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Getting A Good Price For Your Gold


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The recent sale of a 75 ounce nugget for around $400,000 equates to over $5000 per ounce, even more considering the nugget is not pure gold.

This illustrates something I have told people in my classes in the past. It is only half about how much gold you find. The other half is how much do you get for the gold you find?

A person finding an ounce of gold and selling it for $3000 is more successful than a person who finds two ounces of gold and sells it for $2000 total. The first person may have a nice specimen piece and sells it to a collector. The second person has some small gold sold to a refiner.

Just something to think about. We all want to find a lot of gold. But think also about the quality of the gold you are finding, and ways to sell your gold to obtain the best price possible.

Currently I never sell gold for less than $2000 per ounce, and sell it steadily for that or more. Most of it is in the form of gold I package up and sell as panning gold though my old shop in Alaska. In fact, they are sold out and I need to ship them some more as soon as I make the time. Just one of many ways to maximize the value obtained for gold you sell.

Mine I sell simply because gold itself holds no real value for me. It just sits in the safe deposit box doing nothing. I can't even show it off except for photos, and those are good even after the gold is gone. So my goal is to just get a price for it that I consider acceptable so I can use it to fund my prospecting activities, buy equipment, etc. I prospect as a for profit business and I have to maintain a positive cash flow to stay in the black. That being the case, getting top dollar is the name of the game.

There is always the other strategy. Never sell it, until you die, then let the wife or kids sell it for you! Chances are they will not get a good price for it though, so best you do it for them.

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I'm in the same boat as you Steve.......just do it a bit different by making jewelry from my gold.

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Just something to think about. We all want to find a lot of gold. But think also about the quality of the gold you are finding, and ways to sell your gold to obtain the best price possible.

There is always the other strategy. Never sell it, until you die, then the wife or kids sell it for you!

Mine I sell simply because gold itself holds no real value for me. It just sits in the safe deposit box doing nothing. I can't even show it off. So my goal is to just get a price for it that I consider acceptable so I can use it to fund my prospecting activities, buy equipment, etc. I prospect as a for profit business and so have to maintain a positive cash flow to stay in the black. That being the case, getting top dollar is the name of the game.

 

Definitely something to think from all of what you've said Steve and in particular from within the quote above, is the decision I find the hardest and yet to make, do I leave it for the rest of the family or part with it as you do.  

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I'm in the same boat as you Steve.......just do it a bit different by making jewelry from my gold.

Good for you.  I have a couple of variscite and turquoise claims and have started learning silversmithing.  Haven't yet tried working with gold.  I'm at the point now where I want to make a decision over priorities and spend more time detecting and avoid some of my numerous distractions.

 

About selling gold, my plan and goal is to find a new undiscovered patch or pocket rather than work over old sites.  The good part is that every trip is a good adventure that money can't really buy, gold or not. 

 

Bob

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I recall you talking about your method of selling gold when I heard you speak in person Steve. I think I'm going to try something along those lines as well. I really would like to get a more modern detector than what I have, the GB2, with proceeds from selling my previous finds.

 

Do you have an opinion which would be best between the ATX or the SDC 2300 for gold along the rivers of the most northern rivers of California? The Smith, the Klamath and the Trinity.

 

Thanks,

Mike

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Mike, let me put my 2 cents in here for the Salmon river...

 

Much of the bedrock is too hot for the GB2.  I know from experience.

 

You will do best with a PI and a small coil.

 

BTW, I do have the ATX and have no problem finding nuggets with it.  I wish I could afford the small coil though.

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On 10/29/2014 at 8:10 PM, delnorter said:

I recall you talking about your method of selling gold when I heard you speak in person Steve. I think I'm going to try something along those lines as well. I really would like to get a more modern detector than what I have, the GB2, with proceeds from selling my previous finds.

Do you have an opinion which would be best between the ATX or the SDC 2300 for gold along the rivers of the most northern rivers of California? The Smith, the Klamath and the Trinity.

Thanks,

Mike

Both good machines for working around and in water. Frankly, if you can afford it, get the SDC. But if not the ATX is close.

I used to make simple gold nugget jewelry and may have to get back into it. Just pendants, ear rings, and tie tacs. Does anyone buy tie tacs anymore?

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Thanks Harry, I was hoping you would chime in. The Salmon River is actually where I found my first nugget and with the GB2. This machine does "talk" too much in our neck of the woods. 

 

Hey, how did you do buck hunting this year? I got a nice 3 pointer up by Reeves Ranch Spring a couple weeks ago when it snowed pretty heavy in the high country for one day. Drove the truck as far as I could then started hiking through the snow. It was a really neat hunt. My boys couldn't make it so I went solo. I'll post a picture when I transfer photos.

 

Mike

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Thanks Steve, from reading your other threads I kind of thought the SDC might be a little better for this environment. 

I'm sure I could do a search on the basics of jewelry from natural gold, but do you have any books or links you would recommend for the beginner. I'm a pretty good maker of rustic children's chairs and other furniture, but have never tackled jewelry.

Mike 

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