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Booty Call 2007...Shipment Headed Off To Midwest Refineries!

M

Mike (Virginia Beach)

New member
Well, it was a much slower summer for me than last year. And though I found my share, no MAJOR bling for me this Summer. Not like some of the whopper diamond rings I landed last Summer. But I did OK. Better at the start than at the end. Last month of so has been terrible for me, but so it goes sometimes. :shrug:

Anyway, aside from a few gold and silver items that I either sold or were kept by my wife or daughter, here is my take. A plastic treasure chest with 15 LBS of clad in it. VERY quarter-heavy. Based on earlier cash outs from this same box, I estimate it at about $150 or so.

Below are pics of the clad and also what I'm sending in tomorrow to Midwest Refineries. I have 15 gold rings and chains...a 10K and 14K mix...totalling 93.5 grams. I have a mix of 12 silver rings, chains, a bracelet, and charms totalling 195 grams. Based on current prices of $735/ounce for gold and $13.25 for silver, expected meltdown purity and weight loss, I am guesstimating the batch will fetch somewhere between $1000 and $1200. Maybe a little more. We'll see. Anyway, here it is.

HH!

[attachment 68701 SummerBooty2007a.jpg]

[attachment 68702 SummerBooty2007b.jpg]
 
Hey Mike, are you going for the dough or bars? I had mine converted to bars, when I sent it in. I am down a bit on my silver lode, as it was at $14. then. I'm up on the gold lode though, from $685 then, to $735 now. I still have 'em and I'm sittin' on them, like a good pirate should! Of course cash is nice too! GH
 
Last year I did a mixture of cash and 1 ounce silver coins. This year I'm going for the cash. We got a pool late this Summer and need to do some expansion on our existing deck so that it extends to the pool. The guy that originally built the deck is ready to do the mod and this will just about cover it, so that's what I think it's going towards. It's what the wife wants (I got the bike and she got the pool!) so I'm cool with it.
 
I hear ya Mike, looks like you're selling at a pretty good time and hey, you ain't gotta put it on the credit card, right?
 
awesome booty .. i got a late season start to this hobby .. i can only hope that next year i have a similar post
 
Nice load of scrap, Mike. This was my first detecting season. In fact, I didn't start until July 19th, so my finds were on the low side. I would estimate my clad to be less than half of what you have found, yet mostly quarters. I had a lot of questions answered by you in private messages regarding Excal settings, scoops, and lots more. Being new to the Excal and water hunting, I am most thankful you gave the detailed answers that you did. Although I only found about 6 gold items since July 19th, two of them were exciting, one was a 34 1/2 gram 14k gold chain, the other was a 14K ring with several VS quality stones that appraised at $3000.00. I had a lot of down time with coil problems so I likely would have done much better.

David (Chicks Beach area of VB)
 
Wow! Between that chain and that ring, you done GOOD! I'm sure next summer will be great for you...things have been a bit slow for most of us this year, from what I've seen.
 
Mike, Is there a faq or website you know of that gives the ins and outs of how to sell scrap gold and silver? Obviously I'm looking for the best deal and it's getting harder to sit on my small pile of gold as the price goes up and up. I gather you send yours off to somebody. Web address? I was thinking of selling mine on ebay. Much of what I have found is wearable but not high end by any means.

I went to 2 local guys and got a decent price from one and a ridiculous offer from another. One guy was offering 10 bucks a pennyweight for 10k the other 6 bucks. At todays price actual is about 15 a pennyweight for 10k gold. The guy with the $6.00 offer did test a few unmarked pieces for me but I am not convinced he was honest about that either. I am pretty sure at least one ring was 14k and he said 10k. There is always the possibility that he was right, though. Had he made a more reasonable offer I wouldn't be questioning him. Is there a way for me to accurately and economically testing gold purity at home?

A lot of questions, I know. Answer any or all you have time for. I thoroughly enjoy this forum and all of the posts. I'm sure I'll get in the water some day myself.

Chris
 
I see there is an actual company called Midwest Refiners. I thought for sure it was a geographic reference. I just visited their site and read their pricing policies and testimonials. Any other information appreciated.

Chris
 
Man, that's ridiculous...those guys are a rip. Midwest Refineries will pay you 94% of the spot price of gold on the day that they assay your load. They melt it all down, extract the pure gold, and pay you 94% of what it's worth on the market.

Here is a post I made a year ago on what I was sending in:

http://www.findmall.com/read.php?26,395591,395591#msg-395591

Here's what I got back:

http://www.findmall.com/file.php?26,file=36839,filename=Report.jpg

Here's the website:

http://www.midwestrefineries.com/silver.htm

Many of us from this forum have used them...they are the best deal I know of.
 
Heh...while I was answering your question, you were at their site. So anyway, give them a call at thier 800 number and they can answer any questions you have. Mine is packed and ready to go today, Priority Mail. We'll see what I get.
 
Do you send off any gold filled stuff? I have a few 1/20 14k GF pieces. Is it worth it? I also have a gold plated silver coin in a 14k bezel that I have been longing to get rid of. What do they do if you send them a piece of junk jewelry? Ship it back to you?

I was stationed in Norfolk for 4 years and lived off of Indian River Road right by I-64. Submarine life left me no time for metal detecting but a few of us were doing it once in a while at VA beach and buying beers with our finds. Never found any jewelry back then but the machines were a lot harder to use. Got back into the hobby last fall after 20 or so years. I was hoping to accumulate a little more gold before I had to think about disposing of it but with these prices!

I am looking forward to hearing how much you get. I like the idea of how you are spending your dough. My personal goal for MD loot this year is one months living expenses for the year. I'm about 300-500 shy (depending on the month.) My initial goal was 100 bucks in clad or 1000 coins. When the gold and silver rings started popping from the ground and I found a few hot spots I had to revise up a lot.

How do you test your gold at home? I am shopping around for an acid test kit. How long do the acids remain effective? I am also considering an electronic tester but I want silver capability too.

Final question. I had this hobby a while back of going around to junk stores and flea markets and picking through flatware. I have a big bag of sterling all purchased for a quarter or less. If I have a spoon that weighs 1 troy ounce (marked sterling, Gorham marks from around 1900) how much actual silver value does it have. I have a number of these Gorham spoons but they all have different monograms so selling them as replacements has not worked out. I recall reading someplace that silver recovery from flatware is not good. My memory might be bad.

Thank you for your thoughtful response. I really appreciate it!

Chris
 
n/t
 
A lot of your questions would be better answered by Midwest, as I'm not sure how the gold filled and flatware stuff works.

As for a gold tester, I use my Excal to tell me, mostly. The sound is very distinct. That and a good jeweler's loupe, because if it's marked it's usually good and if not you can see plating coming off most times. If you send Midwest junk they will let you know and either return it to you or trash it.

Give 'em a call at 1-800-356-2955
 
try Midwest Refineries. I sent it out Monday, they got it on Thurs. Gaithersburg was paying 92% if my math was right. I should do pretty good since gold spike up some more. Now my only dilemma is what machine do I buy next, still deciding.
 
LOL...do we NEED a new machine??? :shrug:

I know you want one of those CZ-21's :biggrin:

Why are they being so damn secretive on what's BETTER about them is my only problem??? Bunch of bull if you ask me!

First Texas/Fisher, get the info out there and quit playing games! :nono:
 
as much as I love the CZ-20, I don't see much change in them. I was very disappointed, hoping for a big change, and I'm not interested in the CZ-21.
 
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