What's the Dumbest thing you've ever done to a coin??? 0

[bsshog40]

I'll start off with my ignorance. I have a very hairlined 1879s Morgan that I thought, well, it's only worth melt anyway. I want to experiment with it. So my intentions were to maybe AT it and make it look a little better when I decide I want to look at my other Morgans once in a while. So my first attempt was to Fry it. that didn't work. Then I decided to put a lttle oil on it and bake it. That didn't work. Did turn it an ugly brown. Next step, wrapped it in a napkin and proceeded to put it in the sun for a few months. Well for one thing, I have no patience whatsoever. One month later! So here was my last step I decided to get a pair of needle nose pliers, holding just barely at one point and put my propane torch to it. After about 30 seconds "BAM", the Morgan hits the floor where it got so hot that the piece I was holding with my needle nose broke off. Now this thing was just turning a bright silver so I thought, this can't be getting that hot yet. Sure enough, when I picked it off the ground, it had a nice crack across the bottom and the danged thang is warped now. That was stupid!! Now I just have it in my pocket to remind me everyday of what "NOT" to do!!! Ok, I spilled my guts, anyone else have a story that you're embarrased to tell everyone??

[MunkyMan95]

I had a dark crusty original Peace Dollar a few years ago, and I erased it... UGH!

 

We need pics of a warped morgan!

[michael]

i dropped a raw superb gem 1908 nm saint like 30 years ago while i was looking at it and put a huge rim dent in it

 

but the coin cost me 200 dollars and i sold it for 225 within the month so no big deal

[123cents]

As I was unwrapping a slabbed coin that I just receive in the mail I dropped and cracked the slab across the face of the coin. Luckily it didn't damage the coin but it cost me about $35.00 total to have it re-slabbed.

[TomB]

When I was in chemistry lab in high school, I used to hold a Jefferson nickel using a heavy duty tong and then heat the coin up over a bunson burner until it was white hot. I would then hurl the coin across the room at a buddy of mine who would attempt to deflect the coin or otherwise defend himself. Aside from the coins melting into the linoleum floor, I do not know that they were otherwise hurt.

[bsshog40]

I killed Her?

[TomB]

Wow. It doesn't even look real.

[zrlevin]

I killed Her?

 

Just don't give her to Tom, he might kill someone else with her.

 

[bsshog40]

Wow. It doesn't even look real.

That's why I couldn't tell it was getting too hot. It just turned a real bright silver like you see now. No luster thop'. Just bright silver! I think the dark spots on the Obv. was where there was still a little oil on it.

[comicdonna]

I remember as a kid over 30 years ago, the latest thing, was to take a Jefferson nickel, using a spoon, you would bang it against the rim while it rests on a solid steel object. Keep banging and rotating the coin to flatten out the rim. Then drill a hole in the center, and file it to the inner edge of the rim. walla, you had a ring.

[MunkyMan95]

I remember as a kid over 30 years ago, the latest thing, was to take a Jefferson nickel, using a spoon, you would bang it against the rim while it rests on a solid steel object. Keep banging and rotating the coin to flatten out the rim. Then drill a hole in the center, and file it to the inner edge of the rim. walla, you had a ring.

 

Actually, it's Voila

 

But anyways, I tried that once... Give up after about 45 minutes. I wasn't anywhere close to a ring.

[gmarguli]

When I was in chemistry lab in high school, I used to hold a Jefferson nickel using a heavy duty tong and then heat the coin up over a bunson burner until it was white hot. I would then hurl the coin across the room at a buddy of mine who would attempt to deflect the coin or otherwise defend himself. Aside from the coins melting into the linoleum floor, I do not know that they were otherwise hurt.

 

Years later, your "buddy" sees you driving behind him on a NJ highway and hurls a railroad tie at your car...

 

My dumbest thing I ever did to a coin was try to cross it over to another TPG slab to stick it in a registry set.

[bsshog40]

Man I was sure hoping for some dumber stories than mine! I'm feeling dumber!

[TomB]

When I was in chemistry lab in high school, I used to hold a Jefferson nickel using a heavy duty tong and then heat the coin up over a bunson burner until it was white hot. I would then hurl the coin across the room at a buddy of mine who would attempt to deflect the coin or otherwise defend himself. Aside from the coins melting into the linoleum floor, I do not know that they were otherwise hurt.

 

Years later, your "buddy" sees you driving behind him on a NJ highway and hurls a railroad tie at your car...

 

My dumbest thing I ever did to a coin was try to cross it over to another TPG slab to stick it in a registry set.

[MikeKing]

I killed Her?

 

what'd you do? get the tooth fairy angry or something?

[bsshog40]

 

what'd you do? get the tooth fairy angry or something?

 

I took a bite out of grime!

[WoodenJefferson]

It may not have been dumb, but planning was not exactly our forte'

 

In 1955 my Bother and I along with a neighborhood friend of ours buried a "time capsule" in our homestead backyard. We assembled a cent, nickel, dime and believe it or not, a whole quarter to bury. (Mind you, a quarter at that time could buy 25 pieces of candy or 5 packs of baseball cards, so in our eyes, this was a huge investment) The empty Kraft mayonnaise jar was cleaned, a note stating our intentions was drafted on 3 line paper with a sharpened #2 pencil. We all signed it and sealed the contents into the jar. We had my Mom melt some paraffin wax used for canning and had her turn the jar upside down and dip the metal lid a few times.

 

Looking around for a suitable spot, we selected an area in the backyard just like a pirate would go through. 10 kid paces from the maple tree, by 10 kid paces from the corner of the one car garage. Bingo, X marks the spot. We dug down about 2' and buried the clinking jar with visions of digging the time capsule up years later.

 

Summers past, we all graduated from grade school and then on to high school where girls finally replaced pirate expeditions and tree climbing.

 

It wasn't until years later while looking up through the canopy of the night time jungle that it came to mind about the time capsule. I made a mental note that once I returned to the States that I would assemble the gang and we would proceed to resurrect the once buried treasure.

 

When I finally got back to my childhood home, I immediate realized there had been some changes. The one car garage had been torn down and a new 2 car garage on a concrete slab had been erected. The maple tree was also gone, either to make way for the garage or it had died and was cut down. I asked my Dad about all the changes while I was gone and he concurred about the maple tree being cut down so the roots would not crack and heave the new concrete slab.

 

Disappointment quickly set in and I asked him about the construction of the slab. He said the contractors only dug below the frost line (less than 14") laid down sand, compacted and then poured the concrete into the rebar form. I knew the capsule had not been disturbed by erecting the garage, but without the tree, there was no way of determining the exact location. I even went back years later with a metal detector and checked the general area, but only found an old trash burning pit.

 

To this day, there are 4 coins from 1955 buried somewhere in my parents backyard. I often wondered about the cent...would it survive...did we bury a doubled die variety? Would the other coins tone due to being confined with a sheet of that old hand writing paper? I guess I’ll never find out, perhaps in the next millennia, someone dressed in a “finders suit” will come across some 200 year old coins buried in a unidentified substance container.

 

[bsshog40]

Now that's a pretty cool story J.

[rbrown4]

Probably allowing my folks to give my first wife a $20 Gold Piece to make a necklace out of. She never had it made into a necklace and I never saw it again.

 

Rey

[MunkyMan95]

Rip up the slab and bring back your memories!

[rrantique]

Ever wonder where the melted silver back in 1980 went? check out the link.

It's not silver paint , it's made out of silver

 

http://boards.collectors-society.com/attachments//1728580-image016.jpg

 

Mercury dimes,morgan dollars, frankies,sl quarters,trade dollars peace dollars,seated silver,

 

NOW I KNOW WHY GAS IS SO HIGH WE PAID FOR THAT ONE

Edited April 2, 2007 by rrantique

[cpm9ball]

Cool story, Woody, but I know why you couldn't locate the jar. A week after you buried it, your brother went back and got the cash.

 

Chris

[cpm9ball]

As kids, we lived near the railroad tracks. We used to place cents, nickels & dimes on top of the rails just before a freight train would come into town. Somtimes we would find them after the train passed and sometimes we wouldn't, but we still kept doing it. I don't remember what ever happened to the coins.

 

Chris

[WoodenJefferson]

Cool story, Woody, but I know why you couldn't locate the jar. A week after you buried it, your brother went back and got the cash.

 

Chris

dirtyfrickenrickenracken

[supertooth]

Oh My----bsshog 40----You bring up the worst moment of my collecting career. I have told the story before here on the boards. But, for the sake of education, I will repeat it. As a kid of about 9 or 10, I rooted through everyone's change. The year was about 1955 or maybe a little later----maybe 56 or 57. But I was young.

 

My mom came home from the Food Fair. There in her change was an 'original patina' Barber dime. In those days it was a sort of black dime. I did not understand the term 'original patina' back then. At any rate, the word 'Liberty" was clear in the headband. I graded--even then---the coin to be at least a very fine. But---it was dirty.

 

So, in the name of making it more acceptable, I kneeled down and removed the cleaning powder from below the sink. With all good intentions, I mixed with water and began to rub in order to clean the coin. To this day, I can remember the apparent "LOOK" on my face as I realized that I had DONE WRONG. I can even tell you that I knew that I could NEVER take it back.

 

I guess cleaning that coin is why I feel sooooo strongly about not messing with coins today. In fact, I am sure of it. Well, I kept that coin. I have it in a special place. I guess one day that I might have ANACS slab it----MAYBE.

 

And, yes, my friends---the wonderful original patina coin was an 1895--0 Barber dime. I had ruined a SUPER coin. That sadness has remained in my heart for over 50 years now. Oh My!!!! Bob [supertooth]

[Stanley]

Good story Bob.

 

Now tell us about this special place, would it be on top of the water heater.

[supertooth]

Stan---- No---Actually, I had a sort of special red folder that held special coins from my youth. Many of them were what I called 'odd ball' coins. Today, they are error varieties. At any rate, that dime went there. I do take it out and look at it occasionally. It brings back memories of my mom----that's good. But, after that, I just sit and wonder how I could EVER have been that "DUMB" even at such a young age?? OH MY!!!!!

 

All that I can say is that, ever since, I have tried to do better. Bob [supertooth]

[Coindude87]

When I was young I would always go to those stores and see those gumball machines that take quarters. However being the "smart" kid i was i would bang up pennies with a hammer to flatten them to the size of a quarter. Needless to say I jammed the machine, and probably ruined some copper or maybe even an oldie.

[RWB]

Long ago in a distant galaxy, I used silver dollars as rifle practice targets. I would set them at 25-yard increments out to 150 yards. Later I dissolved the damaged coins in nitric acid and eventually used the silver to coat homemade telescope mirrors and my little doped quartz laser mirrors. Pure silver also produced fantastic needle-like crystals.

[Coindude87]

On 11/4/2019 at 7:56 PM, RWB said:

Long ago in a distant galaxy, I used silver dollars as rifle practice targets. I would set them at 25-yard increments out to 150 yards. Later I dissolved the damaged coins in nitric acid and eventually used the silver to coat homemade telescope mirrors and my little doped quartz laser mirrors. Pure silver also produced fantastic needle-like crystals.

if they were morgans, you might have shot up a cc