Message:

<p>[QUOTE=&quot;drg642, post: 4383583, member: 74&quot;]Be careful using 18k acid to test for silver, especially for non-jewelry items.&nbsp; You can get the milky white result if something is heavily plated.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>There is a secondary test I sometimes do, which I learned from the guy I used to scrap silver to.&nbsp; Be aware this will likely damage the piece if it is not silver.&nbsp; Rub the piece on a testing stone, then dip the rubbed spot in a drop of 14K acid.&nbsp; If it discolors to a grayish color which you you can then polish back to silver, leaving no trace of the gray, it is silver.&nbsp; If you get tiny bubbles, sometimes with green, or if you can not polish the spot out, it is not silver.&nbsp; You may need magnification to see the bubbling.</p><p><br /></p><p>I&#039;ve experimented with this with known pieces of silver and silver plate.&nbsp; I have found pieces of silver plated flatware that pass the 18K test but fail the 14K test.&nbsp; I don&#039;t recall ever finding a piece of jewelry that passes 18k but fails 14k.&nbsp; </p><p><br /></p><p>I have tested pieces which I think are rhodium plated, and sometimes find I can not quite polish the 14k testing spot back to the original shine, but I think this is because the acid has eaten through the rhodium, so the spot is not as shiny as the rest of the piece.&nbsp; This is just my guess about it and it may not be accurate.[/QUOTE]</p><p><br /></p>

Your name or email address:

Do you already have an account?

• No, create an account now.
• Yes, my password is:
• Forgot your password?

Stay logged in