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Does anyone out there is Hatrack know anything about pricing silver? I'm gonna be trying to sell some antique ornamental silver spoons, and I don't want to get ripped off.
I really have no idea how much they are worth. I don't even know what aspects of the spoons make them worth more or less.
I also have some little ornamental silver thingamajigs that I would like to sell, but I don't know if they are even worth anything.
Anywho, I was thinking about just going to the local pawn shop, but they are gonna try to rip me off big time, and I don't want that to happen.
So help me hatrack, how much does silver cost, and in general, how does one go about selling it?
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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posted
Raw silver is apparently around 12 dollars an ounce. Presumably, spoons are worth a bit more, if they're at all well done. So, weigh your spoons, multiply by twelve, and anyone offering less than that is definitely shady.
Posts: 10645 | Registered: Jul 2004
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Would it cost anything to get them appraised? I'd say that would be the most accurate and reliable way to get an estimate.
Posts: 1547 | Registered: Jan 2004
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Wow, 12 bucks an ounce? Thats pretty good. Thanks KoM, thats great info.
I don't know about appraising. I don't even know how that's done. Are there seperate companies or would that be done by the same people that buy it? Really, I'm just clueless about this. I tried the ol' google, but haven't had any luck yet.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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Ask at a few local jewellers who they would recommend to appraise it. Get it appraised in at least two places, if you can.
Posts: 15770 | Registered: Dec 2001
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I would first go around to antique shops and check on-line and see what similar items are selling for. If they are unlikely to be worth more than you'd pay for the appraisal, you want to know that, too.
Posts: 7954 | Registered: Mar 2004
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Just so you know, silver is measured in troy ounces (and troy pounds), which are a bit different than regular oz and lbs, but I'm not sure what the conversion rate between the two measurements would be. There are 12 troy oz in a troy lb.
I'd guess that the spoons are probably sterling silver, so the value of the metal alone probably wouldn't be as high as it would for pure silver. However, since they're antiques and not just raw metal, that could raise the value, depending on the quality and collectibility, etc.
I think ElJay's idea to check around is a good one, and you also might want to try researching antique silverware or some such. I don't know much about spoons, but it's possible that there are catalogues of different companies' products from different years, or some other similar resource for collectors.
Posts: 952 | Registered: Jun 2005
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OK, so I went to a couple of antique shops and they didn't want to buy my spoons. They are buy a desingner named Bob Wilson, but I can't find any info on him online.
One of the dealers mentioned someone might take them on consignment. That is when they take your item and try to sell it and only give you money if/when it sells, right? Has anyone ever tried this? It sounds really shady to me. I mean, whats to keep them from selling it and not telling me. Am I supposed to stop by the shop every week to make sure they haven't sold it and not told me? Maybe I'm just not trusting enough for that.
I'm beginning to wonder if anyone will buy them at all. I guess silver spoons aren't as big a market as I thought they were.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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Try ebay. See if other people are selling them, and follow it for a little bit to see how much they are getting for them. You'll find many more potential customers that way.
Posts: 26077 | Registered: Mar 2000
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I'm not sure. All it says is Bob Wilson, signed on the back of the spoon handle. I thought of that too, R=Rober=Bob, but I don't know. I wonder if there is a catalogue of his works I could look through, yet again, google has not helped.
I do know that I don't have the complete set, so someone else out there has the rest of it, so hopefully I can find out how much it is worth.
Posts: 2596 | Registered: Jan 2006
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Any reputable consignment shop will have a contract ready which details out what percentage you take and what percentage they take, the time period to sell the piece, care of the piece, and what happens to the piece at the end of the consignment period. Make sure you have a firm idea of what you want to get out of your pieces and negotiate from there.
It is your responsibility to check in, usually monthly, on how your piece is doing.
Is there any other hallmarking on the spoons? A 925 perhaps? Or maybe an FS for fine silver?
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