The Silver Salon Forums are open to anyone with an interest in silver and a willingness to share. Know little or nothing about silver? Don't worry! Anyone with a genuine desire to explore the subject of silver and related metal crafts is welcome.

The New Members Forum is where new members can begin posting. As a result of past misuse of the Silver Salon Forums by some new members, all new memberships will be restricted to the New Members Forum. All the public Silver Salon Forums will be viewable and searchable by anyone. Posting privileges may be extended to the other public forums once a new member has demonstrated that he or she:

• Consistently respect and abide by the SSF Guidelines.
• Actively and regularly participate.
• Properly post photos.

• If your topic has not yet been raised on the Silver Salon Forums, create a new topic in the appropriate forum. If you are unsure what category would be most appropriate, just post it in the General Forum. Once the topic is established, the thread may be moved to one of the specific forums by a moderator.
• Photos are a big help, especially close up photos of any maker or hallmarks. If you would like to enhance your post with photographs be sure to read the How to post photos FAQ. The Silver Salon Forums use UBB code to allow you to insert pictures that are already posted on the Web. Sorry, the Silver Salon Forums do not support insertions of pictures stored only on your PC. The pictures must be on an accessible Internet file server.
• If you are using pictures, make sure they are stored in a space where they will remain for a long time so future SSF members will be able to see the photos along with your question. The past discussions on the Silver Salon Forum represent a valuable resource to all members; it is very frustrating to read posts referring to images that are no longer seen.

• If you follow the above steps you will increase the likelihood of receiving an answer. Most new posts receive at least one reply. If you receive no answers, try editing your post to make it more clear.
• Poorly phrased inquiries are often ignored.
• If you would like to identify a piece and cannot post a picture, make sure your description is as complete as possible.
• Unfortunately, there is the possibility that no one has the information you want. This is particularly true of items made outside the USA/Canada/Britain. With continental items the country can frequently be determined but makers are very numerous and their documentation is spread over thousands of dollars worth of books, an investment that is not justifiable for most people given the infrequent use they could make of them. So, if you do not get an answer, do not take it as a personal slight - it may just be that no one knows or that it is taking longer to research.
• When you do receive a response, please acknowledge that response. Something as simple as "Thanks" lets the person who took the time to respond know that their efforts are appreciated.

• No. Please don't. It is not necessary. Most users look at all of the Forums on a regular basis.

• We all realize that information has value. Whether you are a dealer or a collector or just someone who has something interesting, sooner or later you will use what you know about an object for some monetary purpose. However:
  • The Silver Salon Forums are not intended as a free instant ID service to help sellers (i.e., eBay or amateur/professional sellers).
  • Soliciting information from the Silver Salon Forums, then using it immediately to sell an item, is rude.
  • All of the information on the Silver Salon Forums was put there voluntarily by people willing to put in time to help others. If you use the information you find here, but are not willing to contribute what you know, you are not welcome.
  • Please do not refer to the Silver Salon Forums in your item descriptions.(Note: The Silver Salon Forums are protected by copyright law. Linking to and/or quoting information on the Silver Salon Forums requires the expressed written permission signed by a principal of SM Publications.)
  • Please refrain from using the Silver Salon Forums to publicize commercial sites, amateur/professional sales, or auctions (i.e., eBay).

• Dealers/sellers with questions about, and an academic interest in, the object(s) they have for sale should prepare their post in advance (take photos and a prepare a write up) but wait to submit the post until after the business/sale is concluded or the conflict is resolved. This will ensure that there is no conflict with the SSF Guidelines.

• One might want to ask a question about an item seen for sale for various reasons, such as
  • obtaining reassurance or otherwise about an item that one might consider buying
  • using a set of good illustrations to ask questions about a similar item
  • pointing out a deceptive listing as a warning, or
  • drawing attention to ones items for sale (Not allowed)
• Helping members avoid mistakes is a basic role of the Silver Salon Forums, but we realize that this situation offer opportunities for abuse.
• All references to auction items are subject to the approval of the moderators who at their sole and incontestable discretion will decide whether to leave such references or delete them
• IN GENERAL, it is best not to ask questions about an auction item until the auction is closed
• DO NOT "borrow" images from auctions or other web sites. They may be accessible to you, and you may be able to copy them, but they do not belong to you.

• Anyone can offer an answer to a question, and not everyone is an expert. Some Silver Salon Forum participants are new to silver, others have years of experience and extensive reference libraries.
• An answer may be a direct quote from a generally accepted reference work, an educated guess, or just an opinion.
• You may get conflicting answers to your questions. Some reference works contradict one another, and new research may supersede that found in older references. Also, some participants may have information that is unpublished or otherwise unknown to others.
• Even "experts" make mistakes sometimes
• Ultimately, it is up to you to determine if the information you receive at the Silver Salon Forums is correct, comprehensive and the best available.

• Subjects/Topics/Postings need to emphasize silver or other relevant metal working like gold, copper.
• When you do receive a response, please acknowledge that response. Something as simple as "Thanks" lets the person who took the time to respond know that their efforts are appreciated.
• Links should be really relevant to the forum thread and not just draw people away from the SSF forum.
• Many times, discussions in the forums will lead to the expression of personal opinions. Everyone is entitled to their opinion as long as it remains on topic and is expressed in a courteous and respectful manner.
• Rude and inappropriate comments or posts will not be tolerated. The poster and their posts/inappropriate comments will be removed from the forums.
• Visitors or members who ask for help to identify a piece so they can turn around and sell it for more on commercial web or amateur/professional sales or auction (e.g., eBay) is considered poor conduct and a misuse of the SSF. These posts and posters are generally ignored by forum regulars. If necessary these posts and posters will be removed.
• Please refrain from self or business or amateur/professional sales promotion.

• ONLY in the For Sale and Wanted to Buy Forums. See below.
• The For Sale Forum is a free place to advertise the silver you have up for sale.
  • Posts in the For Sale Forum should be self contained and refrain from links that take visitors away from Silver Salon Forums.
• The Wanted to Buy Forum is a free place to advertise the silver you are seeking.
  • Posts in the Wanted to Buy Forum should be self contained and refrain from links that take visitors away from Silver Salon Forums.
• None of the other forums should be used (even indirectly) to sell, promote or advertise goods or services. Occasionally a specific question requires a specific answer. For example:
  • "Is there a place to get replating done in or near Tulsa?"  In such a case, a direct answer like "Joe's Replating Services 30 miles west of Tulsa is the closest place."   is considered generally OK.
  • "I lost one of my place settings. Where can I buy another?"   In such a case suggesting that they look up dealers who offer matching services is OK. But recommending or listing your preferred matching dealers (i.e., Joe's Replacements) is not OK.
  Such posts may be moved to the Wanted to Buy or For Sale Forums or modified or removed completely at the sole discretion of the Silver Salon Moderators.

• Generally No.
        The Silver Salon Forums is an online forum where discussions are open and without business overtones. We have experienced that many off-line contacts seem to be by people who have business motives and who wish to contact our members to bypass the forum rules.
        Another reason for not posting email addresses or requests for email addresses is that it will result in our members receiving more SPAM from internet robots that prowl every forum, including ours, to gather email addresses for undesirable uses. Again, we wish to protect all of our members.
        Even in cases where the intent for such off-line contact is in the spirit of the silver forums, by soliciting email addresses, it gives the impression that the rest of the members of the forum are either being excluded from an interesting discussion, or that something business related is going on. Either of these can undermine the purpose of the forums to be a non-commercial place where all members are welcome and can learn from each other.
        If you have an occasional and honest need to get in touch with another member privately, please follow the following procedure. Send an email from your silver forum registered email address to the Forum Master at info@smpub.com in which you include your forum name, your real name, the forum name of the person you wish to contact, and the message you wish to send.
        Many members want to remain private. We go out of our way to protect our members' privacy, including yours. If the message meets the spirit of the silver forum, the moderator will forward your inquiry to the other member along with your SSF registered email address. It will be up to them to respond or not. If they do not respond, please respect their decision and do not harass them by posting an inquiry to them or asking SSF to follow up for you to press the member to respond. We try to make the silver forums a pleasant place for all of our members and participation here is strictly on a voluntary basis. By following this practice of respect we hope our members will remain with the Forum for a long time to come.