Ultrasonic Cleaners

[Waterdog]

I wanted to see if anyone could give me any advice on the ultrasonic cleaners. Does anyone use them, and what kind would be better used to clean coins, jewelry, and other things we find we want to clean up.

 

[Old Katz]

I have used them and they suck, in my opinion.
If you want to clean coins(clad) then pick up the Harbor Freight Tumbler
I finally got one a few weeks ago and my god what a difference it makes. I threw away
my ultrasonic cleaner. There are more than a few people on this forum who own the
HF Tumbler and can guide you straight.
Regards
Katz

 

[MNCoinhunter]

Is it the 3lb. rotary rock tumbler for $29.99? I was thinking about getting one. Can you just use aquarium rocks with a little dish soap ?

 

[John-Edmonton]

I use mine often. Good for silver and gold rings, jewellery & rings. Not good for old Patna'd pennies, as it will cause pitting breaking bits of the patina off. Good for removing rust quickly from smaller relics.You can request an article from Western & Eastern Treasures (mine) magazine on a full article. "Cleaning Finds With An Ultrasonic Machine" by John Bortscher

 

[Waterdog]

I was looking for a way to clean older coins

 

[John-Edmonton]

There are soooo many recipes out there for coin tumbling. Wash pennies by themselves or they will stain the other clad. Careful what you add to the tumbler, as there could be a chemical reaction and the barrel could blow up. I have tried many mixtures, and my favorite one is no chemicals at all, as the coins tend to do a great job scraping off the tough dirt each other, and makes cleanup a breeze.

 

[Old Katz]

Yes, you can use fish bowl gravel, the small stuff. You can get it at Pets Mart.
I use white vinegar and just a drop of dish soap and set them to tumbling 12 to 24 hours.

Sometimes Harbor Freight has them for $29.99. Mine was not on sale and paid $35 I think.
Katz

 

[Waterdog]

lol I have been Tumbling coins for years now. I never had one blow up... yet. But had them leak. In fact I got another one this last year so I could do two barrels at the same time. Did a tune up on the older one and sold it to someone.
I just can not take my hard worked dirty coins to a vending machine for 10%. I would rather give them a cleaning and take them to the Casino Cashiers cage. They give me 100%. I have had a few surprises after washing coins.

 

[Old Katz]

I'm going to have to buy another one. HF has it for $29.95 plus tax so since I've been
cleaning so many coins I think another one is in order.
Katz