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Safely Storing Medals


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Hello from a newbie here, but not to coin/medal collecting! I saw some of the nice Comitia Americana pieces displayed here, so thought I would join in.

 

Anyone have any great advice for storing the individual medals? I have used the 4 X 4 flips, and smaller ones for smaller medals, the 4 X 4's seem impossible to get now. I recently found that a group of about 10 Indian Peace medals I had, circa early 20th century, were thrashed by this storage. I'm not sure if it is PVC damage or what. I did find that airtight now has a 76 mm version. Anyone using those? Most of my medals are 40-50mm and 18th century vintage. I have collected for years, and have yet to come up with a great way to store the medals. My latest method is to buy polishing cloths, and to wrap them in those.

 

Also, anyone know where they sell nice coin cabinets for medals? I have been recently sending my medals to NGC to have them encapsulated in the large Multi-holders. It isn't cheap, but allows me to actually hand my medals to people to look at, and of course, it keeps them safe. The down side is they come back with coin grades attached to them UGH! Most medals are not intened for circulation, and to my thinking should have Proof grades.

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Believe it or not, one of the easiest ways to store coins or medals is in individual polyethylene zip-lock bags. These are inexpensive and available at your grocery store. They protect coins or medals from scratches and from sulphur-containing compounds in the air that can cause tarnish. Many medals come with their own presentation cases. These are an important part of the object's history and value and, although the medal should not be stored in the presentation box, they should be kept together. Medals can also be stored in Mylar flips or holders. If you have medals without cases, you may want to consider using clear polystyrene boxes (available at plastic supply houses). These are affordable and provide good protection. Use a soft, nonabrasive packing material such as acid-free tissue or Microfoam (an uncrosslinked polypropylene) to line the box.

 

Wooden coin cabinets (especially oak) are not recommended for storing either coins or medals. They can emit acidic vapours that will cause corrosion. Instead, use metal storage cabinets (preferably with a powder coating) or containers made of either polyethylene or polystyrene

 

got this from http://www.preservation.gc.ca/howto/articl...ns-medals_e.asp ;) yes i was right bout zip lock bags !!!! ;):ninja: i use the airport 1's (mum is a supervisor in the airport ;) so she brings me some ;) )

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They have them large enough to hod 3 inch 10oz silver rounds. I am going to call them today to get the specific dimentions.

Air Tite Holders

 

I will warn you that mcAfee kills a trojan everytime I bring up their home page, so be careful.

 

 

I go through these people; JP's Corner What's cool about this shop is their friendly attitude, quick service, they take PayPal and, you can make up any combination air-tite sizes and numbers for your order. They'll even be kind enough to label each layer in the package with the airtite size so they don't get mixed up together. Oh yeah, and they don't have a Trojan waiting for you at their website. :ninja:

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They have them large enough to hod 3 inch 10oz silver rounds. I am going to call them today to get the specific dimentions.

Air Tite Holders

 

I will warn you that mcAfee kills a trojan everytime I bring up their home page, so be careful.

 

I dont go to that site any more because of the virus they are giving out. I contacted them to tell them the site is trying to give out a virus but got no reply and they have obviously done nothing to rectify it so they lost my business...I will try JP's corner, thanks Goetzdude.

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I just ordered some of the 76 mm large air tites from JP's (and some other stuff as well). Thanks for the tip!

 

 

You'll have your stuff in a day or two...I'm always blown away with how fast they are and they must have some special contract with the USPS. Pass the word if you're happy, they deserve it! S

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Here are some wood storage units that would fit nicely into a safe such as a gun safe. I'm assuming that the drawers would need to be lined with some sort of cloth. I currently use something similar for my small collection of Goetz patterns.

 

Make sure you click on the color next to the unit you're interested in and you'll be taken to a more detailed page for each unit. These are quite inexpensive methinks...

 

coin chests

 

Trust me, coins/medals in airtites placed on a black material in these drawers would not only be a great way to store your goods, but it looks great too. You can pull an entire drawer out at a time for those rare 'show-off' times...

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its not safe to store coins or medals in wooden stuff :ninja: especially oak ......they spoil the coins ;) as i posted earlier ;)

 

Wooden coin cabinets (especially oak) are not recommended for storing either coins or medals. They can emit acidic vapours that will cause corrosion. Instead, use metal storage cabinets (preferably with a powder coating) or containers made of either polyethylene or polystyrene
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its not safe to store coins or medals in wooden stuff :ninja: especially oak ......they spoil the coins ;) as i posted earlier ;)

 

 

I think this may be old news. Years ago wood was oiled with all sorts of stuff and it more than likely caused some damage. New sealers nowadays don't outgas nor does it allow the wood to either. I have been using the oak cabinets mentioned for five years now without a sign of any change to one single piece. Add to that the fact that the pieces would be placed in airtites and I think you have a safe environment.

 

Comitia, get a hold of Bill Harvey who sells these cabinets... here is his funky webpage;

Home-Museum

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