UPDATED Field of Broken Signals Gives Up FIRST BARBER HALF!

[z118]

Oh man oh man I just got back with this thing and am so dang excited I can hardly think straight. I'll post all details in a bit, but in the meantime, and tips on how to get the rust / discoloration off this thing?

WOW OH WOW!!!


UPDATED - I added the story and more pics below.

[Epi-hunter]

OMG z!!! Incredible find!!!

Congratulations!!!!!!!!

[coinnut]

WOW, could it get any rustier lol Normally, I'd say leave some of the rust on it, but in your case, you may want to remove some of it. Either way, it will remove the patina that was there, so your coin will appear cleaned. If it were me and I wasn't scared of discoloring it, I would dilute (say 5 to 1) some rust remover and dip it for a couple of seconds and then rinse it in water. If no effect, then I may soak it for 2 minutes and put a soft tooth brush to it and loosen some of the rust. Or use a Q tip on it. This is a hard coin to give advice on, since you may have to change what you are doing midway through it. Did you just try a dish soap soaking and a tooth brush? What a great find, considering how rotten that signal must have been. Good save

[randy]

Wow, what a sweet find, rust or no rust.

[coinnut]

That's what I use for silver,copper and gold- they will shine like new, but what it does to the value I dont know- I just like them to look good.

Any polish and the value is gone. It's a real tricky subject with coin dealers. They don't like any work done to it, but there are exceptions and this half is one of them lol

[angellionel]

Whoa, Z! Now you've gone and done it. Your heart won't stop racing for another week. lol Tell me that beauty didn't make your heart flutter. lol Excellent find, Z. Just awesome! thumbsup01 thumbsup01

To remove some of the rust without making the coin shiny or making it look cleaned, allow it to soak in ammonia for about 15 to 25 minutes, then remove it and use a very soft toothbrush to brush off the loosened rust. Don't scrub, though. The ammonia won't harm the coin, though I would not let it soak for longer than 30 minutes.

After that treatment I likely would leave it as is.

[z118]

With a few hours for hunting this evening I headed to a spot that gave up a WLH last weekend and a war nickel on Friday, and a few wheats both times. The thing about this location is that just about EVERY signal on a target more than a few inches in the dirt breaks. There is not much nulling at all, and the Sov runs smoothly, but every signal ramps up and then breaks as though it were over iron. There are not many shallow targets or signals, and I mostly just focus on deeper signals. I've dug MANY times at this spot thinking deep coin but instead wound up with a deep rusty nail. They sound the same in this field. And silver coins have come out looking like hell. Must be something in the dirt?

Anyway, I was determined to get some silver tonight. I figured if I hit the field hard and dug it all I would be rewarded with at least a Rosie or maybe a Merc if I was lucky or dare I dream a silver quarter. My first few targets were deep pieces of rusty iron. After a long while I finally scored a deep wheat, and then another. A short while later I pulled a 1938 Canadian penny - perfectly on edge maybe 5 or 6 inches down. I was getting a little frustrated that I wasn't getting the silver, or for that matter even any modern clad. The next hopefull signal proved to be a deep religious medal, not silver, but still a nice find. Then I get a BIG signal that wouldn't pinpoint well and kept breaking. It seemed too big, and I thought about passing on it. But I didn't. I pulled a huge plug, stuck my coil in the hole, and the signal was still there. Pulled some dirt - scanned it with the coil - the signal was there. Move the dirt aside and there it was. I nearly blacked out. I managed to shakingly snap a pic before filling my hole and literally skipping back to my car.

I did clean it. I'm not worried about value. It's not a key date by any stretch and there is no way in the world I'll sell it. I think it looks good. Mostly with a toothbrush and dish soap, and then some other stuff.

Thanks for looking, and sharing in my excitement!

[coinnut]

You did a great job cleaning that Barber. You didn't over clean it . Perfect thumbsup01 I guess lots of that rust was loose and came off fairly well. Great day's hunt and stop shaking lol I bet you will look at that coin everyday for who knows how long Enjoy it...it's a beauty!!

[angellionel]

She is a beauty! Congrats, Z! thumbsup01

[HEAVYMETALNUT]

nice barber and ya did a great rust removal! thumbsup01