Any coin enthusiasts ?

[Mad Doug Biker]

In the charity shop I work in now, a load of old coins have come in. Most are old Half Pennies, some foreign things (including a Palestinian coin), but by far the oldest is a 1754 George II Penny (I think).

Unfortunately, it's quite dirty and worn.
I want to clean it and see what we have, but I want to do it properly.

What do you think?:

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

5 MILS, 1939, Palestine:

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

In fact, how best to clean any coinage?

 

[BigSid]

In fact, how best to clean any coinage?

For gold and silver (and maybe other metals) GoldDiggerDave on The Silver Forum might be worth contacting.
https://www.thesilverforum.com/topic/65657-coin-conservation-services/#comment-704865

 

[Moon bunny]

The simple answer is don't! Or in simple English, do not! If you had dug them out of the garden, then a run under a slowly flowing cold tap followed by patting with a clean cloth would remove surface dirt, but the coins you have illustrated would not benefit. Any rubbing even with just a cloth will remove a surface layer, perhaps fine detail, rendering the coin useless to a historian or collector.
Yours sincerely,
A metal conservator.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

The simple answer is don't! Or in simple English, do not! If you had dug them out of the garden, then a run under a slowly flowing cold tap followed by patting with a clean cloth would remove surface dirt, but the coins you have illustrated would not benefit. Any rubbing even with just a cloth will remove a surface layer, perhaps fine detail, rendering the coin useless to a historian or collector.
Yours sincerely,
A metal conservator.

Well, the shop *know all* took them away claiming he knew what he was doing doing... And put them in Coke apparently.

He's since gone strangely quiet about it 🤦‍♂️🙄

 

[Moon bunny]

Well, the shop *know all* took them away claiming he knew what he was doing doing... And put them in Coke apparently.

He's since gone strangely quiet about it 🤦‍♂️🙄

Ah! The good old phosphoric acid method, he might just as well have dropped them in a jar of soldering flux. Beat him soundly for me, please.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

Ah! The good old phosphoric acid method, he might just as well have dropped them in a jar of soldering flux. Beat him soundly for me, please.

What will that really do? The phosphoric acid method I mean.

 

[Moon bunny]

What will that really do? The phosphoric acid method I mean.

It can potentially, depending on the alloy, etch away the surface metal, either removing detail or leaving it weak and easily damaged by handling.

 

[Mad Doug Biker]

I can potentially, depending on the alloy, etch away the surface metal, either removing detail or leaving it weak and easily damaged by handling.

Ah, ok.

I have no idea what results he got and quite frankly, I am not entirely sure I want to ask!

 

[classic33]

The simple answer is don't! Or in simple English, do not! If you had dug them out of the garden, then a run under a slowly flowing cold tap followed by patting with a clean cloth would remove surface dirt, but the coins you have illustrated would not benefit. Any rubbing even with just a cloth will remove a surface layer, perhaps fine detail, rendering the coin useless to a historian or collector.
Yours sincerely,
A metal conservator.

So, how do you feel about using ultrasonic cleaners?

 

[Moon bunny]

So, how do you feel about using ultrasonic cleaners?

Easy answer: I would keep the ultrasonic cleaner for rear derailleurs. I never use one at work, instead it’s painstaking with a cotton wool swab and solvent, some off which are £eek! Per 250 ml, for metal,

 

[Moon bunny]

Just to give an idea, I recently cleaned an 1830s guard‘s timepiece, over 300 person hours worth of work.