engraved platinum?

[nicholerh]

This is a repost from ''rocky talky'' after I realized that maybe this question is better asked here. So please forgive the repeat

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Hello all. Long time listener, first time caller.

I got my ering 2 months ago and after a lot of soul searching and deep ponderings, I''ve decided to change out the setting. I am switching it to a platinum vatche crown royal. I have an approx 1.8 ct (7.2mm) round blue sapphire that will be going in this setting. I''ve always loved the antique look, so I am hoping to add the engraving to this setting.

So the basic ring would look like:
this setting
With this
engravement

So my question is: how does maintenance work with hand engraved patterns in platinum? I''ve read platinum needs to be polished to maintain its purdyness. Do engraved bands hold up to this? How exactly do they polish the ring?

Thanks so much!
Nichole

 

[door knob solitaire]

I'm an long time talk radio listener...loved your start off line! And Welcome!

Glad you are on board. I didn't go to your other post, and I am sure I should before leaving a reply here.

It has been my understanding that platinum will remain the same VOLUME of metal...it just gets little kisses of time that need to be polished out. They use some weird description that the metal just moves around...but you don't lose any of it. That still is a strange thought so I can't wrap my mind around it. But some how it means your engraving or detail will still be there forever and ever amen. Just will get a little "patina" (modern english; really scratched and banged up) unlike gold silver or copper, when you polish platinum you lose no metal. You can weigh it before and it will remain the same weight. Oh they should use steps of polishing pads with graduated textures. It is put on a machine with a polishing wheel and it buffs it just like a floor buffer. Simple, but to be done right...it takes a while.

But they like to say it moves around. Well, jello moves around and I don't think I want to describe $1400 dollars of a setting like jello...how about you? I think your engraving will be fine. Be sure and take a photo shoot and come back with lots to share!

 

[door knob solitaire]

You know, in afterthought...I shouldn''t have made it seem as if I knew enough to answer your question. I have like you read everything about platinum and it is so confusing you don''t know who or what to believe. One hand they tell you it is the strong, durable and most pure...and then they tell you it is soft ...what??? How can that be?

From my experience I have learned Platinum is not always the same. The use different alloys and different forge techniques and there is something called porosity that has to do with the density air pockets....or something like that. Comparing all platinum I think isn''t wise as every jeweler uses a different recipe.

But the Vatche is a well respected label. They have sold many of ring using the same recipe and people are still buying the line. I said all of that I suppose to reiterate I don''t know enough to address all of your issues, but thought this follow up to the first reply was necessary. You don''t lose anything when you polish platinum means to me...that your engraving will only get polished or brighter...but not be erased or lightened. Whew.

 

[nicholerh]

Yeah I have read the same things about white gold vrs platinum - how platinum gets pushed around while the white gold loses some of its overall volume over time. I love the antique look so much though that I think the normal wear and tear might be worth it to me. I''ve looked at how the original antique rings and how they have held up and if thats what they look like when I''m 90, I''m ok with that! I don''t think I''ll care when I''m 90 how many dings are there anyway. I''ll have bigger fish to fry by then!

Though I gotta admit that the ring won''t be a vatche exactly. My jeweler (who is awesome, btw) has been in the business for a long time. They''re one of the top places in Seattle and they do beautiful work. They''ll be making the ring for me with that "basic" vatche model in mind. I''m going in on Wednesday to talk the specs over with them. Can''t wait!

 

[pjean]

If you get a good answer from your jeweler, would you mind posting it here? I''m interested in this issue too, since I''m getting a little engraving on my ering, and an engraved wedding band. I haven''t asked about maintenance, but it''s been in the back of my mind.

 

[nicholerh]

I will definitely let you know what I find out on Wednesday

 

[Circe]

Platinum is amazing stuff - I''m not sure about how it will influence engraving, but DKS is on the money about the malleability.

I got my e-ring about 6 months before we moved to a new home, and I''d gotten so used to wearing it 24/7 that I forgot to take it off when we started doing home repairs. And, somehow, I managed to put a great big scratch into the shank - say, a mm. deep, and three mm. long. Man, I felt like an idiot! Now, hobby-wise, I''m an amateur silversmith ... so I figured that if I were going to have to take it in to be "fixed" anyway, I probably couldn''t do too much damage if I tried to fix it myself ... so I took a burnisher to it (a burnisher is basically exactly what it sounds like: a highly polished length of curved steel that''s used to provide a smooth finish). Well, after years of working with silver and gold, I was shocked at how the metal reacted! It really does live up to its reputation: if I''d tried to burnish a scratch like that in silver, I would have left a groove in the metal. In platinum, a little force smoother the scratched, lifted edge right back into the scratch - voila, like it had never been there! Awesome.

I''m not quite sure how this will work with engraving, truth be told, but given that your average polish job is generally much gentler, and the dings of regular wear much more shallow, I''d imagine you''re not going to see any visible alteration to the engraving from normal polishing/maintenance. Also, check into specific composition of the alloy: from what I hear, 10% iridium is the sturdiest.

 

[pjean]

Date: 2/4/2008 10:45:15 PM
Author: Circe

I''m not quite sure how this will work with engraving, truth be told, but given that your average polish job is generally much gentler, and the dings of regular wear much more shallow, I''d imagine you''re not going to see any visible alteration to the engraving from normal polishing/maintenance. Also, check into specific composition of the alloy: from what I hear, 10% iridium is the sturdiest.

Well, that''s encouraging. I had assumed that the engraving would just mean I could never get it polished, and I''d just have to be super careful, and live with patina.

 

[nicholerh]

Sorry it took so long to update. I was down for the count with the flu so I was unable to go back to the jeweler till today. I asked her about the merits between having an engraved white gold ring verses a platinum as far as longevity is concerned, and what she told me was that when looking at old vintage rings, it''s typically the platinums that hold up the best over the years. I asked about the engraving and how you maintain the shine and it sounds like it can be cleaned but not buffed (the engraving hides the wear and tear better than polished).

I''m going to ask a bit more next wednesday. To be honest I was a little distracted because I found out the gal I''ve been working with is pregnant and I do OB ultrasound for a living so the subject kinda kept going back to ultrasounds and gender guessing. Oh well

Ring wise, she''s bringing in some specific Varna rings for us to look at. They''ll be in Wednesday.

 

[pjean]

Thanks for replying. I''m sorry to hear about the ''flu. I think I''m going to go ahead with the engraved platinum - I guess I''ll know in about 30 years whether that was a good idea.

Good luck with the Varna rings.

 

[nicholerh]

I''m doing the same. Engraved platinum, that is. We went back and I re-asked the questions. Engraved platinum can''t be polished, just cleaned. White gold has to be replated, engraving and all.

Do what you wish with that information!