Burks Posted January 15, 2006 Report Share Posted January 15, 2006 Over the past week I purchased two of my first Large Cents. This 1853 coin was purchased today for $7. Not bad considering it was originally marked $20. The obverse is so-so but the reverse is great. I knew I had to have it after seeing the reverse (best looking one at the show). Anyone know a good site to check on die varities for large cents? http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v154/burks/18532.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v154/burks/1853.jpg This next one is an 1816 coin that was recently purchased from our very own jtryka. It's a little on the rough side but no major damage. Out of 30 dealers today, not one had a large or half cent from this time. http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v154/burks/18162.jpg http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v154/burks/1816.jpg Not the best but certainly not the worst either. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted January 15, 2006 Report Share Posted January 15, 2006 These are both great Large Cents - especially terrific for type set collecting. On the varieties -- very hard to tell from pictures 1853 has 33 varieties. Some are indicated by things like fine lines below the hair. You could borrow Grelman's book from the ANA Library but the postage would be hefty. Local library? Dealer friend? By the way that 53 was an absolute steal for $7.00. These usually run from 16.00 to $24 on ebay. Good going!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burks Posted January 15, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 15, 2006 I'll have to check the library for that book. Thanks for the advice and comments. Edit: There is a little bit of green stuff (can't remember technical term) on the reverse of the 1853. Is it wise to leave it be or will the condition get worse? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scottishmoney Posted January 15, 2006 Report Share Posted January 15, 2006 Nice, thanks for sharing. Large cents are an addiction I have not nurtured in sometime but would love to again sometime. I only have a couple of nice ones, a VF+ 1794 and an EF-AU 1857, the rest are all VG-F, but I got them when I was a kid. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted January 15, 2006 Report Share Posted January 15, 2006 You can attempt to remove the green junk. If it's verdigris it will come off but will probably leave some corrosion marks in its place. There are a number of posts here and in CoinTalk about how to remove it. You can also find info on the Early American Coppers Yahoo forum about "conserving" your large cents. As always, there's a big controversy about cleaning/conserving vs. not. You have to make your own decision. Many EAC folks brush their cents at least a few times a year. They also store them in cloth envelopes to absorb the nasties in the air and from the coin. Have fun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Burks Posted January 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted January 16, 2006 Thanks again Art. Since I do not ever want to sell mine, cleaning doesn't bother me. I'll research some cleaning methods that don't leave that "freshly cleaned" look. Of course I don't want it to spread and further damage the coin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted February 4, 2006 Report Share Posted February 4, 2006 Thanks again Art. Since I do not ever want to sell mine, cleaning doesn't bother me. I'll research some cleaning methods that don't leave that "freshly cleaned" look. Of course I don't want it to spread and further damage the coin. There's a whole regimin for cleaning and conserving the coppers. I have not done any of my large cents according to the methods that are "acceptable". I've played mostlly with Lincolns and have not always been happy with the results. 70% unhappy - 20% yeah that's ok - 10% that's what I wanted. But it takes practice. I'd suggest you play with cruddy Lincolns rather than large cents until you're comfortable with the process. There's also a conditioner that's applied to the large cents to keep them from forming some of the real nasties. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dacoinman Posted February 6, 2006 Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 I believe the "conditioner" to which you refer to is called... "Blue Ribbon Coin Conditioner". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Art Posted February 6, 2006 Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 I believe the "conditioner" to which you refer to is called... "Blue Ribbon Coin Conditioner". That's the one. But it takes forever to "dry". One of the reasons for storing the coins in cloth is to absorb some of the leftover conditioner. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dacoinman Posted February 6, 2006 Report Share Posted February 6, 2006 It'll never dry. It is oil based. You have to pat the coin dry. If you want to experiment and do it cheaply, get a few rolls from the bank, pull the 60s and 70s cents out and experiment with them. You might also look into trying virgin olive oil. It can also help remove caked on natural dirt and deposits. Works nice on Zinc coins too. Hey I know I'll probably get yelled at for saying all that, but hey, if you can't read the date or legends of a coin from a dealers foreign coin junk box, you gotta do what ya gotta do without totally ruining the coin. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AuldFartte Posted February 11, 2006 Report Share Posted February 11, 2006 It'll never dry. It is oil based. Quite true. I used Blue Ribbon on one middle date large cent as an experiment (I think it was an 1826 in about EF) and two years later when I sold it, it was still "wet". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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