9
Nov

Testing Silver Purity with FEDMAS Assay

Testing for gold purity can be done by sending it to your nearby goldsmiths or jewelry retail shops.  However, testing the purity of your silver coins or bars may not be so simple.  Let us share the steps involved in having an assay office to test silver coins or bars.

FEDMAS Assay Office Sdn Bhd had a rapid assessment of metal products.  They have 3 offices in Malaysia, namely in Johor Bahru, KL and Penang as their main office.  They are able to test for gold and silver purity.  For more details, go to FEDMAS website.

We will share with your our experience having our “Scottsdale ‘The One’ 1oz Silver Bar” tested by the branch in KL.  It is advisable to call in advance to make an appointment for your test.  We were advised that the KL branch prefers afternoon period for walk-ins.


^ Located along Jalan Kelang Lama

Location of the KL branch is along Jalan Kelang Lama, behind Wisma Rockwills.  You will have to come from PJ direction, slow down when you reach the Esso Petrol Station and turn left immediately after the Police Station.  Do take note as this junction is easily missed, because it is blocked by many cars parked by the kerbside.  Be warned that finding a parking spot near the office is just as good as striking a lottery, patience will be tested.
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18
Oct

Mahathir: You Just Print More Money

“2. It is a great way to make money to replace the money that a nation has lost in a recession caused by abuses of the financial system. You just print more money.”

Quantitative Easing in Dr. Mahathir’s own words, is to solve a country economical problems thru the mean of printing money.

Dr Mahathir Mohamad
^ Quantitative Easing is an unfair advantage for the rich nations

“3. Actually I don’t think they actually print currency notes amounting to the hundreds of billions of dollars or pounds to replace the money they have lost. The amount of printed currency notes would be huge and be very difficult to transport to the banks which has lost the money. There would be a stream of armoured cars from the mints to the banks.”

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13
Oct

How are Silver Coins Minted?

Blanking, extruding, minting, these may be jargons to many of us, yet they are common terms in metal work industry.  Silver, a precious metal, is soft and easier to work on, compared to the other industrial metal.  When you are holding your American Eagles or Canadian Maples, all of them went through similar processes.  Let us explore what are the steps involves in minting silver coins.

1. Melt

Coins’ life journey began underground, where miners bring them up from the ground and minting factories bring them in as ores.  Another major source of silver today is from recycled sources, such as old picture/x-ray films & electronics.  As you can see from the video, they used the sides of the blanked-pieces and re-melt them, resulting in almost zero-waste production.

Pure silver’s melting point is 962 °C (1763.5 °F) thus to be safe, minters heats them to over 1093°C (2000 °F).  The solid silver will then melts into red hot liquid form. Then it is poured into billets, into a form or size depending on the factory’s machinery capabilities.  Thus the shapes and sizes of the billets varies from one to another.
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21
Sep

Bank Negara: AWAS! Penipuan Kewangan Melibatkan Pelaburan Emas

Investment thru schemes have always been a top discussion topic. This is especially true for Gold investment schemes. Of late, we see many of such schemes surfaced in our local scene. Our Bank Negara Malaysia addresses this issue in their publication, Ringgit.

Gold Investment!

Among the scheme, one company with Syariah compliance offers 2% “Hibbah” on a monthly basis. With few simple strokes on an abacus, 2% a month brings an annualized return of 24%.

I find this funny.
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25
Aug

Fifth Canadian Wildlife is Pronghorn Antelope

Information is now available for the 2013 Pronghorn Antelope Silver Bullion Coin, the fifth of six issues in the popular Canadian Wildlife silver bullion coin series.

The Royal Canadian Mint unveiled the 2013-dated coin at the American Numismatic Association’s World’s Fair of Money Fair in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on August 9, 2012.

Pronghorn Antelope

Per the Mint’s news release, the pronghorn antelope is a true North American symbol, with herds of them live in areas stretching from southern Alberta and Saskatchewan in Canada all the way down to the Baja Peninsula and parts of Northern Mexico.
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