FEBREEZE
I really don't expect anything from this at all, but I happened to have a bottle within reach. Coin is starting at 1.3g.
Well, hmmm.... 12/05/05. I didn't expect this at all.
Coin is still 1.3 grams, but alot of details are showing now, where relatively few were apparent before soaking. It smells nice too! Going to leave it in the Febreeze for awhile. Patina seems intact at this stage.
12/09/05
Coin is still 1.3g. It looks like the lighter parts is partial silvering. I'll find out after a silver brush, but it looks like silvering now.
And after a silver brushing and 3M radial brush. I also took my Swiss Miracle Pin to the right side of each side. The encrustation along the right of the reverse is still quite solid, but dirt itself is rather easy to work off. Upon closer examination, the light substance (particularly on the bust) does seem to be silvering. This, amazingly, will warrant further experimentation. Patina seems solid. A little bit of work with the pin, and this coin will be done, except for that nasty encrustation.
Here's the coin after a little bit of work... not too bad. With perhaps 5 minutes of scraping total, I can't complain. Grabbing a couple more coins and trying this unorthodox method again. The reverse is rather worn, and has encrustation... but the obverse is nice in hand.
12/23/05
Here's 4 more coins for this experiment. These are "premium" coins that I just received, they have decent details but a good amount of dirt on them as well. They are as received- not brushed or soaked.
1/12/06
The Febreeze itself is pretty dirty- alot of particles floating in it. Dirt has definitely been removed from the coins. As the coins came out of the container and air dried. I have a new scanner, so colors are a bit different:
And after a simple silver brushing:
I didn't brush the Securitas too much, I like the desert patina on it. Coins will take a little finishing work, but Febreeze seems safe on patinas, and does indeed remove dirt. Exploratory probing on the silvered Vics with wreaths (it's partially silvered) around the exergue demonstrates that dirt is easy to remove now as well.