Now that I have your attention.....have you ever sold jewelry at a pawn shop? How do you know its relatively decent, and you are getting a good price?
[Edited 12/19/08 19:12pm]

oh come on people, one of you must have pawned something!!!!!

nope...sorry ....

aaack! I have a ring, but no emotional attachment to it, more diamonds on it than gold band.....the band is thin, its not a wedding ring or anything....

bluesbaby said:

I did. When Montgomery Ward declared bankruptcy and closure right before Christmas. We all knew we'd be without jobs in a few months. Many people lost their homes. They didn't tell us in advance and it came as a shock. I'd just bought a new Blazer and had car payments. Anyway..


I'd bought myself a pair of 3/4 carat diamond earings. I ended up having to pawn them and only got $200. I swore I was going to get them back, but never did.

noimageatall said:

to be honest, I have really been thinking about this, and if I don't get it back its okay..I just want to be able to get my family Christmas gifts and pay the bills, too.

the one time I was considering selling my old camera to one, I went round the corner to the camera shop and found out their trade-in price, I told him I was also thinking of taking it round to the pawn shop for a price too, and lo and behold the pawn shop guy comes in and sits himself down behind the desk in the camera shop




I took my business elsewhere, these guys seemed dodgy

to paraphrase Joe Pesci in "Lethal Weapon 2", you get fucked at the pawn shop...they base what they pay you on the wholesale price of your merchandise, not the retail price you paid....then they take account of the other factors (with rings, the weight, the clarity, color of the stones, etc.) and they'll lowball you....

...me and the wife broke up when we were engaged, and I took the ring to a pawn shop because I wanted to be rid of that shit (don't tell her I said that... )...anyway, I paid $1100 for the ring (1990), but they only offered me $250....I asked the dude if he was out of his fuckin' mind and left...

Bluesbaby, I've never done this, but why not take the jewelry first to a pawn shop, letting them know you are STRICTLY interested in appraisal? (That way, they'll have no motivation to cheat you.) Then, shop around at other pawn shops for an offer based on the appraised value.

You should know, though, that you'll never get what your jewelry is truly worth... especially not in the current market.
[Edited 12/19/08 19:41pm]

Lammastide said:

what about checking on ebay for similar? see what people REALLY sell it for then at least you know if you are gonna get seriously ripped off.
A jeweller will be able to tell you it's real worth, if they aren't going to buy it from you themselves (since they will pick it up from the pawn shop later )

(Well, I thought, if this thread was started by bluesbaby and commented on by Lammastide, how bad could it be?)

And, my experience was similar to Renegade's. I'd expected to get at least enough to cover a killer guitar I wanted. I was sorely disappointed. You're better off using the ring as collateral for something else at the jewelry store.

I think when you pawn things like gold and such...they give you the price according the weight of the item. It really has nothing to do with diamonds and such. You would be better trying to sell it to a jeweler.

ThreadBare said:

I brought some killer stereo equipment to a pawn shop once....times was tight and I needed some cash....anyway, the dude takes a look at my stuff...Yamaha pre-amp, Soundcraftsman power amp, and Yamaha tower speakers....and offers me $300 for the set...I didn't even dignify the offer....

reneGade20 said:

Yeah, I'd just finished paying off the durn thing, so I was expecting to hear an offer for at least half!

Then, I looked behind him and saw a wall full of other engagement rings.

"Oh," I said, before turning and leaving. .

bluesbaby said:

No. Pawn shops are not porn, they are just pawn shops

bluesbaby said:

.. lol

Flowers2 said:

kpowers said:

In Boston, they pronounce porn shops as "pawn shops".

ThreadBare said:

definitely grabbed everyone's attention lol ..