I have a +1 longsword. If I want to make it +2 do I just pay the enhancement cost or do I have to remake it and pay full price for enhancement (essentially scrapping the original +1 sword)
you pay the difference
Example: Patrick's wizard decides to use his downtime to increase the armor bonus on his bracers of armor +1 to +3. The price difference between the two types of bracers is 8,000 gp, so Patrick's wizard must spend 8 days and 4,000 gp (half the 8,000 gp price difference) upgrading his bracers' magic. If he has fewer than 8 days before the next adventure, he'll need to finish his crafting while traveling or use accelerated crafting in town to speed up the process.
note, this is him personally upgrading them and hence the half off price.
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@Spindoc,
It really depends on what campaign, game and gm you are playing with.
If this is for a Pathfinder Society (PFS) game, then yes you just need to pay the difference to upgrade it, as much as your character's FAME in PFS allows.
PFS is a worldwide campaign, so the rules are the same for every PFS game, a PFS game GM follows the PFS rules.
If this is a homebrew, then it depends on your GM and what kind of campaign and game he is running. Some GMs could decide that magical weapons are created one off and if you want a more powerful weapon, you need to make a new one.
OR he could follow rules more similar to PFS and just let you upgrade it.
For a homebrew, it is best to ask your GM.
For a home game, let your GM know you're attached to your current weapon and are looking for an upgrade rather than a replacement. As a GM I'm always looking for plot fun for characters, and a GM that I play with is particularly good at this kind of plot reward - it can be a lot more fun, getting an "upgrade" instead of random treasure, etc.
Just to post the relevant rules passage (Core rulebook, page 553):
Adding New Abilities
Sometimes, lack of funds or time make it impossible for a magic item crafter to create the desired item from scratch. Fortunately, it is possible to enhance or build upon an existing magic item. Only time, gold, and the various prerequisites required of the new ability to be added to the magic item restrict the type of additional powers one can place.The cost to add additional abilities to an item is the same as if the item was not magical, less the value of the original item. Thus, a +1 longsword can be made into a +2 vorpal longsword, with the cost to create it being equal to that of a +2 vorpal sword minus the cost of a +1 longsword.
Just to restate, as people mentioned home games several times. By RAW you can ALWAYS choose to upgrade your weapon. It is not an optional rule ore an alternate way to play. I say this because as a player you should be able to expect to be allowed to do things provisioned in the rules
If your DM decides he won't allow this he/she needs to understand that they are changing the rules of the game, and that it is their responsibility to mention this rules change as early as possible, preferably before a campeign even starts. They also need to understand that if they make this change it throws off normal calculations for what player wealth should be, as they have just made a portion of the game much more expensive.