What weighs 234 pounds and only cost me $40?????

cyberdan

Silver Member
Dec 12, 2006
4,596
2,221
Very Northern Left Coast
Detector(s) used
XLT & Bigfoot
Primary Interest:
All Treasure Hunting
The box is 100% full and weighs 115 pounds. The tub is 75% full and weighs 119 pounds.
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The box is 99% watches.
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Most are newer but there are some older 1940's and many pocket watches.
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The tub is about 75% full of jewelry of all sorts and a few watches.
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It seems like mostly chains, then bracelets and rings and a lot of junk.
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This was my first stop of the day yesterday. She listed a yardsale and one of her listings was SCRAP JEWELRY. I figuered they would have a little basket or box with some junk but no. I bought three of her boxes and I am sure she had several left. I probably should go back and see if she has any left. She told me her family had a CASH FOR GOLD company and her employees were not very good. When a seller came in the employee would only offer for what they knew was gold and anything else (if it was OK with the seller) got tossed in a big box. There are literally thousands of pieces of jewelry. It would take me years to check them all with my electronic tester. I think I will sell on feebay in bulk lots.

Any unique ideas on how to attract bidders?
Most is costume jewelry, all I have to do is find one piece of gold and everything is paid for.
 

Very nice score. I saw how this process works first hand so I totally understand. Once the known gold items are purchased the rest of the items don't mean so much any more.

The best way to attract bidders is just to list them. There's enough competition for every type of jewelry so you should get a fair price for anything you list. As with anything. The more thorough you are with the descriptions and photos, the better the auction.

Start with a smaller lot and see how it goes.

Good find and good luck.
 

Nice score there Dan. You should make quite a nice return on your investment.
 

What a score! I thought I did good with my 99 lbs of wheat cents that I paid $100 for, but this takes the cake! I'm sure you'll go through every piece as you make your lots, just to be sure there isn't anything real in there first. This is the key statement in your conversation with her and should give you great hopes and possibilities of finding several scores-
"her employees were not very good. When a seller came in the employee would only offer for what they knew was gold and anything else (if it was OK with the seller) got tossed in a big box "

Good luck! :thumbsup:
 

Great score! A fellow club member at our detecting club passed away and his family donated all his gear and finds to our club. We raffled it all off and a friend of mine ended up with 6 or 7 old broken pocket watches. I thought they were next to worthless, but he took them to a local jeweler who repairs watches and he wanted them for parts. My buddy ended up getting $50 for them. Just one more option to look at.
 

Holy cow!!!!!!!! :icon_thumleft: I agree that this looks like a treasure chest. In fact, I'd be tempted to fill a treasure chest full and set it on my coffee table just for show.

I think this is banner worthy. removed per cyberdan's request below.
 

bluehunter1973 said:
Put it all in one box take to local metal detecting park and bury it then sit and wait
ONE BOX?? It took me over 10 trips from my car just to bring it into my office. If I had to dig a hole big enough to bury that box I would have to get an eyepatch and a parrot for my shoulder. :icon_pirat: without that no cop would believe I was only going to bury a treasure. He would insist that he could look in my trunk for a body, while I sat in the back seat of his limo.

I have thought about something like that but with only handfulls. We all know what it is like to find one piece of nice jewelry at a park. Can you imagine what it would be like to keep finding and finding? :wink: :wink:

I would really hate myself if I watched the news the next morning to hear "treasure hunter dies of appearent heart attack, his pockets full of jewelry" ::)
 

cyberdan said:
mts said:
I think this is banner worthy.

Please, NO. I really don't want this past our "little" group.
I don't think it's banner worthy ,but even if it was it wouldn't ever be on the banner anyways cause to be on banner you need to find it with a metal detector.. so I have been told.. I once found a huge silver coin score that never made on banner cause it was a coinstar find... Here's my find from way back in 2008

http://forum.treasurenet.com/index.php/topic,187624.msg1377086.html#msg1377086
 

Amazing buy!! Can't wait to hear how you do when you sell it! Please get back with an update. I would have soooo much fun just dumping it out on the living room floor and going through it! Congrats!
 

Suggestion for selling...

Go to the local flea market and find one of the many people they make custom jewelry from home. They love this kind of stuff, and will strip it all down and make one of a kind pieces from it.

I used to do jewelry, and we would buy stuff like that, of course not that kind of quantity, we would make custom bands for the watches that worked, we would strip pieces off any earrings, or necklaces to fashion into new pieces. It was a lot of fun, and what you have there could be a couple years supply for anyone that does that kind of work.
 

goldinmypan said:
Dan, was that $40 her asking price or was it what you offered?
You know me better than that. She wanted $50. I had to negotiate, it's in my blood. :icon_pirat:
 

Well I have sold costume jewelry on ebay a few times and there is some costume stuff that is very expensive. If you had the time and patience to sort through it you could sell individual signed pieces for a very nice return. Take the rest of the unsigned pieces and hit the flea market. I throw loads out from time to time when I can get them from estate sales and a buck a piece is kinda the norm. You can get $2 - $3 for bigger gaudy pieces. Throw out 3-4 tables of the stuff and your table will be mobbed constantly. Might want to bring a helper. :tongue3: Even the little old asian ladies that never buy anything but look for a solid hour help you because whenever a table has people standing around it others just have to come and check it out.

On a decent day you could do $300-$400 in sales. I would run it through the flea market as many times as needed. Then whatever you have left after that put it into 15 pound lots or whatever you can shove into a priority USPS box and sell them on ebay.

That is the best way to maximize profits. But if you want to just move it, just break into into lots and ebay the hell out of it.
 

Wholly-Moley!! What a haul! If what you found was in this part of Texas, there would have been garage sale buyer fighting over it like wolves over raw meat....

Last Saturday I watched Dealers hit a jewelry table at an estate sale! No time to look or blink. The took their forearm and in rapid swipes, raked baggies of jewelry marked $10, $8, $5, and less into cardboard boxes!!!

You'd need a Brinks' Truck just to get that kind of haul off the property :icon_thumright:

Keep up the great finds!
 

If you have a buyer in mind, I'd keep an eye out for gemstones (and diamonds!) few Cash 4 gold places really check for them.
 

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