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Tag Restoration


12A54
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This is a family member's dog tag (101st Airborne WWII) just given to me last week.  Blackened, green oxidation, etc.  Tag and ball chain are in pretty bad shape and I don't want to damage them when cleaning or restoring.  Any advice would be appreciated.

JF_Dogtag.jpg

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3 minutes ago, kfields said:

Agreed….please do not clean it! 

The amount of oxidation and wear it shows screams history!

Kim

I understand, but to me it screams neglect more than history.  It looks like she stored it in a damp dirty place and no one took care of it.  It's not as if this were dug up or looked like this when he wore it - it became this way through neglect.  This condition seems to suggest it will continue to decay over time if left uncleaned.

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It is your tag, so you should do what you want to do with it. If you truly want to clean it, I would suggest a quick dunk in some CLR. It will take a lot of the oxidation off of it pretty fast and shouldn't cause issues with the metal. You could also use a soft bristle toothbrush and some soap and water to knock off the more serious verdigris but still leave patina.

Allan

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Mild soap, water, and a soft bristle brush. Clean gently and afterwards store properly.

It has lasted almost 80 years even with the neglect. It will last much much longer. No need to use chemical cleaners that may damage the artifact. The worst thing that could be done is aggressive mechanical  or chemical removal of the oxidation/corrosion, which could damage the tags themselves.

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Simon Lerenfort

Hope you are able to post some info on the owner in the future, I'm sure I am not the only one who would like to know more about which regiment he was in.

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15 hours ago, Simon Lerenfort said:

Hope you are able to post some info on the owner in the future, I'm sure I am not the only one who would like to know more about which regiment he was in.

He was in  the 101st Signal Company.  That Company had Message Center, Radio, Wire, and Carrier Pigeon sections.  Some jumped and some were glider borne.  I don’t have too much more information - his discharge only lists an EAME medal and no others so I need to get his whole file if it exists.  His uniform jacket was donated or loaned to a VFW and his daughter said she’d ask them to return it to the family - we’ll see how that turns out.  At the least (if its still there) she will take photos of it for me.

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I would just use water and a plastic brush (don't use a wire brush or anything too hard!) and scrub it. That should get some of the outer verdigris off without damaging the tags and preserving the current condition. It is important to keep it dry in the future. I would not use chemicals or acid to clean the tag because that can discolor and/or attack the metal.

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