Lucky in Lincoln, Nebraska

[Spiff]

It's not the lottery, but not a bad find...
[attachment 19991 1914-D.jpg]
(does Lincoln seem to be smiling?)

I apologize in advance for likely posting in the wrong place, but I'll include my T2 question at the end here to try and make good.

Sorted out the 3 Wheaties from this afternoon's hunt when I got home and gave them the customary thumbnail scrape near the date area while under the faucet. 2 of the 3 got pitched into the coffee can with the other 500 or so grubby wheat cents (there are a few pre-1930's in the can that properly cleaned up might bring $10-20). This one is getting special treatment

I got it with my Land Star about 3" down in wet soil in the backyard of a circa-1910 vacant house here in Lincoln.

Can anyone please advise me as how to best remove the muck/grime on the penny without doing damage??? 1000 thanks!

Now to my T2 question (which I may now be closer to buying): I'm concerned, it being a new model, that if I buy one, it will arrive here and 2 days later in this forum I'll read that the much improved firmware revision 1.1 (for instance) is just out, and I'll of course peek inside to see a chip with a sticker marked "1.0a". Does anyone know: Are the EPROM's socketed? Does FT sell upgraded chips when they do make a software change? (Now a USB connector and an EEPROM you could 'flash', that would be slick).

The "wait til the software is refined" concern isn't a big one of mine, it's not a showstopper, but is something I've considered. I mainly need advice on cleaning up the 1914-D. Thanks again.

 

[Ed in SoDak]

I've been tempted to crack open the case but have resisted - thus far.

If, er, I mean, when I do, I'll post pics.

For gentle coin cleaning, a good, looong soak in olive oil is what I've seen recommended most often.

hh
-Ed

 

[James N.D.]

Nice 1914-d Wheat Penny. I have yet to find me one of those treasures. It is going to be hard to clean it if there was a heavy build-up of gunk on it. It looks to me that it is pitted already and I would have to say that you should send it in to have it professionally cleaned. The only other ways would be try to scrape it off with your fingernail( but I'm sure this will leave streak marks on surface)or try boiling it in peroxide. You don't want to leave it in the peroxide for very long because it will most likely clean out the pits and make it look worse than it already is. So I think professionally would be the best solution. Hope this helps.

 

[Spiff]

Thanks Ed and James,
I am leaning towards going the professional route, the NCG/NCS service is the only one I've found so far. Apparently one has to be a member of the American Numismatic Association to submit a coin for "conservation" (membership: $36/yr). Maybe I could get a local coin dealer to submit it for me, NCS charges 4% of the coin's value or a min of $20 which I could handle. Unfortunately, it crosses my (suspicious?) mind that I'll send it off, they'll clean it, find it gradeable, and send it back encapsulated as a VF-30 and the dealer will call and say "your 14-D's back, graded as an F-15". Guess I'll have to hope for a reputable dealer and take my chances. A small scrape on the reverse seems to show strong lines in the wheat ears, so I'm encouraged, although overall surface pitting (as James mentioned) could be a big detractor on value.

Thanks for the advice.

Am on the verge of getting a T2, will be my first 'professional' detector. I found decent stuff back in the 70's with my cheap Compass 94-IB, decent stuff in the late 90's with my Whites Classic II, and the Land Star I've used for 2 years was $90 off eBay and has just more than paid for itself with this 1914-D cent. I don't expect spending the big bucks on a detector to guarantee better finds, but if the T2 behaves well in trashy areas, I'll be happy.

 

[diggercoins67]

Spiff
If you have a rock tumbler take dryed coffee groun,s after a good
soaking in oil and tumble it for a day. it will shine some. like com-
men change. Hope this helps. HH Don

 

[Spiff]

After some careful cleaning...
[attachment 20480 Image021.jpg]

 

[Ed in SoDak]

Nice improvement, Abe looks his usual stern self now. Maybe you got some soap in his eyes??

Very nice find!
-Ed