Cleaning asphalt off coins

Dflan83

Elite Member
Joined
Aug 21, 2010
Messages
1,126
Location
Fayetteville, TN
Hey everyone I've noticed that many of my wheat penny finds from the fairgrounds are embedded in Rocky asphalt. There is almost a black tar like substance on them. How do I clean this off.

So far I've put a few pennies in a jar of distilled vinegar but it's not doing much
 
You need a strong organic solvent like MEK {methyl ethyl ketone} or dichloromethane, used as paint strippers. Look in the paint section of a hardware store.
Soak the coins in a sealed container.
If the asphalt layer is thick, you'll probably need to carefully scrape off a bit then soak again, and repeat until its all gone.
 
You might also try using a rag and a little gasoline (use some rubber gloves if gas bothers your skin). As mentioned in the previous post, you may also want to toss a few pennies into something (can or jar), submerge them, and allow them to soak for a few hours, maybe even overnight. Then see if the tar will come off easily, when wiped with a rag dampened in the gas. It's worth a try...

⚠️ Just use caution, be careful, and don't do anything to get hurt.
 
Diesel fuel or kerosene is what I use to desolve road tar off my cars, works like a champ and doesn't hurt paint either.

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all ive ever done is boil coins in salt water....it has worked great on many things on coins including epoxy
 
Tar is oil based so the most common and safest solvent would be mineral spirits (paint thinner). Other safe solvents would be diesel fuel, naptha, kerosene. The least safest is gasoline. I would just soak it in paint thinner for a day and see what happens. You can always leave it in there longer.......
 
Tar is oil based so the most common and safest solvent would be mineral spirits (paint thinner). Other safe solvents would be diesel fuel, naptha, kerosene. The least safest is gasoline.

:awwman:
I realize that gas is probably the least safest solvent, based on it's flammability characteristics, but likewise, I was trying to suggest something that would be readily available around most households. I was also giving Dflan83 credit, for being able to soak a few coins without blowing his head off. Plus, I can't see that being any more dangerous than filling up the lawnmower or the weed-whacker, for that matter.


⚠️ Just use caution, be careful, and don't do anything to get hurt.
 
:awwman:
I realize that gas is probably the least safest solvent, based on it's flammability characteristics, but likewise, I was trying to suggest something that would be readily available around most households. I was also giving Dflan83 credit, for being able to soak a few coins without blowing his head off. Plus, I can't see that being any more dangerous than filling up the lawnmower or the weed-whacker, for that matter.


⚠️ Just use caution, be careful, and don't do anything to get hurt.
Don't get me wrong - I've used gasoline many times as a solvent. Just giving some other solutions which of course will take longer to work.
 
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