Milk spot on my Britannia

[Keenstacker]

Bought 150 2018 1oZ Britannias last November and just 2 months later 70% are developing spots, as has been said they sell all day long on ebay!

[JunkBond]

This is why I cannot fall in love with silver, grubby old gold still looks lovely, milky silver just looks cr*p. imho 

[Pampfan]

The spotting issue is why I will never buy or collect graded silver coins ever again. I’ve had amazing coins - graded ms 70 and pf70 and there is nothing more heart breaking than to pull them out of storage to take a look at them - only to find a spot or two or three. Even still in the pcgs or ngc holder - doesn’t matter - the value of the coin has now become one of ms69 or pf69 or even lower.

Too much risk in my opinion to pay so much for something that may spot!

[Martlet]

Has it been determined definitively what the cause is?  As it seems to be more prone on some, from endemic to rare from different mints, it must be part common, part mint specific process.  As i recall there is no problem with older coins .925 silver, so is the simple solution to revert from .999 silver to something slight less pure but free from this affliction?  At least for proofs where the value is in the finish rather than the metal content.

[augur]

1 hour ago, Martlet said:

Has it been determined definitively what the cause is?  As it seems to be more prone on some, from endemic to rare from different mints, it must be part common, part mint specific process.  As i recall there is no problem with older coins .925 silver, so is the simple solution to revert from .999 silver to something slight less pure but free from this affliction?  At least for proofs where the value is in the finish rather than the metal content.

The common theory is that the planchets are not rinsed sufficiently and that this residue is then baked in when planchets are heated prior to the minting (to relieve internal stress in the metal).

There are a few Peter Rabbits (925 silver) that have milked, so it will have to do with a change in the manufacturing process. My guess is still MoS grease, which might act as a catalyst to turn Ag to AgS, which then can easily change into all sorts of things including AgCl. 

[CollectorNo1]

I've seen videos that say dont buy any MAPLES,BRITANNIA'S ASE ETC pre 2018...there is new technology on the 2020"s that cut down or even prevent milkspotting...any views comments on this???

David

[HighlandTiger]

I'd be happy to buy cheap milk spotted grubby silver coins, all day. 

A soak in Goddard's or  Light house works wonders. 😁

[watchesandwhisky]

This right here is why anyone paying high prices for a una and the lion is playing a risky game! 

 

[Chorlton]

That is my concern with silver proofs, I have a few older ones ungraded in good condition and am hoping if anything was going to happen it would have by now. The Una coins look good but too risky for myself.

[CollectorNo1]

I have older Britannia's and they also seem ok at the moment..I bough a maple 2014 a few months ago and it is now showing milk spots😒 I was watching a programme on Maples and it was saying if you are gonna buy get the 2020 ones as this new technology prevents assumably milk spotting which is great...but as everything there is no guarantee I'm guessing..if I buy any BRITANNIA'S etc I will be buying 2020 and keeping away from older ones

David.

[Shinus73]

3 hours ago, CollectorNo1 said:

I've seen videos that say dont buy any MAPLES,BRITANNIA'S ASE ETC pre 2018...there is new technology on the 2020"s that cut down or even prevent milkspotting...any views comments on this???

David

I don't believe the problem has been sorted for a second. I definitiely have some 2020 dated Beasts with spotting issues.

[CollectorNo1]

No way!!!! They havnt been out that long....You probably know this ..I was watching a coin programme about milkspotting...basically this guy used a plain simple eraser (white) went over the area lightly and the milkspots went....but I dont know if they are going to re-appear in a few weeks,months etc..

David

[kurama]

21 hours ago, HighlandTiger said:

I'd be happy to buy cheap milk spotted grubby silver coins, all day. 

A soak in Goddard's or  Light house works wonders. 😁

I agree. I use the TownTalk silver polishing cloth and does a great job. I think I'll try out some of that Silver dip by Goddards if you are recommending

[rlstineftw]

On 17/09/2020 at 10:47, kurama said:

I agree. I use the TownTalk silver polishing cloth and does a great job. I think I'll try out some of that Silver dip by Goddards if you are recommending

Hello,
Does this really work with milk spots? I'm really interested to see the difference before/after.

[kurama]

1 hour ago, rlstineftw said:

Hello,
Does this really work with milk spots? I'm really interested to see the difference before/after.

I'd like to say yes, although I've only tried on small spots. When I get hold of something old and milky I'll take some before and afters 😎

[TeaTime]

 

Milk spots were an anomaly in the days of .925 & .958 coins but are a common feature of .999 coins. Odd that a silver alloy was relatively problem free but the purer silver is prone to spotting - Something must have changed in the manufacturing of the coins. If the RM really wanted to sort this issue out it would be relatively easy to work out what change coincided with the prevalence of spotting. If they wanted to.

[DarkChameleon]

1 hour ago, TeaTime said:

 

Milk spots were an abnomally in the days of .925 & .958 coins but are a common feature of .999 coins. Odd that a silver alloy was relatively problem free but the purer silver is prone to spotting - Something must have changed in the manufacturing of the coins. If the RM really wanted to sort this issue out it would be relatively easy to work out what change coincided with the prevalence of spotting. If they wanted to.

i believe it was the polishing mixture before they minted them not the actual metal.

[TeaTime]

Goddards silver dip will not remove milk spots. Nor will Isopropyl alcohol, jewellers pickling solution, acetone, soap and water etc etc.

The only thing i've found that will remove the spots is Silvo wadding. It will leave micro scratches on the silver invisible to the naked eye but clearly visible with a loupe . It looks like there is no way to remove the dreaded bloom without abrasive. I'm still searching though and working my way through a batch of 2017 Brits that will probably end up in the melting pot.

[heyimderrick]

Back in 2012 I did an experiment with NGC's NCS service. 

I unfortunately don't have the photos from before or after anymore, but I submitted a 1994 S10Y panda that had a very milk-stained surface to see if they could restore. The coin came back looking nicer for sure, but the stains remained--they aren't removable by NCS. I spoke with one of the top NCS guys about the milk spots and what was causing them, and in short, it is from chemicals used on the dyes during the minting process. Remnants of the chemicals at times end up stamped into the metal and eventually work their way to the surface of the coin over time. This is an impurity in the metal that apparently no type of cleaning or conservation efforts can remove for good or without damaging the coin's surface. That's what I was told by the pro, so that's what I have to go with.

Of all the silver in my collection, RCM bullion is the worst for this. My Wildlife Series and Birds of Prey Series coins are all terribly milky despite being in air-tites since purchase, being stored in a safe with humidity control, and being in a temperature controlled home. 

[kurama]

1 hour ago, heyimderrick said:

Back in 2012 I did an experiment with NGC's NCS service. 

I unfortunately don't have the photos from before or after anymore, but I submitted a 1994 S10Y panda that had a very milk-stained surface to see if they could restore. The coin came back looking nicer for sure, but the stains remained--they aren't removable by NCS. I spoke with one of the top NCS guys about the milk spots and what was causing them, and in short, it is from chemicals used on the dyes during the minting process. Remnants of the chemicals at times end up stamped into the metal and eventually work their way to the surface of the coin over time. This is an impurity in the metal that apparently no type of cleaning or conservation efforts can remove for good or without damaging the coin's surface. That's what I was told by the pro, so that's what I have to go with.

Of all the silver in my collection, RCM bullion is the worst for this. My Wildlife Series and Birds of Prey Series coins are all terribly milky despite being in air-tites since purchase, being stored in a safe with humidity control, and being in a temperature controlled home. 

Sorry to hear about your RCM bullion. Sounds like it's a never ending battle with the milk spots and just bad luck if you get them. I know with the Silver cleaning cloth I have from talktown does improve things (albeit temporary) but you do have to accept the micro scratches.

[CollectorNo1]

Just out of curiosity....hearing all the comments on silver 1ozcoins..new and old....MILK SPOTSoftenoccur on these coins...So my question is...is it really worth stacking these coins that go from bunc,proof to having milk spots.....Or,,,,just stick to GOLD????????

[heyimderrick]

43 minutes ago, CollectorNo1 said:

Just out of curiosity....hearing all the comments on silver 1ozcoins..new and old....MILK SPOTSoftenoccur on these coins...So my question is...is it really worth stacking these coins that go from bunc,proof to having milk spots.....Or,,,,just stick to GOLD????????

I think it depends on what your goal is. You can always stack silver bars and pursue semi-numi and numi gold. The silver:gold ratio is so off that I think silver needs to rise more or gold will drop to get more in line with historical averages, but who really knows.

[Squashie]

So will all silver coins eventually milk spot? Is it a case of when and not if? What preventative measures can I take in storage? Thanks

[heyimderrick]

5 hours ago, Squashie said:

So will all silver coins eventually milk spot? Is it a case of when and not if? What preventative measures can I take in storage? Thanks

Not necessarily, seems to be more dependent on the mint and their processes. I have no milk spots on any of my Perth Mint bullion. I have only experienced it on some pandas sporadically and heavily on Royal Canadian Mint bullion, none on my Perth Mint collections. Can't recall any on Philharmonics or U.S. Mint bullion that I have had. 

[CollectorNo1]

I'm wondering whether it is worth stacking silver coins or just stick with gold..

You would think with all the commemorative coins that come out by the mints that they would have found a way to stop milk spotting..these coins aren't cheap....and new coins like the Queens beasts I've heard have started spotting...Not great for collectors and not a great the reputations of certain mints!!!!!