Class Rings

Ahh, yes the class ring. That ring that many of us purchased as a final momento of our years receiving an education. These rings are often gold, usually inscibed with the owners name, they are dated to a specific graduation year and of course are for the high school that the owner attended. With the exception of the gold content these rings can be difficult to sell.

Why?? Originally these momento's were quite expensive but in todays market the only real value is in the metal content. The probability that someone from your graduating class with your exact initials wanting a class ring 40 years after the commencement occured are very slim. Then on top of that you have to find them.

The good news is that the rings typically have quite a bit of gold content. So the real question is what is a fair price for that gold? The answer lies in mathmatics, so if you are an admittedly mathmatically challenged this would be a good time to stop reading.

The first part of computing the value is simple enough, look on (typically) the inside of the ring and determine what the karat marking is. Most rings are either 10k or 14k. The second step after determining the karat marking is to actually weigh the ring. It is very important to know that any embedded stones are not part of that weight and that they need to be removed first. Purchasers of gold class rings are not interested in having a synthetic stone depicting your school colors as part of their purchase. They want the ring for the gold content only. Weighing the ring needs to be very accurate. You should find a very accurate scale that weighs in grams.

Now that we know the karat marking and the weight it is time to do the math. I will try to explain as well as I can the process. Don't let it frustrate you if you don't get it a first follow the steps and you should be able to get a pretty good estimate.

Step 1

Do a google search to find out the current selling / purhasing cost of gold. I usually use monex because they have live current prices.

Step 2

Calculate the current value per gram for gold. This is fairly easy. Gold is typically valued using onces. Since there are 31..1 grams per ounce all you have to do is divide the current price of gold by 31..1 An example would be finding that gold's current value is $1200 per once. Divide $1200 by 31..1 (1200/31.1) to get the amount of $38.58 per gram. This number will change each time that the value of gold changes.

Step 3

This part will never change so write these percentages down:

10K = .41666

14K = .58333

18K = .75000

24K = 1.0000

Step 4

Multiply:

Take the first figure that you have calculated in step 2 and multiply it by the percentage that corresponds to you karat weight in step 3. So using our example if your ring is 10K multiply $38.58 times .41666 to get $16.08.

If your ring is 14k then you would multiply $38.58 times .58333 to get $22.50.

Step 5

Multipy the gram weight for your karat times the weight of the ring.

10K ring = 16.08 x weight of 6 grams = $96.48

It may seem confusing at first but it is really a very simple calculation. There only items that will change are the weight of the ring (or any other gold item for that matter) and the current selling price of gold. So here you go again:

Determine the Karat of gold marked on the ring

Deterimine the current value of gold

Weigh the ring

Multiply

These are a great CASH IT item. They are typically very heavy and the price of gold is currently very strong. So go ahead and grab them out of the old jewelry box and call up your old girlfriends (to get them back!) to turn them into cash.

One last note. Precious metals are weighed using troy ounces. A standard ounce has 28 grams in it a troy ounce has 32.1.

Wilbur Shaw Indy 500 Toy Car

We had a great weekend appraising antiques at the Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, Ohio and this is one of the items that was brought in for us to see. This 1940's vintage toy car would sell for around $100.00.

When it was first brought in I had to admit to its owner that I had never had a similar one. My first estimate on the toy was that it would sell for between 100 and 200 dollars. My estimate was on a best guess and was based partially on the fact that the toy had some problems. The toy appeared to be missing its original tires and the paint that was embedded in the script writing on the side of the car was very faded. After doing some research on ebay for similar items I found out that the cars originally had rubber tires on them and the script writing and car seat were painted red. The ebay description for the toy stated that the seller had sold of this type of car in the past and that they were not sure if they were originally sold as a toy or if they were sold at the race as a souvenir.

These toys complete and with original paint will sell upwards of $300.00. Condition will always be a factor in determining final value. On most items you should discount the value by 75% for damage (more if damaged extensively). Always buy conservatively whenever you are dealing with items that are missing parts or have noticeable damage.

One Mans Trash is Another Mans Treasure

Sometimes beauty is in the eyes of the beholder. A few weeks ago this bicycle was found in the trash. No wonder, two flat tires, bent up plastic basket, repainted a very pretty shade of robins egg blue, the original handle bars were missing and everything (not painted blue) was covered with a coating of rust. The people throwing this away must have thought that they were doing the exact right thing.

They weren't. I noticed this honey placed between two garbage cans on trash day. After some very momentary soul searching about digging into someone Else's trash, I decided to stop and throw it into the back of my fully loaded van. When I got home the realization struck me that my garage was also full to capacity. I put the bike in the only space that was available, on the ground outside of the garage. Putting it there seemed like a very responsible, rational decision at the time. The only thing (or so I thought) that I did not account for was the forecast for snow later that day. Originally the forecast was for "just a light dusting", it in fact turned into an over 30" snowfall. This of course resulted in the bike, being completely covered with snow. It quickly became a forgotten item. But then the snow melted and that is when the real trouble began.

My wife puts very few rules on me when it comes to this business, I am not allowed to leave major messes out where everyone else in the world can see them, I have to bath regularly and dress in a normal fashion and finally nothing with living creatures in it is allowed to be brought into the house. Non compliance with any of these rules is also known as assisted suicide. In this case, my wife who is usually very sympathetic to my obsession with junk, (I'm sorry antiques) will not tolerate having her yard look like the city dump.

The snow that covered the bike did provide some temporary relief from this rule, but once it melted the violation became immediately apparent. The question was very simple "what the heck is that piece of trash doing in our yard". I tried explaining that the bikes sitting outside was only temporary. I then tried telling about how great it was and that it was totally free. She really wasn't all that impressed with either of these explanations. She reiterated that I had promised not make a total mess of the yard. It was one of the few times in my life that I was truly sad to see the snow melt, because once it had melted, the bicycle that had previously been OK (because it couldn't be seen) now became a point of potential matrimonial distress.

I made several attempts to make the bike less conspicuous by moving it behind the garage so it couldn't be seen. She said "nice try" and followed that with an emphatic "NO". I then tried to make it look like a yard decoration by putting birdseed into the basket and calling it a feeder. Although the feeder idea was original it still was not convincing enough to allow it to stay. At this point, it was determined that the best possible solution was to get rid of it immediately. This may be the reason that the original owner put it out to the curb for trash collection . I however, could not make myself put it into the curb. I just cannot make myself throw out something with any value whatsoever, so off to the local junk auction the bicycle went.

WOW!! WHAT A SURPRISE!! The bicycle brought $160.00. I was really hoping for about $10.00, but what the heck I'm not going to complain. This unexpected cash resulted in my being forgiven for the short term mess in the yard. I am still not allowed to make the yard look like we are some type of #%!%^&* hillbillies and I have been told not to let it happen again.

But we both know that it will . Oh yeah CASH IT, CASH IT , CASH IT!

Stereo View Cards (Stereoptican)

These are potentially a great item to find. Stereo cards were very popular in the late 1800's and early 1900's. These cards were produced by Underwood and Underwood and came in various boxed sets. Collectors will pay a premium price for boxed sets that are complete and in good condition. Full sets will sell for $200 and up. This particular set that depicts scenes from Egypt is worth over $500.

Don't make the mistake of bypassing single cards. Although most cards are worth a few dollars each some individual cards can reach into the hundreds and even thousands of dollar range. The typical viewer is worth around $40. Stereo cards and the viewers can be found just about anywhere. So keep your eyes open for these sure fire CASH IT items.

Chalkware Figurine Boston Terrier

Chalkware figurines were often given away at carnivals, festivals and amusement parks as prizes for winning games of skill or chance. Today they are inexpensive collectibles that can be found at many auctions and almost all flea markets / antiques shows.

This is one scary looking Boston Terrier. A novelty like this can be purchase for $20-25. Watch out though once in a while you will find them for a dollar or two. Because of the relatively low cost and wide availablility STASH IT. These are a good bet to go up in value....in time.

Civil War Grouping

When we do appraisal shows we never know what is going to show up. Sometimes really great and interesting items come out of the most unexpected places. These items were brought to us contained in an old covered cookie tin.

This grouping of civil war era accouterments was brought to us at the Aurora / Hudson Home and Garden Show. The owner found these in a house that he had purchased as a restoration project. What a great little unexpected gift. Among the items in the group were:

Civil War Union Belt Buckle

Two Powder Horns

A Set of Spurs

Bullet Mold

Cap Box

One Brass Epaulet

What are they worth? A lot of that questions answer lies in what additional information (if any)is available. The first question that we always ask when confronted with this type of collectible is do you have any provenance for the items? Who was the original owner? Where did they come from? Do you have any photography or documentation that might lead us to the original owner? These questions are very important in determining a valuation. A definable history can take a simple group of army surplus items and turn them into a gold mine. History can and will enhance the value of these types of military items. Always keep this in mind for your own collections. Every piece of information that you can obtain on these types of items will increase their value.

On this particular civil war grouping the owner had no additional information. Or so he thought. I dug a little further and found out the home that they came out of was an old family homestead that had been in one family up until the time that he purchased it. He believed that the home was originally built in the mid 1800's.

This great clue could help us in identifying the original owner of this grouping. Because of the strong history of the homestead we may be able to trace back and find out potential owners of the artifacts. I suggested to him that he should look into the history of the home and try to determine if there were any civil war veterans in the family. He said that he would look into it and contact me when he found out.

Valuation of this group will have to be based on intrinsic value only. Civil War belt buckles similar to the one shown sell for around $150, cap boxes sell for $150, powder horns $75 each, spurs $250, epaulets $4-500 and the bullet mold around $50. Total value for the group $1,250...not bad for something just left behind in the house. If these items can be traced to a decorated veteran the price can jump by 2 to 3 times or even more. Positively worth putting in a little research. Definitely a CASH IT.

Kalahari Show March 12,13 & 14, 2-4 pm Daily

Our next antiques and appraisal show will happen at the Kalahari Resort in Sandusky, Ohio. For anyone interested in attending the show will go from 2-4 pm March 12, 13, 14, 2010. Come on out we anticipate a great show.