Artificial toning inquiry
toyz4geo
Posts: 1,484 ✭✭✭✭✭
I guess we all probably agree that artificially toned coins are a no-no, BUT what do you do if you come across a coin that is really nice but undoubtedly AT. Coin in question is a nice 1947-S Jefferson FS coin. Is there a way to reverse or get rid of AT without screwing up the surface of the coin. If it was silver I figure no sweat. But nickel?
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"Undoubtedly AT"? Sounds pretty severe.
AT can be the result of many methods.
Whether it can be reversed depends on how it occurred. Environmental toning (e.g., cigar smoke) can be easily removed with acetone. Oven baked AT is permanent. Juiced copper can't be undone.
Maybe the metal composition (silver vs nickel vs copper) matters somewhat. But I think it is more about the AT method.
A good rule of thumb is to avoid "undoubtedly AT" coins at all costs.
Lance.
47-S is relatively common with Full Steps. it might be best to just look for another coin if the one you have is AT. knowing that will probably come to mind every time you think of or look at the coin.
" AT " looks different than " NT " in my opinion.
When it comes to coins ... I'm a natural toning guy.
If only it were that easy to distinguish the two. And that’s if you can could come up with universal definitions, in the first place.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
I agree with @MFeld ....This forum has tried for many years to define AT.... While there is agreement that there are many methods, the only real agreement was 'intent'...Ancient discussions... been going on since I have been a member....Cheers, RickO
Sorry, Ricko, not even "intent" is in real agreement. If you place a coin in an album, which you think will tone a coin, "intent" is present. But in my opinion - and in that of many others - that doesn't make the coin AT.
Mark Feld* of Heritage Auctions*Unless otherwise noted, my posts here represent my personal opinions.
You could also argue that a coin innocently and unknowingly put in an album 30 years ago is AT. After all, iit's the chemicals in the cardboard that did it.
All comments reflect the opinion of the author, evn when irrefutably accurate.
For me, "undoubtedly AT" implies it doesn't even come close to anything that would occur naturally. We're talking chemical spill, clown paint, and Smurf vomit toning. Best to avoid the coin altogether and look for another. Chances are the toning wasn't the coin's only problem, anyway.
Keeper of the VAM Catalog • Professional Coin Imaging • Prime Number Set • World Coins in Early America • British Trade Dollars • Variety Attribution
Example ... Morgan Dollars that are toned in mint sealed bags are in my opinion naturally toned.
Two considerations here, one of which you've touched on. First, there is always the chance that toning has minimized the presence of some surface marks. Consider light chatter that normally catches the light because the metal texture is different than what surrounds it, and is distracting. A thin layer of toning may make the texture different to the extent that the chatter is far less apparent/distracting. Removing the toning may bring such chatter out, and the underlying coin may no longer be as nice as desired.
Additionally, depending on what it takes to get rid of the toning--and this could happen just as well to silver or copper, not just nickel--you affect the lustre such that the nice underlying coin you saw with the toning is no longer as nice and vibrant as when it was toned.
Unless I really knew what I was doing (and in this realm, I don't), I wouldn't buy a coin that needed significant enhancement where everything works out perfectly to become what I hope it might be, and would instead wait for the desired coin to come along.
@MFeld.... I agree with you.... I should have stated it with the qualification 'general agreement'... as I recall, the 'intent' qualifier was accepted by more members than any other proposed definition... Though certainly not by all. It is my personal opinion that most (no accurate figures) of the 'colorful' examples today are from some effort at 'accelerated' tarnish....Cheers, RickO
Your post is where I was coming from in my post. ( My first post )
Pic?