syzygy Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 * * * * Warning * * * This post contains images of coin mutilation and may not be suitable for all viewers * * * * Warning * * * A while ago I posted about a Buffalo nickel hoard that fell into my lap. At least half of them were very worn with no dates showing at all - no doubt a testimony to their extensive service. Well, I decided to do a little experiment with chemically restoring dates. First of all, I am well aware that a 'restored date' Buffalo nickel is not going to compete at all in value with a 'real' date. Not saying that they have no value, just that I have no misconceptions about the issue. With that in mind, I thought that some might find this little photo essay entertaining. The "date restorer" that I used is actually ferric chloride. It is probably more accurate to say that the coins now have an etched date rather than a restored date. You start with a well worn, very low grade, dateless nickel, like this one: I remember using ferric chloride to etch home brew circuit boards a long time ago. Using a circuit board with a thin layer of copper on the surface, you would draw the circuit traces using a marking pen and then dump the board in a ferric chloride solution. The solution would eat away the copper everywhere but your ink lines and you were left with the circuit traces. Based on that experience, I inked the area around the date to restrict the etching solution. Then, I placed a drop of the solution on the date area and *poof* a date! A quick water wash and an acetone bath to remove the ink, and you have yourself a genuine etched-date Buffalo nickel. Sometimes the dates come out very strong, like this 1916: But other times they are only a ghost like this 1918: I did most of the mint-marked no dates that I had and I was both amazed and frustrated to find...this one: ..and yeah that is a 'D' and this one: For those that do not know, the 1914D and 1921S are both legitimate semi-keys that Redbook at about $70 in Good - frustrating eh? Well, after a while, the whole process gets a little boring...maybe I will try my hand at making a hobo nickel, or a belt buckel or something... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dan769 Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Very cool I've always wanted to see some quality pics on this subject. Thnaks for sharing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhawk Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 There are both sellers and buyers of key and semi-key acid dated Buffs on Ebay...sometimes at quite a price. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gxseries Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 Wow, I wonder if that works on copper too... That's amazing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dockwalliper Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 great post. Your inking made the restored date coins better than any I've seen. I would take those as fillers anytime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccg Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 They don't look that bad. Some nickels I've seen look almost heavily polished in the date area after treatment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kat Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 great post. Your inking made the restored date coins better than any I've seen. I would take those as fillers anytime. Yup, what Doc said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bobbycoin Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 A note on treating Buf Nics. Always look at the back first. If its a 1913 type 1... you will know without doing anything! Im amazed at how many "restored" type 1s I see. And thanks for the photo essay syzygy! Really awesome... Post of the week style -Bobby Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jmpearso Posted October 13, 2005 Report Share Posted October 13, 2005 That is really cool. How long did you keep the solution on there for? Is there anything that would work on gold coins? I have a 2 1/2 dollar gold coin that I found metal detecting, worn date its the indian one. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
knowtracks Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Very Cool, Thanks for sharing I've got a bunch of Buffs that I would love to try that on. As has been stated your method is the best I've seen Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
28Plain Posted October 14, 2005 Report Share Posted October 14, 2005 Very Cool, Thanks for sharing I've got a bunch of Buffs that I would love to try that on.As has been stated your method is the best I've seen Apologies for going off subject, but that is a great pic of a buffalo chasing a Griz. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
syzygy Posted October 15, 2005 Author Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 That is really cool. How long did you keep the solution on there for? Is there anything that would work on gold coins? I have a 2 1/2 dollar gold coin that I found metal detecting, worn date its the indian one.Thanks Seemed like the date would show up best if it showed up within about 1 min - as soon as it showed up I would wash it off. Don't know about gold - I would not want to try that with gold, if I had any. Also, I don't know if an incuse date would work in any case. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted October 15, 2005 Report Share Posted October 15, 2005 Very nice. I've never tried this but I've seen some nickels that have been done this way. You did a great job. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Blackhawk Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 I bought some nic-a-date yesterday and put a whole no-date into some that I put in a small glass bowl. It turned out to be a 1914-D...the detail really came out and other than the obvious large scratch on the obverse, it would be a dandy coin if it had this much original detail. ...no extra charge for the hair across the obverse photo. Sorry... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Stujoe Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 ...no extra charge for the hair across the obverse photo. Sorry... <{POST_SNAPBACK}> You'd think the nic-a-date would have removed that hair. Geeze, how many dateless or formerly dateless 1914-D Buffs are out there, anyway? I bet half the surviving mintage are either still dateless or have been nic-a-dated! I see them all the time and we have 2 found here back to back. Truthfully, nic-a-date doesn't bother me that much. Sure, it is damage and commands a discount over a non-treated coin but the coin is still what it is and it can still fill a hole in the case of a key date. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burks Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 This makes me want to buy those dateless nickels I see for bullion price all the time. Sounds like fun. Never know what you're going to find. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccg Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 This makes me want to buy those dateless nickels I see for bullion price all the time. Sounds like fun. Never know what you're going to find. Since when did nickels sell for scrap? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burks Posted October 22, 2005 Report Share Posted October 22, 2005 Since when did nickels sell for scrap? A guy at the show I went to had a big bucket of nickels for (I believe) $0.10. I'd consider that dirt cheap and basically scrap prices. Almost all were dateless, the ones with dates looked like someone was practicing their carving skills on them. One even had a rather large hole drilled right through the middle. Yeah I said bullion but meant scrap, sorry, long night You can hit me for that one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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