Thanks. Acetone doesn't remove fingerprints, huh?

ms70

Personally I would rinse it.

joeykoins

No soap and water, huh?
When and what good is the Q-tip for?

Jinx86

Dip a Q-tip in acetone and roll it over the coin. Proofs are tough though. Might use denatured alcohol as a soak instead of acetone. Coin has little value over silver so worth experimenting on.

Have fun with it. Report results s, good or bad.

joeykoins

@Jinx86 said:
Dip a Q-tip in acetone and roll it over the coin. Proofs are tough though. Might use denatured alcohol as a soak instead of acetone. Coin has little value over silver so worth experimenting on.

Have fun with it. Report results s, good or bad.

Yes, it's true about the value. I only paid $12. It's worth the practice! Lol. Thanks

joeykoins

Here's the results after 2nd attempt. This time water rinse. Pat dry. and 45 min. in Acetone! BETTER RESULTS!

joeykoins

I think this time I'll let soak for a few hours? Maybe, overnight? Thank you, guy's

ms70

There is another recent thread where someone let it soak for a real long time and it turned pinkish. I'd take baby steps if you haven't done it before.

joeykoins

thanks!

Namvet69

That patterned surface around the goose, could it be from cloth contact or a couple of overlapping latent prints? Inquiring minds want to know. Peace Roy

keets

as others have said, unless you're trying to remove a substance such as glue or shellac which is heavy and been in place for a long time, you shouldn't need more than a few seconds, maybe a minute, to get results. from my experience, repeated soaking really doesn't accomplish anything. if you leave a coin like this in acetone for 10 minutes and nothing happens the results will be the same after 10 hours.

one thing to remember, acetone is very volatile and will evaporate off the surface of the coin almost instantly. you should take it out of the acetone and immediately rinse it. if you hold it up to look at for a few seconds or even like 20-30 seconds the acetone will evaporate and anything dissolved by it/in it will then be left as a film on the coin. that will require re-dipping until you do it right.

also, quite often with glue, tape residue and other substances the acetone won't dissolve it, the contaminants are "melted" and a Q-tip with acetone rolled over it will be needed for removal.

Coinscratch

@joeykoins said:
Cool! Thanks. Acetone doesn't remove fingerprints, huh?

Maybe, if it soaked longer IDK.
Also, I'd be careful about patting dry. At least on high luster business strikes, you always here these guys talk about breaks in the luster. So much so that I don't even agree with the packaging to ship coins. Think about it, 10 or so coins only separated by thin plastic tightly bound with a rubber-band bouncing around in and out of planes, trains, and automobiles for a week
I'm gonna insulate each coin on my next order.

TennesseeDave

Look like it needs an EZest bath.

ricko

Acetone only removes organic residues... so what ever is there, is likely not organic....You may need to go to something stronger like Ezest or MS70...The Q-tip should not be used to rub, only roll without any scrubbing..it helps to loosen residues....Cheers, RickO

joeykoins

@Namvet69 said:
That patterned surface around the goose, could it be from cloth contact or a couple of overlapping latent prints?

Yeah, I did notice that "cloth-like appearance!" Those cloth patterns. Esp. near the goose. What's up with that?

bsshog40

I have never had results with acetone removing toning or fingerprints. If I wanted to removing toning then I use ez-zest. And then it is only in 3-5 second intervals. Too much ez-zest will start removing luster. Usually I get good results but there is a stopping point before you ruin the coin and settle for what results you do get. Fingerprints can be another issue. After years, the oily residue from fingerprints can etch into the coin and will not be removed without ruining the coin. If the first ez-zest dip doesn't remove it, then probably there for life. Just my experience.

joeykoins

Hi guy's, been reading and studying with my wife. First things first. Esp. today (Sunday). OK.
Getting back to my problem with my coin. Yeah, I decided to take many of you guy's suggestions. I will take baby steps on this instead of hurrying it up and destroying another coin. Lol. Yes, I will try to look for that solution called, "ez-zest". I do have some "Zest" in my bathroom I use for when I shower? Would that work? Lol. Just kidding! Lol.

7Jaguars

Here is another low cost/low risk approach in the event it is not organic residue and is oxidation:

1:1 dilution with household ammonia with light "tamping" of the surface with cotton Q tip repeated several times over a few minutes, followed by a mild detergent and water application,
and then water and then a "tamp" dry with high nap white cotton towel. This will not eat into the surface, is cheap, and no irreversible changes. BTW, often works well with copper nickel coins that do not respond to acidic or EZest treatments...

topstuf

I've soaked coins in Great Collections for several weeks and after the auction closed, everything was gone.

joeykoins

Just thought of this, I notice the word, "tone" is actually in the word, Acetone?

coinkat

Rut-Roh...

Looks as if Elizabeth and the goose are now on life support... And One step away from the point of no return.

joeykoins

Lol Soon to place in my pile of trying to Acetone coins, huh? Lol Oh well? A beauty huh?

coinkat

Well... You could always invest in a small gold/silver melting kiln to repurpose the silver. I suspect no one will miss one 1967 Canadian Dollar... What could go wrong?

Just kidding... Sorry that the effort did not go as planned.

joeykoins

No, I agree with you! Lol

vplite99

Still worth melt, worth a try.

joeykoins

Here's my next experiment coin.

JUST KIDDING! NO WAY, I'll Risk it.

Oldhoopster

You really need to be careful if you don't understand the basic chemistry of the materials you're using and the material you want to remove. Acetone and xylene are very different from ez-est is different from MS70 is different from Verdi-care. In addition, toning is different from PVC plasticizer residue is different from organic build up is different from fingerprints, is different from copper spots.

As others have said, acetone doesn't affect toning. You need to chose the right tool for the right job.

And BTW: make sure you know what you're doing when you handle chemicals.