What to Know Before Look for Gold Buyers in Boca Raton

In order to sell your gold, or jewelry and watches safely, you should have some knowledge about different types of gold, other precious metals and stones. Too often buyers may try to take advantage of a lack of knowledge and not provide a fair price. To sell gold Boca Raton residents should ensure that they get the full market value. You will also need to determine if your pieces are worth more as scrap or have value as a full piece.

Gold is a soft metal. This is one of the reasons that it continues upwards in price. Larger nuggets that might be found along stream or rivers will become worn away over time. Finding large deposits of true gold is rarer than you might think. Gold is also used in electronics because it has good conductivity.

Gold Carats

Carat refers to the purity of the gold and is symbolized by the lowercase letter k. Pure gold is 24k but in this state the gold is too soft to be used in jewelry, watches or coins. Alloys are added to the gold to make it durable and these alloys are sometimes used to change the color. Pure gold would obviously be worth the most but all items with gold can be melted down to extract the gold.

You will see gold marked as 10k, 14k and 18k most often. On occasion, a piece may be marked 22k but, again, this will be a softer metal. A piece marked 18k will often contain 25% copper. This means the piece should be 75% gold. Using those figures, a 12k marking indicates 50% gold content.

When you are looking for gold buyers in Boca Raton, this information should help you. If you have a total of one ounce of gold that is 18k, you have ¾ of an ounce of actual gold or 75% of the total weight. The price you receive will be based on the total weight, minus the weight of the non-gold metals.

Gold bars and coins use a different rating. These pieces will use a decimal number to indicate the amount of alloy in the gold. A bar or coin marked 0.995 is almost pure gold, this piece contains less than 1% of any alloys.

Gold Colors

Gold in its natural state is bright yellow in color. Other gold colors are often found in beautiful jewelry items. These colors are created by the use of certain alloys melted with the gold. Rose gold can be created by adding copper at a rate of 25% copper to 75% gold. A 14k gold piece, roughly 58% gold, with copper as the alloy will take on a slightly bronze tone.

Adding iron as the alloy can create a blue tint. Aluminum added to gold creates a purple tone. These colors are not seen as often because iron can be brittle and aluminum is also a softer metal. A greenish tint to a gold piece is created by adding silver. The popular look of white gold can be produced with nickel or palladium.

Mixing nickel, copper and zinc correctly will produce a silver white shade. If you have a white gold piece, do try to find out what the alloy is. Palladium is a valuable metal and more expensive to use than nickel is. Nickel can also cause skin reactions in some individuals and is considered to be toxic. If your piece contains palladium, it is worth much more than the same piece or weight containing nickel.

Solid gold or overlay

When you bring your pieces to gold buyers in Boca Raton a scratch test may also be done. Many jewelry and watch pieces use a gold overlay. This means that the outer layers of the item are a certain gold carat, but the base of the piece is made from a cheaper metal. This is done frequently to give the look of gold, or reduce skin reactions to nickel, while keeping the price of the piece lower.

Again, this is an area where you want to deal with honest gold buyers in Boca Raton. A bracelet that is an 18k gold overlaid on sterling silver will be worth more than the same overlay on copper or brass. Sterling is also a valuable metal. This type of overlay can often be found in older or antique jewelry items. As the costs of other quality base metals rises manufacturers have turned to less expensive options.

Fool’s Gold

Pyrite is known as “Fool’s Gold”. It looks like gold but it is not. Pyrite is an iron sulfide and it is often found in the same areas that true gold is found. This metal was used frequently to make jewelry pieces during the Victorian era. Pyrite is a harder metal than gold and can also be brittle. If you have antique jewelry pieces, have them tested professionally.

Choosing how you sell your gold

Simple gold chains, bracelets or broken jewelry pieces can easily be sold for the gold content. However, consider the worth of the item as a whole. Some gold coins or working watches could be worth more to a collector than they are for the gold weight. A gold ring with a thin band may not have as much gold value as it might have if it contains a valuable stone. If you are not sure if a stone or gem is real, have it tested by a professional that you can trust.

Testing gold

Gold is resistant to many acids but can be dissolved with nitro-hydrochloric acid. Mercury and alkaline potassium or sodium cyanide will also dissolve gold. Nitric acid will dissolve silver and other base metals but will not harm gold. This is referred to as an acid test and is used to determine if a piece is solid gold. When you wish to sell gold Boca Raton residents should make sure this testing is performed correctly. Get a second opinion if you feel the least bit hesitant.

For a fun fact to know about gold, pure gold is not toxic and not irritating if it is ingested. It is edible. There are restaurants that decorate specialty items with real gold leaf that is meant to be consumed. Some specialty alcohols, like Royal Dragon or Gold Strike, really do contain gold.

Gold can be sold by the gram or ounce. Make sure that you sell your gold safely in Boca Raton. Go to a reputable gold buyer. Ask all the questions you need. Professionals will be happy to answer your question in order to deal with you fairly.