Metals
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To prevent consumer deception, the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, has established specific guidelines and standards that all sellers (persons, corporations, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, art shows, web sales) of Gold, Silver, Sterling Silver and other metals should use.
We would like to share with you some terms/markings that the FTC has set forth in its guidelines. For a complete guide go to the FTC's website.
The FTC guidelines state that the karat weight(Kt.) of gold should be clearly marked. The Karat weight(Kt.) is the fineness or percentage of fine gold that is in the total product or jewelry piece. Most sellers are happy to inform buyers of the Kt./percentage of fine gold that is in the jewelry they sell and will proudly mark: 18Kt. Gold, 14Kt. Gold etc.
24Kt. gold is 100% fine gold. The FTC allows sellers to simply use the work "Gold" when the item is solid 24kt gold. 24kt gold is too soft to be used in wire wrap jewelry.
The FTC has divided the terms/markings into various categories:
Items that are gold throughout
Items that contain at least 5% gold
Items that are less than 5% pure gold
Because terms can be a little confusing we will list some of them and what they mean.
Gold THROUGHOUT
Items that are gold throughout (inside/outside) are to be marked with the Kt. fineness immediately before the word "GOLD". The number before the word kt represents the karat fitness of the gold. Listed are examples of markings/terms and what they mean.
Marking what it means
22Kt. Gold 91.60% pure gold
18Kt. Gold 75.00% pure gold
14Kt. Gold 58.5% pure gold
10Kt. Gold 41.7% pure gold
As long as an item contains the correct percentage of fine gold it may also be listed simply as: 18Kt., 14Kt. etc
without the word gold, but items may NOT be listed with just the word "gold".
SURFACE Gold of at least 5% fine gold
Any item that is not gold throughout must have additional identifying markers (Gold Filled, Rolled Gold Plate, Gold Overlay or Rolled Gold Plate) to describe the gold content and to announce to buyers that the item is not solid gold.
The FTC has established terms that are to be used when the item has a base metal with a surface covering of at least 5% fine gold or (1/20th) the total weight.
The first column below is a list of acceptable FTC terms for items that are 5% fine gold. The second column is a list of terms the FTC determined may be deceptive, unfair or misleading to the buyer.
FTC Appropriate Terms May be
terms for items containing Deceptive
5% gold
10Kt. to 23Kt. Gold Filled Gold Filled
10Kt. to 23Kt. Rolled Gold Plate/Plated Rolled Gold Plate/Plated
10Kt. to 23Kt. Gold Overlay Gold Overlay
Rolled Gold*
Buyers should feel comfortable that items marked with one of the FTC appropriate terms that informs buyers of the karat fineness contains 5% or 1/20th fine gold.
*The term "Rolled Gold" is not used by the FTC, but the FTC does allow sellers to use adequate abbreviations as long as they also use the appropriate Kt. fineness. "Rolled Gold' should not be confused with items that are gold throughout and contain from 41.7% to 100% fine gold.
The FTC allows several markings that mean the same thing. Such as 14kt. gold, 14 Karat Gold and 14K all mean the item is 58.8% pure gold throughout.
Examples for items that are surfaced covered or 5% pure gold would be 14 Karat Gold Filled, 14Kt. Gold Filled, 14Kt. G.F. and 14K. R.G.P. all mean that the item is at least 5% fine gold.
Don't let terms confuse you. Just look for the Kt. fineness for items that are gold throughout (14Kt.) and the Kt. fineness + additional id markers (14Kt. Gold Filled) for items that have a base metal and are at least 5% fine gold on the outside. Don't settle for vague or misleading markings.
Hollow Center
Items with a hallow center should not be marked "solid gold." Hollow center items for all Kt. fineness should be marked with "Hollow Center" or "Tubing" for example: 14Kt. Gold Hollow-Centered, 14Kt. Gold Tubing or other FTC approved terms.
Other Terms and the amount of gold
terms Amount of gold
Heavy Gold Electroplate/ed (100/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) 2.5 Microns
Gold plate/ed (20/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) .50 Microns
Gold Electroplate/ed (7/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) .175 Microns
Some other terms such as Gold Flash and Gold Wash have less gold than the items listed above.
Most items that have less than 5% fine gold do not list the Kt. fineness.
FTC Appropriate terms for Silver
Silver: Must contain 92.5% pure silver
Sterling Silver: Must contain 92.5% pure silver
To prevent consumer deception, the Federal Trade Commission, FTC, has established specific guidelines and standards that all sellers (persons, corporations, manufacturers, suppliers, retailers, art shows, web sales) of Gold, Silver, Sterling Silver and other metals should use.
We would like to share with you some terms/markings that the FTC has set forth in its guidelines. For a complete guide go to the FTC's website.
The FTC guidelines state that the karat weight(Kt.) of gold should be clearly marked. The Karat weight(Kt.) is the fineness or percentage of fine gold that is in the total product or jewelry piece. Most sellers are happy to inform buyers of the Kt./percentage of fine gold that is in the jewelry they sell and will proudly mark: 18Kt. Gold, 14Kt. Gold etc.
24Kt. gold is 100% fine gold. The FTC allows sellers to simply use the work "Gold" when the item is solid 24kt gold. 24kt gold is too soft to be used in wire wrap jewelry.
The FTC has divided the terms/markings into various categories:
Items that are gold throughout
Items that contain at least 5% gold
Items that are less than 5% pure gold
Because terms can be a little confusing we will list some of them and what they mean.
Gold THROUGHOUT
Items that are gold throughout (inside/outside) are to be marked with the Kt. fineness immediately before the word "GOLD". The number before the word kt represents the karat fitness of the gold. Listed are examples of markings/terms and what they mean.
Marking what it means
22Kt. Gold 91.60% pure gold
18Kt. Gold 75.00% pure gold
14Kt. Gold 58.5% pure gold
10Kt. Gold 41.7% pure gold
As long as an item contains the correct percentage of fine gold it may also be listed simply as: 18Kt., 14Kt. etc
without the word gold, but items may NOT be listed with just the word "gold".
SURFACE Gold of at least 5% fine gold
Any item that is not gold throughout must have additional identifying markers (Gold Filled, Rolled Gold Plate, Gold Overlay or Rolled Gold Plate) to describe the gold content and to announce to buyers that the item is not solid gold.
The FTC has established terms that are to be used when the item has a base metal with a surface covering of at least 5% fine gold or (1/20th) the total weight.
The first column below is a list of acceptable FTC terms for items that are 5% fine gold. The second column is a list of terms the FTC determined may be deceptive, unfair or misleading to the buyer.
FTC Appropriate Terms May be
terms for items containing Deceptive
5% gold
10Kt. to 23Kt. Gold Filled Gold Filled
10Kt. to 23Kt. Rolled Gold Plate/Plated Rolled Gold Plate/Plated
10Kt. to 23Kt. Gold Overlay Gold Overlay
Rolled Gold*
Buyers should feel comfortable that items marked with one of the FTC appropriate terms that informs buyers of the karat fineness contains 5% or 1/20th fine gold.
*The term "Rolled Gold" is not used by the FTC, but the FTC does allow sellers to use adequate abbreviations as long as they also use the appropriate Kt. fineness. "Rolled Gold' should not be confused with items that are gold throughout and contain from 41.7% to 100% fine gold.
The FTC allows several markings that mean the same thing. Such as 14kt. gold, 14 Karat Gold and 14K all mean the item is 58.8% pure gold throughout.
Examples for items that are surfaced covered or 5% pure gold would be 14 Karat Gold Filled, 14Kt. Gold Filled, 14Kt. G.F. and 14K. R.G.P. all mean that the item is at least 5% fine gold.
Don't let terms confuse you. Just look for the Kt. fineness for items that are gold throughout (14Kt.) and the Kt. fineness + additional id markers (14Kt. Gold Filled) for items that have a base metal and are at least 5% fine gold on the outside. Don't settle for vague or misleading markings.
Hollow Center
Items with a hallow center should not be marked "solid gold." Hollow center items for all Kt. fineness should be marked with "Hollow Center" or "Tubing" for example: 14Kt. Gold Hollow-Centered, 14Kt. Gold Tubing or other FTC approved terms.
Other Terms and the amount of gold
terms Amount of gold
Heavy Gold Electroplate/ed (100/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) 2.5 Microns
Gold plate/ed (20/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) .50 Microns
Gold Electroplate/ed (7/1,000.000ths of an inch fine gold) .175 Microns
Some other terms such as Gold Flash and Gold Wash have less gold than the items listed above.
Most items that have less than 5% fine gold do not list the Kt. fineness.
FTC Appropriate terms for Silver
Silver: Must contain 92.5% pure silver
Sterling Silver: Must contain 92.5% pure silver