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Could our efforts to "protect" moderns actually be causing problems?
I just had a thought about this. 
Since the milk spots are showing up on both slabbed and raw SAE's, and other modern silver, like commemoratives, etc, I wondered if it is happening because they are not able to "breath". They are either in air-tites or flips, or slabs or tubes or some other kind of holder that doesn't allow them to "breath".
If you think of older silver coins, they didn't get the "protection" we give moderns after they were first made. We slab older coins now, but not right after minting like what happens to coins today. Maybe in trying to protect them we are actually preventing them from doing what comes naturally to protect themselves, and thus doing more harm than good.
Just a thought. And since no one has offically found a reason I figured my guess is as good as anyone elses.

Since the milk spots are showing up on both slabbed and raw SAE's, and other modern silver, like commemoratives, etc, I wondered if it is happening because they are not able to "breath". They are either in air-tites or flips, or slabs or tubes or some other kind of holder that doesn't allow them to "breath".
If you think of older silver coins, they didn't get the "protection" we give moderns after they were first made. We slab older coins now, but not right after minting like what happens to coins today. Maybe in trying to protect them we are actually preventing them from doing what comes naturally to protect themselves, and thus doing more harm than good.
Just a thought. And since no one has offically found a reason I figured my guess is as good as anyone elses.
Collecting coins, medals and currency featuring "The Sower"
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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
<< <i>Could our efforts to "protect" moderns actually be causing problems? >>
Some coins do not last in the mint packaging. The '68-P cent is the poster child
since these all have carbon spots now with 95% of them having at least one side
being very unsightly.
There are others turning bad and this includes proofs.
If not, i think the mint should be forced to eat it.
maybe if it started costing them money, they would get their act together. Nah! wishful thinking
<< <i>None of these holders (including slabs) are airtight. There is a change of air within these holders every time the barometric pressure changes. >>
Well "Air-tite" is a real misnomer then.
<< <i>
<< <i>None of these holders (including slabs) are airtight. There is a change of air within these holders every time the barometric pressure changes. >>
Well "Air-tite" is a real misnomer then.
A few years ago Coin World did an experiment where they exposed sonically sealed slabs of the major TPG services to a sulfur rich air enviornment. In every case these slab's coins rapidly toned. There is no doubt the these sonically sealed slabs are not air tight.
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
<< <i>
<< <i>
<< <i>None of these holders (including slabs) are airtight. There is a change of air within these holders every time the barometric pressure changes. >>
Well "Air-tite" is a real misnomer then.
A few years ago Coin World did an experiment where they exposed sonically sealed slabs of the major TPG services to a sulfur rich air enviornment. In every case these slab's coins rapidly toned. There is no doubt the these sonically sealed slabs are not air tight. >>
This was shown with experiments and posts here done by Frattlaw who showed the same thing - this was in regard to the topic of wood - but that these holders were not ait-tight was obvious.
bily
<< <i>It seems that you need to dip moderns (especially proofs) in acetone or alcohol to stabilize them before you have them slabbed, to prevent the Mint-infested crap (i.e. milk spots) from showing up. >>
I think - *think* - Russ said he does this to great effect. Ask him about specifics re drying and etc..
I read scientists were hired by PCGS to solve this problem.
billy
<< <i>Whatever the results of the testing might be I bet the owners of the items already damaged will be SOL. >>
nothing new there.