sterling .925 ?? how can i be sure ???

[jj68]

rianna had a recent post involving sterling jewelry and it made me think about buying sterling jewelry as an alternative to coins, etc. but, how can one be sure it's the real thing at 24 carat. as opposed to a lesser quality falsely stamped. i intend to begin purchasing silver in a variety of forms and am curious to know if this is a good avenue of pursuit. thank you.

[goldminer]

"...how can one be sure it's the real thing at 24 carat. as opposed to a lesser quality falsely stamped..."

Only gold purity is reported in terms of karat...and then generally only as associated with jewelry. The purity of silver and other precious metals is reported in terms of "fineness" = number of parts per 1000 total parts. "Pure" metal doesn't exist outside of a laboratory because it is too costly to refine it to a point that it contains no impurities. Thus, 1000 fine is never seen; 999 (fine) parts of 1000 or (or .999 (fine) parts of 1) is considered pure.

Additionally, jewelry is the very worst form of metal to invest in relevant to the metal it contains because compared with bullion forms, jewelry costs much more to fabricate. As a result an item of jewelry always sells at a very high premium over the value of the metal it contains.

Most metals people avoid jewelry unless they can get it for scrap price, which is the value of the metal it contains at the metals current spot price.

Re guarantee of purity of "sterling" (.925 fine), "coin" (.900 fine), or any other silver alloyed item other than legal tender coins struck by government mints....there is none without filing some of the metal out and testing it.

There is reportedly a whole lot of jewelry out there stamped and being sold as "sterling" that is either not silver or is an alloy that contains less than .925 fine silver.

[jj68]

thanks for clearing up a couple of my misunderstandings. your posts have been very much appreciated and quite helpful to me in avoiding some pitfalls. i have seen a couple of nice pieces of jewelry at a local shop, a necklace and a bracelet, they are stamped ITALY and 925 so i am feeling ok with these items. she actually has them priced quite reasonably compared to the spot price " i think" but i can,t be quite certain of the weight so i am going to refrain until spot goes up a bit more. i don't think they are going anywhere. you confirmed my suspicion of false stamping etc. it seems quite a simple thing to do. i am still inclined to scour the flea markets and yardsales for older pieces where i believe a bit more certainty can be had thru appearance and ageing as well as some occasional good deals. cheers!

[goldminer]

The best way to determine the value of the silver contained in a sterling jewelry item is:

1. Divide the current spot price of bullion (pure) silver per Troy oz. by 31.1 (there are 31.1 grams in a troy oz.). This math will give you the current price of pure silver per gram.
2. Weigh the piece of sterling in grams ("g").
3. Multiply the weight of the sterling item in grams times the current spot price of silver per gram. This will give you the value of the silver in the item IF WERE PURE (.999 fine). If it's sterling it is not; it is 92.5% (or .925) silver.
4. So a person has to multiply the answer determined in #3 above, by .925 to get the value of pure silver that the item contains.

This said, it's not practical to tote a scale and calculator while someone is waiting. So, do a "bounce" test. Bounce the sterling item in your hand a few times. and then compare the weight with common coins. A 1983 and later U.S. penny weighs 2.5 grams, a nickel weighs 5 grams, a dime weighs 2.3 grams, and a quarter weighs 5.6 grams.

Assemble 2 or 3 of each of these coins at home and practice bouncing them in the palm of your hand until you begin to get a sense about their various weights...and practice.

Just write the weight of the coins on a note pad and carry the coins with you. You'll always be able to closely estimate the weight of an item sterling jewelry.

Before you offer a price remember that a refiner will pay you about 88% of the spot value of .999 silver that the item(s) contain...and you have to pay postage and ins. to get the items to the refinery. Buy accordingly. Pay the person (perhaps) 80% of spot for the items...never forgetting that if the item can be sold as jewelry, it will fetch more than the melt value of the silver it contains.

Hope this helps.