Acid treating Buffalo nickels

[LincolnLover-migration]

Hey all:

 

I cringe to even bring this topic up...but I just got *spooned* on Ebay and I am trying to recoup some of the money I lost. I have heard that people treat Buffalo nickels with some sort of acid to show the date on otherwise worn pieces. Does anybody know what this does to the coin?

 

I'll list them as acid treated when I sell them (if I even can) but I won't even treat them if the process is corrosive.

 

Thanks for the help

 

Brad

[Mark T]

Its called Nick- a-date .

 

Attached is a picture for you .

 

This is a coin that I had since I was a kid , I would use the nick a date on all my no date

Buffalos.

[LincolnLover-migration]

thanks Mark...

 

Was it worth it ever?

 

 

[prudden]

Does it leave that mess on the date every time? Or did it change over time?

[Coin]

The acid eats away at the surface of the coin . The user puts a small drop on the flattened date area and the acid 'eats' down . The area where the original date was would appear again because of how the acid 'ate' differently at the area that once a high point versus the area that was a low point ....I think due to the placement of pressure during original striking and how the metal flowed.

 

 

[MorganMan]

I have quite a few "Nick-a-dated" Buffs. When the date is gone anyway, it can't hurt.

 

What would have to be done to properly conserve it is to wash the coin in some kind of neutralizer after the treatment. Then you would not get that ugly stain.

 

Even though it would not grade :think:, it would fill a hole in a kids collection.

 

MM

[Dcoin]

Many nickels are also treated entirely with the acid so all the surfaces have a grainy look and feel to them.

 

Long thought of as the Holy Grail of Acid treated Buffalo nickels, the 1916 double date will sell for several hundred dollars in an ANACS holder. Most other dates have significantly lesser value.

 

[Mark T]

Sure it was exciting to see what date would pop up when I used the nick a date.

I had many of these no date buffalos. I have had this coin for 40 years so I can not remember if that ugly stain was always there, my guess – it was.

Wait that’s not a stain it’s toning!!