Remember, you’re never going to make an old coin look new again-not gonna happen! So, before you clean any oxidized coins, think carefully about what you’re attempting to do. It will almost always damage the coin and result in more or less halving its numismatic value.

As we hope we’ve conveyed here, cleaning coins is generally a pointless pursuit. Neither this author nor Gainesville Coins endorses the idea or practice of cleaning coins, period. Because once you try cleaning the oxidation off your toned coin, whether by way of acids or abrasives, you can pretty much count on wiping out 30% to 50% (or maybe even more) of its numismatic premium. Then use those newly acquired funds to buy the blast-white coin you want. If what you really want is to turn your toned Morgan dollar into a blast-white Morgan dollar, you’re probably just better off selling the coin you have. One thing someone should ask themselves when contemplating cleaning an oxidized coin is, “what’s the goal?” What are you trying to achieve by cleaning your coin? Should You Clean Oxidized Coins? Is It Worth It to Clean Oxidized Coins? The outer layer of discoloration on a coin, known as a patina, will often appear green on a copper coin. Even if the coin retones, those striations will always be there-they don’t heal. In some cases, no amount of time or patience will heal a coin that has been abrasively cleaned, because scratches left from an etching or physically harsh cleaning never naturally repair. It can irreparably damage its surfaces when abrasives or strong acids are used. Cleaning virtually always lowers the value of a coin. Many collectors wrestle with these questions in part because in the back of their minds they know cleaning coins is generally a fool’s errand. What do they do then? Can You Clean Oxidized Coins? They don’t want any signs of oxidation whatsoever on their coins. Still, there are people who simply don’t like toned coins. After all, oxidation-when left to Mother Nature’s devices-is indeed a very natural thing. More and more people in the hobby of coin collecting not only appreciate toning on coins but embrace it-seek it out. Oftentimes, this oxidation takes on the form of very beautiful toning. Oxidation is just the metal’s natural coating it develops to protect it from further corrosion or other damage. One of the few ways to prevent a coin from oxidizing is to house it in an inert environment-one that is essentially devoid of air and is airtight.īarring that, coins exposed to oxygen will eventually develop some kind of oxidation. Metals oxidize due to their chemical reactions with oxygen, which is pretty much everywhere in Earth’s atmosphere.

The thing about oxidation is that it’s hard to stop. They may be pressed bars that are minted with the latest technology, or they could be poured bars that are still crafted by hand one at a time.When coins oxidize, the outer layer of metal often changes color. Moreover, you will find that many of these bars come in all sorts of interesting shapes. Not only are silver art bars more visually attractive then generic silver, but they also offer an incredibly diverse range of design themes and may come from any one of a number of different refiners. 999 fine silver though, so you're still getting the same 99.9% pure silver as other more generic bars.

Although they are no longer in regular production, these bars continue to trade hands between collectors, traders, and investors on the secondary market.īullion buyers in recent years have preferred an entirely new kind of silver product: silver art bars.Īs the name implies, silver art bars are manufactured with a greater emphasis on the artistic merit of the design. These trusted name brands dominated the silver bar market. However, with modern advancements in minting and engraving techniques, there are now a wide variety of different silver bar designs for investors to choose from! What Are Silver Art Bars?Īs silver bars regained popularity during the 1970s and 1980s, the vast majority of their designs were specific to the manufacturer, such as Engelhard and Johnson Matthey. These were fairly plain items that carried no markings other than perhaps their weight and purity. Even before governments began issuing their own silver coins, one of the most common forms of money in the ancient world was silver bars, also known as silver ingots.

Gainesville coins photos