(DL) Souvenir Pressed Coin Guide for Disneyland Updated - June 3, 1996 David Tomita reporting with the guide to Disneyland Souvenir Pressed (elongated) Coins. WHAT'S NEW? Out for a couple of weeks (and jammed it seems alot) are the first set of quarter souvenir machines at Disneyland. (V) [Full Length Mickey] "Disneyland" (H) [Disneyland Hotel and Monorail] "Disneyland Hotel" (V) [The Castle] "Disneyland" Check it out at Teddi Barra's Swingin' Arcade. Thanks to Lisa Shoup and Louie Silva for alerting me. I am not able to check everywhere each time I visit but together we can keep this list updated. WHAT ARE THESE COINS? These are the souvenir machines that will imprint a design (press) on your penny for two quarters (51 cents a piece) and now on a nickel for 75 cents. Probably one of the least expensive souvenirs, unless you happen to want to collect all of them. The machines are made by Eurolink (818-982-9343). ISN'T IT ILLEGAL TO MUTILATE COINS? The following is stated on the Railroad Mickey, Pirates, Rajah Mints and several other coin machines. U.S. Code Title 18, Chapter 17, Section 331 Prohibiting, among other things, the fraudulant lateration and mutilation of U.S. or foreign coins. This statute does not, however, prohibit the mutilation of coins if done without fraudulent intent or if the mutilated coins are not used fraudulently. TIPS DOES IT MATTER WHAT YEAR PENNY I USE? Depending on the penny you use, you might get a smear of zinc (silver looking metal) in your souvenir which in my opinion is distracting. This word from Robert Welsh: "In 1982 the mint started using the zinc. Both copper and zinc pennies exist in 1982 mintage (bounce 'em and you'll hear a ring from the copper ones, the zinc ones sound like slugs). So, pre-1982 is copper." The older pennies will often leave a stretched out image of the non- imprinted side of the coin. You might want to try to get the design pressed onto the "face" side of the penny because the "tail" side sometimes leaves parts of the monument and you end up with an incomplete image. Generally, if you insert the penny so that the "face" side is to your right, that is the side that will be pressed with the design. If you happen to discover a penny that looks like it was struck twice by the mint, the numismatic value would be considerably decreased upon pressing. POLISHING PENNIES Below are some suggestions for brightening up your pennies. I myself have only used the old chemical and elbow grease method and can't vouch for the other methods that have been suggested. I've used metal polish to shine pennies but it takes a bit or rubbing and the polish contains petroleum distillates so this method is not recommended for children. Use gloves. It was suggested in a post on Aug. 3 by wisterya@aol.com (Wisterya) (no further identification given in post) that stainless steel cleanser (an abrasive) works very well. And that it is best to polish the coins beforehand. Rhanda B. Lawson (rhanda@xocolatl.com) and my young friend from Hawaii, Lani Teshima-Miller (lani@lava.net), suggested an easier, non- toxic, safe-for-kids method using vinegar and salt. Rhanda posted: "Put however many pennies you are cleaning into a large glass. Fill the glass to 1" from the top with white vinegar. Add 1/4 cup of table salt. Stir thoroughly, making sure solution comes in contact with all pennies. Let sit overnight. Rinse." And a note to the vinegar/salt method and "my pennies turn black" comes from boater entropym@aol.com (ENTROPYM) "The problem with your penny is Zinc. The zinc reacts with the acid in the vinegar or lime remover and turns black. For grins take an EXTRA penny, put it in your cleaning solution for about two weeks. The zinc will start to dissolve and the copper will turn bright pink. It is electrolytic corrosion, the bane of boaters. Use pennies prior to 1980 to avoid the zinc. Polish them with brass polish (Brasso) before pressing them for best results. It is possible to re-coat a penny with copper using copper sulfate solution and a battery. If the pennies mean a lot to you, bring them to a chrome shop and ask them to plate them for you. Keep the plate thin to preserve detail." There have been reports of pennies mysteriously turning black after polishing. Maybe it's the Pirate's curse!