Ask MetaFilter posts tagged with gold

Test their medal.

furtive — Tue, 19 Aug 2008 07:07:14 -0800

Who's the first person to bite their medal (photos or it never happened) during the Olympics? The earliest one I know of is 1988 but the practice must go back way earlier than that?

How can I sell these vintage gold watches?

twiggy32 — Fri, 11 Jul 2008 18:36:15 -0800

What's the best way to sell vintage gold watches? I have a 10k gold-filled Omega watch appraised at $900 and a 14k white gold Omega watch with 8 small diamonds appraised at $2800. Both are vintage ladies watches. I am looking for the best way to sell them that will bring in the most value and not result in me getting scammed. I have looked through previous threads, but they are either New York-specific or simply advise selling them for scrap. Since they are very small watches, I don't think selling them for scrap based on weight would bring anywhere near their value. Are there other options to sell these watches? Is eBay a good idea or a bad idea? What can I realistically hope to get for these watches? I'm in Arizona if it matters.

Is this gold?

Brodiggitty — Fri, 04 Jul 2008 12:30:48 -0800

Is that gold I'm seeing in this hunk of quartz? My girlfriend found the rock in Dawson City, Yukon while walking on the tailings of an old gold mine. I realize it's nowhere near pure, but amongst the grime and silvery metal, there is something metallic and gold coloured.

I know that veins of gold are found in quartz, and I'm fairly sure this is a hunk of quartz. The next picture in the album is the reverse side of the rock.

If it's not gold, what mineral/metal is it?

How would I go about buying gold?

muthecow — Wed, 28 May 2008 10:02:07 -0800

How would I go about buying gold? It has long been a fantasy of mine to buy some gold when I have a bit (lot) of spare cash. However I do not intend to buy it to trade on the commodities markets, rather I would like it delivered to my house. Right now this is a purely theoretical question, but in practice how would you go about doing this? Who would I ask to buy me a bar of gold and how would I go about getting it delivered to my house?

Furthermore could this then be extended to, say, buying a barrel of oil and having it shipped to my front door? How about wheat? Metals?

Identify this 80s movie featuring Indy-type blond heroine and... Aztecs?

gentle — Fri, 23 May 2008 13:30:57 -0800

Back in the 1980s, I remember watching a bizarre sort of Indiana Jones-copycat treasure-hunting/western movie. It featured a young, blond Daryl Hannah lookalike and possibly Aztecs who liked to dip humans head-first in liquid gold before decapitating them. It was fairly violent stuff, and one scene had the characters being horrified when one of their comrades returned headless on a horse. The whole thing must have been somewhat tongue-in-cheek, however, because it ended with a humorous 70s-style montage that set up a (presumably fake) sequel with the blond girl as a butt-kicking Indy-type heroine. I am pretty sure it was made in the 80s, and I remember the dialogue as being English, but I could be wrong; all I know is that Bud Spencer and Terence Hill weren't in it. Ring any bells?

Paris+Gold+Grain Metaphor =What book?

conch soup — Fri, 09 May 2008 17:03:09 -0800

What book is this? I remember an intro that describes Paris, focuses on gold, and has some analogy about the city's inhabitants being like wheat or grain. This is driving me crazy- I can remember the imagery but not the title or author. This was, I believe a book written more than 80 years ago, but not more than 300. I'd guess somewhere in the 1800s. Maybe I'm mixing up some detail, but I don't think so. I think the description is even in the first page of this book (I read it in college years ago) but my searches have turned up nothing. Paris+Gold+(some grain)Metaphor for humanity=?

How to create a final gold master

jimmy0x52 — Tue, 06 May 2008 07:43:00 -0800

Burning a gold master - special discs? Software? Burners? Need to burn a disc that's going into multi-thousand production duplication I'm creating a software program that's going to be distributed on DVD. Is there a special way of creating the final, master disc than just burning one in my computer's drive? Are there software, hardware and media considerations to take into account? These will need to be burned, and then shipped across the country for production.

Help me mefi's!

Selling gold in Cleveland

elmwood — Fri, 02 May 2008 09:02:21 -0800

I just got laid off from my job. Considering that I haven't worn my gold college ring in close to two decades, I'd like to sell it. However, the various "send us your gold" services advertised on television supposedly pay far below the market rate, and there's no New York City-style gold and jewelery merchants in the area. So, where can I sell a gold ring in Cleveland, and get a fair price for it?

I just wanna know where da gold

c:\awesome — Mon, 28 Apr 2008 15:36:26 -0800

Has anyone here taken the free tour of the New York Federal Reserve? If so, how was it? Did you get to see lots of gold bullion and cool vaults, or was it more educational and illustrative in nature?

Where's my cyberdollars?

greytape — Mon, 11 Feb 2008 10:39:42 -0800

Will a online, untraceable, virtual currency reshape the world as we know it? And if so, why hasn't it happened yet? I firtst learnt about virtual currencies through Neal Stephenson novels. In 'Cryptomonicon' our heros are searching for a colossal amount of gold to use as collateral for starting such a currency. Then in 'The Diamond Age' it is mentioned that it was the use of such an untraceable currency that destroyed the nation state as it meant governments could no longer collect taxes. Exciting stuff.

However, I've since spent a bit of time googling the issue, and have discovered that while currencies like this do already exist, they haven't taken the world by storm. Has Stephenson's idea of virtual money changing the world simply been proven false, or are we still waiting for some technological piece in the puzzle? And what would be the advantages to such a currency anyway?

How much per gram for 14kt gold necklace?

beelover — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 12:15:34 -0800

How much per gram for 14kt gold necklace? I am trying to sell a 14kt necklace. I know the weight in grams. What would be a good multiplier to help me to figure out the value of this necklace? I've seen everything from $14 per gram up to $21 per gram. I don't need the highest number just a fair one, which seems to be $16 or so.

Thanks.

Help me sell my gold

mr. remy — Sun, 23 Dec 2007 10:54:42 -0800

I found a 1910 Indian head ten dollar gold coin in my childhood piggy bank. It looks like this. I have seen it listed online for different values between $400 and $1700. I am broke and (regretfully) feel like I need to convert it into cash. How do I do this quickly, fairly, and for maximum profit?

Gold Power - the search for the Golden Fist Air Freshener

suitcase — Fri, 30 Nov 2007 09:04:40 -0800

Some dollar stores in Chicago used to sell these golden fist shaped air fresheners which were meant to be mounted on the dashboard. They put out a powery fresh scent were dead serious cool. The fist was clenched in the "power" position, made of gold colored plastic, and each finger had a gem ring. Can someome PLEASE help me locate this item, or at the very least, a picture of it?

Jewelers and their ubiquitous calculator... why?

ab5000 — Mon, 19 Nov 2007 08:18:03 -0800

Why do jewelers always insist of giving prices read from a calculator screen and not from the price tag of the piece I'm looking at? Do they give different people different prices? Or is it a way of accounting for fluctuating prices of gold or gems from week to week?

Anyone have experience or advice on selling Gold Krugerrand coins online?

pleuroma — Sun, 05 Aug 2007 05:54:01 -0800

My wife has some gold coins (South African Gold Krugerrand Coins - One Ounce) left to her by her grandparents and is looking to sell them. We live in East TN (Knoxville area). Any luck selling Krugerands in TN or online? There are a couple of places online that will buy them (goldmastersusa.com is one) and we are a little weary of sending in $3500 in gold coins to NY by mail. Please give us some advice or other options. Thanks hivemind.

Keeps me searching for a disk of gold.

LoriFLA — Wed, 25 Jul 2007 17:00:44 -0800

Where can I find trendy jewelry that the beautiful people wear? I know of Alex Woo.

What other places can I find current, "it" jewelry in precious metals without an outrageous price tag?

I've been seeing a lot of layered gold chains and fine gold chains with gold disks on celebrities. I like the look. I'm stuck on the idea of a single gold disk on a fine chain but I can't find one. I've tried QVC and other online jewelry sites without success. They're full of generic looking box chains and herringbones. Online jewelry sites that carry such things are greatly appreciated.

I have the printer, now I want gold!!

MarvinJ — Wed, 18 Jul 2007 05:05:29 -0800

Is there anyway to get a gold text print from a colour laser printer? So after my previous question, I bought the HP2605, and it's working well indeed, thanks mefi!
Now I want to stretch it! Is there anyway of printing gold or gold-ish text with it?

Should I have the gold plating on my watch renewed?

orange swan — Mon, 09 Jul 2007 11:38:33 -0800

After two years of almost daily wear, the gold plating is starting to wear off my beautiful and beloved Bulova watch. Is it worth my while to get the plating renewed? How expensive would that be? How long would it last?

Jewelry help

anonymous78 — Thu, 31 May 2007 09:57:33 -0800

How do I clean a rose gold pendant and chain? I purchased a rose gold necklace about two weeks ago and have been wearing it daily ever since. I just noticed though that the chain has become incredibly dull (like an old penny). I'm wondering if perhaps it reacted with the lotion I use. Has anyone had a similar experience? Regardless, is it possible to restore it to its former lustre? If so, how?

Gold and Platinum jewelry classes in NY

rmless — Fri, 13 Apr 2007 12:51:40 -0800

Where should I study jewelry-making in New York? (Looking for a full bench certificate program, not at a college and not an individual class, but flexible if it is an excellent class) I have taken some basic classes before and have worked with copper and silver, but I would like to learn more about stone polishing and setting (maybe even cutting) and working with gold, platinum, and plating. I would also like one with open studio hours so I can come back and practice outside of class.

I do not want to enroll full-time in a university program, but I would not mind taking classes at one if they don't require me to take classes in areas I already have experience with or don't have interest in.

The ideal program would not be full-time so I could have a part time job, but since I do want a thorough program, I am flexible on that.

Anyone been to a program like this in NY? Know of any good ones? Anything I should watch out for? Any other suggestions?

Fiancee's engagement ring causes rash/chemical burn type reaction on her finger. Please help.

donmayo — Fri, 06 Apr 2007 22:30:46 -0800

Just gave the fiancee her engagement ring. Problem is she has strange reaction. She gets a weird rash/chemical burn looking ring where the ring sits. The ring is 18karat white gold. Could it be an allergy to the gold? Could it be jewelry polish? What is a new (ignorant) fiancee to do to show her I can solve any problem?

Is Public Gold an MLM scam?

ObscureReferenceMan — Tue, 20 Mar 2007 10:36:08 -0800

ScamFilter: Is Public Gold a multi-level marketing scam? Or a "legit" MLM? A friend of mine is involved with something called "Public Gold", and will be extending me an invitation to a meeting. When she showed my the website, and it looks a little dodgy - has all the earmarks of an MLM scam. (BTW, if you go to the "base site", http://www.publicgold.com/, you get prompted for ID or member name. Odd.)

Doing a google search resulted in a number of PG "user sites", but not much more. Further digging at MLM "watchdog" sites (mlmwatch.org, mlm-thetruth.com, etc.) didn't yield anything either.

Saw one link in MLM.com forum that mentioned it in unflattering terms. Compared it to another potential scam called Gold Unlimited (I also know nothing of them). And mlm.com is a site for people running MLMs! So if they think it's a scam...

Does anyone know anything about Public Gold? All info, anecdotes, stories, links are welcome. Thanks!

Help me sell my bling

Anonymous — Tue, 13 Feb 2007 07:11:20 -0800

I've got a ring I'd like to sell. It's 14k white gold, about 7g. It's very simple, and somewhat blemished from wearing it and being clumsy and knocking it about. Where would I get the most money for it, and how can I calculate its raw material value (I know the raw price of gold, but being 14k and white...)?

Looking for Gold?

londongeezer — Sun, 28 Jan 2007 14:56:50 -0800

Impossible-to-find-movie-filter: I'm looking for a movie called (in translation) "Gold", more under the cut. I saw it once, playing on the tv in an arab cafe (Abu Ali) off the Edgware Road; the guy in the local video store, on the basis of my description, said it was probably "Gold", made in 1950s, starring as a child the Egyptian actress/singer Fairouz (various spellings exist I think), or, as he called her, Mrs Fairouz. It looked like an interesting movie, the main fascination being this child star doing a kind of Charlie Chaplin impersonation. Although I couldn't understand a word of it, I'd love to get hold of it. No trace of it as far as I can tell in imdb.com, although it was plainly a serious studio production.

buying gold

bkiddo — Tue, 23 Jan 2007 19:25:58 -0800

What's the cheapest way to buy and later sell physical gold? I bought and later sold American Eagles but I was charged a pretty hefty charge to sell as I remember.
I've held gold stocks (mining and indexes) but this time I want the real thing, just in case...
Someone said it's good to have just enough for the border guards. I'm not really that paranoid but it's always good to be prepared.