Best Place To Sell Unwanted Wedding Ring?
Discussion
Asking on behalf of a mate, he has both his and his former partners wedding ring which are now surplus to requirement. I believe her ring is platinum with a 0.33ct diamond, the engagement ring is platinum with a 0.44ct diamond with a colour of D and a clarity of VS2. His ring is a platinum band.
He has the receipts, boxes etc and whilst he does want to sell them asap and get rid of any memories associated with them it would be nice to get as much back as possible. Any suggestions on the best place to list them for sale?
He has the receipts, boxes etc and whilst he does want to sell them asap and get rid of any memories associated with them it would be nice to get as much back as possible. Any suggestions on the best place to list them for sale?
99% of buyers will only offer the scrap value of the materials in question. Second hand wedding rings are not that popular regarding re-use for obvious reasons. They are only good for remelting and recycling. Be prepared for lots of people asking how much they weigh.
That said, if you can find a buyer that doesn't care about 'failed wedding' rings you might get a bit more.
As a value guide, you should only really expect 10% to 15% of what was paid in return for your goods. Metal is priced per gram of material and the stones are valued at slightly less than can be bought for in the trade, otherwise there is no point in buying them.
If you want an offer let me know. I'm always happy to buy materials for use in the workshop.
...........
An example of a real scenario: customer came in with a Cartier full eternity. There were 20 x 0.10ct diamonds around a platinum ring. The ex-husband had paid £10k for the item and it came with receipts and a box to prove the purchase cost. Fact is, the 0.10ct stones cost me about £40 to £50 a stone plus vat. The platinum mounts can be had for circa £300 to £500 depending on the quality of the item. When you add it all up that's only £1500 for a £10k ring. Horrified by the offer she left the building. But what is the point of offering more? I could buy the bits cheaper off the shelf i really needed them.
Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
That said, if you can find a buyer that doesn't care about 'failed wedding' rings you might get a bit more.
As a value guide, you should only really expect 10% to 15% of what was paid in return for your goods. Metal is priced per gram of material and the stones are valued at slightly less than can be bought for in the trade, otherwise there is no point in buying them.
If you want an offer let me know. I'm always happy to buy materials for use in the workshop.
...........
An example of a real scenario: customer came in with a Cartier full eternity. There were 20 x 0.10ct diamonds around a platinum ring. The ex-husband had paid £10k for the item and it came with receipts and a box to prove the purchase cost. Fact is, the 0.10ct stones cost me about £40 to £50 a stone plus vat. The platinum mounts can be had for circa £300 to £500 depending on the quality of the item. When you add it all up that's only £1500 for a £10k ring. Horrified by the offer she left the building. But what is the point of offering more? I could buy the bits cheaper off the shelf i really needed them.
Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
Seems there's even more BS margin in wedding rings than watches 
I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
Amounts change, but I had my wife's engagement and wedding ring custom made and they didn't cost me anything like a month's salary (and I'm not a City Trader!).
I'm sure jewellers will tell you I'm a cheapskate (my wife might agree), but clearly there's not that much 'value' in an engagement ring, let alone a simple wedding ring.
M.
I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
Amounts change, but I had my wife's engagement and wedding ring custom made and they didn't cost me anything like a month's salary (and I'm not a City Trader!).
I'm sure jewellers will tell you I'm a cheapskate (my wife might agree), but clearly there's not that much 'value' in an engagement ring, let alone a simple wedding ring.
M.
Edited by marcosgt on Tuesday 25th February 16:02
marcosgt said:
Seems there's even more BS margin in wedding rings than watches
I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
Amounts change, but I had my wife's engagement and wedding ring custom made and they didn't cost me anything like a month's salary (and I'm not a City Trader!).
I'm sure jewellers will tell you I'm a cheapskate (my wife might agree), but clearly there's not that much 'value' in an engagement ring, let alone a simple wedding ring.
M.
The BS factor is the difference between the scrap value and the retail value. People think their gold is worth the same as what they paid. I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
Amounts change, but I had my wife's engagement and wedding ring custom made and they didn't cost me anything like a month's salary (and I'm not a City Trader!).
I'm sure jewellers will tell you I'm a cheapskate (my wife might agree), but clearly there's not that much 'value' in an engagement ring, let alone a simple wedding ring.
M.
Edited by marcosgt on Tuesday 25th February 16:02
Rough 9ct retail value is £30 to £40 per gram depending on the quality of the item (eg Elizabeth Duke vs Cartier). Scrap value this afternoon is £8.86 per gram to the trade, but more like £5 to £7 on the street.
My Platinum wedding band weighs 15g. In 2011 i had it valued independently for insurance purposesd and the replacement value topped just over £2000. Scrap value is currently £300. It would cost me £750 in materials alone if i were to buy from a bullion dealer today. Then you have to make it and then make a profit. That's why it would cost £2000 to buy something like this from a large high street retailer. I could never get away with charging those sorts of prices as im a small independent, but those with big sparkly shop windows do manage it somehow. And people pay for it!
marcosgt said:
I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
But thats from the people who sell engagement rings. If you walked into a car showroom and the seller said you need to spend your yearly wage on a car you would tell him to sod off. Oh and you know why they say a diamond is forever? Because if you ever try to sell it you will realise how worthless it it. In 1999, De Beers chairman Nicky Oppenheimer confessed, "Diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill."
4G63T said:
why not take them to a friendly jewler, an melt down the rings into a block, sell the diamonds to the jeweller to recoup whatever he will give.
and then get him/her to make you a ring with the metal you have melted down?
I recon Nightmare on here would do that
Im sure he'd be happy to help. Defo the best option if you want to retain your materials. I do quite a few remodeling jobs like this and so long as you know what you're after its a pleasurable experience creating something from scratchand then get him/her to make you a ring with the metal you have melted down?
I recon Nightmare on here would do that
ecain63 said:
An example of a real scenario: customer came in with a Cartier full eternity. There were 20 x 0.10ct diamonds around a platinum ring. The ex-husband had paid £10k for the item and it came with receipts and a box to prove the purchase cost. Fact is, the 0.10ct stones cost me about £40 to £50 a stone plus vat. The platinum mounts can be had for circa £300 to £500 depending on the quality of the item. When you add it all up that's only £1500 for a £10k ring. Horrified by the offer she left the building. But what is the point of offering more? I could buy the bits cheaper off the shelf i really needed them.
Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
Surprising given it was Cartier. Their eternity rings do fetch a good value way above scrap.Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
Zingari said:
ecain63 said:
An example of a real scenario: customer came in with a Cartier full eternity. There were 20 x 0.10ct diamonds around a platinum ring. The ex-husband had paid £10k for the item and it came with receipts and a box to prove the purchase cost. Fact is, the 0.10ct stones cost me about £40 to £50 a stone plus vat. The platinum mounts can be had for circa £300 to £500 depending on the quality of the item. When you add it all up that's only £1500 for a £10k ring. Horrified by the offer she left the building. But what is the point of offering more? I could buy the bits cheaper off the shelf i really needed them.
Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
Surprising given it was Cartier. Their eternity rings do fetch a good value way above scrap.Moral of the story is not to expect returns like you'd get selling a steel Rolex.
Cotty said:
marcosgt said:
I must admit to being horrified when I hear things like "You need to spend a month/2 months/3 months salary on an engagement ring".
But thats from the people who sell engagement rings. If you walked into a car showroom and the seller said you need to spend your yearly wage on a car you would tell him to sod off. Oh and you know why they say a diamond is forever? Because if you ever try to sell it you will realise how worthless it it. In 1999, De Beers chairman Nicky Oppenheimer confessed, "Diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill."
M.
yeti said:
Cotty said:
"Diamonds are intrinsically worthless, except for the deep psychological need they fill."
Quite. You want intrinsic value, buy a good emerald.ecain63 said:
Or a good ruby. Both emeralds and ruby's of fine quality and colour will hold more value than the equivalent diamond due to the fact they are harder to come by and more 'interesting' to wealthy buyers.
Very true. The world has many pink and purple sapphires, but not many 'rubies' 
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