Acetone + Glass bowl + Aluminum foil cover?
Early_Milled_Latin_America
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Is it OK to use this combo? I would imagine yes but rather ask. Broke one of my small glass jars yesterday only have one left hence my question (can't find anymore for sale at the moment on amazon in Canada).
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how long is the soak?
These are the ones I use but cannot find anymore for sale on Amazon (at the moment anyways).
I guess maybe 2-3 hours max each side. What would be your concern?
Hopefully the last one I own will last for a while till more become available for sale.
i didn't know you had a lid. i thought the aluminum foil was it. acetone evaporates very, very quickly. so 2 hours under just the foil would likely lead to complete evaporation.
what's the foil for?
Well I thought it would prevent evaporation if sealed correctly. I found these I will buy one they are expensive but I like to at least have 2 around.
60 by 30 a little bigger than the ones I normally use but at least they are made in the USA
What do you guys use as lids? If you do not have glass jars and lids?
the glass on glass should seal just fine
What do you guys use as lids?
for a quick soak, nothing
i have an old glass on glass container. the lid is hefty
Why do you think you need to soak a coin in acetone for several hours?? A few minutes tops is all that is generally needed.
i guess that's something that blew by me
if something is that thick, then it's dip-dump-repeat . keep using fresh acetone as polluted acetone will hinder the overall job
I've always just used a Red Book on top with the acetone jar on top of that for weight. No harm to book and it's always handy.
bob
As a last step, do a final rinse using pure acetone and then let it evaporate off of the coin.
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Plastic wrap.
ANA 50 year/Life Member (now "Emeritus")
I use small shot glasses. One half oz. of acetone and cover with a small piece of foil. Overnight there is very little evaporation. Next I pour off the used acetone and repeat with a fresh shot glass and acetone. After this bath, I put a drop of the used acetone on a small piece of glass or mirror and let it dry. This will give you an idea of what is floating around in the acetone.
I'm never in a hurry and several hours in acetone will never harm the coin. One bath will do fine for just removing cardboard dust that comes from using albums and 2x2s. I'm not a fan of using air or touching the coins surface with anything. I always use 2 or 3 baths with PVC problems. After about a thousand coins, I have never damaged a coin using my method.
I use the smallest Pyrex glass bowl with the Pyrex lid. No issues.
USAF veteran 1984-2005
What do you guys use as lids?> @BStrauss3 said:
Does that not melt with acetone fumes?
Answer to the first question-if you have a small dish or plate or saucer simply put it on top of the container similar to if you put the same thing on a cup of tea to keep it warm. If its porcelain or glass or earthenware you will likely get a great seal that will let you keep it for quite a while.
Answer to second question-acetone does not dissolve all plastics. If you are concerned, simply do a run with acetone in your container without a coin and use the plastic wrap in question.
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Thanks guys!!!
If your jar is well-made, a simple piece of glass can lay flat on the top edge of the jar and reduce evaporation to a negligible amount.
Thanks to everyone here for sharing your techniques with acetone baths, very informative.
I have dipped a couple of 1959 $10 Peso Gold coins in acetone recently with great results, it cleaned away what looked like PVC residue.
I have not used acetone for silver, or 1C coins.
I have used eZest for toning on some Junk Silver and some 10-15 yr old ASE & Libertad bullion(in flips) with great results.
A couple of questions:
1) would acetone work on Silver for toning? As I recall, it does work for PVC/gunk. How about fingerprints/smudge on Ag, acetone?
2) I recall someone saying that acetone is safe for copper, ei-1C coins, but NO on using eZest for 1C copper.
I'm looking at cleaning up some 1C Lincoln coins(nothing valuable)to rid them of general dirt/dust on them. Acetone?
I'm asking as a novice 'cleaner' of coins, so any advice is good advice. Sorry if my questions have already been addressed.
Thanks again.
Acetone and xylene are good for organic compounds, such as fresh finger oils, black pocket crud and lint, and other mysterious gunk.
They are generally not effective on fingerprints. A new fingerprint is simply an organic oil and will be easily dissolved by acetone. I might rinse a coin I buy just in case someone touched it before me. An old fingerprint is actually the result of a chemical reaction between contaminants and the metal. Even if this reaction can be reversed, metal from the coin has been bound up in the chemical reactants, and removing them removes that metal from the coin.
Here are two cases of successful restoration using distilled water, then acetone, then xylene. In both cases, I think the acetone made almost all the difference. However, keep in mind that some surface contaminants may simply dissolve in distilled water, so always start with that.
A proof with an oily covering - possibly the owner was a smoker? Or ate a pepperoni pizza and then handled the coin?
This example was offered on eBay in a very dirty state. Perhaps it was in a fire, or in a dirty desk drawer for decades?
It was submerged in a jar of acetone and very, very gently massaged with a series of Q-Tips. Each swab was discarded when it got dirty to keep from picking up grit and then grinding it into the coin.
Very impressive, thanks.
I have an original USM 1953 Proof set with minor toning/haze going on with 4 of the five coins(the Nickel is clean).
The original Mint 'cello' is brittle, cracked, and no longer sealing the coins.
Same technique? How about an "E-Z" chemical dip? Too harsh?
Tips?
.
don't rub a proof, even gently