Have you ever "thumbed" your coin to approve its appearance? here is a great example that worked!
BUFFNIXX
Posts: 2,719 ✭✭✭✭✭
Here are before and after images of the coin being "thumbed". Quite an improvement to say the least.
obverse before
reverse before
obverse after
reverse after
Collector of Buffalo Nickels and other 20th century United States Coinage
a.k.a "The BUFFINATOR"
a.k.a "The BUFFINATOR"
1
Comments
Acetone on a Q-tip or soft cloth would achieve the same effect and not leave skin oils on the coin
RIP Mom- 1932-2012
I like it, but maybe put some olive oil on a Q-Tip and lightly brush the coin.
Type collector, mainly into Seated. -formerly Ownerofawheatiehorde. Good BST transactions with: mirabela, OKCC, MICHAELDIXON, Gerard
What would that accomplish?
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
This true although there is nothing particularly wrong with having skin oil on a circulated coin.
For the new collectors here, thumbing a coin was a fairly common practice used by some coin dealers many years ago. It was used mostly on mint state Morgan dollars where the dealer would rub their thumb on the side of their nose to pick up skin oil ("nose grease") and they would then rub the cheek of Ms Liberty with their thumb to subdue the shine of the bag marks which stood out against the frosty background of the silver. The friction and heat from the rubbing would sometimes result in the bag marks being less obvious resulting in the coin having the look of a higher grade. The grading services are aware of this process which might explain why it isn't done much anymore.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Perhaps, but I'm an old school, "hold it by the edge only" guy whether it's circulated or not.
RIP Mom- 1932-2012
I confess to using "nose grease" to reveal faint dates on dug large cents.
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No ... I have not.
I have watched my dog eat some Lincoln cents before - they come out really shiny once the rain washes everything away and reveals the coins!
"When they can't find anything wrong with you, they create it!"
Thumbs up! Q: Does thumbing leave scratches? I can't tell by these photos and does it matter since it's already been circulated? Definitely made an improvement.
Stop it with the nose grease please. You are scaring me with this crap already! NO nose grease for me please🤮
forgot to add this little picture of the coin
its a doubled reverse die too. die number one.
a.k.a "The BUFFINATOR"
Based on this thread, it would appear to be a practice still used by collectors today, too.
Just sayin'.
No...
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First use an eraser. Then finish will nose oil. ( oil was the best I could do to replace grease😁)
Works fantastic and with practice looks real good 😁
I’ve also got a dandy setup for over striking. PM for details 😂
🎶 shout shout, let it all out 🎶
Now I want to wash all my coins to remove bodily fluids.
And then they used elbow grease to rub in the nose grease
Young Numismatist • My Toned Coins
Life is roadblocks. Don't let nothing stop you, 'cause we ain't stopping. - DJ Khaled
I saw my local dealer do this to a large cent 20 yrs ago. The coin sure looked nice afterwards.
Be sure to use Comet and scrub hard, (NOT REALLY).
It would clean off the grime. I use it for large cents, but you should research the effects on nickels before trying it.
Type collector, mainly into Seated. -formerly Ownerofawheatiehorde. Good BST transactions with: mirabela, OKCC, MICHAELDIXON, Gerard
Have you tried mineral oil? I would be concerned with olive oil eventually turning rancid.
Worry is the interest you pay on a debt you may not owe.
"Paper money eventually returns to its intrinsic value---zero."----Voltaire
"Everything you say should be true, but not everything true should be said."----Voltaire
Olive oil has acids in it, which is the reason it works to clean coins.
I have 'thumbed' worn, circulated (but interesting) coins I receive in change to better see details. It removes some accumulated circulation gunk. Normally, will not leave visible damage to the surface, unless the 'gunk' has micro grains of solid material - then, hairlines will be evident. I would not try it if the coin potentially was of significant collector value. Cheers, RickO
@PerryHall gave a very good description and typical use of the process of "thumbing" coins. I had never heard of this technique being used to clean coins or for anything other than to hide minute scratches on the cheek of Morgan Dollars. At one time it was quite common, the skin oil fills and hides the scratches without disturbing the luster.
A friend of mine told me about an experience he had with the process. He bought a PCGS slabbed coin from a dealer, a date graded MS64 that had a toned spot on the cheek. He figured that absent the spot the coin would probably upgrade a point for a nice profit. He took it home, cracked it out and dipped it only to discover that the "toned spot" once removed revealed several tiny scratches. He realized someone had "thumbed" the coin and fooled the TPG, but that over time the area had gone bad and darkened. He thought for a minute, thumbed the same spot and submitted the coin to PCGS. It came back as an MS64 and he sold it.
And nose grease on gold crazy but was done. You can thumb this one for years if your in to that kind of stuff this one has been in acetone for 3 months then I figure it is what it is.
Hoard the keys.
No
I’ve seen those dark toned areas on Liberty’s cheek on Morgans which can develop over time from someone thumbing them and they don’t look good. Not a good practice, just as bad as putty or AT to hide defects and makes the coin worse over time
Mr_Spud
For those out there with nose grease... might I suggest using an astringent as part of your morning routine?
RIP Mom- 1932-2012
I have tried. Well, I have taken darkly toned coins of low value, carried them in my pocket and occasionally handled them throughout the day like the coins would have normally seen in circulation. My thought was that my natural oils, the friction of handling and wear in my pockets might remove some of the darker patina.
After a few weeks and smelly hands, I got bored with little results.
Another story. When I first started collecting I purchased a raw AU seated half with beautiful proportional brown toning. While holding it once, my thumb slight brushed the surface and in doing so took off some of the toning. Weird. So, after lightly touching the surface and the toning being removed, I realized that the coin had been spread with some sort of colored polish to give it that unmolested, original look. Underneath the toning it was a shining, cleaned wreck. LOL
Live and learn
I prefer a grinder.
"A dog breaks your heart only one time and that is when they pass on". Unknown
A 1916 doubled die obverse buffalo nickel that looks like a twin of the 1917 nickel shown above just sold for
$3,600 today with the juice being $600 added to $3000 which was the final hammer price. Incredible. Here is this
little "gem" badly in need of some serious "thumbing"! It was slabbed "NGC fine details environmental damage".
Me wonders if the new owner might not attempt to "restore" this little bummer to its ancient glory!
a.k.a "The BUFFINATOR"
I had cracked an 1871-S quarter out of a SEGS problem holder, it had a light scratch across the obverse but was otherwise decent. I showed it Jim O'Donnell (RIP) at a coin show and he says something to the effect of "I can fix that." He starts doing the thumb thing, which lightened the mark a bit. Got into a straight grade PC slab after that.
After reading this thread I began a bacon diet. I nose grease everything now. Even got a squeaky hinge to shut up.
That’s really thumbthing…
First response - NO, that is disgusting. So folks rubbed salt, lactic acid and urea on coins. Of course they brightened a bit.
Ohh, I forgot about that! I can't get my hands on it right now (snow storm) but I would like too. What I'm doing is putting some olive oil and the coin in a small mason jar. Thank you
!
Type collector, mainly into Seated. -formerly Ownerofawheatiehorde. Good BST transactions with: mirabela, OKCC, MICHAELDIXON, Gerard