From no-longer-needed wedding bands to dental fillings still in the tooth, people bring in all sorts of things to Ohio Valley Refinery events. Some are just wanting to see what their items are worth, but most are hoping to bring home some cash.

“We see all kinds of stuff,” said Barry Deem, show manager for Ohio Valley Gold and Silver Refinery (OVGSR) which is set up in Russellville through the weekend.

Representatives from the refinery travel around the county inviting people to bring in their gold, silver and platinum items and offering cash on the spot for the merchandise.

“The thing we see most is gold and coins,” Deem said. “Gold is at an all-time high right now.”

The show came to Russellville last week and the response was so good that they decided to come back again this week. Deem said they had written many checks including some for over $1,000.

Ernest and Edith Cain of Lewisburg came out to the show Wednesday afternoon hoping to go home with some money. They had a tin full of old coins.

“Some of them were my dad’s coins,” Edith said.

“I’ve got a lot of real good coins I’m keeping,” Ernest added. “But we wanted to see what we could get for some of these.”

Deem said that when people come in, they register and then see one of their two buyers. With some items, the first thing to do is determine if they are real gold. A simple magnet test is the first way to eliminate non-gold items. Buyers also use an eye glass and sometimes an acid test to see if the gold is real or not.

Deem said most gold is marked by karat. Value of the gold is partially based on the karat. Twenty-four karat gold is pure gold and worth the most while 10 karat gold is only 41.7 percent gold and worth the least.

When it comes to gold items, Deem said old class rings, wedding bands and gold chains with kinks in them are the most common items brought in.

“People will just clean out their jewelry box and bring things in,” Deem said.

A woman who brought in some jewelry she hadn’t worn in years Wednesday went home with a check for $368.

“It’s like Christmas,” Deem said. “You never know what they’re going to pull out of their bag or box.”

While those working for the show have seen many things, Deem said what still gets him the most are the dental fillings.

“It still gets me every time I see it,” he said. “One day a man brought in a tooth that had literally come out of his mouth the day before.”

“We try to make it fun,” Deem added. He said he enjoys meeting people and seeing them have a good time just being together and finding out what some of their items are worth.

Sherry Taylor and her mother brought several items for the buyers to take a look at.

“I had all this stuff I’ve been hanging on to,” Taylor said. When she heard about the show she decided to clean out some drawers and see if she could get any money for some of her items.

“I brought out a bunch of worthless silverware,” Taylor said, “and a sack full of old coins.”

As the buyer worked to calculate his offer, Taylor said no matter what amount of money she and her mother took home, at least they had cleaned out some things they didn’t need any more.

“And something’s better than nothing,” Taylor said.

The Ohio Valley Gold and Silver Refinery is set up at the Logan County Extension Office through Sunday. Their hours are 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. on Friday and Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday. No appointment is necessary. For more information, call 726-6323 during refinery hours.