How Do I Tell If It's Silver?

Here is some information that I looked up on various websites:-

The SILVER Test:

How can you tell if an item that you have found is silver or not? Here's an easy way.

The only thing you need is a piece of tin foil (silver cooking foil). Get the item that you think is silver and place it on the tin foil. Now, SPIT on the item, this will not harm the item at all.

Cover the item tightly with the foil after you have spat on it. Leave it for 5-10 seconds, then open the foil. Bring it up to your nose and smell it as you open it. If it smells like rotten eggs then it's silver.

You will notice straight away as the smell is unmistakable and strong. Try this with something that you know is silver so that you can see it works.

Simple test for silver:

25 gm potassium dichromate
25 gm nitric acid
Silver = red or reddish brow colour

(Only oxide and grease free objects can be tested, one drop is sufficient, rinse well immediately!)

Silver Testing:

Metal items that are supposed to be silver may be tested first with a magnet. If the magnet is attracted, the item is not silver. To test a piece for silver content, place a drop of silver reagent on a notch in the metal. Pure silver will then turn bright red, while sterling will turn much darker red. Silver that is .800 will test brown, and an object that is only .500 silver will turn green.

I've never tried any of the above mentioned silver tests, but who knows, they may be helpful? Good Luck!

What is a 'silver reagent?
regards,

quote:

---

What is a 'silver reagent?

---

Snooba's already found that. It's apparently known as Schwerter Solution:

quote:

---

25 gm potassium dichromate
25 gm nitric acid

---

I notice the recipe doesn't mention the key missing ingredient: DHMO (also known as "water"). Presumably it's 25g of each chemical per litre of water (preferably distilled or deionised water).

This site, about halfway down the page, outlines the various colour changes this chemical combination generates with different metals.

Be aware that both pure potassium dichromate and concentrated nitric acid are hazardous chemicals (highly toxic and extremely corrosive, respectively), not the sort of things you want to be mixing up in the backyard shed by the bucketload, which is probably why they recommend buying pre-mixed stuff.

Also (since this is a coin forum) be aware that it's not the sort of thing you want to be using on coins - the combination of the scratch down to bare metal and reaction with the chemicals is not something you want to do to your coins if you have a choice. For coins, weight and specific gravity are adequate tests most of the time.

awesome!! thank you everybody for all of this great information! I will get back to you when my test is conclusive.

Never spit on a collectible silver coin...it will ruin its future value due to spotting...coughing sneezing even talking while handling valuable coins is strictly
forbidden.