Some of the best-class rings are made of gold or silver, among other precious metals. As a result, the class rings can be pawned off or even sold to jewelry stores or online jewelry dealers of collectors.
And if yours is an antique or a vintage piece, a collector might be interested in it, and you’d make a good chunk of cash from its sale. But knowing all these is not enough because most of the time, you will find that you have a lot of sentimental value attached to that old class ring, which means that you may want to give yourself a bit of time before deciding what you’d want to do with the old class ring.
If you are looking for ideas for handling the old class ring and what to do with it, this article might be exactly what you needed.
Oh, we also provide some information about what to do with your old necklace, old Charm bracelets and old pins&brooches.
What to do with old class rings?
- Pawn the old class ring
Thanks to the high value of some of the best old class rings, which results from the use of precious metals like silver, gold, or platinum for the old ring, the ring would be worth a good chunk of money. Therefore, the pawnshop might buy it easily. If the class ring has gemstones, too, then the ring would fetch more.
Just keep an open mind and know that if you ever change your mind, you may never get the ring back, no matter how hard you try. The reason for this is that after selling the ring, the pawnshop could either offer the purchased class ring for resale but might also opt to melt down the ring, taking advantage of the high value of the metal used to make the ring.
To determine the actual value of the ring, the pawnbroker evaluates the features of the ring to determine its value. Some of the features that the pawnbroker looks out for include the weight of the ring, its metal purity, the exact value of the precious metal, and the spot price of the precious metal. They will then use the information gathered to determine the value of the ring. Keep in mind that the value of the ring quoted by the pawnbroker isn’t the actual value of the ring since the broker deducts their fees, and in other cases, they might not share the exact value of the ring with you, especially if you don’t know the exact value of the ring. So, you should educate yourself about different kinds of jewelry on the market and how they are valued.
If the ring is made of sterling silver, for example, and bears the 999 stamps, it means that the class ring is made of the highest possible quality of pure silver that is 99.9% pure silver. If it has a 925 stamp, it is made of sterling silver of 92.5% pure silver and only 7.5% metal alloys like copper or zinc. Most of the class rings on the market are made of 925 sterling silver, and they are worth a bit of money.
When it comes to gold class rings, most of them are made of 10k gold, which means that the class ring has the lowest possible amount of pure gold for jewelry recognized in the US. 10K gold rings have only 41.7% pure gold, and the remainder is made of metal alloys. Even so, 10k gold is valuable, and you’d get a few hundred dollars from the sale of your class ring.
- Sell the old class ring to a reputable jewelry store.
Most of the reputable jewelry stores accept old jewelry, including damaged and scuffed pieces, as long as they determine the jewelry to be valuable. So, if your class ring is made of 10k gold or 925 sterling silver, it will be bought by the jewelry store owner. Their buying price is influenced by the content of the precious metal or if they can add precious metals to the ring after repairs, enhancing its value. The store would pay you using store credit or check.
- Sell the old class ring to an online jewelry dealer.
If the local jewelry store is not an option, you could try the online jewelry dealers. These would accept gold or silver class rings.
Just know that the best of these sites would require you to make a request for an appraisal kit beforehand, and you’ll use this to mail the class ring to them.
Upon receipt, they will evaluate the ring then make an offer based on the features of the ring – you can accept or reject their offer.
If you aren’t happy with their offer and therefore decline it, this online dealer will send it back to you.
- Sell the class ring to a collector.
While collectors have different tastes, and some of them don’t pay as much, vintage and antique class rings, especially the rings from the more prestigious schools, will attract more money and collectors. Research the market value of the class ring before you sell it. You may even find your old college friends or classmates who are interested in buying the class ring from you.
Keep it/ save it in the family – your kids or grandkids could have it as a precious gift after many years.
Tips for Re-purposing class rings
- Clean and gently polish the class ring before you have it appraised
- Get more than one appraisal to know what the ring is really worth or how much it would be worth in the future. Even if you cannot think of anything else to do, do not permanently sell or sign over your class ring, at least not before you’ve ascertained the ring’s actual value and how much they’d be willing to pay for your ring
- Turn the ring into something sentimental, like a pendant for your chain necklace
- Use it as a napkin ring
- Display it in the shadow box alongside other keepsakes like pictures
Conclusion
If you are not sure about what to do with your old class ring, implement any of the ideas shared above.
Read more useful tips here or here!
Stephanie is a jewelry lover when she was a teenager. Her major was fashion design when she was in college. She is a jewelry designer at SOQ Jewelry and other design companies. Now she is also a writer for our website. She writes a lot of designs&brands posts with very actionable tips.