Milk Spots Fix - A few posts back on the 21st Jan I posted a picture of a HR kook with a big milk spot that I had sent to PCGS for restoration. I just got it back today and as posted the spot is gone. Even under microscopy there is no sign of it. However the coin now has fine brown spots over the obverse ???? This must be a clue to what they do to remove the milk spots. Certainly acetone will not produce those spots. maybe its something like nitric acid ? The rim markings are on the capsule No trace of white spot now brown spot
seems like it is a same thing when you remove tarnish from a coin.It would disappear but later comes back in another form. I would surprised that they restored your coin as I heard some grading company wont even touch coins with milk spots.
I think it is remarkable that they removed the milk spot without leaving a mark or scratch. Clearly they have a solution to milk spots. I know how difficult this issue is as I have tried to remove milk spots with several compounds including solvents, caustic agents, acids and all have failed. I think it's a tribute to PCGS and would love to know the method.
Think about it... for the price of costing you a graded coin, crack it open, get a swab of the brown stuff, send it off for mass spectrometer analysis, find out what the substance is. Next up, trial and error the substance with different applications until you get the desired result, ???, ???, ???, make profit.
Are you nuts? Those black spots are just as bad as white spots! No chance in heck I'd pay .50 over melt for that POS. Lol.
It is remarkable that milk spots can be removed without a trace. I wonder if the brown spots MUST develop as a requisite consequence of removing the milk spots? Or, was PCGS simply a little careless in some other way. The concern being, does every single coin they remove milk spots from develop those brown spots or is it simply a result of carelessness in some other way? .
I am curious if some very skilled person has ever tried some sort of micro ultrasonic cleaning method or even some method using a special laser? I just can't accept that human ingenuity can not find a way to remove milk spots without any noticeable damage to the coin. If someone hasn't yet, I'm convinced someone will find a way at some point. .
I wanted to post about this survey as well. I haven't bought anything from PM for a long time. Maybe the last thing was Lunar Horse. People should fill out these kind of surveys and complain about milkspots. Interesting. Solution for milkspots it's to replaced them with "oilspots". So that coin looks like it was produced close to some oil refinery or something.
I couldn't agree more with you missing. With all the bright minds, and technology in the world, I have a hard time believing that there isn't some solution to resolve this issue when it occurs. I agree that it is a matter of time, and then the inventor will license it to PGCS and/or NGC for a 'small fee.' ).
Seems a shame to pay for the pre damaged coin and then have to pay for the fix as well. Maybe the Mint could do a limited run of the first 1000 coins that have been properly treated so that not only do you get a nice first strike but also guaranteed not to get milk spots. That way the collectors can pay extra up front to get a good coin and the people who don't seem to mind the quality can have the weaker strikes and milk spots.
That won't happen because there's no economic interest for the mint to change production. The PM is selling its milk spotted silver coins just fine. So there will have to be a fix discovered for post minting for the people who just have to have particular coins spot free....and not just coins from the PM, but other large mints as well. I have seen more than one 2014 5oz proof silver Britannia with milk spots. For owners of these types of coins, a post-minting fix would probably be well worth the cost of having those spots taken care of once and forever. . .
Milk spot cause by many reasons like minting processes, minting environment, shipping conditions (ie. humid, temperatures of one location to another, cleaning conditions and others), encap processes and conditions, size of mirror surface (i.e bigger mirror surface higher chance to get milk spot), low relief or high relief (high relief need many strike of the coin which big mirror surface easier to get white spot), and all others. White spot is unavoidable for modern coins/medals regardless of any mints. Each mints chances of producing white spot are varies due to above reasons. As china Mint which Shanghai Mint love milk spot for medal like maple bullion and UK Britania bullion. For me, I choose mint with less mint spot and buy coin/medals after half a year or one year after minting to reduce the chances of getting white spot. However, you must willing to pay for it because you will not get it at release price after one year later. It is human being want to be good and cheap. However, it is not easy.
I got the online survey and told them the same thing. That due to the milk spot problem, they lost all my business. My last lunar purchase was some lunar dragons and kooks from BB in December 2015. In 2016, no lunars and no kooks. Over the next 3-4 years, my goal is to sell all my Australian coins.
If it's true that a million things can cause milk spots, then why is it that only in recent years did coin buyers start seeing them and in the most recent years they seem to be getting worse? I have seen no evidence that anything but a modern minting process used by many of the large mints is the cause of milk spots. If you have evidence which shows otherwise, would you please share it here? Thanks. .
bump What's the state of play? I haven't seen PM spots recently and I've never seen spots on RAM 999 coins