Jewelry Scales and Balances

For weighing gold, a jewelry balance with a readability of 0.01 g is recommended. For weighing silver, a readability of 0.1 g/1 g is recommended.

General dust and dirt on your jewelry balance can be wiped off with a damp cloth. More thorough cleaning is achieved through the use of isopropanol/ethanol (70%). Acetone is not recommended. For more information on balance cleaning, check out our balance cleaning guide.

In gold weighing, the number of carats, or karats (k), refers to the purity of the gold with 24 carat gold (24k) being the most pure. When weighing diamonds, carat is the weight unit. 1 ct is equivalent to 200 mg.

METTLER TOLEDO's carat balances and scales are ideal for weighing diamonds and gemstones as they offer higher readability that is suitable for weighing small items. The default weight unit is also conveniently set to carat.

You should check the performance of your jewelry scale regularly using a reference weight to see if it needs to be recalibrated. In addition, a jewelry balance or scale should always be recalibrated whenever it is moved to a new location.

d is the smallest division that a balance or scale can display.

e is the smallest interval on a balance or scale that can be used in a business transaction.

For example, a scale has d = 0.001 g, providing weight results to 3 decimal places. In the case that e=d, the scale can be used in business transactions measuring weight to 3 decimal places (0.001 g). In the case that e=10d, the balance can only be used in business transactions measuring weight to 10 x 0.001 g or 0.01 g.

No. It is important not to confuse the readability of the scale with the minimum weight that can be weighed accurately on the scale. The minimum weight defines the weight of the smallest item you can weigh, while still meeting your desired accuracy requirements. The minimum weight of your jewelry scale is determined at the time of installation and is checked every time the scale is recalibrated. In the following document, you can find the typical minimum weight values that you can expect for each jewelry scale.

Legal requirements for weighing equipment vary from country to country. Therefore, it is important to check the local requirements of the area in which you do business.

Jewelry balances have a special software to meet the needs of the jewelry industry. For example, they have special weighing units.

No, all of our jewelry scales have the same METTLER TOLEDO quality and accuracy. Legal for Trade scales undergo additional testing and a tamper-proof seal is added during the manufacturing process.