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What's the best method for cleaning junk silver?

I wouldn't clean them... Would you buy rolls of junk on RealCent if the seller said the coins were freshly cleaned?

if you don't like dirty junk silver just sell it here and then buy clean junk silver

Country wrote:I wouldn't clean them... Would you buy rolls of junk on RealCent if the seller said the coins were freshly cleaned?

Absolutely. If they are common date, bullion coin - especially 64s of anything, I could care less whether they are cleaned - at least if they've been done with respectable care and not with a wire brush or some such nonsense. For these types of coin I go by weight, not level of tarnish, and bright coin presents better.

To be concerned about cleaning bullion coin is IMHO ridculous. Just my opinion, but one I feel strongly about. Anyone that has cleaned coin they can't sell elsewhere to someone that is "picky", feel free to PM me. It'll save me the effort.

That said, I don't clean coin older than 64. If it did it would be by exception. At this point I've only cleaned 64, or newer 40% that isn't a key date.

kwebb70 wrote:What's the best method for cleaning junk silver?

For bullion non-numi stuff only

I use the electrolytic method for 64 90%, and now normally tarn-x for later 40% which tends to be more heavily tarnished. Having this done once in their life won't hurt them.

i had some heavily tarnished Mercury dimes and I used the hot water/aluminum foil/salt-baking soda method to clean them. The cleaning took the black tarnish off, but left the coins with a weird, "glossy" appearance. They looked like shellac had been applied to them. Has anyone else experienced this? These weren't numismatic coins--just some "junk" I wanted to experiment with.

John Reich wrote:i had some heavily tarnished Mercury dimes and I used the hot water/aluminum foil/salt-baking soda method to clean them. The cleaning took the black tarnish off, but left the coins with a weird, "glossy" appearance. They looked like shellac had been applied to them. Has anyone else experienced this? These weren't numismatic coins--just some "junk" I wanted to experiment with.

It's normal for the worn areas to come out looking polished.

68Camaro wrote:

Country wrote: At this point I've only cleaned 64, or newer 40% that isn't a key date.

What 40% key dates are there? I wasn't aware of any key date 40%.

Edit: somehow it looks like Country made this statement. But, it was 68Camaro that did.

70 is the key date.

The best way to clean junk is to send it to Scrap Man. They come back real shinny and purdy!