oohsparkly|1337038786|3195223 said:by Mike R » 14 May 2012 10:47
I think it is almost impossible to compare the scratch resistancy of the two metals in real life situations, there are just too many variables.
Cast vs Forged, different alloys, different styles (wider, flatter rings will show more scratches than thinner rounded ones) and finally how the ring is worn, one person could wear the same ring on two different days, one day she might not put a scratch on it and then the other day she might absolutely punish it.
I think you have to accept that all metals will scratch, even stainless steal and titanium scratch, and some people even scratch and damage diamonds too.
Hi again Mike R! I think you have nicely summed up a lot of the issues we have been trying to get to the bottom of.
Now you might be interested to know that YOU are responsible for me even being on the palladium trail in the first place!
I rang Morris and Watson when you recommended their white gold as being very white and not grey at all. (You did remember correctly that 'grey' is something I really want to avoid). The lady who answered the phone was very helpful and a jeweller herself. She spent some time comparing all their different alloys and commenting on the color and their long-term properties.
She had silver, pd/wg, two types of plat and 950 pd (couldn't tell me what the pd was alloyed with - their secret formula). So she got them all out and even asked one of her colleagues and whiteness-wise she said that it went from most white to most grey
silver
plat
pd
pd/wg
She said there was almost no difference between the palladium and the platinum, but the pd/wg was noticeably the greyest.
So I thought that since you said their wg was particularly white, and she said their pd was whiter than their wg, then the pd has to be whiter!
She also went on a lot about what a beautiful metal the palladium was.
She also confirmed on a later call after I researched a bit more that pd will go grey if it is heated too high and not quenched. My jeweller also confirmed this and said that if I want pd he will quench it all the way through the manufacturing process to keep it from going grey.
So I am wondering if the grey pd you have seen was not made very well.
My jeweller also particularly likes palladium and calls it the metal of the future. He has not guided me in any direction - in fact he is so into 'letting me decide' that I've mostly gone elsewhere for help in making the decision. Yet at least I know he is very happy with the metal, happy to work with it and knows how to, which appears to be a crucial factor because experience in this metal is obviously thin on the ground.
However I believe it is not too late to change my mind. Do you have any further thoughts wrt the above?
Mike R|1337079631|3195533 said:Personally if you were my client and you told me that grey was something you wanted to avoid I would give you only one option for metal, forged 950Pt/Ru, like MW said its the least grey option after silver and any other option will be more grey. Also with forged Pt/Ru you get better scratch resistance, less noticable solder joins, a longer history of trouble free use and it will be easier serviced by a wide cross section of jewellers in the future.
I have seen a lot of Pd, both from the first popularity boom and this time around, the older pieces I have seen were very beat up and looked like it had been work hardened/stressed over time with a very dull grey look. it was also for me a pita to work.
The new pieces I have seen from different makers are polished nicely, but to my eyes (that are very used to spotting slight differences) it all still looked grey.
by geckodani » May 15th, 2012, 6:20 am
It's funny; I actually find that my engagement ring looks warmer than even my WG due to the fact that it's so shiny it reflects my skin tone, LOL. Grey is not a word I've ever used to describe it. *shrug*
oohsparkly|1337087671|3195575 said:Mike R|1337079631|3195533 said:Personally if you were my client and you told me that grey was something you wanted to avoid I would give you only one option for metal, forged 950Pt/Ru, like MW said its the least grey option after silver and any other option will be more grey. Also with forged Pt/Ru you get better scratch resistance, less noticable solder joins, a longer history of trouble free use and it will be easier serviced by a wide cross section of jewellers in the future.
I have seen a lot of Pd, both from the first popularity boom and this time around, the older pieces I have seen were very beat up and looked like it had been work hardened/stressed over time with a very dull grey look. it was also for me a pita to work.
The new pieces I have seen from different makers are polished nicely, but to my eyes (that are very used to spotting slight differences) it all still looked grey.
Thanks Mike for taking the time to reply, it is very kind of you. I do try to think through every possible issue I can, it is not easy for non-experts to decide.
One little thing I am wondering... in my initial thread when I was planning on unplated white gold you recommended MW's white gold as being not grey at all.
Since MW's pd was noticeably whiter than their pd/wg - shouldn't the pd be fine for avoiding grey if the less white pd/wg was itself not grey? (If that makes sense..)
Or is it that you expect the manufacturing process to turn the pd grey?
Or is it just that you are saying the 950 pt/ru is just the whitest of all the options?
Oh and another thing - I'm wondering if for the old pd rings you have seen whether a)the alloys used now are better/different? and b)whether a good clean/polish would restore those old rings?
Yikes - one more thing I'd like to ask - with the nicely polished new pd rings you have seen that still look grey - were they more grey than unplated white gold rings from MW?
Mike R|1337093911|3195628 said:oohsparkly|1337087671|3195575 said:Mike R|1337079631|3195533 said:Your jeweller will have the two metals for you to look at in person and decide how sensitive your colour perception is, have you looked at them side by side yet?nim sure when you look at the two metals you will easily decide what you like best.