Cleaning coins....?

We had our annual Metal Detecting Maine Cabin Fever Meet yesterday and took some videos. I'm sharing this one with you because everyone tells you not to clean your old coins, but you do anyway, right?

Well, we had a coin and jewelry dealer speak at our Meet and he explained it very well. He spoke early as people were still arriving and setting up because he had to get back to the shop, so we tried to catch it so everyone could see/hear it. Krom caught the last part of this speech by Larry Corbett, of Republic Jewelry and Coin. It's in HD, so if you want to view it, play it, let it load and buffer (maybe walk away for a few minutes), then play it again so you can see and hear it in its entirety.

I apologize for the audio.... the hall echoed and there was some appliance or something running in the background, but you can still hear... and the audio gets better because the appliance (refrigeration or something) shuts off. The video is almost 4 minutes long.

He also explains a special Morgan Dollar, in case you are unaware.

Larry Corbett, Republic Jewelry and Coin

Thanks for the video Donna. I have collected coins for years and believe me, cleaning a coin (of value) will make it worthless for collectors. Never, ever rub a coin in any way. They can be soaked in olive oil, acetone (pure), hot peroxide or, if very careful, electrolysis can be employed. These methods will remove dirt, grime, grease and crud while preserving the surface. Collectors can spot cleaning a mile away. RickO

Hey Donna, Great little clip. But I couldn't hear his answer to you about water and dish soap?? Did he say yea or nay to it? I always run water and dish soap over mine :embarrassed:

Quote:

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Originally Posted by coinnut

Hey Donna, Great little clip. But I couldn't hear his answer to you about water and dish soap?? Did he say yea or nay to it? I always run water and dish soap over mine :embarrassed:

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He said no.... just lightly brush the dirt off with your fingers and leave it at that. He said if you ever have any question on a cloin, bring it in and they'd look at it. I'd suggest finding a customer-friendly dealer in your area to do the same.

I know what he's getting at... I've brushed dirt too much and too hard off coins with my fingers and lost detail. My horse coin thing is the perfect example.

He brought 2 silver dollars with him and passed them around. One was nice and shiney and the other was tarnished and had a little dirt. I wish we had that on video as he explained that. The tarnished and dirty coin was more valuable than the shiny one, even though they were the same coin of the same date.

The acoustics in the hall weren't that great, and whatever it was running in the background was too noisey.
Lesson learned, though. We need a tripod.