Removing brown-gray haze

shirohniichan

I have an 1897 piastre du commerce with a dull brown-gray haze over lustrous and lightly toned surfaces.



How can I get rid of the haze without removing the blue and orange tone underneath?

DHeath

Leave it be....it's very nice. BTW - I never knew Liberty had the tail of a serpent. Very cool.

shirohniichan

I never knew Liberty had the tail of a serpent. Very cool.

That's only on the French version.

agentjim007

MS70 couldn't hurt. Just be absolutely sure its UNC.

shirohniichan

Will MS70 leave the toning?

What will happen if it's not unc?

prooflike

That is an awesome coin, I like it.

I think it looks fine the way it is.

MS70 should get rid of all of the toning!

coinnerd

MS 70 will take off light toning and most AT. It will leave behind the good toning. Like any thing else you do, experment on low cost coins first.
MS 70 is a strong detergent. and when used on coins less than AU 55 it will remove all the dirt and light color that tend to hide circulation scratches and marks. This usually makes the coins look like crap(first hand knowlege).

dorkkarl

man, i love how it looks as-is.

K S

shirohniichan

It doesn't look bad now, but underneath the haze it has great luster.

Will swishing it a mild dish soap and water lift some of the gunk off? I have acetone to rinse it in afterward.

Coulport

I think you will find that MS70 or even dilute Jewluster will remove ALL the toning on that coin.
You either have to leave it as is or turn it to a "white" coin.

shirohniichan

Still no opinion on the dish soap?

CarlWohlforth

I have no opinion on the dish soap.

How about you try soaking in dish soap, then rinsing in acetone. Then post a new scan.

We all would appreciate the exeriment and could learn something, and hey no risk for us because it is YOUR coin

windwhispersintrees

Why not start with the mildest possible approach first, before resorting to MS70?
T
ry soaking in distilled water.
Then try distilled with bit of diluted soap?
Then maybe a stronger solution?

I think you get the idea.

shirohniichan

I tilted the coin in sunlight to try and show some of the luster and color underneath the haze.



I also tried shooting in direct sunlight and only tilting it slightly.



I'm finding it really hard to capture what a coin really looks like via digital photos. BTW, I used my new Fuji Finepix 2600. It's not nearly as nice as the cameras many recommend for coin photos, but I mostly bought it to take snapshots on my upcoming vacation.

FC57Coins

Shiro:

That's a beautiful piece and I wouldn't try this on that one until you tried it with something not quite as nice. But a solution of half amonia and half water has worked well for me to get the haze off several early 60's Franklins - and it has left the toning mostly intact - but PULEEEEEEZE try it on a cheap coin first!

Frank

Dog97

See the pretty blue periph tone? MS70 will probably remove it. The coin looks more like it's covered on brown tone, not haze. Most doctor attempts fail so since it's a 97 just send it to me.
Cool coin!

IrishMike

I have no clue what the value of that coin is, but if it has much value I wouldn't mess with it, send it to NCS for their opinion.

BigD5

Please leave that coin alone.

Spooly

dull brown-gray haze How do you store your coins?

That is a classic case of butt crack toning.

TP will get it off!

shirohniichan

Maybe I'll just leave it as is.

If you were basing your buying decision on a photo, which of the photos would look best to you?

It's easiest to use the scanner, but my scanner washes out all color and makes coins look dull.

shirohniichan

Ahem.

Which photo looks best-- the scanner shot, the tilted sunlight shot, or the flat sunlight shot?

Clankeye

It's a tough one, Shiro... but I think I like the flat, sunlight one best. I would echo the other sentiments that if you can't do this without preserving the toning, don't do it. I think it's a great looking coin as is.

KoinKollector

Whick photo looks best -

Tilted sunlight shot

Dont mess w/ the coin Niichan. It looks great already.

HuliganRS

Pleaaaseee leave it alone!