Get Precious Metal Calculator

Real precious metals typically have markings that indicate purity, weight, and other key identifying factors. On bars and ingots, hallmarks or required markings are usually right on top. On jewelry, the hallmark is usually near the clasp or in another discreet location.

To calculate the purity level of 22-karat gold, you just divide 22 by 24 (as 24-karat is 100%) pure.

Use an Unglazed Ceramic Plate Place an unglazed ceramic plate on a flat surface and then scrape your precious metal against the plate. You're looking for any streaking or lines. With gold, if you get a black line, you have a gold item and not one that's just gold-plated.

Touchstone testing compares how precious metal alloys of known and unknown fineness react to acid. For gold, the test is based on the fact that 24K gold resists all but the strongest acids. The purer the gold (the higher the karatage), the stronger the acid required to change its character or to dissolve it.

Magnetic Metals Metals you may encounter less often but are magnetic include neodymium, samarium, and gadolinium. The only time an item containing gold or silver could stick to magnets is if it was silver or gold plated.

There are five main methods for analyzing precious metals. Scratch and Acid Test: The first method is the scratch and acid test, in which one uses a touch stone to scratch the piece of jewelry or metal, and then you pour different types of acid to determine the karats. ... Gold Electronic Testers. ... Fire Assay. ... Lab Analysis.

Real precious metals typically have markings that indicate purity, weight, and other key identifying factors. On bars and ingots, hallmarks or required markings are usually right on top. On jewelry, the hallmark is usually near the clasp or in another discreet location.