• Forum server maintanace Friday night.(around 7PM Centeral time)
    Website will be off line for a short while.

    You may need to log out, log back in after we're back online.

My method for cleaning nickels

NevTrac

Forum Supporter
Joined
Jul 26, 2010
Messages
3,103
Location
Carson City Nevada
I've been finding a lot of buffalo nickels and older Jefferson's lately. I've tried some different cleaning methods, but was never satisfied enough with the results. I wanted to restore them to their original color to put them in coin books.

I finally found a method that works. It's pretty simple, just takes some elbow grease.

Step 1: A brass brush, some dish soap and A couple minutes of scrubbing on each side removes all the dirt and grime, but the coin is still usually A dull purple/ gray color.

Step 2: A brass brush, some Bar Keepers Friend, and a couple minutes of scrubbing each side. The coin is going to turn dark purple/ black. Don't panic, the chemicals are working. Rinse and repeat step 1.

I didn't take before pics, everyone knows what dug nickels look like. Here are the after pics. I know you're not supposed to clean old coins, but these coins were worth 5 cents before and they are still worth 5 cents.:lol: Now they will look better in my coin book.
 

Attachments

  • 10-17 finds 004.jpg
    10-17 finds 004.jpg
    154.8 KB · Views: 987
  • 10-17 finds 005.jpg
    10-17 finds 005.jpg
    153.9 KB · Views: 987
i dont know what a dirty buff looks like cause i havent found one in months:lol::lol:
bar keepers works great i used vinegar one time on a nickle little too much chemicals
curtis
 
Sounds like a great idea. I've tried different things and was never happy with the results. I'll have to give it a try.
 
Will the brass brush scratch the coin? Are the brushes that are used to clean golf clubs brass? If so I may use that... Do you lose any detail from the scrubbing? Mine has a date and I would hate to scrub it off...
 
Will the brass brush scratch the coin? Are the brushes that are used to clean golf clubs brass? If so I may use that... Do you lose any detail from the scrubbing? Mine has a date and I would hate to scrub it off...

I can't see any scratches on the coins I've done this to. Nickels come out of the dirt pitted anyway so I don't think tiny scratches matter. As you can see from the pics, I didn't lose any detail. If you have A coin with a barely readable date it could be a different story.

Keith
 
I use a SOS pad on my nickels, it is very, very fine steel wool, and it does not leave scratches, but as you said dug nickels are not worth much and I want them to look good in my collection, yours turned out real nice
 
Back
Top Bottom