Do you check each date on clad or if it's silver will it ALWAYS be noticably shinny ,,,

[grouser]

I look at all the dates on the coins I have dug for a day looking for pre 64 coins,,,, am I wasting my time ??? Will silver coins always stand out or can they be tarnished enough to mistake them for clad???? thanks

 

[bunker314]

Grouser, Silver seems to stand out pretty well. However, I check my dates on all my coins as well. You never know, you might find a mint mistake such as a double strike etc. Familiarize yourself with some key dates also.
Hope this helps,
HH,
Bunker

 

[Goes4ever]

I have never dug a silver coin that even possibly looked like clad, even the black silver coins I dug, I would guess to say 99 percent of the silver I have dug comes out of the ground still having somewhat of a unmistakeable shine

 

[Pastor bob]

Depends greatly on the type of soil (sand) you are hunting in. Here in Nebraska most of the time in either black farm soil or even sandier stuff in the western part of the state the silver will come out clean. However, I have hunted a number of freshwater beaches and dug silver from deep clayish sand that came out black. Always checking the dates is a good idea.

 

[Agseeker]

All of the silver coins I've dug look like they were just lost with the following exceptions:

1. silver that was lost in an area that is exposed to a lot of water will be black.
2. silver coins that are in contact with other silver coins are black in the area of contact.
3. I once dug a Barber dime that was in a dog pen that was corroded and dark blue. It's my opinion that the corrosion and discoloration was due to a regular supply of dog urine.
4. I've dug several silver coins that are partially stained black or yellow in what appears to be the result of contact with roots (the discoloration looks like a root pattern).

Here in Oklahoma clad coins that have been in the ground for a while are always dark grey/black or red and have no shine. I've never found a silver coin that would be mistaken for a clad coin; even newly lost clad coins just don't look or feel like old silver coins. Never the less, I always check the date of every coin I find no matter what it is.

 

[Bell-Two]

Sometimes you dig a clad coin that you think might be silver, but when you dig a real silver coin...YOU KNOW IT'S SILVER!

 

[grouser]

guess I will continue with checking all the coins,,,, hate to miss a good one,,,,, thanks gents

 

[banditicey]

Sometimes you dig a clad coin that you think might be silver, but when you dig a real silver coin...YOU KNOW IT'S SILVER!

I Agree

With the addition that since I need reading glasses NOW it is always best if I find silver coins that are not a Washington or a Rosey
It is always certain when you see a Merc, Barber,Seated, Walker,Standing and lets not forget the Morgan

 

[filo]

Yes, if you have a lot of water in the soil or are near water, silver can get very tarnished. Here's a picture of some coins I found awhile back. The black coin in the bottom row is a merc. It was totally black because it was found right next to a lake in a park.

 

[Jason in Enid]

I would say that 99.9% silver coins are easy to identify as such. I can't say always, because last year I found a silver dime in my penny tumbler. I'm guessing it was very crusty coin I dug from a lake, assumed it was another crappy penny and tossed it in with the others.

 

[Diggin Metal]

I always go by the date i just went Thur about 60 bucks in clad i thought and found 4 Rosie's that looked just like clad. almost cashed them in don't trust the look.

 

[NebTrac]

If you've made a find under a tree, especially pine and cedars, you might want to look over a Roosevelt. I've had Merc's found in that situation that are really dark and stained.

NebTrac

 

[mcb613]

I have dug 2 silver roosies on a salt water beach. Both were black and I didnt know they were silver until later looking thru the finds. I was surprised. However, I have never dug a dingy colored silver coin from soil. In fact, they apear to almost have a gray look to them when fresh out of the soil. This was the case silver back to my oldest 1728 british silver. HH , Mike

 

[E-Trac-Ohio]

Almost all of the Silver coins I've found are easy to spot - but every now and then I've found one that's tarnished black so bad that you have to go by the date.
Found two Merc's last Summer near a sidewalk tear out that were really stained from old Asphalt - they looked just like clad at first glance.
Had what I though was a really dirty Indian Head Cent in my finds drawer for a few months last year - when I looked for the date on this coin - it turned out to be a Civil War Store Card.

I check the dates on all the coins I find because I collect coins ( only the ones I find with my machine ) and put them in folders.
I've had a lot of fun doing this - you learn a lot through collecting and it keeps you from missing any Silver - key date - or other good coins because they are dirty or corroded.
Have almost 600 common coins in the folders now.



HH --- Mark

 

[jughed440]

these three seated dimes were all found at the same home site...and the colors, or staining, are quite different. other than rinsing them off with running water, no cleaning has been done.
the same site has yielded a pair of badly corroded 1850s large cents

 

[MAcle1997]

I found a 1942 Walking Liberty Half that was less than two inches
deep and black on both sides. The coin was resting on shale
bedrock. The rock must have been Marcellus Shale with a high
oil content because the half came out of the ground almost completely
black on both sides and lightened just a bit since it was found a few
years ago. I've found a few black dimes near pine trees or stumps
but usually the silver I find is gray or bright and shiny.

Mark
Western New York

 

[grouser]

lots of pine trees here and black oak,,,,, so the staining is a problem.