If you've ever wondered how professionals determine the exact value of gold or silver in jewelry, coins, or scrap materials, the answer often lies in a method called fire assay. Known for its exceptional accuracy, fire assay has remained the most trusted way to test precious metals for centuries.
At Mid-States Recycling and Refining, we use fire assay because it delivers reliable results—whether you're a jeweler, pawnbroker, investor, or someone simply looking to understand the true value of your precious metal items.
What Is Fire Assay?
Fire assay is a precise, lab-based method for measuring the content of precious metals such as gold, silver, and platinum in a sample. This technique dates back thousands of years and is still considered the most accurate testing method in the refining industry.
It analyzes everything from scrap jewelry and coins to bullion, dental alloys, and polishing dust. Because of its unmatched accuracy, a wide range of people trust fire assay, including jewelers, pawnbrokers, investors, collectors, and individuals looking to assess the value of inherited or unused items.
If an item contains valuable metal and you want to know exactly how much, this is the method professionals rely on.
How the Fire Assay Process Works
At Mid-States, the fire assay process includes three main steps:
1. Fusion
The material is blended with special fluxes and melted at a high temperature in a furnace. During this stage, lead helps collect the precious metals from the rest of the material.
2. Cupellation
The melted mixture is poured into a cupel—a small, porous container. The cupel absorbs the lead and other base materials, leaving behind a small bead of precious metal.
3. Final Analysis
This bead is weighed and tested to determine the exact amount of gold, silver, or other precious metals present in the sample.
This method allows us to extract and measure even the most minor amounts of valuable metal with high accuracy. That's one of the reasons fire assay is still considered the gold standard in precious metal testing. It delivers precise, consistent, and verifiable results, often accurate to within a fraction of a percent. It's also internationally accepted across refining, mining, and jewelry industries, and works effectively across a wide range of material types—including complex, mixed-metal lots.
Where Precision Meets Transparency
At Mid-States Recycling and Refining, we take pride in offering not just fire assay, but a fully transparent refining process. Clients are welcome to observe each step, from receiving and weighing to melting and sampling. Our in-house chemists and lab team use industry-standard procedures and state-of-the-art equipment to ensure every result is fair, accurate, and clearly communicated.
Whether you're sending in a small lot or managing regular shipments, you can count on:
- Detailed assay reports
- Fast turnaround times
- Flexible settlement options
- Exceptional customer service
- Full gemstone recovery, when applicable
Learn More or Get Started Today
If you're looking for a precious metals refinery that prioritizes accuracy, transparency, and trust, we're here to help. Fire assay is just one part of our full-service approach to helping you get the most out of your gold, silver, and other valuable materials.
Contact us directly to learn more about how fire assay fits into our refining process.
