SAYBROOK TOWNSHIP — Lee Tate is mining gold and silver in Ashtabula County this week.

Tate is senior buyer for Phoenix Coins, which set up shop in the Holiday Inn Express Saturday. The company buys gold, silver, platinum, jewelry, U.S. coins and sundry other items of appreciating value, direct from the owner and cuts checks on the spot.

During economic downturns, precious-metals prices usually increase as investors seek safe havens for their money. This recession has been no different, and companies like Phoenix are eager to buy.

“The big interest is because gold is at record prices,” said Tate as he checked kitco.com on his laptop to get the latest prices. Gold was valued at $1,092 an ounce, silver at $17.51 and platinum at $13.61.

Bottom line: If you have silver coins, old gold jewelry or silverware (not silver-plated) taking up space in your life, “now is the time to sell,” Tate said.

Chalk it up to the bad economy or just a desire to clean house, but area residents are taking his advice

“It’s been so good here, we’ve actually extended it to two extra days (Thursday and today),” said Tate.

As of the close of business Wednesday, Tate had written checks totaling more than $32,000. He did a third of that business on Tuesday, when two men brought in a couple of 1-ounce gold coins.

By and large, however, most of the transactions are for silver coins that have been collecting tarnish in the bottom of a desk drawer, and jewelry that’s lost its luster in the eyes of the owner.

One of Tate’s customers Thursday afternoon, “Bonnie,” said she had a lot of unused stuff just taking up space in jewelry boxes and decided to see whether it was worth anything. Plus, she’s going through a divorce and could use the extra income. Among the treasures she offered Tate: her great-grandfather’s pocket watch, a quantity of gold and silver coins, necklaces and silverware.

A Quarter Eagle gold coin fetched $150; an 1842 dime, $8. Her great-grandfather’s pocket watch didn’t interest Tate, nor did the other pocket and dress watches Bonnie brought in. Their jewel counts were below the threshold of 17 and their condition not up to the high standard set by Tate’s boss.

“Watches in pristine condition only,” Tate said.

He softened the blow by giving Bonnie some advice on how to sell the watches on eBay: have the crystals buffed, list and end the auction on a Saturday, start them at $200 and expect $300 to $400.

Terry from Geneva brought in a circa-1940 money card he had received as a child. Ten Mercury dimes were still in the slots, and Terry wanted to cash them out along with some Kennedy half-dollars and a few other silver coins.

Tate quickly dismissed the Kennedy half-dollars as “spenders” because they had copper between the shiny faces. He paid Terry five times the face value of the dimes, a delayed Christmas present from his childhood.

Had Terry walked in with a 55-pound bag of silver coins (90 percent silver), Tate would have paid him 10.5 times face value.

“The more you have, the more you get paid on it,” he said.

David and Pat brought in some silverware they had found in their basement.

“The only reason we brought this in is because the basement flooded and it happened to be down there,” Pat said as David spread out the spoons and forks on trays in front of Tate. “We didn’t even know this little box happened to be there.”

Most of the silverware turned out to be silver-plated, but the couple still walked out with a check for $63.62.

A class ring and gold band brought in by Steve turned out to be the genuine article, netting him $89.40 after Tate “tested out the metal” with a drop of chemical.

Many of the sellers brought in diamonds, as well, but Tate advised them to have a gemologist evaluate and issue a report on the stone, and then set it aside until the economy improves.

“If you sell your diamond now, you’re going to take a 50- to 75-percent hit,” Tate said.

His next stop is Athens, Ohio, but Tate said he’d really like to stay in Ashtabula a few more days because the picking has been so good. Another bonus of selling here: his newspaper advertising bill was only $2,300 from the Star Beacon. In the two prior towns he worked, Mansfield and Lima, the bill was at least double that.

Tate’s visit will be followed by one from another company, Ohio Valley Gold & Silver Refinery, which comes to Holiday Inn Express Nov. 10-14 (9 a.m. to 6 p.m. weekdays). The company is looking for vintage guitars, old paper money, antique toys, pocket watches, wristwatches, war memorabilia and, of course, precious metals.