Well, I got the idea from
https://www.thevespiary.org/rhodium/Rhodium/chemistry/amph.urushibara.html
, seemed like a nice OTC way of going about what I want (the goal is a theoretical path from toluene to 4-MAR completely OTC, lots of labour involved though).
An observation on the nickels: Canadian nickels from 1994 and prior are reacting with the HCl nicely, the 2001 I threw in there is barely even touched - either they changed the type of metal in use, or there's some sort of coating that hasn't rubbed off yet. I didn't have any nickels from 1995-2000, or 2002, so can't comment on them.
Edit: Further examination reveals that the 2001 nickel responds strongly to a magnet, whereas the others respond very weakly if at all (placed the beaker on a magnetic stirrer, the only nickel to jump around was the 2001). Clipping a piece off of the 2001 reveals what looks like a copper core, the a 1994 is uniform throughout.
Add your thread to the rich tapestry of conspiracy...
... and wave hello at the satellites!