proof set toning

[Crohnos01]

I was just looking at some of my proof set collections and noticed some of them are toning around the rims. These are prestige proof sets and unfortunately I am seeing a haze develop on the rims, not any monster colors that everyone seems to love. Is there anything I could/should do or not do about this? I mean, they are after all proof sets and not worth a ton of money.. I suspect trying to remove the coin from the OGP will destroy the holder which I don't really want to do.... Thoughts?

[BillJones]

Unfortunately there is nothing you can do about this once it has started.

 

One thing you do need to review is where you are storing the coins. Avoid places where the temperatures can go up and down constantly. Closets on outside walls in the winter time are a big concern. Avoid them. Stay away from places that get very hot, like an attic.

 

Beyond that many collectors think that the mint is partially to blame. Sometimes the mint does no remove the solutions they use to wash planchets completely. There are also indications that some of the mint inserts are not inert. The Proof sets that are packed with purple inserts have been cited in the past.

 

I know you can't be pleased by this answer, but it is one of the risks associated with Proof coins.

 

[Crohnos01]

Thanks for the reply Bill. You confirmed my worst suspicions. The odd thing is, the coins are stored in a conditioned space where there aren't jhuge temperature changes (my office). Ah well, I figured as much that I was pretty much SOL... Any chance the haze will develop color in my grandkids lifetime?

 

[Conder101]

In my opinion, highly unlikely. Usually what I see as haze on modern proofs appears to be the depositing of something like an outgassing on the surface of the coin. it is not a reaction of the coinage metal to form the thin film oxide or sulfide layers that create the thin film diffraction that give the colors people like so much. In other words it is something ON the surface, not a part OF the surface.