How you clean your clad coins?

[T.A.L.LasVegas]

How do you clean your clad coins so you can spend them?
I have been using vinegar and salt solution 1/4 cup vinegar and 1 teaspoon of salt, this cleans them good but leaves the coins really dull but it only takes a couple minutes and they are clean.
Do you use a rock tumbler? I have thought of this method so the coins do not look so dull after vinegar and salt bath.
Thank you for your input
HH
Todd .

 

[7centsworth]

If you are going to spend them tumblers work fine.

 

[Terra1959]

Hi Todd,

I use a tumbler and its great
I also have a Dremel tool with various brushes etc for relics

T59

 

[T.A.L.LasVegas]

Just purchased a thumlers tumbler model B 15lb capacity for $53.99 on eBay, will see how I like it for polishing clad coins when it arrives. I think I'll clean the fast way with the vinegar and salt mixture then polish with the tumbler, I will also try just using the tumbler.
HH
Todd

 

[mapper65]

Please let us know how it works. I've been thinking about getting a tumbler but I'd be interested in seeing the results. If anyone else on here uses one, please chime in.

 

[T.A.L.LasVegas]

I will post pics and my thoughts, I will also post some pics of how clad coins look after cleaning with the vinegar and salt and then tumbled for polishing.
Videos I have seen on YouTube using rock tumblers seem to take hours but I am thinking if I have them clean first my way that polishing will go much faster in the tumbler than cleaning and tumbling.
Todd

 

[Steve in Idaho]

I use cream-of-tarter and water in my rock tumbler and it works great.

 

[Digger]

When my bank stopped taking "soiled" coins a few years ago, I invested in a tumbler. I bought mine from a major online detector store, and it came with rocks and cleaning powder. I learned early on to NOT mix in silver clad with copper clad coins as the red rocks and cleaning powder will turn the silver clad pink. I've also used aquarium gravel and various "off the shelf" cleaning powders. Just about anything I've tried works OK as long as I don't fill the container too full and make sure I use a cleaning powder that does not create suds. After the coins have been cleaned (which does take a couple hours for each load and maybe more than one cycle, depending on how crusty they are), I can usually pass them through the bank. Those nickels, dimes and quarters that the bank rejects are used in vending machines or at the car wash. The zinc pennies get tossed. JMHO HH Randy

 

[Bavaria Mike]

I use a rock tumbler, just don't mix pennies in with the clad or they will get a reddish tint to the clad coins. Bought my tumbler for around $60.00. HH, Mike

 

[T.A.L.LasVegas]

Great advice Randy
Check out my newest posting clad coins cleaned in less than five minutes and let me know what you think.
HH
Todd

 

[fwcrawford]

I started using a tumbler not long after I got into detecting and it was well worth it.
During the summer months when it is hot, my buddy and I usually clad hunt school yards and find lots of clad and the tumbler is very useful for cleaning lots of coins at once.
It usually takes a couple of hours, and although the coins are dirt free, they are still tarnished for the most part.
I think using your "formula" described above using the peanut jar works great and if the tumbler was used after this method,
I believe the coins would come out much better and have more shine to them.
I will have to try your method first and then run them through the tumbler to see what kind of results I get.
Below is a years worth of clad after tumbling ready to roll.