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Cleaning/Polishing raw silver bars?

tneigtneig Posts: 1,505 ✭✭✭
in Precious Metals
Been avoiding some raw 10oz bars, due to resale questions. Saw some youtube videos last night on polishing.

Any reason not to? Why not a bit more eye appeal on a raw off name bar.
COA

Comments

  • derrybderryb Posts: 36,791 ✭✭✭✭✭
    dip 'em, acetone (home depot, hardware store). careful - highly flammable. used good ventilation.

    "Interest rates, the price of money, are the most important market. And, perversely, they’re the market that’s most manipulated by the Fed." - Doug Casey

  • 1jester1jester Posts: 8,637 ✭✭✭
    Though the majority of stackers believe silver to be just that - silver, with no extra value, I'm with the camp that believes that one day artistic silver or art bars, commercial bars, and even other such collectibles might one day be treated as rare coins are today. And thus I'd take the normal precautions anyone would with rare coins. I don't touch them with my greasy paws, and I use Saflips and Air-Tites for all of them, and I treat the ones whose provenance I can't ascertain to an acetone bath to remove harmful contaminants such as PVC. I also break out all bars from their deadly PVC plastic and put them into the aforementioned safe containers. I have rarely dipped any bar, but I have in a couple cases to remove some kind of contaminant that acetone couldn't remove. Acetone doesn't remove toning, either, which is fine. I like patina!

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    "Ask, and it shall be given you; seek, and ye shall find; knock, and it shall be opened unto you." -Luke 11:9

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  • MeltdownMeltdown Posts: 8,789 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I tend to pass on scarce silver bars if they're polished or cleaned.

    "Original is best" is a good general rule to follow with anything old, collectible or rare.

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  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,111 ✭✭✭✭✭
    I don't see the point of polishing a silver bar unless that makes them easier to sell. If it has ugly toning, a dip is understandable to make it more presentable but polishing it takes away any of the original surfaces which makes a collectable bar far less desireable and destroys any premium that it may have had.

    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

  • piecesofmepiecesofme Posts: 6,669 ✭✭✭
    I'll use this picture as an example:
    image

    I left all bars original except for the bottom left 2 Engelhards. I dipped and even scrubbed them lightly with a Q-tip with silver cleaner and they still wont come clean. Point is, if the crap on it is caked on there enough, there's no point even really in trying to clean it. Sell it as original and even explain they wont come clean as I have.
    To forgive is to free a prisoner, and to discover that prisoner was you.
  • derrybderryb Posts: 36,791 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>I'll use this picture as an example:

    I left all bars original except for the bottom left 2 Engelhards. I dipped and even scrubbed them lightly with a Q-tip with silver cleaner and they still wont come clean. Point is, if the crap on it is caked on there enough, there's no point even really in trying to clean it. Sell it as original and even explain they wont come clean as I have. >>


    acetone works better than silver cleaner. It is used industrially to clean various metals. Works great on submarine valves and piping components. image

    "Interest rates, the price of money, are the most important market. And, perversely, they’re the market that’s most manipulated by the Fed." - Doug Casey

  • PerryHallPerryHall Posts: 46,111 ✭✭✭✭✭


    << <i>

    << <i>I'll use this picture as an example:

    I left all bars original except for the bottom left 2 Engelhards. I dipped and even scrubbed them lightly with a Q-tip with silver cleaner and they still wont come clean. Point is, if the crap on it is caked on there enough, there's no point even really in trying to clean it. Sell it as original and even explain they wont come clean as I have. >>


    acetone works better than silver cleaner. It is used industrially to clean various metals. Works great on submarine valves and piping components. image >>



    Acetone won't remove ugly tarnish which concerns many silver bar owners. Dirty silver bars are not nearly as much of a problem and a soak in hot water with a good detergent like Dawn will usually take care of it.

    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

  • perkdogperkdog Posts: 30,594 ✭✭✭✭✭
    Are there any rough estimates on numbers as far as production for those serial numbered Engelhard bars?
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