Lets play Name That Tone! (AT Method, that is)

MrSpud

Hi,
MrsSpud recently volunteered me to give a talk about how to detect AT to the YNs next month at our local coin club. So I have been thinking on what to say and to show them. I might briefly touch on the chemistry, the progression of colors, etc... But I also might bring in some of the coins I experimentally AT'd to show them what to look for.

Based on that I decided to do a few more experiments and dreamt up a new technique. I can't get rainbows yet with the new technique, but I basically can get most of the primary colors to cover the whole coin, one color at a time. Here is a sample. Anybody care to guess the technique? If nobody gets it, I don't think I will reveal it just in case there are some budding EbayATers lurking. But if someone gets it right or close I will say so.



Also, I would like some opinions on whether or not it is a good idea to give these out to the YNs as examples of AT coins. Thanks, in advance, for any responses and thanks for looking.

RGL

Obviously AT, but man, you're on a learning curve there, the purple intrigues me most, but I am ignorant as to its origin.

MrSpud

I just wanted to point out something educational. Compare the colorful buffalos to the nickel in RGLs signature line. The progression of major bands of colors in RGLs nickel are represented with the different buffalos. First band is the gold one, then the blue that has a purple tinge to it, then the purple, then the sky blue in the middle of the coin. The same colrs are present on the AT coins. Only thing is with the AT technique involved the color progression starts at all yellow, then all gold, then all reddish purple then then purple then purply blue then sky blue in that order (i.e. the process can be stopped any time during the progression of colors and you end up with the coin being that color). It seems that the progression from gold to blue to purple with RGLs coin is changed during the AT technique to gold then purple then blue. Either that or it is time to go to bed.

Hopefully, I'll have figured it out enough to be able to tell the YNs something worthwhile by the time I give the talk next month

MrScience

MrSpud,

Those are some pretty coins you've made! Have you been baking them in your oven at various temperatures/durations? Just a guess!

I'd give 'em to the YNs -- chances are they won't show up on eBay (for a while, anyway)!

John

MrSpud

<< <i>Have you been baking them in your oven at various temperatures/durations? >>



No, but you are on the right track

ashmore

Heat in the presence of Sulfur?

Ash

Punscoins

Different intesities of a blowtorch???

Wiped clean of soot.......



Marc Vetsch

MrSpud

<< <i>Heat in the presence of Sulfur? >>




<< <i>Different intesities of a blowtorch??? >>



Nope and nope. The technique is much simpler and controllable than any of the methods people have mentioned thus far. It is controllable enough that you can decide which of the colors you want (yellow, gold, reddish purple, purply blue, sky blue) beforehand. However, it is not controllable enough to get and of the other colors that appear sometimes on naturally toned coins.

Steve27

Are you exposing them to ammonia for different durations?

Vetter

Food color? LOL

MrSpud

<< <i>Are you exposing them to ammonia for different durations? >>




<< <i>Food color? >>



Nope and nope .

MikeinTyler

Take the purple one on the lower right and lightly rub a little skin oil on it with your finger. If the color is removed, down to the golden shade, I will tell you how you did it.

BillJones

<< <i>

<< <i>Have you been baking them in your oven at various temperatures/durations? >>



No, but you are on the right track >>



During a trip to the zoo the other day, I learned that the sex of an alligator is determined by the temperature of the eggs during the incubation process. Perhaps these colorful buffalos are related to alligators.

SilverDollarMan

Propane torch?????????

pharmer

Frying pan as mentioned a couple weeks ago

MrSpud

<< <i>Take the purple one on the lower right and lightly rub a little skin oil on it with your finger. If the color is removed, down to the golden shade, I will tell you how you did it. >>


I just took one of the purple ones and rubbed it with my finger and the color was indeed removed down to the golden shade. I eagerly look forward to your next post on the matter.



<< <i>Perhaps these colorful buffalos are related to alligators. >>


I'd like to think that somehow, yes, the colorful buffalos are related to alligators .



<< <i>Propane torch????????? >>


Nope



<< <i>Frying pan as mentioned a couple weeks ago >>


Nope

buffnut

Easter egg dying kit
JK

But they do make nice learning tools/conversation pieces!

poorguy

100% frying pan heated for about 15 to 20 seconds on the highest heat possible. My guess is that you took the gold one off after only about 11 seconds and it turned golden in the paper plate you let it cool off in.

Bear

Crayola Crayons we used on all the coins.

MrSpud

<< <i>Easter egg dying kit >>


Nope, but they do look like easter egg colors



<< <i>100% frying pan heated for about 15 to 20 seconds on the highest heat possible. My guess is that you took the gold one off after only about 11 seconds and it turned golden in the paper plate you let it cool off in. >>


Nope, no frying pan or paper plate was involved. Other than that, you are getting close.



<< <i>Crayola Crayons we used on all the coins. >>


No

Baley

alright, no no no, you 've stumpted us ok?

we think it involves heat but we don't know exaclty if it's blowtorch or burner or two sticks together or what.

spill it alrready, spud

poorguy

It definitely involves heating the nickels to a very high temperature for different time intervals. If you did anything else to them then you put too much effort into something that can be achieved by just heating them for varying amounts of time be it via blowtorch, frying pan, stove, bbq pit, lighter, ect.

MikeinTyler

<<<<< Take the purple one on the lower right and lightly rub a little skin oil on it with your finger. If the color is removed, down to the golden shade, I will tell you how you did it. >>


I just took one of the purple ones and rubbed it with my finger and the color was indeed removed down to the golden shade. I eagerly look forward to your next post on the matter.>>>>>


Sorry, I forgot to come back to this thread.

The reason I knew that would work is b/c I put a few of these Buffs in my wife's iron skillet a few days ago and heated them. They looked much like yours. I rubbed a little skin oil on the purple ones and it came off and actually produced some rather attractive coins. My best guess for the reason behind this was that my wife sprays a little PAM on the iron skillets before storing them and I think maybe some of the vapors from the PAM contributed to the toning. It was interesting that the side of the coin not touching the skillet toned with color and the side touching the skillet was basically just golden in color.

Anyway, that is what I did and suspect you did much the same.

BTW, I spent my coins instead of putting them on ebay.

Mike

MrSpud

<< <i>spill it alrready, spud >>



Ok, I think everybody figured out how I did it close enough. The techniques mentioned would produce similar results. Only with my technique both sides of the coin are pretty much evenly toned the same color and the process is easier to control because of even heating and insulation from the direct intense heat. It involves making a stack of 4 coins on top of each other with a copper foil sleeve surrounding them and putting the stack directly on an electric burner on high. Picture a mini roll of coins with no crimping on the top, only with copper foil instead of a paper wrapper. The bottom coins come out unpredictably splotchy but the top coin comes out evenly toned on both sides of the coin. You can watch it go through the progression of color changes, first yellow, then gold, then red-purple, then purple-blue then sky blue. Each color is there for about 5 seconds. You can pick up the stack of coins with pliers at any point in the process and the color stays right at that point. i'm thinking of putting one of each color in a 5 coin whitman holder in order of the color progression to show the YN's what the color progression of AT coins is and to show them what the most common easy to produce AT colors look like. Then i'll probably give out singles of each color in cardboard 2x2's with a label saying "Artificially toned" on them.

razorface1027

I know...Dip the coin in easter egg die and bake at 500 F.