Need some cleaning advice, are tumblers worth buying?

[Digdoggy]

Hi all, I've recently tried cleaning clad using the salt and vinegar method. Brasso metal cleaner, baking soda and vinegar, and although the salt and v was the best as it took the rusty brownish red off, the clad was left with a deep black color and clerks where I was spending the clearest/ cleanest quarters would just stare at them. I'd say "the're good just dark from water stains"
The best was a brillow pad and a ton off work.
I'm thinking of a tumbler. Do they make much noise. That's what I worry about. Also can't see spending much money cleaning a little money. What do y'all think. Thanks.

 

[jim tn]

I find a tumbler is well worth the investment and the Lortone I use is quiet. A tumbler, or most anything else for that matter, will not bring dug coins back to their original shinny condition. They do, however, quickly remove all dirt/crud. I seldom use Coin Star for disposing of my clad and cents, but roll my coins and cash them in at my bank. This way I have never had a problem with dark looking coins. I have tried all the cleaning solutions you have mentioned and use salt and vinegar now most often. Otherwise, a couple squirts of dish wash soap, water and aquarium gravel. HH jim tn

 

[skookum]

Hi,
That depends where you live.
In rural areas most everybody owns or knows someone who owns a cement mixer.
Put your coins in a large coffe jar, add vinegar and salt, tape the plastic lid shut (packing tape is good - don

 

[Elton]

n/t

 

[Rick(ND)]

I just did this past winter for a couple of guys over $500 in new coins and most come out close to new looking and some with a slight pink shade to them.

I use a rotary tumbler to do this and use aquarium gravel, water and some "Real Lemon Juice" in most cases and have used some Mauriac acid too, but you have to becareful with this. You do have to separate the pennies from the clad coins and with the pennies I tumble for about 2 hours and they will come out real nice and some looking like new. Now clad is tougher and will do them for a good 4 or 5 hours and drain and rinse off good and pick out the good ones and put the rest back in with new lemon juice and water and the gravel and tumble for a hour or so and unplug the tumbler and let set over night and let the soak. Now I will pug in the tumbler again and run for a couple more hours and drain and rinse them again and pick out the good ones and in some cases most will be, Now I have had some real bad ones and here is where I use my Mauriac acid and put the gravel and water back in and out just a little of the acid in it and tumble for maybe a hour at the most and drain and rinse real good and then right away put them back in the tumbler with gravel and lemon juice for another hour to get all the acid off of them that was left. If you don't do this right away after you get them out of the acid they seem to turn color fast.
I think in most cases you can get the coin clean enough without the acid to spend or tumble them longer in lemon juice.
I have 2 different tumblers with one a small one and the other a 25 pound one with the 25 pound one for the larger lot of coins and sometime I will even use this big one for washing all the coins before I separate them so they are easier to see the copper from the clad with using my lemon juice and about 30 minutes of time as it seems I can separate them much better when I can see the detail of the coin.
I also will take out any bent or damage coins out before I take them to the bank so it wont jamb up their machines.

Rick

 

[REVIER]

A few times a year Harbor Freight puts their one and two drum tumblers on sale, use a 25% off coupon and the two Harrell tumbler comes in under $40.
I have rum about $1000 through mine, no problems at all and still on my first belt but I never overload it.
Makes your clad spendable with no embarrassment, cleans up even the dirtiest ones like old wheaties and disguised silver too, and I have been surprised a few times when I checked my coins after tumbling.
Most silver comes out of the ground clean, but not ALL of it I can assure you.
Also will clean up tokens and other objects, not to mention they polish rocks really well if you are into that.

I believe mine has been well worth the money spent, and it has been invaluable to me and will continue to be in the future.

 

[bob.oz]

Harbor Freight Tumblers are nice...Check CL and garage sales is were I got mine for $15.00 still in the box.
Separate clad, Penny's will turn the quarters, dimes and nickels pink....
Also works great on crusty silver jewelry from the water....

 

[mudpuppy]

Yeah, its sort of a part to this hobby, dinking around with the finds after a days hunt! In a way, it sort of prolongs the extasy! ... I have a Thumblers two barrel the Wife and kid got me a few years back when I started in on this gig...Though I've been thinking about a way to rig up those empty plastic coffee cans to some sort of drive mech that is powered off the rear wheels of my car, or maybe the alternator, with some coccamamie set up in the trunk, so my clad gets tumbled when I drive from point A to B...now that would be cool!
Mud

 

[ccs]

This works the best in a rock tumbler. Aquarium stone, some dish washing liquid soap and ammonia just enough to the top of the stone. Tumble for 3 hours. rinse and repeat .

 

[BarberBill]

I use a tumbler regularly, but be sure to tumble pennies separately from the clad or you'll end up with copper colored clad. Aquarium gravel and a dash of liquid detergent has gotten the job done.
BB

 

[Mega]

I would have said that if your finds are from say the beach and are corroded or modern coins that just need a quick clean up for spending in shops or handing into the bank then a tumbler machine would be a great,but over here in the UK i would suggest NO as you could damage or even make a valuable coin worthless.If in doubt and the coin/s or artifacts appear old then dont take the chance of ruining a lovely find.

The best thing i do is if in doubt just use a very soft toothbrush under the running tap as you could ruin a lovely patination on a find.

 

[Digdoggy]

Thanks for all the suggestions, l think 40 or 50 bucks is not to bad for a tumbler. Sounds like many are getting their moneys worth.

 

[Ed Steinhoff]

yes they are worth it. My 'it' was a cheap plastic one from hobby lobby. It has cleaned over 12,000 coins and tokens without a problem.
always seperate pennys from the rest and even use two different batches of gravel, dash of low suds soap, some real lemon . juice, some white vineger and they will shine like new
HH Ed in co.

 

[mudpuppy]

Anybody have pics of homebuilt tumblers? using a variable speed drillmotor or something? I think i might take a motor off a windshield wiper, and rig up some sort of tumbler in the trunk? Anybody?
Mud

 

[REVIER]

Anybody have pics of homebuilt tumblers? using a variable speed drillmotor or something? I think i might take a motor off a windshield wiper, and rig up some sort of tumbler in the trunk? Anybody?
Mud[/quote

http://m.youtube.com/watch?v=PvGYfmbBYyg

 

[Steve O]

Red neck tumbler......that's a beautiful contraption right there.