Silver Buying Opportunity

[Airman8403]

I have an individual that wants to sell me a brick (somewhere between 4-5 pounds) of silver he says he melted down. I've learned to look for the stamp to determine silver purity for making offers but this brick is of course totally unmarked. I'm wondering if there is some way to determine it's composition or would this purchase be on faith and a great price? Thanks. - Bryan D.

 

[lazersteve]

Bryan,

Check out the Guided Tour Link - General Reactions List.

Scan down to the section on silver testing (Item # 16), I've included some photos.

Steve

 

[goldsilverpro]

I agree with Steve. The Schwerter's solution will tell you pretty quick whether or not it is pure or sterling or something less. You can also buy this solution ready made on EBay or from a local jewelry supplier (if you are in a city). The solution is red and it's often called silver testing solution. If the silver is less than 90%, I would pay much less for each ounce of silver contained, since it will be more costly to refine. If the Schwerter's doesn't turn red on the silver, it is more difficult to determine the approximate percentage when using the solution. If you could get a drilling of the bar, you could send it to a lab for an assay. It might cost $50, more or less.

You might download the pdf here on gold testing. He gives a silver testing method using gold testing acids.
http://goldrefiningforum.com/phpBB3/viewtopic.php?f=54&t=3624&p=30753&hilit=pawnbroker+bob%27s#p30753

You might just clean a small area (an eraser works for this) and then put a drop of nitric on the bar and let it react for, say, 30 sec. Next, add a drop of HCl. A white cloud indicates the presence of silver. The denser the white stuff, the higher the silver. Although this won't tell you the percentage of silver, it will tell you if there's silver present.

 

[Harold_V]

In that you may be looking at a bar that has been created from melting silver plated objects, testing is critical.

Chris and others have mentioned the use of Schwerter's solution, which reacts blood red with silver. Do not rely on Schwerter's, alone. I suggest you test with both nitric and Schwerter's. A drop of Schwerter's on sterling should react by displaying red, then it should slowly darken with time. The percentage of copper is low, so silver predominates. By contrast, if you test sterling with a drop of nitric, the base color will turn a creamy white, and will yield silver chloride (white cottage cheese like substance when in volume) upon the addition of either HCl or table salt. If the nitric test yields a bold blue color rapidly, it's a pretty good sign that what has been melted most likely is not sterling, but probably silver plating. The Schwerter's test in such a situation is likely to yield a more brown reaction than red, and if the silver content is low enough, it will be green.

I agree that you will be unable to determine a percentage of any given element (silver, copper, nickel), but by conducting these tests you should be able to make a determination if you're being snookered, or not. It is very common for folks to sell white alloys that bear no silver, yet it is represented to be silver.

Harold

 

[metatp]

In that you may be looking at a bar that has been created from melting silver plated objects, testing is critical.

Chris and others have mentioned the use of Schwerter's solution, which reacts blood red with silver. Do not rely on Schwerter's, alone. I suggest you test with both nitric and Schwerter's. A drop of Schwerter's on sterling should react by displaying red, then it should slowly darken with time. The percentage of copper is low, so silver predominates. By contrast, if you test sterling with a drop of nitric, the base color will turn a creamy white, and will yield silver chloride (white cottage cheese like substance when in volume) upon the addition of either HCl or table salt. If the nitric test yields a bold blue color rapidly, it's a pretty good sign that what has been melted most likely is not sterling, but probably silver plating. The Schwerter's test in such a situation is likely to yield a more brown reaction than red, and if the silver content is low enough, it will be green.

I agree that you will be unable to determine a percentage of any given element (silver, copper, nickel), but by conducting these tests you should be able to make a determination if you're being snookered, or not. It is very common for folks to sell white alloys that bear no silver, yet it is represented to be silver.

Harold

I agree with the experts above, not just because they are experts, but because I have never received a melted bar that was truly sterling. If the person bought the bars and is reselling them, he may think it is sterling but never tested it. Also, I have received many pieces of jewelry that was marked 925, but was silver plated copper, plated nickel, or just nickel and copper with little or no silver. They could have also melted nickel silver, items with markings that are not silver but the melter was unaware. Some bars I bought were only about 57% silver, and the seller thought it was sterling. Another group of bars I got had a brass core where only the top 1/3 layer was sterling. I usually stay away from melted bars. Too much hassle to fully test, more potential to be less than 92.5% silver, sellers and melter are commonly unaware of what they really have. If you get it for a good price or can withhold full payment until fully tested or processed, it may be worth it. I trust people on this forum, but don't trust those on ebay.

Just my 2 cents.
Tom

 

[jimdoc]

I think the seller screwed himself by melting it the way he did. He should have kept everything that was marked in that condition.
Like Tom said,see how cheap you can get it, or pay him part up front,and the rest when you find out the purity.

Jim