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British Coin In Back Yard


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I wouldn't clean them up any more than you did with the detail they have. You could send it out and have them professionally cleaned.

The oil is probably a good thing as it is keeping the copper from getting a patina.

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41 minutes ago, kac said:

I wouldn't clean them up any more than you did with the detail they have.

I think getting the stench off them is a minimum requirement.  No one (V L, a collector, an auctioneer, the Smithsonian!...) is going to put up with that.  But, yes, cleaning can be (and often is) a detriment to value.  It should always be taken seriously, IMO.

43 minutes ago, kac said:

You could send it out and have them professionally cleaned.

Easy to say, but...  When I've looked into what this really means in terms of numismatic cleaning, the result was quite murky.  I concluded that was just a place holder when someone persisted with the question to a numismatist.  ("What can I say to get this person off my back?  Oh, I'll defer to the magic word -- 'professional'!")

44 minutes ago, kac said:

The oil is probably a good thing as it is keeping the copper from getting a patina.

Maybe up to this point, but this coin is no longer in the ground.  Typically coins that never were exposed to the damaging effects of soil do just fine without any coating.  What we detectorists typically deal with (badly corroded coins) is the exception, and something V L's recent coins were already protected from.  Here on out they should be fine without a protectorant, IMO (once the stench is gone, that is).

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Acetone like GB mentioned should degrease it but might make it dull, danatured alcohol is also an option. Either way a soft cloth rather than paper would be less abrasive. Amazing how well an old t-shirt can work unless you fancy polyester 🙂

Very good point on professional cleaning.

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11 minutes ago, kac said:

Acetone like GB mentioned should degrease it but might make it dull, danatured alcohol is also an option. Either way a soft cloth rather than paper would be less abrasive. Amazing how well an old t-shirt can work unless you fancy polyester 🙂

Well, I'm going to disagree again.  Acetone is what the professional grading services use.  (I don't expect alcohol to be a problem either, but most store bought alcohol contains water and when the alcohol evaporates a film often remains.  If you've had to clean eyeglasses as much as I have you'll know the annoyance!)

As far as cloth goes, even cotton can scratch plastic eyeglass lenses.  Microfiber cloth typically included with eyeglass cleaning kits is much more forgiving.  But as always, careful (minimal) use/application is preferred.  Blotting is preferable to wiping.

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You can have a film left behind with acetone too, I worked with these chemical over the years extensively. You can use a jewelry mix of amonia, water and couple drops of dish liquid as well then rinse with clean water after. Not sure if the amonia will be strong enough to degrease whale fat though. Heavy detergents can react with copper and cause it to patina if left on the surface.

Another option would be to use 91% IPA. I use that on my laser optics with a pec pad but no need for a pec pad, trick is to continually roll the cloth so your not smudging but rather constantly using a clean portion of the cloth over the surface.

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12 hours ago, GB_Amateur said:

One solvent used by numismatists to remove plastic oils, etc. from coins is acetone. 

Thanks for the suggestion and I have used acetone several times and know a little about the affects on the skin.

11 hours ago, kac said:

You could send it out and have them professionally cleaned.

I talked to a couple of people today and they want no part of it at this time sue to the smell.

9 hours ago, kac said:

Acetone like GB mentioned should degrease it but might make it dull, danatured alcohol is also an option.

I have tried denatured alcohol once before on some copper and it really did nothing that I really noticed to remove grease or oil. That is where the smell is coming from.

Right now I am using the Odoban to remove the odor first as it is not harming the coin. Odoban kills the odor is a lot of funeral homes use it to remove the smell of human decay. When they go to a home where a body has been for several days, they will spray the Odoban on anything with the smell and it removes it. Sometimes it takes a few tries to remove all the odor, but it works.

I may have to leave it in a cup of Odoban overnight to remove the smell completely.

Thank you for all your help and advice as I do appreciate it.

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12 hours ago, Jim_Alaska said:

I was a trapper for a lot of my adult life

So are you saying this would bring back a lot of good memories?

If so please send me your address so I can get rid of this stuff, I mean so you can enjoy every memory over again.

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You say it stinks as it is very old.     Valens it could be 175 years old, have a look at this link.

....LINK....

"Kelley discovered that oil from the jaw and head of the porpoise and blackfish proved superior to any other known lubricant for delicate mechanisms, and his oil, which he began selling in 1844," 

It was a good read.    A drawing of a bottle of Nye Oil from the 1800's.

 

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Thanks Geof,

  Very good story on Nye Lubricants! Sounds like they got their business model perfected early on; even when making the switch to synthetic from animal: to still be in business today!

   I wish White's could have adapted as well!

   Maybe Caleb can post a picture of the jar, when he posts the other coins! If he can get near it!😂👍👍

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10 hours ago, Joe D. said:

Maybe Caleb can post a picture of the jar, when he posts the other coins! If he can get near it!😂👍👍

Today we found out that the jar in which the coins are from is more rare than the coins themselves.

There were only about 1,000 of the jars made before they made a glass bottle for their new oil and started that line of product. They only made lamp oil for about a year before getting into the machine oils which built the company into what it is today. We will not be getting rid of the stinky old jar just yet.

I will be taking more pictures soon and as long as my stomach can tolerate it. The wind has to blow away from the house before grandmother will let me uncover it.

 

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