Cleaning coins, nuts, bolts & other small metal items

[pennymachines]

If you're doing a lot of restoration, a tumbler is also great for making machine screws and other fastening hardware (which you may be unable to replace) nice and shiny again.

If you have the equipment, bead blasting or (less brutally) soda blasting might be a quick way to brighten up a load of coins. I haven't felt the need to try it though...

[marktol]

I have a bead/shot blaster at home with a tank and I can tell you it's a horrible, slow, noisy job. I've used it to strip the old paint off some small bits of trim etc in the past and a whole trade stimulator. Took forever and even with the tank and a mask etc you still get covered in the stuff. I'm sure there is a technique but I found it slow work - but effective.

Needless to say I've been in no hurry to use it again....

[pennymachines]

Yep, you do need a fairly massive compressor and tank, plus a blasting cabinet for this.
How to size an air compressor for sandblasting.

[glittering-prize67]

Buying new coins sounds best, but you could get a Dremmel type hand held polisher, apply polish to the small bobbin, and run over the coin with light pressure. Wipe away surplus polish with WD-40 then wash or sonic clean to finish.

[coppinpr]

Soda blasting would be best, almost no damage at all that way and enviro friendly. We have a thread somewhere on soda blasting I know.

[chris rideout]

Some sixpences were real silver and they tarnish to black so something like Silverdip might do the job. An old jeweller friend of mine used to clean jewellery by lightly simmering it in Bold washing powder for about five minutes.
John

Silver coins were "sterling silver" with 92.5% silver content. In 1920, it was changed to 50% with the rest being cupro nickel, I think. Silver disappeared from coins in 1947 when they became 100% cupro nickel. Years later, banks had sorting machines that would weed out pre 1947 coins because their silver content value was much more than the face value.

Jewellers in the early 1970s started offering 4 times face value on pre 1947 coins and 8 times face value on pre 1920 coins. There was a collecting race between the two factions.

[raj]

I use Xylene thinners/paint brush cleaner in a small container. Put coins or screws etc in and shake for a while. It takes all the grease and gunge off them without damage. Ps, never sell coins to an 'x times face value dealer'. They rob you blind. Get a small kitchen digital scale, split between pre 1920 and pre '47 coins and get the scrap weight. There are plenty of dealers who will give you a price per gram, or use ebay.