Back at the Barber spill location (3 IH and a 2 cent piece)

[switch]

Today at the yard of the Barber Spill of 2011 ( lol ) I found 3 Indian Head pennies and a 2 Cent piece!

This is pre-cleaning (just water and a soft tooth brush), years are 1883, 1866, and 1885, and the 2 cent piece is 186_ (something...just don't know yet :dontknow: ).

[Tony Two-Cent]

Very nice! It's so cool for me to see all of these two-cent pieces being unearthed. We definitely don't find them often here in central Illinois. (At least I don't!) Yours looks like it has nice detail, I bet you'll get a full date after a good careful cleaning.

I love the early 1866 Indian Head too!

Great finds! Congrats! :clapping:

[Ill Digger]

Oh man this yard is what dreams are made of! :daydream: :smitten:
3 IH's in one hunt is sweet! Even a nice early one to :cool:
But the two center is a really great find!
Congrats ! :grin:


We definitely don't find them often here in central Illinois. (At least I don't!)
We don't find many up in northern Illinois either (at least I don't :crying02: )

[switch]

Thanks everybody thumbsup01 I love this yard <:

I just hope I don't screw them up cleaning them :omg:

At least I didn't scratch any! :happydance01:

[angellionel]

Very nice digs switch! :clapping:

[milco]

Great finds, keep hitting that yard.

[JTGOLD]

thoes are very nice old coin good finds.

[coinnut]

Hey Switch, forget about that 2 cent piece for now lol It's that 1866 Indian that is a gem :drool: Here is a safe method to clean them without damaging them. It will get rid of all that dirt so you can see the patina that is left on them. I can tell from the picture that the '66 Indian will clean up nicely. Take one of those coins and get it wet. Then put a dab of hand soap (any gel type or dish detergent). Now get a toothpick (the thicker the better) and put it at a 45 degree angle on the coin and start to rub in circles aggressively. The wood is softer than the metal, so no scratching should happen. Get into every letter and detail on the coin. Be aggressive enough to loosen the dirt. Use more water and more soap as needed. Wash it off and see what dirt is left on it. This is a safe method to remove that dirt. try it on the other non key date Indian first. I think you will like what you see. If the coin is in nice condition under that dirt, then it will turn out beautiful. If it is junk under that dirt, then no amount of cleaning will make it better. let me know how it works for you. PM me if you need more info.

[OxShoeDrew]

Was this a coin spill too? Sweet hunt!

[switch]

The 3 Indian heads where pretty close together, I think they might have been. The two cent piece was found a few feet away from those. :cool:



Thanks all :happydance01:

[aloldstuff]

Nice recoveries, that 2 center looks to have a very strong WE om the motto. It should clean up real nice. Keep us updated on the cleaning of the 1866. Congrats, I need to find a yard like that.

[switch]

Nice recoveries, that 2 center looks to have a very strong WE om the motto. It should clean up real nice. Keep us updated on the cleaning of the 1866. Congrats, I need to find a yard like that.


Thanks, they all look like they should clean up pretty good I think. Now it is just sitting through work with ants in my pants until I can get cleaning supplies on the way home.

The yard is awesome but with the awesome comes the pure crazyness of this yard...they used to dump slag and coal left overs from the fire place...there are spots almost like sand and ash...thick clay...red dog...broken terra cotta pots and gravel...it can be a real pain...i cant stop going back though! The owner pretty much gave me permssion to come and go as I please and I live about 1 minute away :happydance01:

[aloldstuff]

Hey Switch, forget about that 2 cent piece for now lol It's that 1866 Indian that is a gem :drool: Here is a safe method to clean them without damaging them. It will get rid of all that dirt so you can see the patina that is left on them. I can tell from the picture that the '66 Indian will clean up nicely. Take one of those coins and get it wet. Then put a dab of hand soap (any gel type or dish detergent). Now get a toothpick (the thicker the better) and put it at a 45 degree angle on the coin and start to rub in circles aggressively. The wood is softer than the metal, so no scratching should happen. Get into every letter and detail on the coin. Be aggressive enough to loosen the dirt. Use more water and more soap as needed. Wash it off and see what dirt is left on it. This is a safe method to remove that dirt. try it on the other non key date Indian first. I think you will like what you see. If the coin is in nice condition under that dirt, then it will turn out beautiful. If it is junk under that dirt, then no amount of cleaning will make it better. let me know how it works for you. PM me if you need more info.


Switch, I have cleaned IH's with this method only I add a step. I take toothpaste with floride and after I use the toothpick I would put a dab of the toothpaste on it and using a toothbrush rub it in. Then rinse it off. Repeat all steps as necessary.

I have several IH's that look really good using this method.

[switch]

Planning to use the tooth pick method. Don't have any of those at home lol

Don't you worry about the grit when using tooth paste?

[aloldstuff]

Planning to use the tooth pick method. Don't have any of those at home lol

Don't you worry about the grit when using tooth paste?


Never had a problem

[tanacat]

:clapping: Congrats on all of those Switch! I hope they clean up good - I will look for them again :yes: This thread has been educational!

[switch]

Preliminary cleaning of the 1893 Indian using a toothpick....for review.

[coinnut]

There is more of that hard green than I could see originally :hairpulling: I would put that one down and remove the dirt from the rest of them as quickly as I could. Don't worry about the green stuff for now. The parts that didn't have that green came out nice though thumbsup01

[switch]

already working on it! Here is the 2-cent piece. :cool: I can make out the year now! 1867 :yes:

[coinnut]

That one is turning out real nice :drool: Almost all that is still dirt, with just a bit of green. It will be real sweet when done. You can angle the toothpick in any direction you need to in order to get into the letters and date. Congrats on a nice looking '67 2 cent piece :clapping:

[switch]

Ill keep workin on em :cool: Post an updated collective pic in about an hour. :yes:

[switch]

:clapping: Congrats on all of those Switch! I hope they clean up good - I will look for them again :yes: This thread has been educational!


Thanks tanacat, and everyone, I am posting progression pics so it is even more educational. :interesting:

[del]

the two center is starting to really look good Switch , and you don't see that many 1867's posted :yes:

[switch]

the two center is starting to really look good Switch , and you don't see that many 1867's posted :yes:


Thanks Del :happydance01: and thanks for your help as well :)

[switch]

Here are some more pics....these are very large and detailed. 1866, 1883 1885 (188x or 189x ?) and the 2 cent (1867):

The 1866 Indian seems pretty worn. crying01

[coinnut]

Well they cleaned up a lot different than the dirty pictures would lead me to believe. That is why every cleaning job is different. I thought the green below would be more uniform, but it is not. As for the '66, I still have some hope for it. It has a good amount of detail, it is just buried under that odd green patina. We will have to do a mind-meld and see the best course of action on that type of green lol For now let them rest or just continue getting off the rest of the dirt. Soaking the coins in water may loosen up some more dirt. Copper cleaning is a challenge. But don't give up, I think the '66 and the 2 center should be the best ones out of the bunch. Switch, what state are you out of again?

[switch]

Well they cleaned up a lot different than the dirty pictures would lead me to believe. That is why every cleaning job is different. I thought the green below would be more uniform, but it is not. As for the '66, I still have some hope for it. It has a good amount of detail, it is just buried under that odd green patina. We will have to do a mind-meld and see the best course of action on that type of green lol For now let them rest or just continue getting off the rest of the dirt. Soaking the coins in water may loosen up some more dirt. Copper cleaning is a challenge. But don't give up, I think the '66 and the 2 center should be the best ones out of the bunch. Switch, what state are you out of again?


Ah, Should I just throw them in a jar of water for a day then? I figured metal + water = bad. lol Yeah, I thought from the look of them at first too that they would look better. :-\ I'm from South Western Pennsylvania. At least the 2 cent is pretty much perfect. :drool:

[coinnut]

Ah, Should I just throw them in a jar of water for a day then? I figured metal + water = bad. lol Yeah, I thought from the look of them at first too that they would look better. :-\ I'm from South Western Pennsylvania. At least the 2 cent is pretty much perfect. :drool:


You could, a day in water isn't gonna corrode them much. It takes years. Metal and water is bad, but it is a slow process. I wish you were closer, it is a lot easier when you can look at the coins and see the corrosion. If you look carefully past the color on the '66 (and some of the others too) it has a full LIBERTY. I'm not sure if we want to do a bit of hot hydrogen peroxide and a Q tip on them or some other process. Maybe Dan or someone else has some thoughts on it. If they were mine I know what I would do on them lol but they are yours, so we will tread lightly ;)

[switch]

Thanks for the help! I guess I will drop them in some water then pull out the toothpicks again when I get home tomorrow lol If nothing ends up working I'm sure I will be employing your methods. thumbsup01

I tried peroxide on some wheat pennies...maybe I used too much...they ended up looking like a rusted moon. 8/

[switch]

Next Day: Soaked in water for 24 hours and then toothpicked (minor changes):
I am missing the front of one of them for some reason... just ignore that one for now lol

[switch]

Well, after trying and trying...I think I got all the dirt off...they are green but they look good for being green. :yes:

Put them in holders, that's good enough for me. I can read the dates. lol

[wingmaster]

Congrats on the 2 center and IH's.