Garrett Users Forum

Does anyone know how to safely "clean" old silver and copper coins to restore them to a good condition??
I tried cleaning three copper pennies by soaking them in vinegar and it ruined them. Anyone with any successful cleaning ideas?? Thanks very much.

Bruce copper etches in an acid like vinegar best to clean the dirt off with a soft bristle toothbrush then soak the pennies in "pure" olive oil for a bout a month or so i keep a jar soaking all the time. silver is tougher due to the softness of the metal i clean mine with a soft tooth brush and thats all i do i dont scrub too hard . i have a tumbler for my modern coinage btw is this the bruce from NC? if so hows the merlin working?

Porkie, no sorry I am not the Bruce from NC. Thanks alot for the tips of the soft tooth brush and soaking in olive oil for a month! Do you soak silver coins in olive oil as well? I suppose the tumbler is used only for modern coins worth face value because it may scratch them?
I saw a show last night on PBS Detroit called Haley's Hints. He "cleaned tarnished silver" in water with "powdered water softener" and "salt" mixed in then a "sheet from a roll of aluminium foil" is put in the solution. The silver is then put in it on top. The silver cleaned almost instantly! I wonder if it will work with silver coins or maybe copper coins??
Anyone have any other cleaning hints, thanks!

no,my silver i give them a soak in hot soapy water and brush lightly. i end up with some dirt still on them but i figure if i sell them the dealer will clean them at his discretion better to get paid in full for your coin and have him make anymistakes than devalue the coin yourself. most of the roosevelts are worth only .60 in really nice shape anyway so unless you find a jar of proof coins they dont have a huge resale value .30 cents wholesale or less. but, again rather the dealer make the mistake and bring him a .30 cent coin than scratch the surface and end up with a .10 cent piece of silver hahaahha so this realy only applies to rare coins but i treat them all with the same respect i belive its just a good habit. sounds like this guy has built an electrolasys machine he is creating a current in the solution of salt and water softener by maign the metals react with each other. the trouble with this is that this is the same as electroplating only back words by pulling the tarnish off the silver you are also removing metal and i have heard that the effect does not last long, but i could be mistaken