How to Make Money in Weird, Wacky Commemorative Awards

Recycle Precious MetalsRecycling and Refining
Written By Barry Lenson

When your great uncle Charles retired after working for Firestone for about 50 years, he got a gold watch. And then when you saw him last Christmas, he said to you, “Can you find out whether this thing is really made of gold, and let me know what it is worth?”

During his years working for the company, he amassed a collection of tie bars, lapel pins, key chains and all kinds of other small awards from his company. Most of them look like they are just gold-plated items, but upon closer examination you see that one tie bar is engraved “Charles Davies, salesman of the year 1965” and is stamped “18K Gold Filled.” So if you come across something like that, you will want to have it tested by a company like Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners. And if you decide to have us recycle the gold it contains, you can then give the money it is worth . . . to your Great Uncle Charles, who else?

More than Meets the Eye

Today, company-issued awards like those seem to have gone out of style. (When was the last time your company gave you a tie bar?) But back in the day when companies were more prone to give small awards and prizes to their employees, those awards generally fell into two categories . . .

  • Genuine, high-value awards that were actually quite valuable and were either solid karat gold or gold-plated.

  • Simulated gold awards that were worth very little and were often thinly plated with gold, or simply gold-toned (meaning they were probably silver or base metal that had been coated with yellow-tinted lacquer).

Part of the difficulty in dealing with these items is that all of them, even those in the “simulated” category, were designed to look like they were made of real gold. The companies that awarded them, after all, wanted employees to feel good about what they had been given.

But the bottom line for you is that when you come across old awards like those we have described in today’s post, you should follow these steps . . .

  • First, examine them closely for any stampings that indicate their metallic content, like “14K Gold Plated.”

  • Second, call Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners at 800-426-2344 and ask us to test them and issue you a report on the metals they contain.

A Mixed Bag of Weird and (Sometimes) Wacky Awards

We have seen all kinds of employee awards over the years. Some have turned out to contain precious metals that are worth recycling. Others . . . virtually worthless.

But as we noted above, it is hard to decide whether they are valuable just by looking at them. Here are some awards you could find as you hunt for gold, silver, platinum and other scrap that can pay you a good return.

  • Plaques and trophies

  • Pens and mechanical pencils

  • Golf tees, greens combs and other accessories

  • Tie bars, tie tacks, lapel pins, key rings and other small items of jewelry and accessories

  • Paperweights and desk accessories, sometimes with small engraved plaques attached to them

  • Lighters, cigar cutters and other smokers’ accessories

  • Engraved picture frames, often silver-plated or sterling

  • Engraved barware, including shot glasses

  • Clocks that are designed to be placed on shelves or mantels

  • Watches

Call Specialty Metals to Learn More about Your Commemorative and Other Awards

When you have gathered a collection of awards and commemoratives, give our precious metals consultants a call at 800-426-2344. We will be pleased to tell you how to send your discoveries to us to be tested, valued, and recycled.

You will be pleased you called . . . and so will your great uncle Charles.

Barry Lenson
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