Milk Spots on Silver: What is it and How to Remove Them

[@Hermod_Hermit]

Well, the flip side is that no fake silver coins got milk spots. So if buying "second hand", go for spotted coins.

[@CampbellsCoins]

Lol touche

[@silverwiskers7371]

I agree with rouge's statement, its impossible to rub a silver coin with nothing without swirling scratches, I've tried so many times with expensive cloths, silver is just to soft of a metal

[@brula123]

Leave a milk-spotted coin in the e-z-est for 30 seconds and see. It's a better result than the 7 seconds you dipped it in here.

[@fishersfritz7958]

Also if you use isopropyl alcohol and acetone in conjunction before dipping you will have better results

[@CampbellsCoins]

I did not know that, I'll have to give it a shot

[@AC-um2mk]

Those are impressively clean taps!!!!!

[@richardsinclair9449]

By the way, you should use only distilled water to wash off substances

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

Your thumb pushing around debris leaves more scratches because it does not lift debris off the coin it just rolls them around until the water rinses them away. Do not reuse the cloth, that's as bad as using your thumb to scrub the coin. Yes you are using your thumb to create friction which is called SCRUBBING the coin.

[@HDDynalowrider]

Bullion dealers must clean their coins before sale because if a 2014 coin was perfect in 2021at time of purchase and 2 months later they are covered tells me they must of cleaned them up before they sold them.

[@chucknplata22614]

Thanks for the time and labors of this video. Yes Yankee is a great guy whom I occasionally drop a comment to. I have several 100 CML’s with milk spots, thus prompting me to watch many videos of how to get rid of them. don’t want to try the chemical cleaners as I don’t see the end results of which I would desire to obtain. I have tried the magic erasers, buff and scrub cloths and pads, they do help but have left scratches . They also don’t work in the areas of the lettering. I am now tempted to buy a rock tumbler and use ground corn cob to Polish off the milk spots. Has anyone reading this tried that method?

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

The reason you use a micro fiber cloth is to lift the residue off of the coin, using your thumb just smears it around.

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

Make sure you get that ezest out of the edge reads of the coin, well or you can let it tone the coin. I prefer fluoride, it acts hundreds of times slower than ezest. It's pretty hard to over do it. And fixing a coin that has been over dipped is a pain in the neck, they get moon cratered..

[@kayneF1251]

Very good video, does dipping coin in baking soda on aliminum foil then rinse in freash water and drip dry get rid of milk spots ? I wonder

[@Austin1990]

The aluminum theory does not really work except for certain tarnishing. But, massaging with wetted baking soda cleans very well. I don't know how much it micro-scratches the coins, so I wouldn't use it for pristine coons. However, is a coin with severe milk-spotting actually pristine? I have never heard anyone mention the trade-offs in value of slightly cleaning a coin vs it appearing to be very unsightly. Outside of starchy collectors, people on the street just want it to look as shiny and perfect as possible.

[@inmintstate]

That cloth worked 100x better. Scratches are no more noticeable than it was before

[@mikematthews446]

It may be the true, that the ancient Egyptians knew far more about the subject of polishing. The solid gold sarcophagus of King Tutankhamen was so finely polished, that it was scratched upon discovery, just by wiping off the dust!!

[@moneybags_b]

You got exclusive rounds i did not think you had rounds 💯

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

What a great challenge, can't wait to get my spotted Phil Harmonic in the mail.

[@virgil_kane]

What about Germania's ? I;ve never seen milk spots on Germania's .

[@SilverStarz]

Great show, thank you.

[@mikematthews446]

Have you tried dipping in SuperZilla?

[@saintofchelseathomascarlyl5713]

dont you prefer to just put a small drop of acetone without washing it with water? because it would just evaporate and organic solvent shouldnt react with any metal and tap water has sulfates so i would imagine acetone is safer than tap water

[@andresjaramillofigueroa3025]

Think about this logically. If you are applying the acetone onto the coin to dissolve the milking/fingerprint/organic residue, will that dissolved residue evaporate along with the solvent (acetone)? What happens if you boil away a pot of salt water? What is left behind?

[@saintofchelseathomascarlyl5713]

@@andresjaramillofigueroa3025 no you misunderstand. imagine you have alot of salt crystals stuck to your hands and then you put your hands under water for a few seconds all the salt crystals will dissolve and come off of your hands and then imagine that you let your hands air dry so if its some organic organic white residue on the coin you can wash it with acetone (all the organic residue will go FROM the coin TO the acetone) and then you have a clean coin with ONLY acetone on it - just let it air dry its fine if you want to wash it better not use tap water that have sulfates -which could cause toning there is no need to even use distilled water because you will have to pat it dry with a towel and then risk scratches

[@andresjaramillofigueroa3025]

@@saintofchelseathomascarlyl5713 I think you misunderstand. In your own example with the air dried hands, you wouldn’t have salt-less hands. The water that was on your hands still contained salt, although diluted. Similarly, once you dissolve the residue in the solvent, the solvent is no longer “pure”. The residue doesn’t just cease to exist. It homogenized within the solvent. The problem here isn’t the sulfates in the water. Sulfates tarnish the silver to produce a thin layer of silver sulfide. This is very much different from the milk spotting, which has to do with the silvers reaction to the residue. Silver tarnish can be avoided by rinsing in running distilled water, such that the contaminated distilled water is removed and replaced with fresh water.

[@saintofchelseathomascarlyl5713]

@@andresjaramillofigueroa3025 just wash it twice with acetone AND THEN let it air dry...dude come on...

[@andresjaramillofigueroa3025]

@@saintofchelseathomascarlyl5713 Practically speaking, this certainly would clean up the coin. My point in these replies is that your original suggestion of “put a small drop of acetone without washing it with water” is very different from your new procedure. I’m glad you were able to learn something.

[@firearmsstudent]

7:19 LMAO

[@patrickpearl169]

So milk spot's are created by mint error

[@CampbellsCoins]

No. Wash process of the metal.

[@patrickpearl169]

@@CampbellsCoins that's done during the process of minting the coins. Preparing the blanks for minting if they used compressed air after washing to remove moisture would solve the remaining solvent on the blanks before it got baked in prepping for the coin to be pressed

[@fartymud]

The Royal Canadian Mint has “mint shield technology “ no more milk spots for the past few years on the maples.

[@ManiacalManiac]

Not true. Opened my maples from various years from 2018 to 2022 and I have approximately 20-30% with milk spotting

[@fartymud]

@@ManiacalManiac I wondered what happened there ? Or should the question be what mint location those puppies were born at ? I have a friend that works at the mint and she swears by it . They wash and clean every thing down during all the processing to avoid the milk spotting and obviously something went wrong with those coins 😞

[@patrickpearl169]

I just checked my Maples from 2013 over a dozen started milk spotting

[@LegacyStacker]

Hi Campbell's Coins! I've heard that a pencil eraser can remove milk spots, but I can't say for sure. Maybe test this theory? Thanks! 😎

[@scalariatreasures7971]

Milk spots is oldschool security feature from CRM ... until 2017 ...

[@CampbellsCoins]

Damn, that's brilliant.

[@emanueltrudeau4754]

@@CampbellsCoins no pun intended ...😄

[@emanueltrudeau4754]

Same for me

[@DavidBrown-in8hi]

Water on silver?

[@CampbellsCoins]

Don't think so. Silver won't spot due to water. Think of silver found from ship wrecks.

[@amandawilson2595]

What about silver polish??

[@patrickpearl169]

He only left the ezest coin in for half of recommended time

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

I'm going to find out if Rembrandt Plus Toothpaste on very soft wet toilet paper will remove these marks, just waiting for the coin to arrive in the mail.

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

Technically Dipping is Called Chemical Polishing

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

A coin is a container, it contains the silver. would you throw away a bucket because it was scratched up or spotted ? no.

[@eltonjones1990]

Awesome video

[@michaelbourg8656]

Try heating up the coin and the acetone first.

[@ef7480]

Milk spotting bit of a nuisance but bullion coins are just melt metal so wouldn't worry about it. Got plenty of Britannias showing signs of this👍

[@metallicrock5946]

I know how to prevent milking but not remove it. Every silver coin or round I get I do it to the coins and they will never milk spot. I'm still thinking hard how to market my invention. Been testing my method now since 2000. None milk spotted. The trick is to do my method BEFORE milk spots appear. Once milked it's too late.

[@jake4194]

What is it?

[@CaptainObvious71]

All my maple leafs has milk spots maybe there should be a recall

[@chucknplata22614]

I agree . class action law suit? Yes I have several 100 with milk spot. My LCS will buy them at - 75 cents under spot. Nope, I’ll keep ‘em .

[@TobaccoRowe1960]

Red Rouge cloth, I have a endless supply

[@fishersfritz7958]

I have an example of one of those 10% silver mexican pesos with super crazy milk spotting i just recently took it out of its mint set to do some preservation but there is nothing i could do, i also noticed a lot of die polish lines on that particular piece. Strangely enough the reverse which had more die polish lines than then obverse had much much fewer milk spots, i am aware of the planchet theory but sometimes i wonder if it isn't the dies themselves or a combination of planchet and dies.

[@CampbellsCoins]

Hmm that is an interesting theory with the dies. Not sure if I follow how it could happen with dies. It really sucks when a sealed mint set or mint set for that matter gets milk spots. Real shame.

[@ROGUESILVER]

theres nothing you can do for milk spotting...the new canadian stuff has that mint shield tech to stop or reduce the chance of milk spots...its literally just luck of the draw if you get a milk spot or not. good video bro, dont do that to numismatic coins!!! or semi numis silver is the only thing i would add...to not clean numismatic coins.

[@CampbellsCoins]

I mention this in the video BUT I will say, acetone works a little bit and a polishing cloth will virtually eliminate milk spots. But those produce a lot of hair line scratches

[@concernedcitizen1]

A minor point, but it is an irritation, you keep calling it e-zest, when it's e-z-est, as in easiest.

[@GR19611]

9:58 LoL

[@ef7480]

👌😆

[@darrell8167]

Are you crazy by the time I'm done with my coins my water bill is going to be off the chain I can't afford my bills now LOL LOL

[@CampbellsCoins]

😂 touche.

[@darrell8167]

Cool vid buddy😄

[@tomtransport]

I think you proved that milk spotting does not come from "whatever" is in the air...smoke, moisture, chemicals, thumb, fingers with that sealed ,from the mint, proof set. It's in/on the planchet from the silver smelting plant process or at the mint when they treat the metal for "whatever" may be on it from the smelter or mint. Maybe from the rinsing agents or from the gases they use to heat the planchet (aneling). The gases used for heat get in the metal, rise to the surface over time. Are you sure you used the cloth properly? I would think the jewelers rouge would be on/in the deep red part of the cloth and the white part of the cloth is for polishing. Only other precaution I would have done is place a folded terry towel down in the sink, the water would go through but if I dropped the coin on it's edge that hard sink would not damage the edge of the coin. Very nice demonstration.😀😀😀

[@peterchoe]

of course you will get scratches if you use a jeweler's cloth. It has abrasives in it. I have had success with a microfiber. Never would touch a coin with anything less.

[@CampbellsCoins]

👍

[@brandons7272]

So in other words these wedge-tailed Eagles that I bought that are graded and everything that no have milk spots on them are no longer what that grading is?!? Well isn't that just some BS! I guess it means that it's not worth buying graded coins at all! I mean if you get a milk spot on it no longer worth a damn thing pretty much I mean as far as being MS70 or Gem bu like my wedgetail Eagles which have some milk spotting

[@CampbellsCoins]

Not necessarily. The grading remains the same but it might not be as desirable to people because of that issue. If your coins don't have milk spots, I wouldn't worry about it.

[@brandons7272]

@@CampbellsCoins well they do have milk spots that's why I'm worried about it! My two wedgetail Eagles I just got that milk spots and I believe a few others that I just purchased I've started to notice do as well

[@brandons7272]

But it does make sense... I mean I don't want something w/ any issues or at least would want discount

[@AC-um2mk]

Did you know that babies can also have milk spots? They go away naturally though so no need for any chemical treatments :-)

[@CampbellsCoins]

Very true. Get the message out while we can.

[@darrell8167]

All you do is change their shirt and they're good to go

[@darrell8167]

Mommy can get milk spots on her shirt too all she has to do is change your shirt and she's good to go

[@C-130-Hercules]

Say … EEE ZEE EST …..like easiest….. not E ZEST 😮

[@CampbellsCoins]

No

[@Goaway398]

Buffing them like paint on a Ferrari is only way!

[@CampbellsCoins]

Haha

[@johnhenry3256]

Man, I'm only stacking silver about 6 months and I have just looked through my coins. A good percentage have milk spots on them including a lot I paid top dollar for. I'm absolutely sick over it. The reason I'm stacking is to have something of value to leave my kids but if I'm buying shit that's instantly worth less what is the point? I feel like im Wasting my time here. I have wasted a fortune as far as I can see. Thanks man, sorry for bitching. I'm just disheartened 😔

[@CampbellsCoins]

I feel your pain there for sure. If you're worried about premium and milk spots, stick with cast or pressed silver bars. They will rarely milk spot. Out of curiosity, what is the environment like where you're storing them?

[@johnhenry3256]

@@CampbellsCoins I have them all in capsules which are in boxes. I live in Ireland which can be pretty damp a lot of the time. I came across a lad in England who puts silica gel sachets and tarnish free strips in with all his silver and then puts it in air tight containers. I have ordered some from amazon. Its worth a try. I got 2020 and 2021 krugerands all this year but only the 2021's have spotted. They are one thing but for example I got the Nuie lion, beautiful coin but that has started to spot real bad @ 45euro it's not good. At this stage I'd rather put my money in gold. Thanks for all your help and advice, it's really very much appreciated 👍

[@danyrizk1203]

U didn't waste a fortune, when the prices soar it will be irrelevant, trust me I have many with milk spots. I'm buying metal that will end up being melted again and again. Doesn't devalue silver that u buy for weight INCLUDING maples or silver eagles they will still sell faster than generics, and again generic or not when the prices soar it won't matter. Peace.

[@ronjeremy2850]

Quite whining. It’s bullion, yes milk spots suck, but the silver weight is all that matters. It may not look pretty but it’s not “instantly worthless” as you stated.

[@ronjeremy2850]

And if you really don’t like it then buy gold.

[@mrwonderful1304]

" melk spotting "

[@CampbellsCoins]

You're a wonderful human!

[@mikep.panucci5099]

Instead of using a paper towel or Microfiber towel, why didn't you just use a blow dryer???

[@mth4849]

Don't use the printed ad side of a jewelers cloth... the dried ink/paint rubbed on a coin will for sure scratch it.

[@CampbellsCoins]

Good to know, never used one before. Thank you!

[@silverwiskers7371]

No matter what I've done with any polishing cloth I can't stop the swirling scratches, I've come to the conclusion that you just can't rub the silver safely, it's just to soft of a metal

[@dimkabibimka284]

Очень интересно, но нифига не понятно)) в итоге чем лучше чистить молочные пятна?)

[@Mario-pz8gh]

So he’s rubbing one out, on video?

[@inmintstate]

I dont agree that acetone "works better"

[@silverwiskers7371]

that's why I'm only buying poured silver from here on out

[@CampbellsCoins]

gene Pohlemann if you’re stacking silver I wouldn’t care about milk spots. If you’re collecting silver, poured silver isn’t a bad idea. I’m not a huge fan of hand poured silver from artists on here and Instagram, I feel the premium often doesn’t reflect the work put into them. Not all artists, but some of them.

[@silverwiskers7371]

@@CampbellsCoins good point indeed

[@bryansnyder9218]

Well, milk spots can't be as bad as say, grape juice.

[@CampbellsCoins]

Lol, definitely not!

[@reggieglubber5420]

Slow, convoluted dialogue. Move.....

[@Snappypantsdance]

Troll or just *hole here, not sure which….

[@reggieglubber5420]

@@Snappypantsdance Probably your "Poop mouth"

[@reggieglubber5420]

Sloppy dialogue and coin dropping in the beginning. Poor video, because you CANNOT see the milk spots on the coins you are showing.

[@FreeAmerican-mm2my]

Multiple redundant comments by same individual.

[@reggieglubber5420]

@@FreeAmerican-mm2my Warped narrative. Get used to any kind of comments on an OPEN forum.

[@barbarajoybuchanan2799]

​@@reggieglubber5420 then don't firken listen if you don't like it.

[@reggieglubber5420]

@barbarajoybuchanan2799 Pseudo profanity adds nothing, profane mouth. Don't read comments if YOU don't like them. I'll watch whatever I want anytime I want and I'll comment any way I so choose. Get used to it. This is an OPEN forum Pookie.