I discovered a great way to clean copper coins

[john37115]

I have tested about a dozen old wheat and Indian head pennies that were barely recognizable. I couldn't tell the dates on none of these coins. I soaked them in Easy Off Oven cleaner for about one hour and they all came out beautiful with tons of detail, I could easily read the dates on all of them and the best part is they don't even appear to have been cleaned. Be careful though this stuff is very irritant if it gets on your skin.

 

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[Cannonman17]

Have any pictures?

 

[john37115]

Sorry I didn't take pics before I cleaned them. I will take before and after on some crusty memorials and post them soon if you would like.

 

[Cannonman17]

That would be cool- I wouldn't mind even just seeing the after pics of the ones you did. I'm curious because I'm a coin collector and against cleaning coins with most anything but warm water in 99% of the cases but I do like to keep and open mind and see how the different cleaning methods turn out.

 

[john37115]

I found four more crusty wheat pennies, one indian head penny and one v-nickel I have scanned them front and back before they go into the Easy Off and Scanned them 1-hour later after soaking in Easy Off. You be the judge. P.S. these coins had already been cleaned with soap and water and lightly scrubbed with a toothbrush prior to the " before " pics.

 

[shanegalang]

I usually am against cleaning coins as I am a collector. But this seems to work good, especially if I have some that arent really important to me. Thanks for the tip.

 

[BuckleBoy]

If you like the look of the result, then stick to your cleaning method. I for one think these look too cleaned. That pink/red color is not natural. I wouldn't use this method on a valuable coin, and I wouldn't use it if I couldn't read the date. I stick to the peroxide method for copper coins and copper-nickel coins. Here's the link:

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,117293.0.html

Regards,


Buckleboy

 

[Cannonman17]

Interesting, they don't look too bad but they do have an unnatural pink/red color that I don't like too much.. I guess it's kind of a coin flip, it does clean them up where you can see the detail and what not better but makes them look like they were cleaned... I would also be concerned about what effects that method will have on those coins five or ten years down the road. I guess I would try it on coins that I can't see the date on at all because you have nothing to lose but I wouldn't do it to anything else IMO. Thanks for taking the time to do the before and after pics, that was nice to see the results before trying.

 

[I_Dig_NYC]

As a collector I too am against 'harsh' cleaning. But that works really good. I would probably only use it for unrecognizable coins. And I would make sure to thoroughly rinse away any ez off residue as it may permanently destroy it in the long run. Also, to get back that old natural patina, try sticking them in some dirt for awhile. Old 'coin dealers' trick.
Thanks for posting it..

 

[Pepper2004]

I don't know anything about cleaning coins except to use, water, toothbrush, and olive oil. I think if I find anything I can't read the date on I would try your method.

 

[john37115]

Buckleboy I have experimented with the peroxide method and fried some coins on more than one occasion that is why I was looking for an alternate way. The peroxide IMO eats away at the detail alot the same affect as electrolysis. Each to his own.

 

[KirkTN]

Hey Bro, I'm impressed with the easy off experiment. I must say, I've tried the heated peroxide and not had good results. Similarly, I noticed the color change to be much like the peroxide test I did except, your way appears to have generated better results. The way I see it, if you've got a coin you can't see the date on or the details, and the peroxide and electrolysis has failed, what harm is there in tryin' somethin' new. I guess some folks might spend a pretty penny to have professional cleaning done to find out they have a common coin. That's all I have to say about that.

 

[BuckleBoy]

Buckleboy I have experimented with the peroxide method and fried some coins on more than one occasion that is why I was looking for an alternate way. The peroxide IMO eats away at the detail alot the same affect as electrolysis. Each to his own.

This must be due to your soil type or how long you leave the coins in the peroxide. I have had good results with all the old coins I have found in Kentucky, Indiana, Virginia, and West Virginia during the last 16 years. In some cases with an old copper, you're not looking at "detail" but rather just the corrosion on the coin. Underneath this corrosion is the "real" detail, for better or worse. I'll quote Don in South Jersey here: "A coin is what it is." But I have had good results. I never leave the coins in peroxide for more than 45 minutes or so--and it is over-the-counter, 3% peroxide (heated). I wish you had a before and after photo of the "fried" coins. I would like to see it, and perhaps I could be of some help.

Regards,


Buckleboy

 

[Don in SJ]

I have cleaned a couple hundred Large Cents and Colonials and many buttons with peroxide and have never seen a color change!


http://home.comcast.net/~slospokes2/1820beforeafter.gif

Don

 

[Hank]

If you like the look of the result, then stick to your cleaning method. I for one think these look too cleaned. That pink/red color is not natural. I wouldn't use this method on a valuable coin, and I wouldn't use it if I couldn't read the date. I stick to the peroxide method for copper coins and copper-nickel coins. Here's the link:

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,117293.0.html

Regards,


Buckleboy

Agreed. You can get the same result with cheap white vinegar.