It’s been a long while since we wrote an advisory about investing in gold-plated tableware. So . . . why should we write about it again? The simple reason is that the price of gold is high now. . . and that means this is a good time to think again about investing in gold-plated knives, forks, and spoons. 

Gold is currently trading at $1906.20 per Troy ounce. That’s where it was trading in late September. By the end of September, that price had fallen more than $100.00. But since then, the trading price has rebounded to its end-of-September level and now looks very strong. 

Inherited items can sometimes be worth more than people expect. There are several reasons for this:

Rarity and collectability - Items that are rare, unique, or have historical significance can be valuable. People may not always be aware of the rarity or historical importance of an item they inherit.

Placer gold, also known as alluvial gold, is gold that has adhered to rocks and other materials. Can you recycle it and make money? In most cases you cannot, because the amount of gold that can be recovered from recycling placer gold materials is very small. Yet large industrial gold collecting operations have been able to generate profits from placer gold because of the large quantities of soil and sand they are able to gather. 

Items that contain the most gold by weight are those that are made from 24-karat gold or are as close to pure gold as possible. However, these items might not be very common due to the softness of pure gold. (Pure gold is 24 karats, but it's very soft and malleable, making it less suitable for jewelry that needs to withstand daily wear.)

Do you have gold, silver or platinum items that you would like to recycle?

If you do, chances are you are thinking of taking them to a precious metal refinery near you. You might also be thinking of calling us, Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners at 800-426-2344, to speak with our precious metal experts. We firmly believe that speaking with us is your most important first step in the process of turning your precious metals into cash.

The good news is, you have scrap gold you would like to sell for top dollar. The scrap could be a batch of old gold-filled eyeglass frames, a box full of sputtering targets that were used in electroplating operations, or even a collection of old gold-plated costume jewelry. 

You might not know how much gold your scrap contains – you need to have it tested. But you do know that you would like to sell it and reclaim the value of the gold it contains. 

White gold is an alloy of gold and at least one white metal – sometimes more than one. Those additional metals could be nickel, silver, palladium, and/or zinc. Sometimes a little copper is added too, to make the alloy less brittle and easier to shape. But only a little copper can be added, because if you add too much of it to gold, the resulting alloy becomes pinkish in hue. (That’s where so-called pink gold comes from.)

Which gold investments performed best in 2022? And which are likely to be the most profitable in the year ahead? 

Let’s explore and find some answers to those questions. 

. . . But They Still Won’t Make You Any Money

We are going to start today’s post with a quiz. So get ready to test your knowledge about gold and gold scrap.

We just read a terrific article, “50 Metal Detecting Tips that Find Gold,” on the Discover Detecting blog. It’s jam-packed with great advice on how to use a metal detector to find much more gold on every outing you make.

Whether you’re new to metal detecting or an experienced user, you will want to read this article, which contains advice from experts who really know the ins and outs of using detectors. Here are some of the tips and insights from the post – some of them unusual – that can dramatically improve your experience as a user of a detector.

Where should you turn for advice if you have gold or gold scrap you would like to sell?

Here are some options, with our expert advice on how and when to use them.

Small Pocket-Size Gold Testing Kits

These small, pocketable kits are widely available. They have a small abrasive stone and several small squeeze bottles that contain testing fluid. You rub the piece of gold or scrap you want to test on the stone, squeeze some testing fluid onto it, and get a quick reading on whether the item you are testing contains gold, and in what karat (purity) rating.

Over the years, people have created a story – dare we say a myth – that it is possible to reclaim gold from plants and animals.

That legend usually goes something like this . . .

“The plants and animals that live around natural sources of gold like gold-containing streams and old gold mines absorb quantities of gold. If you harvest sufficient quantities of material from them, they contain gold that can be profitably recycled.”

“The gold price dropped from $1,783.90 an ounce at the end of October to $1,763.90 on 3 November, as the US Federal Reserve indicated in a statement that it would `begin reducing the monthly pace of its net asset purchases by $10bn for Treasury securities and $5bn for agency mortgage-backed securities.”

“Gold Prices Forecast for 2022 and Beyond: A Buy, Hold or Sell?” by Nicole Willing, Capital.Com, December 9, 2021

Yes, it will. Why? Some of the reasons will surprise you.

Inflation, which everyone is worried about, can actually make it more profitable to invest in precious metals. There are several reasons. One is simply that the prices of precious metals will rise, along with the prices of everything else, due to inflation. Another reason is that manufacturers of electronic devices, jewelry, thermocouples – and everything else that contains precious metals – will be paying more for the precious metals they need to make their products. So your gold scrap, platinum scrap, and silver scrap will be more in demand and will therefore rise in value.

We don’t know exactly how much gold and silver are contained in a Tickle Me Elmo, but we are certain some can be found in the little guy’s printed circuit board. What about a Cabbage Patch Doll? We don’t think so.

But the fact is, all the electronic items that you and your family members got at the holidays in years past do contain silver and gold – as well as small quantities of copper and other non-precious metals. You could let those old gifts gather in your house and clutter up your closet. Or you could gather them up and send them to Specialty Metals Smelters and Refiners to be recycled.

Cobalt is used in batteries that power phones and other rechargeable devices. It is also used in the batteries that power electric and hybrid cars. It could be the precious metal scrap of the future.

How much cobalt is found in, say, a battery that powers a Tesla? According to that carmaker, cobalt makes up only about 5% of the weight of its batteries. Furthermore, Tesla and other makers of electric vehicles are trying to reduce their use of cobalt because it is scarce and doggone expensive. Tesla is trying to find ways to eliminate cobalt entirely and shift to lithium-ion batteries. Why? Because although lithium is scarce, it is not as scarce as cobalt.

Do you have $25.00 to spend on a gift for that precious metal prospector on your holiday shopping list? Or do you want to spend $50.00, $500.00 or more?

No problem. We have some great gift selections to choose from.

“When I was looking at a small box full of metal pellets, I just knew they were made of platinum,” says a man who has spent years investing in precious metals. “There were only about 25 of them, but something about them convinced me they were platinum beads that had probably been used in plating operations. So I bought them up, had them tested and sure enough, I was right.”

Today, we would like to point out some steps that the smartest investors take to safeguard their investments – and to simply make more money.

Ready? Let’s get going.