What do coin experts use to clean old coins without harming them?

Question

There are some cleaning solvents that react with the metal in the coins thus ruining the GRADING value.

Answer 1

Do not clean old coins! I have never met an expert who wants antique coins that have anything other than the natural finish. Do not refinish old furniture either that lowers the value,antique dealers call refinished furniture "skinned". I saw some stupid people on television that lost $100,000 because they removed the 250 year old finish from a rare piece of furniture. The dealer just said wait 250 years for the old finish to return.

Answer 2

Hi, I am not an expert in coin cleaning but i can suggest some ways u can use to clean metal like brass, silver and copper. Normally these metals will get oxidised and loss its shine over time. Im gonna tell u a biological way which i strongly believe it cant harm the metal.

Apply tamarind on the metal and let it soak for at least 20 minutes then rub it thoroughly with your fingers. Dont use any cloth or any other scrubbing device as this will create scratches. This method can only help u to eliminate about 70% of the oxidised metal. You can also add some salt to it, but make sure u wash the salt off thoroughly as the residue can damage the metal. If you use any other method which can achieve higher percetage of cleanliness, i believe it may also damage the metal.

Answer 3

Honestly, I clean coins all the time, and no, I am not ignorant or stupid. I collect ancient coins which are expected to have been cleaned. Cleaning coins is only "bad" in terms of context. Almost all modern coins, (to me less than 300 years old), have fragile patinas and 99.9% do not have adhesions to their surface. Also, the market for these coins want original surfaces. This is why cleaning these coins is "bad". For modern coins, you can always clean with soap and water, as long as it is mild soap and you make sure you completely dry the coin after, (rinsing with bottled water would be good too, since tap water contains chlorine). Anything more than that and you are seriously risking damaging the market value of the coin.

For medieval or ancient coins, you can soak copper coins in olive oil to loosen soil encrustations, but I usually wash with soap and manually clean them with brass tools. Brass is softer than copper or bronze, so it doesn't scratch the coin. Any brass marks you leave can be cleaned off later. Search for coin cleaning, as there are many methods, theories, etc. out there. Even with old coins, though, it is best to leave the original patina intact since it will make the coin more valuable. Since the coins are old, though, the patina is much tougher than new coins, and can frequently endure cleaning.

Answer 4

If it is only collected airborne dirt and dust and stuff, you may attempt soaking the money for some days in olive oil to loosen it. If it is a few thing that you may't eliminate with the olive oil, depart it on my own most of the concepts you've gotten are surely the worst project you may do. Vinegar and ketchup are both acidic. They artwork through ingesting away on the exterior of the coin, and salt or toothpaste act as abrasives. it fairly works a similar way that sandpaper does. once you've performed that, the exterior of the coin will not in any respect look proper back. Any advice alongside those lines will damage the coin, and kill any collector fee. it is not unknown for money that were treated that thanks to lose ninety% of their collector fee

Answer 5

u could try silvo this will clean them or common toothpaste which if rubbed on with a soft cloth will get the grime out and not damage the coin

Answer 6

jewelery cleaner works great and will not harm them. It will also make them shine.