Category Archives: Silver

I have 100 ounces .999 fine silver bar from Tri-State refining and a 1 ounce Gold Eagle coin. Would you be interested in buying one or both pieces? From James in Columbia, Missouri

Hi James,

We do buy silver bars and gold coins. We can pay for 90% of the silver value in the bar for bars that are minted and for 90% of the gold value in the coins. We will pay you based on current market prices of gold and silver at the time of settlement. We would recommend insuring your items through the mail and make sure that you request the “Delivery Signature Required” option at the post office.

American Gold Eagle coins were first issued by the U.S. mint in 1986. Since then, Gold Eagle coins have risen to the rank of the #1 gold bullion coin. Gold Eagle coins are 91.67% fine gold (22 karat). The remaining is made up of silver and copper. Given this, they are not worth 1 ounce of gold as many people think and since buyers want to pay market price, we have to buy at a discount.

For more information about our gold coin refining service please visit our website.

I have several large silver serving trays I would like to sell and also a tea set with silver over copper. Would they be of any value to melt down? From Ryan in Phoenix, Arizona

Hi Ryan,

Silver serving trays can be worth a fair amount of money melted down but you need to make sure your materials are in fact sterling. Silver tableware pieces that we will be able to refine are usually marked or hallmarked with one of the following markings:

• Sterling
• .925
• 925/1000
• .800
• 800/1000
• .900
• 900/1000
• S
• SS

Find out more about where to sell silver for cash.

Markings on silverware can be located anywhere on the piece, but we see them most often on the backside close to the base of spoons, knives, and forks or on the back of the handle.

Because plated silver items have so little actual silver in them, they are not worth refining, consequently the tea set that you describe being copper and plated with silver will not be valuable to a precious metal refiner melted down. You may have more luck selling it online or checking with a local antique dealer.

If you are unsure about if your items are sterling silver or plated, watch this video that describes how to determine is a silver tray is sterling or plated.

Hi, I am wondering whether there is any value in recycling flatware that’s marked nickel silver, Panama silver, Brazil silver, Yukon silver, or Alaska silver? From Brandon in Wichita, Kansas

Hi Brandon,

Thanks for your question.. Nickel silver is named for its silvery appearance, but ironically it actually contains no elemental silver.

Nickel silver is different from plated silver in that nickel silver is not plated with silver and does not contain any real silver at all. Plated silver is metal that is actually covered in a very thin layer of silver. EP and EPNS are other markings that indicate plated silver.

Given that nickel silver has no actual silver content, it is not worth anything to precious metal refiners. Unfortunately, there is nothing of value to extract. With that being said, your pieces still might be worth something if you try to sell them on eBay or to a scrap metal dealer. Good luck!

If you have questions about silver war nickels visit our blog post “Silver Recovery from War Nickels”
Or visit our website for silver items that are valuable for their silver content on our Silver Refining webpage.

Hi I have 6 silver bars weighing a total of 743.69 ounces. I would like an estimate of the value. I would also like to know how and where to sell these bars. Thanks! From Sarah in Mobile, Alabama

Hi Sarah,

Thank you for your question! First off I am going to assume that your weight is in standard ounces and not in troy ounces, because that will effect the price a bit, but not significantly. We can pay you 75% of the bars’ fine silver value by weight. We do pay more for minted bars because they typically contain 99.9% silver and are made by certified manufacturers, but it sounds like yours are not minted or marked with a mint stamp — so they would be rough silver bars.

However, if they are not marked with a silver quality mark we will not know the true concentration of the fine silver they contain until we get your bars into our testing lab. They could be 70% fine silver by weight or less or more.

I recommend that you insure your shipment of silver bars assuming that your bars for an amount you are comfortable with. We recommend using US Postal Service’s flat rate shipping boxes. Also, make sure that you choose the “Delivery Signature Required” option at the post office.

Hope this information helps!

I have several silver dollar coins that I would like an estimate on. They are as follows:

Year / Number

1923 / 48
1922 / 30
1924 / 10
1925 / 10
1926 / 4
1927 / 3
1800’s / 47

Thanks! From Jordan in Cleveland, Ohio

Hi Jordan,

Thank you for your question. We would be able to pay you for 90% of the fine silver value on your silver dollars that you have described. However, we do not take into account the numismatic or collection value of any coins that we refine. Please send them to us if you know that the actual silver value is more than what you could get if you took them to a coin dealer.

I would especially recommend taking your coins from the 1800’s to a coin dealer to check on their collection value. Even coins that are not in pristine condition can still have collection value that may exceed its silver content value.

Let us know if you would like to refine your silver coins based on their silver content. Thanks!