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Broken chains, class rings, and jewelry nobody wants to wear
Broken does not mean worthless. Scrap gold is a weight-and-karat job. Sentiment is free. Melt is not.
A broken 14k chain is not a tragedy in this room. It is a shorter chain of the same karat.
Class rings, cufflinks, single earrings, gold watch cases — same idea. Ugly. Weighable. Karat. Filled vs solid. Weigh and test.
Stones
A lot of “stones” in class rings are not diamonds. We will say so. Diamonds at a coin shop. The gold bid and the stone bid are two conversations. Do not let anyone blend them into one number you cannot unpick.
Sentiment
Pull the piece you cannot sell. Do it at home. Do not make the shop be the villain for a ring you already know is staying in the family. Estates.
Watch the test. Ask for karat and weight on the ticket. After you sell.
More on the coin and money library.