At a yard sale I bought a glass of fully set epoxy that has a number of Silver Dollars embedded in it, along with other things. Although probably the same as the glue, this was made by mixing two liquids together, I think the resins came from a craft store. What is my best plan of attack for liberating the coins? I figure I will use a dremmel tool to reduce the amount of plastic, but then how do I get rid of the rest? Pure acetone? How well does it work, and where can I get it? Is there something better out there?
It never occurred to me that there was anything that would dissolve epoxy, but there it is.
It will probably be the most dangerous substance in your neighborhood. Definitely something to use outside away from any flames, and you certainly don’t want to breathe the stuff or get it on your skin.
Is the silver really worth the expense and danger to recover?
ETA: Wicked stuff - Click on “MSDS sheet for item # 395001” for a PDF copy of the MSDS, which spells out all of why you don’t want to touch or inhale it.
Thanks,
So I will physically as much epoxy as possible, move it outside, douse it with Attack, and have a smoke. Actually, I mean pray that it doesn’t really produce phosgene gas. I’m surprised they are allowed to ship this stuff. If it wasn’t for the fact that there are three 1800 silver dollars in the stuff, I would never even get near the stuff.
Silver dollars from 1800 or silver dollars from the 1800s? Because a lot of the ones from the late 19th century aren’t worth as much as you might hope and, when you sold them, would barely cover the price of the Attack, much less your time.
Or 1,800 silver dollars? :eek:
ETA: Oops. didn’t see the “3”.
Um, that stuff isn’t going to attack the silver, is it? 'Cuz silver’s a pretty active metal. Maybe you ought to stick with acetone.
They are from the late 1800’s. I don’t remember the exact dates. I paid five bucks for the mess. I will try to read the exact dates, but the epoxy is somewhat yellowed.
Paging samclem…
If you can read the coins’ dates and maybe their mint marks, our resident coin dealer can give you an idea if you’ve got a $5 paperweight or a mortgage payment or two.
It is entirely possible that your efforts to liberate the coins will result in $3 worth of coins, so you’ll only be out $7 rather than the $10 it cost to buy the solvent. :smack:
No that stuff won’t attack silver, and not to minimize the danger, but you’re going to have to work really really hard to ignite that stuff. Don’t get it on you as methylene chloride doesn’t feel good, but if you do it’s not the end of the world. Work in a well ventillated hood. You will figure that out pretty quickly because dimethylformamide stinks. Don’t mix it with anything or use it in any way other than specified. It can be made to do nasty things, but under normal use I would consider this product to be safe.
Do everybody a favor and put your waste in a glass bottle and take it to be properly disposed of. Methylene chloride is very bad in the environment.
You might try a heat gun, if you have one handy. I’ve used it to remove resins from electronic components. It softens them up so that they can be removed mechanically.