Anyone tried this "replacement" for Harco Blue Ribbon Coin Conditioner?

EXOJUNKIE

I ran across this website for the new Classic Coin Conditioner the other day and was wondering if anyone has any experience with it yet, either trying it, hearing reviews about it, etc.? The company claims it is a "direct replacement" for Harco's popular, but discontinued Blue Ribbon Coin Conditioner. I see it is for sale on Amazon, and a few dealers are starting to carry it. Anyone know anything about it yet?

(Disclaimer: I am not affiliated with this company or the product in any way.)

http://www.coinconditioner.com/

grip

I have an original bottle and never did try it.

coindeuce

What grip stated X 5.

EXOJUNKIE

TTT. I'm still hoping someone might have some experience or has heard something about this new product...???

Walkerguy21D

Nope, sorry - I still have a partial bottle of the old original 'good stuff', plus another nearly full bottle I bought from coindeuce a few years back, and even this is a shadow of the original Care. I have tried two others over the years, a very diluted version of Blue Ribbon that came on the market, and a more modern version of Coin Care, and both weren't very good. May as well use 10 in 1. Perhaps this will be good, let's see what others report.

ricko

Have not seen it yet... No coin shops here, but did not see it online... Someone should do some experiments and detail their findings here... Cheers, RickO

leothelyon

Any satisfied customers yet?
https://www.ebay.com/itm/Classic-Coin-Conditioner-Replacement-Of-Harco-Blue-Ribbon-Silver-Copper-Nickel-/112985185274

Leo

Mr_Spud

I’ve never used either Harco Blue Ribbon or Classic Coin Conditoner, but I did some internet sleuthing just now and came up with the following info on what they most likely contain.

Harco Blue Ribbon most likely consisted of 1,1,1-trichloroethane with a small amount of silicone oil in it. I found that info online.

Classic Coin Conditioner most likely consists of this https://relspec.com/vapor-degreasing-solvent/better-solvent.html (which is a replacement for the 1,1,1-trichloroethane sold by the manufacturer of Classic Coin Conditioner) with a small amount of silicone in it. That company invented the 1,1,1-trichloroethane replacement material when 1,1,1-trichloroethane was banned for depleting the ozone layer. I’m thinking it has the silicone in it because it’s advertised as a replacement for the Harco Blue Ribbon product.

I’m thinking Dow Silicone 200 would be similar, if not identical, to the silicone oil in them. This one https://www.dow.com/en-us/pdp.xiameter-pmx-200-silicone-fluid-50-cst.01013181z.html . I’m familiar with the cosmetic grade version of this material which is why I think it would do the job just fine if you wanted something to “condition” a coin by leaving a thin layer that would be less greasy than mineral oil. That’s exactly why this silicone oil is so popular in cosmetics as a replacement for mineral oil because it isn’t all greasy any overly shiny like mineral oil.

To figure out how much silicon oil the products contain, just weigh a small amount, let the solvent evaporate off overnight and weigh it again and you’ll know what percent to use.

Not that anybody asked how to make knock offs of these, it’s just how I look at things. I like to know what’s in things and how they are made.

But this is just my 10 minute sleuthing hypothesis result. I’m probably really close if not spot on.

ColonelJessup

@Mr-Spud - Good research though mine differs in some ways. I think you dropped a hyphenate or three from a counter-poetic jawbreaker molecule. IIRC 1,1,1, tri-chloro-ethane (stated twice) was used as a substitute for 1,1,1 tri-chloro-fluoro-ethane which was itself an unsatisfactory adjustment from 1,1,1 tri-chloro-tri-fluoro-ethane. Which un-coincidently was the chemical composition of Bern Nagengast's long-lamented Dissolve. The last is a first rate emulsifying agent orders of magnitude more effective than acetone.

I've been told by EAC members of long standing that "Care" had lanolin in it. I think of camel-hair brushes and wonder at how the planchets have changed over time. Or not

Mr_Spud

I’m thinking lanolin might not be completely un-reactive with copper over a long period.

I’ll take your word for it about the jawbreaker banned solvent. But the one I found being made by the manufacturer of the Classic Coin Conditioner product is their environmental friendlier metal degreaser substitute that is meant to be a replacement for the banned ones so I think I’m on the right track.

Walkerguy21D

Since I still have plenty of the good stuff, and my usage rate is a few drops a year, I won’t need to experiment with this newer stuff. Surprised not much input on this since posted four years ago.

PerryHall

Has anyone here tried to make their own coin conditioner? If so, how were the results?

leothelyon

Tested and approved by American Numismatics! Is what the following website claims.
http://www.coinconditioner.com/
Couldn't find a Safety Data Sheet yet. Still don't know when it first came out and has it been out long enough/tested where there are reports/updates with 5 or 10 year results after it was applied to different types of elements/metals/coins. That the customer can read for themselves. Of course, if there were any bad, harsh reactions/news to stop using this product......we would have learned about it somehow. Is it possible the TPGC use this stuff....what do they use? Is there a guarantee this stuff won't ruin your coin. An email to the above website may get me some answers.
Another way to look at this in one prospective, with the Harco brand, the coins I used it on in the past......if I can remember which ones.

Leo

leothelyon

@PerryHall said:
Has anyone here tried to make their own coin conditioner? If so, how were the results?

I don't like the idea some additive is left on the coin, a protectant of sort which may be a good thing. One minute they say it all evaporates quickly but yet, the stuff will leave something behind on the coin.....a trace or it.
A very proof-like coin I recently bought had.....I say "had" because the green stuff has been completely removed and this coin looks 10X better.
But I would have zero knowledge what chemicals would work in the long run unless I purposely did extensive testing. Sitting aside treated coins, recording data and doing annual observations........I can't remember what day is recycle day! I couldn't mix something up with any confidence.

Leo

ColonelJessup

@Mr_Spud said:
I’m thinking lanolin might not be completely un-reactive with copper over a long period.

I’ll take your word for it about the jawbreaker banned solvent. But the one I found being made by the manufacturer of the Classic Coin Conditioner product is their environmental friendlier metal degreaser substitute that is meant to be a replacement for the banned ones so I think I’m on the right track.

I'm sure you're on the right track in terms of recent chemical "solutions" to the problem. Clearly the perception of their effectiveness has gone downhill for many. If my surmise is correct that a camel-hair brush was "state of the art" in preserving natural gloss for EAC types (and perhaps only for some, not all - IDK), why was it abandoned? Was Care 1.0 better? More available with a more scientifically rigorous quality control than from natural camel hair?

streeter

What I remember most from the original Coin Care from Laverne, CA was that when you took the cap off, whew, it really stunk up the room. The replacement, not so much. Seemed like a good idea to buy a few extra bottles. Really don't know why I did. I never did care for the look it gave old copper.

AlanSki

Try CoinCare rinse with acetone

American

Has anyone tried to submit coins treated with Blue Ribbon, or other conditioner for grading to PCGS or NGC? If so, what were the results? Long ago I sent treated bronze coins in without problem, but haven't done so in years. Does anyone have recent experience?

Aercus

I am sure you guys are on the right track here. It's some combination of a degreaser and a film forming agent. Probably a silicone, as silicones love metal. They are also notoriously mobile molecules. As for the solvent, if it's nonflammable it's almost definitely some mixture of partially fluorinated carbons. There are a million of these industrial solvents.

PS: You guys are wrangling IUPAC names pretty well. They can be difficult even for some chemists. The numbers go before each descriptor. For example: 1,1,1-trichloro-2-fluoroethane. The two is somewhat implied here (as 2 is the only place the fluorine could be in this molecule), but it is preferred to state it.

DRUNNER

I have a trusted friend who is a coin dealer in the Northwest . . . who has just made a killing on resurrecting copper with the old Blue Ribbon. He lucked out and got a 'case' (12 bottles) quite a while AFTER it had been banned . . . and sold 7 or 8 of them for $150-$175 a bottle. He goes waaaaaaayyyy back with Blue Ribbon and has the skills to use it.

To answer the OP . . . . no problems. If the coin is otherwise gradeable . . . . it flies through for him. He uses it in cases where I thought it wouldn't even be all that applicable, and does just fine.

Drunner

jmski52

Has anyone here tried to make their own coin conditioner? If so, how were the results?

I have used a Genesolv solvent to successfully remove an undesireable haze/residue from a Large Cent prior to a successful submission. The results were good.

If I were to include a small amount of conditioning oil, it would probably have been sewing machine oil. I hadn't considered silicone oil but I see no reason that it wouldn't work well.

For example: 1,1,1-trichloro-2-fluoroethane.

Thank-you! This is a family of chorofluorocarbons that were made by Allied Chemical. I think that DuPont also made a similar series of solvents.

lkenefic

Old thread resurrection alert!!

Hello Everyone... I was looking for reviews the product the OP mentioned... Classic Coin Conditioner. Obviously not the same organic solvent base (1,1,1, trichloriethane) as Blue Ribbon, but at over $220 a bottle, I'm looking for a substitute. Thanks!