Gold is a precious yellow coloured metal that has been an object of desire for the mankind since ages. It is used to make ornaments worn by men and women that last for a very long time. Gold is a very good investment option as its value keeps on increasing with passing time. It is a very liquid asset that can be sold in any part of the world to get quick money. Gold has become a symbol of purity and affluence. These are the reasons why people not only buy gold jewelry, but also buy gold in the form of coins and bars. However, there are many people who do not know how to buy gold. This article aims to help such people to be able to buy gold with confidence.
Tips on How to Buy Gold
Purity of Gold
The price of gold is dependent upon the quality of gold, its purity and its weight. Purest gold is not worth buying as gold in the purest form becomes soft and not suitable for making jewelry items. This is the reason gold is sold in impure form. This impurity is some other that is mixed with gold to make an alloy of gold. These metals that are mixed with gold make it hard and durable. So if the jeweler tells you the truth that the gold is impure, it only means that gold is actually an alloy made by mixing metals like zinc, nickel, copper, and even silver. Not all gold is equal in terms of purity. How to buy gold becomes easy by knowing its Carats. 24 Carat gold is the purest gold with gold percentage being the highest, but as described above, it is not worth buying if you are interested in gold ornaments. Jewelry made of 24 carat gold can get scratched easily, and it also bends when subjected to pressure. Gold coins can be marked on the Hallmark system as having a purity of 1000 or rather 999.
- 24 Carat gold has nothing added to it.
- 22 Carat gold is 916.6 fine on Hallmark system.
- 18 Carat gold is 750 fine on Hallmark system.
- 14 Carat gold is 585 fine.
- 9 Carat gold is 375 fine.
This means that in 18 Carat gold, out of 1000 parts, there are only 750 parts of gold while the remaining 250 parts is some metal. Now you know that Carats of gold does not denote its quality, but only purity. There is a simple formula to know the purity of gold if you know its Carats.
Carat = 24X (mass of gold/ Total mass of all other metals)
If you are buying jewellery, you will find that the most popular type of gold used to make ornaments is 18 Carat gold. This implies that it is 75% gold and 25% other metals.
Price of Gold
The price of gold that you are buying is dependent upon its purity as well as the metal that has been used to make the alloy. Then there are the making charges that depend upon the skill and labour required to make the jewelry item. This could be 10-20% of the price of gold. You pay higher than the actual price of gold, and the making charges are deducted when you go back to sell your gold.
Colour of Gold
If you think that gold is always yellow in color, forget it. There are many different shades in which you can buy gold these days. White gold is high in demand for wedding bands. It is obtained by mixing white metals such as silver or palladium with gold. Pink or rose gold is the result of mixing gold with copper. You can even buy gold in colours like purple, green, and even black.However, yellow gold remains the first choice of millions of gold lovers across the world. If you do not know how to buy gold, yellow seems to be the right choice as it gives a rich and warm feeling to the buyer.
Look at the Gold Identification Stamp
Because of the large number of cases where customers got cheated as they did not know how to buy gold, governments around the globe have introduced a mandatory identification system to allow customers to know the Carats of the gold they are buying. Under this identification system, gold jewellery, coins, and bars carry a clear stamp that displays their carats.
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