Opinions on 14K/18K gold, white gold/platinum?

[blundell]

Hi--

I have a couple questions regarding gold.

1) 14K vs 18K yellow gold: We have been told that 14K is stronger and thus more advisable to get as the ring material. Are we losing anything significant with not getting 18K (beyond the ability to impress with "oh yes, that''s 18K gold")?

2) white gold vs platinum for the prongs to hold the stone: We have been given differing opinions on this matter. Some jewelers say that "platinum is stronger than white gold and thus better", but another jeweler says that while white gold is more breakable than platinum, platinum is more malleable than white gold; thus you are more likely to bend back one of the prongs if they are platinum than white gold. Opinions? Also, does anyone have opinions on the respective beauty? I have been told that platinum fades to gray while white gold fades to yellow, but that either can be kept at bay by washing periodically in rhodium. Is this an issue to be concerned about when choosing between the two?

Thank you very much for your help,

Colin

 

[XChick03]

I don''t think you''d really be losing anything by going from 18k to 14k, not really sure though.

Platinum will lose its shine after a while, and white gold will stay shinier longer, but I doubt it''d be that visible just being on the head. And platinum is easier to bend than white gold, but I prefer platinum prongs. My ring is 18k white gold with a platinum head and I haven''t had any trouble with it at all.

Sorry I couldn''t be more help, hopefully someone more knowledgable will come along.

 

[JulieN]

14K/18K, is this just a plain shank? strength difference is pretty insignificant... you might have to replace it in 30 years as both wear down gradually. 18K really does have a finer look to it, nicer heft, but it''s not really noticeable at a glance... I don''t think the price difference is huge in the grand scheme of things, so I''d go with the 18K, but that''s totally a personal preference!

Plat doesn''t fade to grey...it IS grey. It just loses its polish. A good WG won''t fade to yellow, either. Hmm, would you rather have a WG prong break off (!) or have a plat prong bend? If this is set in a four prong, lose one prong and you lose the diamond. Put it in plat.