Just A Quick Question From A New Friend

[garhatseveryone-migration]

What is a nice inexpensive way to keep my coins?

I like looking at them, so I've been keeping some of them in these 2" double vinyl pockets, but i hate how they can easily be opened and touched. So i've been considering buying a heated plastic sealer to pinch and heat the edges of these little pockets and hopefully prevent any unnecessary touching of my coin. haha

 

If you fellas' have any other inexpensive suggestions, please feel free to flood this thread with ideas.. Thanks in advance.

 

-gar

 

 

 

[coinman1794]

Please remove your coins from anything containing vinyl. These flips are harmful to you coins because they leach out polyvinylchloride residue (or PVC) that attaches itself to your coins and eats into the surface over time. Using a heat sealer may induce the leaching process, as the heat is a catalyst.

 

For an extra dollar or two, you can purchase flips that are PVC free.

 

Even better, there are dozens of much better holders available on the market that cost anywhere form 50C to $5 each. Search the internet for coin collecting supply companies.

 

Hope this is a helpful start!

[JKK]

Yeah, I once had to harvest thousands of pennies from old PVC tubes that had been deteriorating. They were covered in sea green slime. I had to keep acetoning them until I got rid of it all. PVC is one thing for your irrigation pipes, quite another for your coin storage.

[garhatseveryone-migration]

Thanks for writing back.. I'm going to look into PVC-free holders. Appreciate the info very much!

[garhatseveryone-migration]

What do you guys think about this brand?

 

[CyberspaceVoid]

It's a well recognized brand and considered safe for general collecting. For higher grade coins you should look into Airtites and the like.

[cpm9ball]

What do you guys think about this brand?

 

 

This is what I would use, but I wouldn't seal the pocket. If you ever decide to submit any of the coins, you would need to remove them from the sealed flip. Otherwise, you would probably be charged a removal fee for each one.

 

Although you didn't mention it, will you be using each 2-pocket flip for one or two coins? It's best to use each flip for one coin, and use the 2nd pocket for a note card (which can be purchased with the flips.)

 

Chris

[JKK]

These are also good for relatively modest value coins that cannot be stapled into a paper flip, as the US cartwheel dollar flips aren't big enough and it's impractical to make them any bigger (hardly anyplace to staple or write). Spanish Empire 8 Reales coins, Maria Theresia dollars, and other near-1 oz silver rounds fall into this category. I have a Russian 5 kopek from the 1790s, AU+, that I call 'the hockey puck'. It is bronze, about as thick as two US large cents with very high relief detail, and required some gentle shoving to fit into a saflip. Biggest coin I've got.

 

Chris is right on one coin per saflip, with the back pocket used for a neat little card holding all the descriptive information you care to include. Putting two in wouldn't make any sense to me, nor would heat-sealing, for several reasons:

 

1) You'd seal in some air for sure.

2) The heat could inadvertently harm the coin.

3) Some coins, like my 8Rs mentioned above, are fun to be able to remove and hold in the hand.

4) The precise application of the right amount of heat could be far more challenging and risky than it's worth.

5) If it's worth sealing, it is probably worth slabbing.

[coinman1794]

What do you guys think about this brand?

 

 

SAFLIP makes the best flips on the market, so you cannot go wrong if flips are what you need. However, I consider flips to be temporary housing; they can also scratch you coins as you slide them in and out of the pocket, they are not air-tight, and they wear out quickly. Again, if you are keeping more expensive coins, you want to look into more permanent holders.

 

[cpm9ball]

What do you guys think about this brand?

 

 

SAFLIP makes the best flips on the market, so you cannot go wrong if flips are what you need. However, I consider flips to be temporary housing; they can also scratch you coins as you slide them in and out of the pocket, they are not air-tight, and they wear out quickly. Again, if you are keeping more expensive coins, you want to look into more permanent holders.

 

If you take care when inserting a coin into a flip just as you would when placing coins in a Dansco, you shouldn't have a problem scratching any coin.

 

I don't know about wearing out too quickly. I've had some coins in flips for 9-10 years, and they haven't worn out.

 

Chris

[coinman1794]

If you have to take care not to scratch the coin, then the coin can be easily scratched by a novice

 

Inert flips are notoriously brittle, and the plastic becomes scuffed almost immediately. If moved around frequently, the edges can crack open, causing the coin to fall out or get scratched.

[coinman1794]

My favorite holders are Eagle holders. They receive my A+ recommendation for long-term, archival storage, provided they are properly assembled and closed (which can be a challenge).

 

A close second are air-tights with sponge gasket, though they are almost impossible to re-open with out damaging the virtual vacuum seal, and I am not familiar with the specs on the safety of the gaskets. They also present problems for uniform storage, due to their small cylindrical shape and varying sizes.

 

[Guest AuroraRarities]

In many cases, I submit a coin to one of the leading TPGs for slabbing.

 

When that's not suitable or cost effective, I place the coin in a polyethylene envelope and then into the mylar SAFLIPS previously mentioned.

 

To view a coin it is easy to safely remove it from the mylar flip without scratching the coin or getting fingerprints on it since it is in the poly envelope. With the poly envelope in hand over a felt jewelers pad (for fall safety) I can then remove the coin from the poly bag with relative ease.

 

Hope this helps.