Poll Question: What’s your view on cleaning and restoring collectible coins?

Cleaning and restoring coins can be done so well that after one or two hundred years, it is hard to find a collectible precious metal coin that has not been cleaned at some point. The coin dealer can buy and sell these coins as is, or he can spend $100 to $200 to have it graded by a grading firm only to have it returned as cleaned with details. Now the coin has the numismatic equivalent of leprosy, and the coin dealer has wasted money on grading.

As for me, I buy slabbed coins unless I can't find what I wanted after two years of searching.

Henry, Address withheld

‘Don’t do it!’ Seems to be one of the most consistent messages I’ve seen through my years of collecting.  I live by it.

Greg Y., Michigan

What's the difference between "cleaning" and "restoration"?  Until that's clearly defined, people will clean their coins.

Name and Address withheld

In the 1950s and 60s, everyone cleaned their coins. I would venture a guess that very few coins from before that time have not been cleaned at some point in their existence. Coin dealers sold multiple chemical formulas to clean your coins.  Whether it was a good idea or not is up for debate; I just feel that the paranoia over “cleaned” coins that exists in the hobby today is way overblown since I would guess that few have escaped being cleaned at some point since they were minted.

L. Gibbs, Gering, Neb.

I don't have an issue with cleaned & restored coins as long as they are graded and priced as such.

Some coins are completely out of my price range, but a cleaned coin in Very Fine or better condition can be purchased & added to my collection. I have purchased such a coin & am pleased with the purchase.

R. L. Jones, Address withheld

In my opinion, a collectible coin should never be cleaned.  Many sellers do clean coins to remove

dirt and other material from a coin, and when that is done, it gives the coin a "fake" appearance. I have seen a lot of these for sale. They just do not look like a real coin. It takes away the appearance of what the coin should really look like after being in circulation for some time. For example, I have seen some EF wheat cents cleaned to make them look better than what their true condition really is. I will stick with unclean coins every time.   

Bob, Address withheld

There is a time and place for everything; any high-quality coin should not be cleaned. If environmental damage is present if the coin is worth it, conservation measures could be taken, wiping fingerprint oils off of a coin that’s inexpensive with a water-only damp soft rag before putting it away in a high quality flip is about as much cleaning that a collector could do, as far as recoloring a coin I say no, some collectors are going to do what they want right or wrong, I would hope that nobody ever uses baking soda, many a coin has been destroyed by that method of cleaning, on a side note there are collectors out there that collect, “dark nickels”, the ones that look like they survived a fire, cleaning them in any way defeats the purpose so never clean them, I think they have interesting character and I bet quite a story of how they got that way, well.

MVB, Address withheld

For decades, nobody looked down on the cleaning of coins because it made for much better eye appeal. It wasn't until third-party grading services began denying grades if a coin had been cleaned that it was such a "bad" thing.  Why don't they want anyone to clean or restore a coin? Because they can charge us to do it. What's the difference?  If a coin has been roughly cleaned, then just lower the grade accordingly, just like they do for bag marks, circulation marks, etc.  

As you can see, I'm not much of a fan of third-party graders. But many reasons why is for another question to be answered.  

Larry, Louisville, Ky.

My view is very simple - DON'T.

Don't clean. Don't restore. They are what they are, to the better or worse.

The so-called restoring services are not better than your home cleaning, except for the arm & leg they cost, and the possible fraud of the future buyer of such CLEANED coins.

I'm also not a fan of any third-party grading companies, who believe their opinion is better than mine, but that's another entirely different issue. In both cases, a fool and his money will soon part.

Oded Paz, Arco, Idaho

Been collecting coins since I was 9, now 58. Thanks to YouTube showing coin uploads, I decided to go through my coins. Never have I cleaned them. I started off with the coin slots album, then swapped overall to cardboard see-through protectors. 

Using the HeritCoin app and amazed at the Very Rare, Extremely Rare, Rare, and Scarce coins I have. Especially when it comes down to circulation and mintage of my collection. 

Name and Address withheld

Cleaning, properly done, can and will restore a coin to a much better appearance and seemingly NOT adversely affect the collectible desirability OR the market value - witness the gold from SS Central America. Ditto for the seeming conservation success of NCS and PCGS with film on modern proof coins.

The 'however' is that there are countless other coins that show serious abrading, odd discoloration, and lackluster whose collectibility and market value are seriously negatively impacted.  I have seen many a collection formed in the 1950s through the 1970s where lovely coins were cleaned - I guess bright was best - and their desirability in today's market is minimal.  A recent partial set of Seated Dollars remains a constant reminder.  It held 1851, 1852, 1858, and 1873-CC coins, but all were obviously cleaned. They sold, but for a mere fraction of what they would have sold for unmolested.

However, the accuracy of the two major grading companies in determining whether a coin has been cleaned and should be so labeled is VERY SUSPECT.  I recently had issues with several Morgan dollars, obtained in a typical, 3-fold design album, but one I have never seen before - labeled Silver Dollars of the New Orleans Mint 1879 - 1904 - that I assume was produced about the time the Treasury hoard was being dispersed and uncirculated New Orleans dollars were mostly available in multi-bag quantities.  Each coin in the album was both original Uncirculated and nicely toned on one side. It appeared that the coins were placed in the album, went undisturbed, and toned over the intervening 60+ years.  Yet, 2 of the coins out of the 11 - all with identical coloring on either the obverse or reverse (depending on which side was in contact with the paper backing in the album) were deemed to be artificially toned or cleaned.

Gary Burhop, Address withheld

Cleaning will improve the ability to see clearly the wear of the coin. Cleaning will never change the wear that a coin has gone through. It would make the coin more attractive to be collected. 

Name and Address withheld

I do not think that any coin should be cleaned, as cleaning gives any coin such an unnatural appearance.  

Dave Burdis, Charleroi, Pa.

I collect classic gold and silver that circulated in America prior to 1856. It can be expensive, and I'm not wealthy. I search for certified but ungraded examples that present well. If a coin was beautiful enough to be worn as jewelry, it's a keeper. My only complaint is when a heavily soiled coin is called "cleaned" but looks like it wasn't. 

Name and Address withheld