I bought an American version of Coin Unique here on the Café, and the quarter insert is so strongly attracted to its nesting spot that you can't shake it out of the half dollar, as the instructions direct.

Instead, I have to "suck" it out with a rare earth magnet.

Anybody else have this problem? Any solutions?

Thanks!
Jerry

Yeah, I had the same problem. I fix it somehow but not sure which worked the best but here is what I did. I dropped the coin into a soapy solution for about five minutes then I carefully cleaned the entire coin and insert with a very fine piece of steel wool. That did but I don't know WHICH did it! LOL! WHO CARES!!!!!
Hope that helps a little.
KE

Hey Jerry, what's new man?

Sounds like your Coin Unique is a little stronger magnetically than mine are. I do have to really give the things a whipping to get the insert to release, but not to the point of having to use a magnetic. Hmmmm... isn't there a way to "demagnetize" or reduce the magnetic force of a magnet? Rubbing two magnets together, or forcing the same poles of two different magnets together, or something like that. I know I learned this in science class like 25 years ago, but I can't remember now... sorry brother.

Best,

-Mike

Try this: Hod the coin insert pointing down with the tips of all your fingers so that the insert is facing the palm of your hand then thump the back of your hand against the knee or some other surface, the insert should fall out.

I use a PK ring some of the time and also have a larger magnetic coin stuck to the unique (insert) in my pocket so that I have something to hold whilst I prise off the outer - takes less than a second, one handed.
Hope this helps.

Regards, Mike

I have 2 sets of coin unique. My one set does work well with my PK ring allowing the insert to come out, however, the other set does not.



That's sort of what I do, I hold the outer coin with my right fingers and thumb and thump my right bottom palm area onto my left bottom palm area and it pops out every time.

Thanks for the suggestions. The one about holding the coin and thumping your hand against something doesn't work (it's what's recommended in the instructions) -- that's why I've had to use a magnet.

Mike -- nice to hear from you! I'll check into the science side, because you're right, in my Coin Unique the magnet is just a little too strong. Maybe I'll ask Todd for some advice.

Again, thanks to all for answering.

Cheers,
Jerry

Jerry, can your insert spin inside the half or is the magnet that strong that it can't? Tom

My Gibson coin turns if you try to turn it, but not otherwise. I carry a neod***** M in my trouser pocket. To separate the two, I hold the coin there, against my clothes. Otherwise I use a normal coin naturally attracted to the inner piece and prise the two apart in my hands. Haven't been busted yet!

I enjoy the strength of the M in the Gibson coin, but now I have come to appreciate the weaker M in my 2 euro-50 cent piece.

As a sidenote, let me add that the M in the Tango 50 cent coin, though not terribly strong, has greatly improved my "M5" performances. Turning it over on the table to oppose the M5 from beneath makes it leap across, so when I display 6 or 7 identical non-ma******able 50 cent coins and make just one move, people are doubly surprised. Tango's product is excellent in this case.

Here's what I do with mine. Push down with your thumbnail right at the inside of the insert (with the thumbnail of the holding hand). This "levers" up the other side just enough to stick your fingernail of the opposite hand up and lever the insert out.

Bob Phillips

I know heat wil demagnatize a magnet but not how much heat. Maybe calling a machine shop or the science lab at your local college will help with how much heat.

You can't demagnetise a neodymium magnet without special equipment. Its strength won't fluctuate in a very long time, though you might register a 1% loss in 50 years. You could heat it up to between 110 and 150 degrees to lessen its strength, but that would probably destroy your coin! You won't find a magnet with enough coercive force to weaken a rare earth material.

This will probably only work for the UK coin sets, but I find that you can use an ungaffed penny (one of the new ones with steel cores) to sort of lever out the insert. This is completely unscientific, but the penny sort of draws out the magnetism from the coin unique.

I often use 5 euro-cent coins to prise open the gaff, but I also use the legs of the chair I'm sitting on or even the clip of a pen cap. Nothing beats another magnet, though, in my experience.

I also keep my Coin Unique identifiable (and unspent) in my pocket by sticking a copper-plated steel coin to it, like a penny. I hope Eddie Gibson won't be hearing from me again in a while!

"you might register a 1% loss in 50 years"
Well I didn't know he needed this done by tomorrow. hehe

Me again -- My insert won't lever out by pressing against the edge with my thumbnail (as suggested above). An earlier Coin Unique I saw had a sort of beveled edge, but the one I bought here on the Café has straight edges, so the insert can't be levered out.

Only a large, strong rare earth magnet will pull out the insert. Small ones, pieces of steel, etc. won't work.

I wonder if I own the genuine article, or got an anomaly, or ?

Jerry

Hi Folks,
I know this is an old thread, but it discusses the exact effect I'm having trouble with.
I opened up my Coin Unique set recently. I haven't used it in over a year.
The gimmick is no longer working! Specifically, the quarter just falls out of the half.
I have a large rare earth magnet that the half works with....the quarter (on it's own will weakly hold as well)
Unfortunately they don't work together any longer.
Am I out of luck, or does anyone have any suggestion?
Thanks to all,
Mike

Anyone?

I've several magnets - the phrase "keeper" is often used to ensure that the magnet doesn't lose it's strength.

For example I've a very powerful magnet for my archery kit (to test the straightness of arrows). That's over 20 years old and still as strong.

Coins, on the other hand, seem to leak. I overcome this by periodically using a very strong magnet (with the right polarity) stuck against the weaker magnets in the coins/okito box etc.

My Gibson Coin unique and nest of coins is kept with a "keeper" and never let me down, where recently I've found a old half dollar (PK Coin) that seems to have lost is magnetic properties.

A few hours next to the very strong magnet and all worked fine again.

Depends on what the manufacture used for the magnetic inserts - sometimes (in my experience) the magnets are inferior (perhaps by design) quality and lose their magnetism over time.

You can also reduce magnetic pull by heat, dropping them (this can cause magnetic dipoles to simply mis-align - at a molecular level - sounds weird - but look up a basic physic book and you'll find how to reduce magnetic pull - it doesn't shatter - just the nature of magnetic materials.

Hope that is helpful.

Keith

Thank you, Keith!
Much appreciated.
Mike