Toning Or Corrosion? 1 1

[Numisdoclaw]

Online purchase so it's a crapshoot. Photos aren't the best. I can't tell if this is just bad toning or if it's corrosion. Thoughts? 1875 P twenty cent piece

Edited July 21 by Numisdoclaw

[Numisdoclaw]

[Greenstang]

I don’t think it is either, looks more like gunk built up over the years.    
Try giving it an acetone bath and see what happens.

[Numisdoclaw]

On 7/21/2024 at 6:38 PM, Greenstang said:

I don’t think it is either, looks more like gunk built up over the years.    
Try giving it an acetone bath and see what happens.

I had the same thought as a possibility.  I'm just worried it is corrosion so much.  I got it for a good price, and I've already had 2 get "lost" in transit by the post office. 

[Coinbuf]

Looks like a bit of both tone and general gunk, an acetone bath as greenstang suggested might help but it might also hurt.   The centers and rims are far too white for a coin of this age which suggests the coin has been cleaned in the past and this is buildup since that cleaning.    If it is gunk acetone might remove it but then the coin may be just that much more unnatural looking with even more white revealed.   I think it would be best just left alone myself but that is your call and may depend on what your plan is for this coin.

[Numisdoclaw]

On 7/21/2024 at 7:05 PM, Coinbuf said:

Looks like a bit of both tone and general gunk, an acetone bath as greenstang suggested might help but it might also hurt.   The centers and rims are far too white for a coin of this age which suggests the coin has been cleaned in the past and this is buildup since that cleaning.    If it is gunk acetone might remove it but then the coin may be just that much more unnatural looking with even more white revealed.   I think it would be best just left alone myself but that is your call and may depend on what your plan is for this coin.

I keep all my coins, and just wanted an example that had no damage, and the worst thing possible for it is it is cleaned,  just not harshly 

[Henri Charriere]

On 7/21/2024 at 6:51 PM, Numisdoclaw said:

....I've already had 2 get "lost" in transit by the post office. 

If this is your quaint way of indicating the nine-hundred dollars I placed in an otherwise plain envelope with adequate postage and mailed 48 hours ago to a coin concern in Paris is as good as gone, I am not amused. 

I have an irrefutable theory concerning goods lost in transit versus currency.  If it looks valuable, or as in my case has the term "Numismatic" in its official name, I would exercise some discretion. Use abbreviations.  Thieves know what "looks" important and valuable.  And "weight" too, is a factor.  For example, would you send a customer a 100 troy ounce of .999 silver in a box, corrugated or not, that barely accommodates the bar's dimensions?  Seven or eight pounds of sugar is one thing. The same of silver in a box that ought to be able to fit in your back pocket, but cannot, whether you wear a belt or not, is simply inadvisable.

I should like to suggest you avail yourself of the resources indicated in columns at the heads of the forums. No offense intended but with a User Name like yours, you have been asking questions that suggest you got your degree from an unaccredited mail-order university.  Just pullin' your leg here!  🤣

[powermad5000]

It has the look on all the high points having an unnatural color so I would say you could almost guarantee it has been cleaned at some time in the past. Wear will keep some of the high points from toning, but the thing to remember is this coin stopped circulating a very long time ago. If it wasn't cleaned previously, most of the coin would have that same dark color.

[Numisdoclaw]

Appreciate the replies with substance and volume. 

[Numisdoclaw]

Arrived today. It is not corrosion or gunk.  Just some awful toning that accumulated after a cleaning done long ago. Yay for no environmental damage! I'll give it a dip in acetone just to make sure. Can't hurt. It's already upgradeable 

[samclemen3991]

Congrats.  Decent looking coin to me.  I am a one and done when it comes to Twenty cent pieces, but you wouldn't be the first if this started you off on a particular collecting route.  hope you enjoy your coin.  James

[powermad5000]

I wouldn't bother with the acetone on this coin. Acetone will not remove toning. If it is not gunk or corrosion, it will probably look the same when you are done. It's not terrible, but sadly was cleaned in the past. 

[Numisdoclaw]

On 7/22/2024 at 1:19 PM, powermad5000 said:

It's not terrible, but sadly was cleaned in the past. 

It is what it is.  I just finished picking up the 3rd one, but I chose to go with a PCGS graded VG10 example for the CC example in my set. At least the cleaning isn't harsh and left actual physical scratches and gouged areas, like a brillo pad was used. 

[VKurtB]

Toning or corrosion? Yes. Because at its core, all toning IS CORROSION. It’s just early corrosion.