Analyser Instructions

CONTENTS

INSTRUCTIONS
THE READINGS
THE ANALYZER IS FOR TESTING YELLOW GOLD ONLY
GOOD PRACTICE
THE PEN-PROBE

INSTRUCTIONS

Note, the ANALYZER is American, they say karat (K) we say carat (ct), it's the same.

POWER.

• Insert batteries (or use a mains adaptor if supplied.
• To turn on press POWER/CALIBRATION.
• To turn off press and hold POWER/CALIBRATION (as you do this, the battery indicator will show the remaining charge).
• or the tester will turn itself off if not used for ten minutes.

TIP: remember to attach the pen-probe!

CALIBRATION AND PRIMING. You will need a sample (calibration sample) of exactly 18ct, any 18ct hallmarked yellow gold will do. If you are a trader / scrap buyer you will have 18ct hallmarked yellow gold – if not, buy one from your supplier.

• Remove pen-probe cap, wipe any excess fluid with a tissue
• With the power on, press the POWER/CALIBRATION button (display will read Touch pen to 18K sample)
• Hold the pen-probe gently on the sample until display reads Done.
• Check the 18ct sample again, should read 18K, if not, calibrate and test again.
• Prime¹ the pen-probe : take 1 or 2 'dummy' readings especially if the pen-probe is new or hasn't been used for a while.

TESTING

• File the item to remove any surface plating and contamination (take care not to spill any filings on the test-plate).
• Place the item on the test plate with the filed area facing upwards. You can place a few items on the test plate at the same time then test them one after the other.
• Hold pen-probe tip gently on the filed area. With a 'lumpy' item (e.g. coin or chain) press it down onto the test-plate during testing to ensure it makes firm contact.
• When you have finished, replace the cap firmly or it will dry out.

THE READINGS

NA (right hand side): you have power / the battery is good, the LCD screen should read Ready, you are ready to go.

NA (left hand side) Not gold.

9K reads halfway between NA and 10K. It doesn't matter if it reads one light lower or one light higher, it's still 9ct.

14K reads 14K. It doesn't matter if it reads one light lower or one light higher, it's still 14ct

18K reads 18K but it's important to follow the guidelines overleaf. When you get an 18ct reading, check that your 18ct calibration sample still reads 18ct, if not – calibrate.

HIGH CARAT. 18ct to 20ct should be correct ±1ct, and 21ct to 24ct should be correct ±2ct (if not, accuracy can be improved by calibrating and priming).

PT. Platinum. We don't advertise this as a platinum tester (the manufacturers do, we don't). A PT reading means it might be platinum. Or it might be Palladium.

THE ANALYZER IS FOR TESTING YELLOW GOLD ONLY

An electronic tester will test 90% of all the items you are offered, but every serious scrap dealer uses acids to test the following:

• Silver reads not gold on the Analyzer.
• Steel reads as high carat, though when well-filed it should read not gold.
• TIP: when you file steel you can feel it's too hard to be a precious metal, no further test required.
• ANOTHER TIP: use a magnet, if it's magnetic it can't be gold or silver (though beware, not all steel is magnetic!)
• Platinum reads as platinum, but so too does Palladium.
• White gold: when the alloy is a mixture of gold and nickel, you get a reading that is too low; or with a high silver content will give a reading that is too high.
• Rhodium is used to plate white gold to improve the colour (it can be used to plate platinum too, but that's rare). Theoretically, rhodium will give a reading that is too high, but since the reading on white gold can be too high or too low you will be non-the-wiser.

GOOD PRACTICE

Whenever you get inconsistent readings (especially with high carat) check the following.

1. Keep the tester calibrated.

How often?

With 9ct to 14ct readings: keep the 18ct calibration sample on the test-plate, check it each time you turn the tester on, then check it every several tests, if you don't get an 18K reading – calibrate. With an 18ct reading: 18ct will not read as 14ct; it's very rare for 18ct to read as 22ct (if in doubt, calibrate). With 22ct to 24ct readings: test, calibrate, test, if in doubt, calibrate again.

If you deal mostly in high carat (e.g. 'Asian' gold) keep a 22ct sample on the test-plate alongside the 22ct sample, keep calibrating against your 18ct sample until both the 18ct and the 22ct sample read correctly.

2. File the item thoroughly before testing, just being 'clean' isn't good enough. This applies especially to high-carat. Take care not to spill filings from an iron needle-file onto the test plate.

How often?

For low-carat items, once on each item. For high-carat items, for every test (even on the same spot). This is to remove any possible surface contamination, cleaning it with a cloth isn't good enough!

3. Prime the pen-probe, take a couple of dummy tests to ensure the salt solution is flowing properly.

How often?

When the pen-probe is new or if you haven't used it for a while. There's no harm in priming before each use. If you get inconsistent readings (especially with high-carat items) – prime it.

THE PEN-PROBE

• When new, the pen-probes are sometimes over-filled and can drip liquid. Dab with tissue. This will soon resolve itself as you use up the liquid. The liquid is a harmless salt solution.
• The tip will very soon go black with use, that's OK - but take care to keep it free from filings (both from the gold item and from the steel file), wipe with tissue.
• Hold the tip onto the test-sample gently, if it gets squished out of shape you will need to buy a new one.
• You will need a new pen-probe when you get no reading at all on gold (check against your 18ct calibration sample) or when, upon calibration, you see the message "out of range."
• The manufacturers recommend that you change the pen-probe after a year.
• Replace the cap firmly after use otherwise it will dry out.

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1. The manufacturers incorrectly use the word 'charge', which causes confusion when users look for a charging socket. ↩