Silver Eagle Milk Spots.............where are they coming from?
frankieboywonder
Posts: 318
Does anyone know just what is causing causing the milk spots on the silver eagles? This is a major problem for those of us that prefer our silver eagles pristine.
Recently I watched the Mint's video on the manufacture of the silver eagles and took note when the technician applied some kind of oil to the rims of each batch of unstruck eagles before placing them into the loading device for striking. This is done to facilitate the coins trip down the loader I believe.
Perhaps some of this oil is migrating onto the surface of some of the silver eagles and eventually causing the milk spots.
Sound reasonable?
Enjoy each day as though it was your last.
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Comments
Russ, NCNE
<< <i>I know that milk spots on late 1950's and early 1960's silver proofs were caused by planchet preparation. It makes sense that this would also be the cause in the case of SAE's. In the case of the aforementioned proofs, it is not uncommon for them to be pristine when initially pulled from the sets, only to develop these spots as time goes on.
Russ, NCNE >>
Very disheartening!
Do these milk spots show up right away? Or could each silver eagle (proofs included) be a mini-bomb just waiting to happen?
Don't know if I would want to collect silver eagles knowing that any day an ugly surprise may be awaiting me.
David
<< <i>Rich Schemmer showed us a video from his West Point mint visit at summer seminar this year. There is a liquid cleaning detergent used in post production finishing. The water wash only hits one side of the coin, but there is plenty of extra water in the cleaning tray. My belief is that this is the step where the milk spots come from. Since all the post strike cleaning is hands off, if coins spend enough time in the process for a film to partially dry, almost nothing would remove it.
David >>
Sounds very plausible to me.
<< <i> Lactating Eagles ! ? >>
<< <i>
<< <i>I know that milk spots on late 1950's and early 1960's silver proofs were caused by planchet preparation. It makes sense that this would also be the cause in the case of SAE's. In the case of the aforementioned proofs, it is not uncommon for them to be pristine when initially pulled from the sets, only to develop these spots as time goes on. >>
Are milk spots prevalent on certain years, or a problem every year they have been struck?
<< <i>Do these milk spots show up right away? Or could each silver eagle (proofs included) be a mini-bomb just waiting to happen?
Don't know if I would want to collect silver eagles knowing that any day an ugly surprise may be awaiting me. >>
Mini-bomb gets my vote. Over 40% of my 1986-2006 MS69 slabbed SAE set developed Milk spots.
BTW - They seem to be more prevelant on slabbed SAE's.
<< <i>
<< <i>Do these milk spots show up right away? Or could each silver eagle (proofs included) be a mini-bomb just waiting to happen?
Don't know if I would want to collect silver eagles knowing that any day an ugly surprise may be awaiting me. >>
Mini-bomb gets my vote. Over 40% of my 1986-2006 MS69 slabbed SAE set developed Milk spots.
BTW - They seem to be more prevelant on slabbed SAE's. >>
There may be something to this..................milk spots prevelant to slabbed SAEs. I have a few slabbed unc SAEs and EVERY one of them has a milk spot or two or more. But, I also have many uncs (various years) in nothing more than 2X2s and NONE of them has developed milk spots yet.
Could it be that the nearly pure silver content of the SAEs is somehow reacting with the material that the slabs are made out of? Worth a thought!