A question we often get from clients is whether or not damaged jewelry still has value. Sometimes, they don’t even know if they should bring their items in. They have had earrings, rings, necklaces, silverware, or even watches sitting at the bottom of their drawers for years. They think since their ring is heavily damaged, their watch won’t tick anymore, or their silverware is bent, nobody will pay anything for it.
Luckily, these items are still beautiful, valuable pieces and often can either be restored or used in some way. Though different types of jewelry retain their value at different rates, almost all jewelry made from premium materials will retain value in some way, shape, or form.
Why Do Broken Watches and Jewelry Retain Value?
High-quality jewelry is high-quality jewelry for a reason: it’s made from valuable material and constructed by artisans who make beautiful work. Even if it’s in horrible condition, the value will almost always remain.
Always make sure to bring an item to a respected and reputable buyer before making any rash decisions with your valuables.
Below, we’ve outlined some reasons why these pieces will always have value.
Watches & Jewelry Can Be Repaired
Some think jewelry is not something that can be fixed or repaired. Just because a piece is broken does not mean it should go to waste. Reputable buyers like the team at Samuelson’s Buyers can restore even heavily damaged jewelry. This allows us to see potential in items others can’t and offer a better price for your broken jewelry.
Items ranging from rings to unique vintage silver pieces all may have the ability to be restored. Don’t think just because you can’t fix something it’s not salvageable!
Collectibles or Antiques
There are times when a pristine condition is not necessarily expected or even preferred. Cleaning and repairing some vintage pieces could also remove the character that makes them so special.
Even if items are not in ideal condition and not as valuable as if they were before, it does not mean their history is now worthless. Often even broken collectible items still hold a lot of value. Never assume an item with history is worthless!
Metals and Stones Retain Value
While it can be hard to think of your beautiful jewelry items as just a piece of metal, jewelry will always be valuable because of what it’s made of. This means even in a worst case scenario your item will still be worth something.
Below, we’ve listed some items that will have value based on their raw materials alone:
If your items are made from one of these materials, you will get something for your item.
Parts
Some jewelry, such as watches and necklaces, have many pieces that can be re-purposed. Watches have many moving pieces that are valuable when doing other restoration work. Particularly with vintage jewelry, often spare parts are worth a lot as the manufacturers may not make those parts anymore.
Often, selling off pieces in this way would be done in conjunction with other parts being sold for metal value, and would only be done as a last resort.
Can Broken Watches Still be Fixed and Sold?
Watches are somewhat different than other valuable collectibles due to their unique functionality. With so many pieces, there is a lot to consider when it comes to properly assigning the value to a watch.
Here are a couple different scenarios for broken watches that could affect their value:
- The Watch is No Longer Functioning – Watch no longer ticking? Can’t seem to figure out what is wrong? It’s hard to tell if a watch can be restored until it’s closely looked at, but it’s possible it could be a simple fix. Of course, it could also be a more complicated repair requiring parts that may not even exist anymore, bringing down its value.
- Cracked Crystal – While it seems like it could mean the end of your watch, a cracked or damaged crystal can almost always be replaced.
- Broken Hand: Watch hands can be easily replaced and will likely not affect the value of the watch too much
- Damaged Band: Depending on how broken the band is (and what material it’s made of), a broken band could be a large or small issue.
When it comes to luxury watches, generally there will still be some value retained with the watch no matter what has happened to it. Particularly with vintage timepieces coming back into style, luxury watches will always have value, even if they’re broken or damaged.
How Should I Sell My Jewelry?
When you are selling your jewelry, it’s important to go somewhere that respects jewelry. Find a buyer that will exhaust all options before wanting to sell it for metal value.
Samuelson’s Buyers purchases damaged jewelry and watches. Even if you think it’s too damaged, it’s worth bringing in and seeing what the value of the piece is.
We’ve been around since 1922 and will treat both you and your items with respect. We are committed to your safety and security and offer private appointments at our office. There’s never any pressure to accept an offer and we always pay you on the spot.
Contact us today at (301) 718-4825 to make an appointment to sell your jewelry.
