Cleaning ancient coppers. a question

0john0

I have removed the grime from my ancient coppers throught the months-long olive oil process and with a brass brush and many of the coins have good detail on them but they are still so dark that the details are hard to see. Is there a way to get them shiney looking. A dip (GASP) that I could use?
These are just as a curiosity for me and my family and I would like my dad's old eyes to be able to see the coins more easily.

thanks.-john

1jester

I think you're treading in uncharted territory with that question, John...

Seriously, I don't know. I'm sure there are many different dips. I haven't tried any, but I'm sure EZest would work, as would jewelry cleaner. I've heard ammonia would work too.

Good luck! I hope your dad enjoys your efforts.

nwcs

From talking with some ancient collectors (collecting ancients, not ancient themselves ) an acidic dip like ezest or jewelluster will only hurt the coin and doesn't produce the results you think it would. Olive oil doesn't damage a coin much which is why it is used. (I did experiment with a billon coin in ezest, started bubbling!!! ) About the only hint I got to help with readability for the junkier ancients (all I have...) is to lightly wet them in distilled water. It highights the relief a bit more temporarily.

lordmarcovan

Shiny ? Who wants shiny ancient bronze?

If you are lamenting the glacial slowness of the olive oil process, however, I cannot say I blame you. In the past, when I succumbed to impatience with the process, I have had some success with a rock tumbler and/or a fine brass wire brush. Fine steel wool, even. You could also buff them with a wire brush (whiz them, in other words- hope I don't roast in numi-hell for suggesting it, LOL).

After making my coins shiny, though, I always followed up with a Vaseline and sulfur mixture, to retone them a little. Nobody wants bright orange ancients.

Better yet, get your dad some inexpensive silver denarii- the details stand out better on silver. I swear I would be making this suggestion even if I did NOT happen to have some denarii headed for auction. Not SSP, just a suggestion.



Edit- I see now you meant that you have already removed the heavy crud, and just want to lighten the color. I guess you could try Jeweluster. It does sound like you're entering uncharted territory there. Toilet bowl cleaner would probably work, too, but it would make them a weird, unnatural color.

nwcs

BTW, I use one of those $8 electric toothbrushes to help as the last stage of the olive oil bath. Although with all those small and thin coins it's stressful on the joints to hold the coin in place. I have some that have been in olive oil now for basically 8 months. Around March or so I'll take them out and clean them up. Ugh, 50+ of them. Will take forever. Olive oil is hard to get off.

Askari

So how do you get the olive oil off?

lordmarcovan

By not using it in the first place!

Why do people use that sticky stuff instead of some sort of mineral oil or somethin'? There must be a good answer, but it eludes me.

OH, BTW, take a look at the coin in my sig line. (I'll repost it in case I change my sig line later, so look at the first picture.)

Notice the coin is quite porous but all the major details are there. When I dug this thing it was nothing but a green lump. I worked on it with fine steel wool and then repeated rubs with Vaseline. While you probably can't read the date from the picture, and it's not too easy in person, it is readable, which is an accomplishment, considering how nasty the coin was when I found it.

nwcs

<< <i>So how do you get the olive oil off? >>

Well, I use olive oil because I've had so many testimonies to it. What I do to get it off is to rinse first in tap water to get most of the oil off, then rinse in distilled water and rub it some to get the rest off. Repeat as needed. It is a long process, but I have seen the green crud slowly dissolve into the olive oil I've changed out so I suppose it makes me feel better.

spoon

If the coin still has bits of junk on it when you dip (if you dip) those spots will likely stay, in dark contrast. Now I've never played with it myself, but I was under the impression that electrolysis was what really does it to ancients?

1jester

Acetone works well to remove all traces of oil. I'd pat dry the coin prior to that, however.