# Yard Sale Finds



## vyper (Jun 21, 2013)

Went yard sailing today found a few pretty nice things. Wanted to post some pics of some.

This is a spoon marked 825 and a star shaped symbol next to it. Believe it has been gold flashed as well. Paid $2 for it.










A vermulion 925 sterling bracelet paid 2.50 for(gave this one to the girlfriend for her running around with me today lol.)





A tea set marked 800 have to get this tested out.





The rest of the stuff is silver plated I believe but spent around 4 or 5 bucks for all of it.


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## jmdlcar (Jun 21, 2013)

Nice find.

Jack


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## CBentre (Jun 22, 2013)

vyper do you think you can post a photo of the markings? This is something I've just recently been introduced to in moderate volumes and I'm trying to pin point ways to help me identify particular objects. Thanks in advance, 

Steve


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## patnor1011 (Jun 22, 2013)

This might help you.
http://www.925-1000.com/enyc_Overview.html

their book section is quite interesting too:

http://www.925-1000.com/eBooks_01.html


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## CBentre (Jun 22, 2013)

Thank you Pat thats perfect, lots of info there to research much appreciated.


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## element47.5 (Jun 22, 2013)

Very nice, I had a nice one too. About 2.5 oz Mexican .925 silver bracelet for 50 cents.


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## vyper (Jun 22, 2013)

Unfortunatly where Im at in my life I dont have the space or necessities to test and refine. But Im hoping the tea set is real 800 silver. Paid 3 bucks for it.


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## Harold_V (Jun 23, 2013)

element47.5 said:


> About 2.5 oz Mexican .925 silver bracelet for 50 cents.


A good deal if it's silver. In my years of processing, I encountered a small percentage of items made in Mexico, marked sterling silver, but were made of German silver. 

Old sterling tends to darken towards a brown/black color, and often has a rather unpleasant smell. while I'm not a chemist, I assume that the smell is due to the sulfation of the surface, which also causes the discoloration.

Another thing to look for is color of the parent metal. German silver isn't quite as white as sterling---tends to have a hint of yellow. Side by side, they might be easy to discern, but when seeing only one of them, it may not be so easy. The one difference is the German silver won't darken the same way sterling does. 

The lesson to be learned is to never trust markings, although they are most generally reliable. One of my customers confessed to me that he commonly underkarated his gold alloys, which I found quite interesting. Most folks don't generally brag about being a crook. 

Harold


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## its-all-a-lie (Jun 23, 2013)

vyper said:


> Unfortunatly where Im at in my life I dont have the space or necessities to test and refine. But Im hoping the tea set is real 800 silver. Paid 3 bucks for it.


The teaset is most likely not silver judging by the design of the legs. The "800" marking will probably end up being a number that was assigned to the particular design. I have an old teaset that is marked 900, but it is not sterling, nor is it even plated with silver. The feet on my set are very similar to what you have pictured.


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## Harold_V (Jun 23, 2013)

its-all-a-lie said:


> I have an old teaset that is marked 900, but it is not sterling,


Nor should it be. If it was marked 900, it would be considered *coin silver*, not sterling silver, assuming it was solid silver. 

The term *sterling silver* means a content of 92½% silver, 7½% copper. It is not used to describe other alloys of silver. 

Harold


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## element47.5 (Jun 23, 2013)

> A good deal if it's silver. In my years of processing, I encountered a small percentage of items made in Mexico, marked sterling silver, but were made of German silver.



Appreciate the heads up, Harold. For fifty cents, I have learned that the proposition of buying it (or something else) or not buying it is not worth overthinking. SInce I trade stocks a lot and can lose hundreds of dollars in any number of ways, simply the thrill of the gamble of fifty cents is like nirvana! 

This was another one, and nowhere's near as good a deal but still a deal: paid $10 for a slightly damaged mint set. 1960 *mint* set, not proof set. Proof sets themselves have astoundingly low premium over melt. For a 50 year old thing...you'd think....and you'd be wrong. Mint sets (the coins are just brilliant uncirculated, not specially proof-struck) are even worse. This one had a couple of coins stained....so this is not really any better than junk silver when the rubber hits the road. This is worth about 15x face = 15 * 85 cents of silver. $12.75. Nobody gonna retire on that deal.


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## CBentre (Jun 23, 2013)

Harold_V said:


> element47.5 said:
> 
> 
> > About 2.5 oz Mexican .925 silver bracelet for 50 cents.
> ...




Thanks Harold I just learned something that will serve me well into the future. 
Steve


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## Ian_B (Jul 7, 2013)

Nice find, the top spoon is Russian (USSR) Mid 1900's (1950's-late 1960's) and enameled are you sure it is 825 and not 875? the spoon is most likely worth more for what it is intrinsically than the precious metal content

The other mark on the spoons would be the makers mark most likely in Cyrillic 

I picked up a spoon quite similar in shape and design to this one "gold washed" the same as yours generally Russian items have more value to them then the silver or gold content


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## chlaurite (Jul 7, 2013)

As a test I've personally used in the past, you can light a match near (as in, a few inches away from) anything you suspect as silver, and it will instantly (within a few seconds) tarnish heavily.

Note that this test won't prove you have something _solid_ silver rather than plate, but few other commonly-used metals will react in quite the same way.


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## qst42know (Jul 10, 2013)

Sorry but the tea set looks like a Rogers "800" pattern. Which would be silver plate with cast lead or pewter legs and spout.

Identify the maker of the Mexican bracelet before you melt that one. By the price, some artists works are worth the weight in gold.


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## element47.5 (Jul 10, 2013)

Appreciate that, QST. I was sort of thinking that, but I'm in no hurry to melt or otherwise do anything with it. Into the junk drawer it goes. The price of silver is too depressing to futz with it.


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