Birddog1911
Senior Member
Okay, I know that I've seen a lot of folks say to not clean old coin finds. So, I have a couple of questions.
First, is this always the case, and does it always ruin value?
Is it possible to give a specific example? Let's say, a 1915 dime. Now, it may not be worth much more than melt value. Would cleaning it up a little remove any numismatic value from it, and guarantee scrap value only?
How about a 1853 Half Dime, covered in dirt? Is there any cleaning that can be done without damaging value?
Finally, what about something copper, like a Large Cent? Remove the dirt, but not the patina? Is it possible to say something along the likes of "with patina it's worth $5, but it being cleaned would lower it to $2"?
I haven't found any good coins like that yet, but I'm just wanting to make sure that I don't mess up once I do!
First, is this always the case, and does it always ruin value?
Is it possible to give a specific example? Let's say, a 1915 dime. Now, it may not be worth much more than melt value. Would cleaning it up a little remove any numismatic value from it, and guarantee scrap value only?
How about a 1853 Half Dime, covered in dirt? Is there any cleaning that can be done without damaging value?
Finally, what about something copper, like a Large Cent? Remove the dirt, but not the patina? Is it possible to say something along the likes of "with patina it's worth $5, but it being cleaned would lower it to $2"?
I haven't found any good coins like that yet, but I'm just wanting to make sure that I don't mess up once I do!