Twin City Gold

I took an antique 16k gold ring into this place to have it appraised. The youngish male who I had dealt with, took the liberty without asking me first, to do an acid test. Then he came back and told me the gold wasn't real which at least 5 other reputable jewelry stores had previously told me that it was, but that I was previously also informed that the stones were questionable which lead him into doubt and the irresponsible mishandling of the antique metal. It has a Maker's mark and 16k stamped on the inside of the band where he did the scratch test and left a deep noticeable gouge inside the band. He handed me back the ring, telling me it wasn't real gold, and I told him I wasn't happy he did that acid test to a delicate Victorian Era ring, but he assured me it was safe. When I got home, I noticed the fresh scratch marks inside the band. I did some research and found out that the acid tests are for specific grades of gold (i.e. 14k, 18k, 22k and so forth), and jewelers today normally do not have one for 16k as this is rare. Therefore, not only did it damage the ring, it also most likely gave a false reading and reacted negatively with the alloys used with the antique composition. I called the shop and some lady answered and defended the process after I told her that they should've asked before using the acid and that other jewelry shops in the past never did that, but used the magnifying glass or scanned it (within the last few years) with an X-ray machine. All I know is those marks weren't there prior to entering their shop. She then offered to buff the scratch out which would only damage it further and weaken the metal instead of filling in the scratch with a tiny drop of gold and smoothing it down and then polishing it which is what most reputable jewelers would have offered regardless of what the false test implied. They justified damaging an antique ring with total inexperience and b.s.. Acid tests are also not always accurate with any grade of karat, especially if they used too much. The scratches are large and noticeable and this inexperienced youngish male scratched it with zero finesse. Even if the ring turned out not to be gold, they still damaged it! When I demanded to speak to the owner, she took my number and name, but then said they weren't sure when he would be in and that he never deals with the customer. She then abruptly hung up the phone, dismissing the situation like she was the owner. When I tried to call back to maybe get another person, thinking that maybe she wasn't actually the manager, or even if she was, get another person there to talk to about what happened (who could put me in touch with the owner so that he or she knows how these workers are running their business), they wouldn't answer the phone which only confirmed my beliefs regarding how they treat the customer should things go wrong on their end which they obviously have. It appears that they are deceitful and unprofessional. They are not BBB accredited and are running the place like a lowly pawn shop with snakelike customer service. They also will use the police department across the street when giving directions to their business, probably to assure you they are reputable and put you off guard, or to scare away people that they themselves can probably identify with, which only instills the feeling that you are being 'taken' somehow in the slickest of ways. It will leave you feeling like you just had a very odd and uncertain encounter which proved to be true in my case, after I noticed the scratch and acid test marks. If you value your antique jewelry, or any jewelry for that matter, go elsewhere unless you want the same shady, asinine treatment. Yes everyone is entitled to their own perception, but I go on facts. Also, just for the record, I called you at exactly 10:29am and 10:43am today, as noted in my phone. I do not make up b.s., but it appears that you have a penchant for it. I trusted you people with handling my ring in good faith, that was my only mistake. Never again. Consider this gospel.

Much can change in a few years, and unfortunately, it has. I recently stopped into Twin City Gold to replace a watch battery and change out the strap. There were three associates on duty, and after only a short wait, a gentleman with a mustache asked how he could help. I explained what I needed and mentioned that I would wait for the service to be completed. He informed me that if I chose to wait, the cost would be $60, whereas it would be $40 if I left the watch and returned in a week. This was surprising and disappointing. I’ve had these same services completed here multiple times in the past, typically for $20–$25, and they were always completed while I waited. Given that staffing appeared the same as on previous visits, the significant price increase and change in service were unexpected and disappointing. Unfortunately, this experience has ensured I won’t be returning. 4/4 Response to owner: thank you for your message. Per your reply, prices should range between $25-$40. Not $60 as I was quoted from your establishment. Btw, I went to a competitor and they changed the watch battery and strap for $30… while I waited. That’s customer service.

The best! I’ve gotten so many amazing, unique pieces of jewelry from them. They’ve expertly fixed many of my rings and watches over the years. Gina is fantastic—she really takes the time to help, remembers her customers, and gives honest, trustworthy opinions on jewelry. I make it a point to go there every time something special happens in my life that I want to celebrate with a beautiful piece of jewelry.

Great selection awesome prices and very fair with what you bring them. Not going anywhere else for my gold or silver

5 star review

—Not people of color friendly— please extend comment to view my response to the company — NOT BBB accredited— If I could give zero stars I would. If you are a POC this place is NOT for you. My ex-husband went into this pawn shop and was able to pawn his wedding ban for $400 dollars. This band was purely gold with no diamonds. I went into this pawn shop to pawn my old engagement ring with a pure white gold engagement band AND a .5 carat diamond and was offered $75. The diamond itself is worth more than that. The only difference between my ex-husband and myself is that I am a person of color and he is Caucasian. If you are a person of color, you will not be treated fairly and they will lowball you. I will never return to this establishment and will be reporting the racism to the BBB (Better Business Bureau). — RESPONSE TO COMPANY COMMENT — First off, your gaslighting tendency (which I have noticed through your responses to those that give you a one star review) will not work here. I was in the shop for maybe 5 minutes. The employee did not give me an in depth explanation as to why that price was the determined price. The employee said and I quote “his ring must have weighed more” and that was that. The employee said nothing about the market or anything about the diamond; in fact, the employee never mentioned the diamond at all. Secondly, it’s bold of you to assume that I didn’t do my research. In my research, I found that my .5 ct diamond is worth at least $500, so the $75 offer is clearly laughable. I also noticed that all of your five star reviews come from Caucasian people, which if your claim of happily and fairly doing business with ALL people, no matter their race, gender, age, etc, is accurate you should have at least 1 from a POC. Why don’t you have 5 star reviews from people of color? If I saw one, I wouldn’t have left the review, but I did not. I also bet you don’t have ANY POC employees. People of color cannot be treated fairly by a business that does not hire people of color. I will be going to other pawn shops and reporting back, when I do get what the ring is worth as further proof. I will then be using it as further proof for the Better Business Bureau as well. My vile review is a reflection of your VILE BUSINESS antics.

Gina and the team helped me to create the perfect engagement ring. They did an amazing job it was fully designed and set with my choice of diamond. Gina worked with me directly. Fit my budget and they even did the appraisal right there. I couldnt have been more happy, it was perfect!

Predatory shop. Asked for 2k short term loan on 4k gold bar. They wrote up the paper work and slid it over to me at an absurd 20% rate... About 4x higher than the standard. This wasn't an error. Actually asked them to confirm. No thanks.

I want to thank the ladies at Twin City Gold for helping me restore my wedding band. Gina was amazing—she made my ring look better than ever in just one week! And Amanda was so kind, keeping me updated throughout the entire process. I can’t say enough about how happy I am with the final result. Everything was so easy and worth every penny! Thank you so much!

I had my husband bring in my diamond earrings to be put in new settings because the gold turned really dark from having them for over twenty five years. I also lost the backings. They were very professional and called me to ask exactly what I wanted them to do. They saved us money and cleaned the gold and added backing. Only charged ten dollars. When they could of charged hundreds. I highly recommend Twin City Gold. Thank you so much!