Testing fake silver
Hi all.
I just wanted to make a quick post on testing jewelry.
So here's the jewelry in question. I found it in a box in my basement. To me, it doesn't quite look right.
Its stamped 925.
Do you see what I see in the above pic. Not only a bad stamp, but also a lil bit of green. That's usually from copper.
Here's the test kit
So I need a control. Something I know is 925 sterling silver. A 1916 dime.
So here's the scratch test. The top 2 are the bracelet and clasp. The bottom is the dime. What we want to see is red. Bright red for 999 silver and dark red for 925
So not 925 silver as it is stamped. So what is it then? Let's see if we can find out.
So with 10k acid if it turns blue, it's nickel, copper it will turn brown.
So it's kinda dark, but not brown. So all I know is it's not silver, I honestly thought it would be some kind of nickle alloy.
Anyways, you can't always trust stamped jewelry.
Take care everyone
I swear by testing. But i make my own solutions because the kits go bad rather quickly. The gold not as quick but the silver one does.
Yeah, you have to test everything. I'm pretty good at spotting fakes, like this one looked fake. But I'll still test everything, even if I'm sure.
I'd like to make my own solutions. You should make a post about that!
That’s very smart.
I might just do that. Thanks
Very cool. But I would bring my silver to a coin shop that has the electronic testers (because I do not have one) rather than scratch or put chemicals on my pieces . Thanks for the instructional. So very interesting, @fat-Elvis!
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Yeah, if it's jewelry that isn't headed to the scrap, I do that. My coin dealer has tested lots of stuff for me. But most of the stuff I find gets melted down so I don't care about scratching it.
I've wanted to get a test kit for a while now. Wish they had one I could put in my pocket and take to flea markets and garage sales.
All I carry, is my scale and loupe. Sometimes my diamond tester. I use my judgement, cause I feel like if they knew it was gold and diamonds, they'd want more money, lol. So basically if someone sees you test stuff, then want to buy it, they all of a sudden want more $$.
Best score of my life was a diamonds and a 1.2 ct. emerald set in 14K gold o n a 14K chain, cause it was marked 585 and they thought it was costume, because they didn't know what 585 meant. I didn't even need my loupe to know the emerald was real, I know emeralds and rubies better than most stones. Anyway, I paid 2 bucks Canadian. Not bad for a $500.00 emerald with some gold attached, lol I briefly felt bad, but then realized I bought it from a thrift shop, not a private sale, and they're supposed to know what they're doing.
That's awesome. I never carry my loupe because I always forget. That is one hell of a score. If I find something decent like that, I try to just buy all of it without looking. Figure if they miss one piece, there is probably more.