How to identify gold at home. Useful tips

Today you can find a lot of fake jewelry. How to distinguish gold from fake so as not to become a victim of scammers? There are many effective ways. The most reliable method is to check with a specialist. If he is not nearby, then there are some useful tips from jewelers.

Ways to recognize fake jewelry

First you need to consider the jewelry. It must have a special marking that is responsible for the authenticity of the gold. The hallmark or carat weight must be stamped. To facilitate inspection, it is advisable to use a magnifying glass. It is not always possible to distinguish the mark on antique metal. In the modern world, they have learned to test gold on fake gold, so this method is not always successful.

Over time, the gold plating wears off. You need to look at the edges of the product. If other metal is visible in the areas of wear, the item is not entirely made of gold.

Checking the product for bite

Previously, films were often shown where gold coins were tested for their “tooth”. And for good reason. After all, this way you can check not only coins, but also gold jewelry. For example, a ring or earring. The product must be pressed with your teeth. Now look at him. Real gold will leave teeth marks. The deeper the bite, the higher the test. However, we must not forget that lead is very soft, so it will also leave traces.

Ceramic check

Fake gold is easy to detect using this method. This test must be carried out very carefully as it is easily scratched. To do this, you will need an unglazed ceramic plate, that is, not covered with anything. Swipe the gold over it with light pressure. What is visible? The gold stripe is a natural product, the black stripe is a fake decoration.

Magnetic check

First you need to purchase a magnet. The one that hangs on the refrigerator is very soft and is not suitable for dough. The magnet must be a real, heavy one that interacts with the metal. Gold is never attracted. Therefore, feel free to bring the jewelry to the magnet. If it is attracted, then you are holding a real fake. There are cases when a magnetically passive component is added to a product. Then you can confuse gold with a fake. How to distinguish gold in such cases? Try the following method.

Application of nitric acid

Nitric acid will help identify fake gold from real gold. To do this, place the product in a metal container without stains. Next, you need to drop nitric acid from a pipette onto the product. If the gold changes color and becomes greenish, then you are conducting an experiment with ordinary metal. The gilded product takes on a milky hue. If the gold is real, then no reaction will take place.

Sound test

If you take a gold item and throw it on the surface of the table, then the real metal will ring loudly, like crystal. For such an experience, rings, earrings, but not long jewelry (chains, bracelets) are suitable.

Vinegar test

Pour some vinegar into the container and place the decoration there. Nothing bad will happen to real gold, but fake gold will darken in two minutes.

Iodine test

Iodine is a very good test for the authenticity of jewelry. To do this, you only need to apply one drop to the inside of the product. Gold will remain unchanged. The fake decoration will darken. It can become either light gray or black.

Any chemical testing is possible only on the surface of the jewelry. The inside is checked when a person is ready to destroy the product.

You can also ask experts how to distinguish gold from a fake, who will help you quickly and using several ways to determine whether the jewelry is real. Gilding is almost real metal.

Determining gold plating

Many consumers are interested in: “how to distinguish gold from gilding?” With the slightest knowledge this is not difficult to do. Usually gold plating is not tested. The gold alloy will not be able to lie on top of the metal. Only real noble metal will fit. If you see a product with hallmarks: 585, 750, 350, 500 - this is gold with added impurities. On pure precious metal there can be only one standard - 999. If gold foil was used, then they can put another standard besides those on real metal.

Important! A sample does not always guarantee the authenticity of a product. Sometimes small scratches can be seen. This often means that the item is not entirely gold, but only has a clasp on or near the item. Everything else may turn out to be gold.

To check the jewelry yourself, you can lightly scrape the product in an inconspicuous area. The gilding will come off slightly, but the gold will remain unchanged.

A lapis pencil is also suitable for checking. It is sold in any pharmacy. The scraping area must be moistened with water and drawn over it with a pencil. Any metal other than gold will darken.

A simple experiment can be done to test gold. Turn on the burner and heat the product over it (300-400 degrees). Then quickly throw it into cold water. Gold will not change, but stains will appear on other metals.

You should never purchase gold from dubious establishments and stores. These should be specialized jewelry departments, where there are quality certificates and specialists work. After all, some unscrupulous sellers refer to the fact that samples are not taken abroad. You can't believe this. Any import of gold jewelry is not permitted without a stamp and relevant documents.

Sometimes you come across products that have the 583rd mark on them. Many people don't know about it. These jewelry were made in Soviet times and fakes of such products are extremely rare. Therefore, if you come across a 583 sample, do not be alarmed.

Recognizing copper

The famous scientist Aristotle believed that the best way to distinguish copper from real gold is to taste both. If you drink water from a metal cup that contains copper, it will taste metallic. The golden cup does not give off any taste.

Copper tends to oxidize when interacting with oxygen, that is, in air. Therefore, unlike gold, it will darken over time.

Imitation gold

A variety of alloys are used for fake gold jewelry.

Aluminum bronze, which resembles gold in color. This alloy consists of 90% copper and 10% aluminum.

Aluminum bronze coin.

Belgica is an alloy similar to platinum. It contains about 74% iron, approximately 16% chromium, and almost 9% nickel.

Mosaic gold, which includes almost 70% copper and 30% zinc. Gives a hint of native gold.

Product made from tombac.

Tompak - this alloy is very similar to real gold. It is often brought by tourists from Turkey, Israel or China. If you don’t know how to distinguish gold, it’s better not to buy it in these countries.

There are a huge number of such alloys. Thanks to such materials, they learned to imitate real gold. Most often it is transported through smuggling. Counterfeiting gold is a very common phenomenon. Try not to fall into the “trap”.

How to avoid fraud?

To avoid buying a fake, you need to follow simple rules.

You should not buy gold jewelry from traders in markets or dubious stalls where there are no appropriate documents. Sellers very often offer fakes.

Don't trust your intuition, because it can fail you at the most inopportune moment. Don’t think that a product is too cheap - this does not mean that it is of high quality. Gold must be hallmarked, even if it is made to order.

Do not buy jewelry that contains an alloy of titanium and gold. In appearance they resemble 585 gold, but most likely they do not contain precious metal.

If a product has a hallmark or a tag hanging on it, this does not guarantee the content of yellow metal. A poorly versed consumer will not always be able to distinguish a fake even with the help of numerous experiments.

If a buyer knows the real price of a product and suddenly sees the same thing, but cheaper, this does not always mean that it is a fake. It is necessary to pay attention not only to external data, but also to size, weight and manufacturer. It is from this data that prices vary. You can also end up with a high-quality fake, which is extremely difficult to distinguish from real precious metal.

Every jewelry professional has special equipment that can be used to determine the quality and price of the metal. Of course, the easiest way to find out how to distinguish gold from copper, for example, is advice from a professional. Even if the service is paid, the person will be confident in the authenticity of the jewelry.

According to the latest statistics, the number of fake jewelry present on the market is about 40%. This figure is amazing. Unlike the good old days, when you could only buy fake jewelry from your hands or from under the counter, now you can also get caught in a store. Gilding is often passed off as gold, so you need to know how to distinguish gold from gilding.

Brand

Although scammers have long proven their skill in imitating a government stamp, this is still the first thing you should pay attention to. There is a good chance that not very experienced swindlers will not bother with faking the brand or will not do it very carefully. As for hallmarking gold and gilding, the following stamps are accepted in Russia:

  • On the gold there is a mark in the form of a spatula with the image of the head of a girl in a kokoshnik looking to the right, and a hallmark. Standard gold samples that can be found in a jewelry store: 375, 585, 750. As a rule, other samples are rare. If the product was made in the Soviet Union, then the hallmark will depict a star, inside a hammer and sickle, and instead of 585, it will be 583.
  • Gilding is not marked with any specific marks. If the coating is applied to silver, the mark will have the appearance of silver. The images are the same, only the shape of the stamp is not a spatula, but a barrel. The hallmarks for silver are 925 and 875, it can also be 916 if the product is made in the USSR.
Gilt or gold?

Gold plating markings abroad

First of all, it is worth remembering that in Europe and America, gold and silver have a different hallmark system - karat. Therefore, the marking will be different and look like this: 8K, 10K, 14K or 24K. 24K is pure gold, other hallmarks mean the amount of gold in parts of 24. If the product is made entirely of gold, then, as a rule, this is all that is indicated on it. But with gilding the situation is somewhat more complicated.

There are two fundamentally different groups of gold-plated products:

  • gilding by galvanic method - gold plated, gold washed or gold finished;
  • gold filling - gold filled (GF) or Rolled Gold.

The first method is the most common and involves electroplating the base metal with a thin layer of gold. The thickness of such a coating is several microns. The base metal, which is brass or copper, and occasionally silver, is coated with pure gold. The thickness of the layer is not regulated in any way, although with high-quality production several layers are applied so that the coating lasts longer.

Sometimes sellers or manufacturers will put a mark on the product, for example, GP 14K, which is supposed to mean plating with 14 karat gold, however, this is a deception. The fact is that due to the peculiarities of the galvanizing procedure, it is not possible to coat the metal with an alloy. That is, the only standard that can be plated on jewelry is 999, or 24 carats, which means pure gold.

The second method is more expensive and of higher quality. It consists of rolling a layer of gold onto a preheated substrate. In this case, there may be a sample and it will most likely correspond to reality. Using this method, jewelry can be coated with any gold color and grade. The thickness of the layer will be much greater than with galvanic coating and, accordingly, will last longer. Sometimes you can hear that the product is covered with gold foil, which corresponds to the filling method.

Home testing methods

Of course, you can dispel all doubts and make sure that the product is not gold-plated, you can go to a pawnshop or a jewelry workshop. But if you don’t want to contact them, there are ways to check at home:

  • If, during a detailed inspection, you notice scratches on the clasp or near the place where the sample is located, then you should not take such a product. Perhaps the clasp was sent for testing, and the rest of the product was not made of precious metal, but simply gilded.
  • Alcohol or silver nitrate will help distinguish gold from gilding. The latter can be purchased at the pharmacy. You can wipe your jewelry with it. If you are using silver nitrate, wipe the piece with water before applying it to the gold. Nothing will happen to the gold jewelry, but the gold plating will darken.
  • You can also simply scratch the product. This will help distinguish gilding from gold if it is applied by electroplating. To distinguish the gilded coating using the knurling method from gold, you will need to scratch the metal a little deeper with some kind of tool.
  • A product gold-plated by electroplating cannot have any color other than yellow-gold. It will not resemble the common gold with a reddish tint, and such gilding cannot be applied in white. In order to give the jewelry a white color, they use the rolling method or plate it with another metal, such as silver.
  • If you bought a piece and wore it for about a week, after which it darkened or the top coating wore off, you can be sure that it is not real gold.
  • Be careful if you buy gold plated items. Ask the seller what kind of base the gold plating was applied to. Try to purchase jewelry where the base is medical steel - there is little chance that it will cause allergies.
  • Ask the store clerk to check the product. They often have assay needles or special reagents to do this.
  • You can test your jewelry using gold chloride. It is a special reagent for determining its sample. On low-grade or counterfeit metal, gold chloride will leave a brown stain.

A gold-plated item will not look worse than gold, but it will last much less. Although gold-plated silver is sometimes a good alternative. And with high-quality application, it will last a long time, and when the coating wears off, it can be renewed.

Gold is a precious metal, an eternal subject of disputes and conflicts between people. It will probably never lose its relevance. And not only beautiful jewelry is made from it. It is part of various microcircuits and digital equipment.

If the product is made entirely of gold 99,9% , then it can be easily bent. After all, gold is a soft metal. Therefore, in order to increase its strength, other metals are mixed into it. Thus, we get our 585 sample - 58,5% Is this gold, 41,5% there will be impurities. Nowadays, when almost everything is counterfeited, gold products are no exception. In the declared sample, either the percentage of gold may be less than 58,5 , or there will be no gold at all. How can you figure out for yourself whether the gold in the jewelry is real? Here are the most common and accessible methods.

How to check at home

Try

Determining the gold sample

It is advisable to arm yourself with a magnifying glass or magnifying glass. Carefully study the sample - its shape and boundaries. On a real gold product try It has:

  • clear boundaries
  • well-readable digits of the sample number,
  • manufacturer's icon.

If the sample is uneven and all its inscriptions merge, then this is a reason to suspect a fake. It is worth noting that antique gold items may also have a washed-out hallmark, so be aware.

"On the tooth"

Feel like the hero of a movie about the Middle Ages and try to squeeze your ring, for example, with your teeth. The higher the sample, the clearer the mark from your teeth will be. Although, the same trick can be done with tin.

Ceramics

To check this method, you need to take unglazed dishes. We pass the product along the walls of the dish, pressing lightly. Be careful not to scratch the decoration. Look at the trace that remains: yellow symbolizes the originality of the jewelry, but the dark, black color will tell you that the jewelry is clearly not gold.

The speed of circulation of money lies in the intensity of its movement. To correctly analyze the speed of money turnover, you need to pay attention to some of the nuances of this concept in the modern financial sphere. Along with this term, the closely associated term “money supply” is used. In this context, money is viewed as a means to achieve certain goals. This indicator measures the number of transactions. Accordingly, in these transactions the immediate operating unit is money. The time period must be at least a year. A high rate of cash turnover is an indicator of relatively rapid expenditure of funds and high market conditions (market activity). Also, the high circulation speed reduces the need for additional emission (printing new money). But there is also a negative reason for the high speed of money turnover - distrust in the national currency and the rapid desire of market participants to get rid of it. The slow circulation of the money supply indicates a low coefficient of placement of the national product. But there may also be a positive reason for the slow turnover of funds - this is the desire of market participants to save the money supply in long-term bank deposits. Which in turn is caused by confidence in the national currency and its value. The amount of money supply is inversely proportional to money circulation. Below the formula, methods for adjusting the speed of cash turnover will be discussed. With the development of economic progress thanks to electronic payments, the speed of money circulation has become more stable than before. The goods were always tied to money, and the distance of the same trade routes was relative. For example, merchant ships, with a good tailwind, could cover a distance in a week that would take months to sail under normal weather conditions. On land, war and weather conditions were also often obstacles. In those days, indicators of the rate of turnover of the money supply fluctuated much more often. There are facts in history when, after trading in ports, entire cities were left without cash coins. There was nowhere to borrow them at any interest rate.

Formula for calculating the speed of money circulation

The concept of money circulation implies the number of turnovers of the entire mass of monetary resources per year. This value is often calculated indirectly: the total number of transactions divided by the volume of money supply in circulation. To determine the speed in government monetary circulation, you will need the following formula:

  1. Number of Turnovers created by money circulation:
    • KO = GDP / M (Money supply);
  2. average duration of money supply turnover:
    • PO = M: GDP / D (Calendar days);
  3. the obtained indicators are proportional:
    • KO = D/PO or PO = D/KO.

In the speed of circulation of money, one can highlight its main indicators. This group includes:

  1. The speed of national currency turnover in the cash desks of central banks.
  2. The speed of flow of cash in circulation.

The first indicator comes from the ratio:

  • amounts received at the cash desks of the country's main bank;
  • funds in current bank accounts;
  • average indicator for the year for cash flows that are in circulation.

The second indicator displays the values ​​of cash flows, which correlate with each other:

  • A) the amount of money issued through central cash desks;
  • B) the average annual mass of monetary resources in cash circulation.

Of course, such an indicator as the speed of circulation of money is carefully controlled at the state level. After all, this parameter predetermines the financial capabilities of a particular state. Without indicators of the speed of payment flows and money, it is impossible to make any preliminary financial calculations for the future development of the state. When calculating the speed of circulation of the national currency, we must not forget that this is an average indicator. This means that some deviations are possible, but minor. Another important point: the money turnover rate shows the number of times per year that a monetary unit is used to purchase goods or services. This parameter is in some way indicative of obtaining a real picture of the “solvency” of the population. In other words, the velocity of money flow refers to the frequency of use of a specific monetary unit per year.

Regulation and control over the speed of cash turnover

The speed of money circulation is regulated in the following ways:

  • analysis and accounting of the banking sector;
  • regular control of cash flows;
  • reserve funds of banknotes and coins are created;
  • implementation of rules for storage, transportation and collection of national currency;
  • Banknotes are regularly replaced and destroyed;
  • rules for cash transactions are determined and introduced.

The issue of money, as well as the reverse process - the withdrawal of currency from circulation - is subject to state regulation. The entire monetary policy of any country is subordinated to this area. Regulation is carried out in accordance with state banking legislation. The speed of money turnover is directly related to the banking sector. These include:

  • state banks;
  • territorial branches of central banks;
  • commercial banks of the state and foreign investors.

To simplify control over the speed of turnover of the national currency, territorial cash settlement centers are being created. They combine in their structure working cash registers and reserve funds with a reserve of banknotes and coins, which are not yet put into circulation, but only as needed. The cash desks accept and issue cash. There is a certain limit for currency balances. If the limit is too high, the surplus goes to the reserve fund. These funds are no longer in circulation.

Non-cash transfers – high-speed turnover of national currency

Today, an important role is played by the control and regulation of non-cash cash flows, which significantly increase the circulation speed of the national currency. When transferring funds from an account of one bank to accounts in another bank, transactions go through interbank intermediaries - Cash Settlement Centers. All RCCs are structural divisions of the state central bank. To transfer non-cash national currency, different forms are used:

  • money orders;
  • payment requirements;
  • letters of credit;
  • checks;
  • collection operations.

Preferences for choosing forms for non-cash transfers are determined depending on the general economic situation in the state:

  • inflation;
  • nature of payment;
  • financial reputation of counterparties.

The largest flow of non-cash transfers goes through:

  • between organizations;
  • enterprises and banks;
  • government organizations and budgetary structures;
  • between all types of organizations and the population.

Every person in his life encounters a situation when he needs to check gold for authenticity. Imagine a situation where your work colleagues or neighbors offer to check and buy gold in the form of a product. In this case, the conventional monetary unit is a gold product, and there is no specialist nearby who could determine its quality. And most importantly, you must be sure that the item belongs to them. Because you will survive the purchase of a counterfeit easier than a criminal offense.

Let's assume that a colleague urgently needs money to buy a car and you are offered to buy a signet. The motive is clear; by selling the product to you, he will receive more money than if he sells it off. The willows benefit him too. A colleague assures me that the purchase is very profitable, the product is worth it, they say, get the money. We don’t take their word for it, and some people themselves don’t know that they haven’t been wearing gold for years. There is a great desire to buy, we mentally stop ourselves and start checking.

Checking the features of gold products

To know how to test gold, you should familiarize yourself with the properties of this noble metal:

  1. The first property of gold is the softness of the metal. Scratches and nicks gradually appear on a worn product. Even with very careful wear, the product cannot be perfectly polished like in a store. This especially applies to rings, bracelets, and items that are worn on open areas of the body. Less towards chains and piercings. If you are allowed, then take a pin or any sharp object and scratch the product. As a last resort, you can take a small bite. You will feel the softness of the metal and a groove, or tooth mark, will remain.
  2. Gold tends not to be magnetic. You may not have a magnet at hand, but if you have one, it’s a good idea to check. Moreover, magnets are often found in everyday life, for example magnets on speakers.
  3. Visual analysis. Upon careful examination of the product, in the places where its parts join, the metal will differ in color and will be a little brighter. This is because products are soldered using gold solder of a higher standard, which is easier to melt. This can be seen at the joints of weaving links, less often on rings and earrings. This sign indicates that you are holding gold in your hands.
  4. Gold can even be tested by smell. Noble red metal has no odor. This is easy to check. Take any metal object, maybe even silver, and rub it in your hands. Then sniff it, and you will feel a distinct smell of metal; you won’t confuse it with anything. It shouldn't be on gold.
  5. Analysis of the sample seal. If you are so lucky that you have a magnifying glass at hand, then it would be a good idea to look at the sample. If it is, then pay attention to its clarity. You won’t be able to immediately learn to determine the authenticity of a mark, but remember that a hallmark is an official state mark and it cannot be crooked, oblique, or blurred. And so, we saw a clear imprint with the hallmark numbers 375, 585 or 750, which is good, but if we didn’t see it, we began to doubt it.

It is easier and more profitable to make a fake from a large product. Foreign metal or a substance such as resin can be soldered into massive products to increase the weight of the product. For this reason, it is advisable to refuse the purchase if you are offered a massive ring or a chain that looks more like an anchor chain. You will never know what's inside. Pay attention to the inserts. If they exist and there are many of them. On the one hand, this is good. Counterfeiting such a product is difficult and not profitable. On the other hand, keep in mind that the weight of the inserts, and more often they are made of glass, is in no way equivalent to the weight of gold. In terms of cost, these are dummies; they cost nothing.

The 2 best ways to check gold for authenticity and fake gold plating

Iodine is the best marker for gold. If you apply a drop of iodine to gold, it will immediately react and form a stain. No metal except gold reacts with iodine. Sometimes you need to wipe the surface of a gold item well to check. You can remove stains from gold using Coca Cola or Schwepps. You need to let the gold product sit in the drink for half an hour.

Lapis pencil is an antiseptic drug based on silver nitrate. On the contrary, unlike iodine, it does not react with gold, but activates the reaction with any other metals. This allows you to check products for gilding. True, to do this you need to make a cut in an inconspicuous place, soak a lapis pencil with water and anoint the surface of the cut with it. To conduct reliable tests with a lapis pencil you need to spend 5 minutes. Because different metals undergo a reaction with different time periods. For example, bronze alloy requires at least 3 minutes to clearly see the reaction to the pencil.

Remember that buying gold from friends is justified when they offer you a really good price, everything indicates that the product is gold and you like everything. You need to understand that without washing down, even a specialist will not be able to fully check a gold-plated product without the appropriate equipment and acid markers.

It is prohibited to issue non-cash monetary forms. But it is important to understand that cash and non-cash funds are strongly interconnected. Any non-cash transaction begins with the deposit of cash into a bank account. Afterwards they appear on the credit accounts of counterparties, who can withdraw non-cash money through banks. For non-cash transactions, money is used exclusively in national currency. Non-cash transactions in foreign currency within the state are strictly prohibited, for obvious reasons.

More valuable than gold is power over those who have it.

Today, the number of jewelry stores is increasing, and gold mining is decreasing. So what drives business development? Some say that gold will never go out of style, while others say that stores sell fake gold. So who to believe and how to independently distinguish a precious metal from a fake?

A fake is different from a precious metal, but often the difference is difficult to detect even for a jeweler. But you can determine which jewelry was purchased in a store yourself at home. The following will help you recognize fake gold:

  1. Vinegar.
  2. Pencil to stop bleeding.
  3. Paper.
  4. Magnet.
  5. Other gold jewelry.

Testing gold with vinegar

Expertise from a jeweler is considered the most reliable. A specialist will help establish the authenticity of the product and issue a conclusion.

So, several ways to distinguish real gold from fake.

Acetic acid oxidizes metals, but it will not have any effect on gold. You can put a piece of jewelry in a glass of vinegar and water and see what happens to it. Gold will not make the water cloudy, its color will remain the same, but if a fake was immersed in a glass of acid, the water will become dark, cloudy, and the jewelry will darken.

To be fair, it is worth noting that pure gold is rare. Jewelry is made from alloys. This happens because gold is a very ductile metal.

Iodine will leave a mark on poor-quality jewelry; it can be dark or light yellow. Counterfeiting gold has long become widespread, so the first rule for a buyer is to choose a store that sells precious items.

Testing a gold ring with iodine

The gold-like metal can be identified using a pencil to stop bleeding. You should run a lapis pencil over the decoration, and if a noticeable mark remains, it means it is a fake.

Two different decorations can be drawn across a piece of paper. One must be selected for testing, and the quality of the other cannot be doubted. If the stripes remaining on the paper are the same, then the product being tested is of high quality.

To check you will need two gold items. They are visually compared with each other, using a magnifying glass to determine the quality of the decoration.

other methods

How to distinguish gold from fake? There are several answers to this question; the following will help determine the quality of the product:

  • sample on decoration;
  • “tooth test”;
  • light adaptation.

The first step is to carefully examine the sample on the jewelry. If it is fuzzy, cloudy, and the numbers are poorly visible, it is better to put this decoration aside.

In some cases, the sample is placed on a lock or on a mount. Therefore, it is worth carefully examining the decoration; perhaps there is another sample somewhere.

In films about the Wild West, the question of how to distinguish valuable metal from a fake was not relevant. The coins were checked “by the tooth”. Since gold is a ductile metal, it will leave a small dent on its surface. But if, after such a check, the jewelry turns black at the “bite” site, then this indicates its low quality.

The light and shadow test is the simplest and can be easily done in the store. The precious metal shines equally in the shade and in the sun. If under the rays of the sun the jewel sparkled with new colors, but in the shadow it looked faded and unattractive, then it is a fake.

How to distinguish copper from gold? Very simple. Copper turns green when in contact with water, and it is also more durable and less ductile. It is present as an alloy in precious jewelry, this should not be forgotten.

Gold is not attracted to a magnet.

Checking a gold ring with a magnet

How to recognize gilding?

Experts know how to distinguish fake from real gold, but sometimes they make mistakes. Cunning manufacturers do not send a whole product for inspection, but only a part of it, for example, the links of a chain or the lock of a bracelet.

The expert tests the product, and the manufacturer embeds a lock into a piece of low-quality jewelry.

Most often, brass and gold plated are passed off as precious metals. How to distinguish gold from brass? For this you will need:

  • ceramic tableware;
  • gold product.

The ceramic product must be uncoated. The decoration is passed over it, and if a dark mark remains on the surface of the dish, it means it is a fake. The gold will leave a streak of yellow.

If you need to recognize gilding, you can scratch it behind the film of precious metal: a black stripe will appear, which indicates the low quality of the jewelry.

How to distinguish good quality gold from fake? Temperature will help with this. You need to heat the decoration over the stove. High temperature will not affect the noble metal in any way, but the fake will change: dark stains will appear on its surface.

You can throw the jewelry on a smooth, flat surface. Noble metal will make a characteristic sound, but this method of testing is not suitable for chains and bracelets, as well as long earrings.

What jewelry should you not buy?

If there is a decoration on the surface:

  1. Scuffs.
  2. Roughness.
  3. Chips.
  4. Fuzzy sample.
  5. The product has an uneven color.

Jewelry has a characteristic cold shine. They should be even and smooth, the color of the product should be the same with tints of shade. No dark stains or stripes are allowed.

The higher the standard, the better the quality of the product, but it is impossible to find pure gold in the store. The most popular hallmarks are 585 and 750, these jewelry are of high quality, but the precious metal is mixed with silver, copper and other metals that have no value. All in order to increase the durability of the decoration.

According to experts, gold from Turkey most often turns out to be fake and of low quality. The Turks can test any test for fake gold on the street. Therefore, you should be careful when purchasing gold products and avoid dubious sellers and points of sale. An unscrupulous merchant will never tell the buyer how to recognize a piece of jewelry. He will simply praise his product.