What your ring shouldn''t look like....

[computerguy]

Hey folks,


First, I'd like to thank all the people that helped me to find my diamond. The diamond quite nice actually.

So I finally picked up the wedding ring and engagement ring. It's a ring jacket combo. The E-ring is the outside part and the wedding ring is the inside portion.


First, here's what the ring should have looked like. The pictures are actually pictures of a picture, so they are fuzzy.



The two rings shown separately:
/idealbb/files/diamond 003.jpg

The two rings together.
/idealbb/files/diamond 002a.jpg

And now, what the jeweller actually delivered...He took a bit of artistic license....Now the w-ring is no longer completely round. The E-ring now is tubular instead of flattened wire.
/idealbb/files/poor implementation 028.jpg

Here is a better look at the tubular wire....I thought it look weird / cheap / amateurish.
/idealbb/files/poor implementation 011.jpg

And now both rings don't sit flush against each other...
/idealbb/files/poor implementation 005.jpg

Another picture where it shows the poor profile...
/idealbb/files/poor implementation 035.jpg

Boy am I choked. The Fiancee wasn't impressed either...


RWW

 

[computerguy]

For the record, the jeweller had actually made this ring before. Before selling it, he took a picture of it. I saw it in his design book and asked him to make another one...




Here's an OK picture of the arrows....




/idealbb/files/poor implementation 002b.JPG




I'm a bit choked at the poor setting of the sapphires. You can see the poor setting job on both of the far left and far right sapphires.




I won't mention the name of the jeweller. He is local to Vancouver, BC. I went with him because he was a nice person and lots of other people from my church has used his services. For the record, those other people were very happy with his work.


RWW

 

[sirene]

What a shame about the ring! I really like the original concept--but I agree about the ring you received

. It's not much like the photo, is it? If I were you, I'd take it back and get a refund.

Do you mind "outing" the jeweller? I'm in Vancouver as well and it helps to know who to avoid!

Good luck!

 

[valeria101]

Ugh

I hope the job was free of charge! The least possible amount of material was used to get the lowest cost possible... and the rets you can see. The model you like looks like a rather sophisticated one, in need of a good maker - not exactly inexpesive.

Can you do anything about this?

 

[sumi]

So sorry to hear that you and your fiancee aren't totally thrilled with the ring! The bright side is that you love the stone. What are you planning on doing about the setting?

 

[wallace]

Sorry to hear about your disappointment... Do you have any opictures of the previous ring he made? Lucky he did one before so you can clearly point out the differences. If he has such a good reputation, then I am sure that he will try to work with you to correct these problems. I hope it works out for you and you get what you originally wanted! Best wishes!

 

[betection]

wow that is a bad job, who in vancouver did it, I live in vancouver and am looking for a goldsmith to do my fiance's ring, have you heard of any good ones?

 

[computerguy]

Here's a combo reply to everyone....





Sirene:


I will not "out the jeweler" at this point. There are two sides to every position and I haven't fully given enough info on his side.




Part of the explanation given to me is that my solitaire (center stone) is bigger than the photo, thus all things "scale" in proportion to it. (Sounds plausible.) The jeweler said that I should provide 5 point princess diamonds and sapphires for the w-ring. I did provide them. The thickness / height of the w-ring is because the 5 pointers require that amount of depth (so I'm told).




I'll eventually publically name the jeweller, but not yet. I haven't said enough positive things about him yet. He does have his redeeming points / qualities.




Valeria101: I'm pursuing the refund route at this point. I would at least partially agree with your statement about "The least possible amount of material was used to get the lowest cost possible... ".




The straight unmodified platinum wire for the e-ring showed the lack of time and materials used. Some redeeming parts are that the soldering was well done. The bottom of the ring looked quite nice. Together, both parts looked like it was one ring. The problem is that most people look at the top of the ring.

Sumi: We are going to try to rescue the setting by going to someone else who is more skillful.




Wallace: The fuzzy pictures are the two pictures that I took from his photo portfolio book. He is reputation is good with the people in my church. I think that this design is more challenging that the rest of his designs. (The pictures of the pictures were apparently done in white gold.) He said that this ring was a challenge to do in platinum / ruthenium. It may have been too much of a challenge. It probably is safer for all to just to a refund. Thanks for the kind support.




betection: No "outing of names" yet. I might meet with Davidson Designs in West Vancouver to redo the ring. I bought the solitaire and the side stones from him.








Here's some more info that I left out....




Originally, this jeweller showed me his design. I met with him many times. He normally casts stuff in white gold. His normal record has been to make the ring, have the owner complain, and he redoes the ring satisfactorily the second time. I was surprised he even had to redo a ring that had the dimensions, etc drafted out by my friend's fiancee (who is an architect-type lady person.) How can you go wrong when multiple views are drawn and dimensions are given as well?




I was aware of this. I thought about asking to see a wax prototype before the ring was hand made. But hey, he has made this ring before and there is a photo of it. How much deviation could there be? Lots. Boy was I wrong!

Aside from the numerous delays, there are other problems. You can see that the settings of the two end sapphires on the w-ring are poorly done. It shows up in the last cropped photo. I didn't mention that he has cracked (and replaced) one sapphire as it was damaged in setting. It turns out another sapphire is chipped and another is gouged on the table.




The channel setting is mangled as not all the stones are at the same height. (I noticed that the diamonds have a larger table and the sapphires have a smaller table, which might affect my perception of setting variation.) My fiancee also noticed that the channel setting varies in thickness that might be attributed to poor / badly set stones.








Enough about the bad news about this jeweller. Why did I go with him? Well I met with him a few times. He has had lots of business from different church members from a few different churches. Those people were happy with his work. He is a Christian. He takes in and teaches his profession to ex-cons (I think.). This is is way of helping people out. He has shared to me about how God has helped him to be a better jeweller and not to be a bad person in society. We met many times, I liked his design. He may not have originated that design, but I liked it.




Instead of taking photos of his design (ripping off his design) and getting someone else to make the design, I chose to give the business to him. He was just a bit cheaper, I spent time with him, trusted him, appreciated his ministry, etc. and thus asked him to make "another one just like the photo". I mean it felt like the honorable thing to do. If all things are equal, why "rip off" someones ring especially if he has spent so much time with me?






Does anyone know where I can get more info on channel setting of stones? I'd like to get some more information on how it looks, how deep/high a ring shank is required to set a 5 pointer, how much height variation results when you set 5 pointers in a relatively small cirumference ring, etc.


RWW

 

[valeria101]

Goodly manners does not mean great skills in anything else by default. Has the jeweler warn you that making the ring with your stones will modify the design? He should have also warned you that working it in platinum is difficult (to him, at least).

From all you say, it sounds like this jeweler is not usually working in platinum. It is a different story than gold - some jewelers would specialize in one or another given the different tools and technique required. If this person is not making platinum jewelry of comparable design with what he can achieve in gold, it might be a good idea to get the ring made in white gold.

'Scaling' is another issue: you may need to have some slight modification to the details of the design to achieve the overall look you want - given the different size of stones.

The bets way to see nice channel set rings is to visit a good jewelry store, I suppose. The style requires some amount of metal next to the stones where the grooves are carved to accomodate the girdle of the stones. The height of the setting is not constrained - they can be really low, as long as the metal is thick enough to insure the setting remains stiff to hold the stones in place. You should not need to know the last technical detail before entering the jeweler's shop! One you know how the ring should look like, the rest is up to the maker - ideally.


BTW: the gold setting is not made from hollow anything - it is obviously cast and fabricated. No way to couve so much the metal tube to make the angles of the 'trellis' as steep as in the model. This is why the head of your ring ended up so akwardly high. I do not believe that the current setting can be resqued...

 

[Nicrez]

I am so sorry to hear about your dilemma! I would be so incensed! You are a patient and very forgiving person. I am hoping to get my e-ring custom made, but I can't find a decent designer, and your story is scaring me more than EVER! Oh boy!

Let us know what you and the jeweler decide. I wish you and your fiance all the best of luck and patience, as it's such a sentimental purchase and comission to make this ring, and I hope it finally turns out for the best. I hope you guys get your dream ring, as it is truly
a lovely and unique idea and it could be SO BEAUTIFUL, if done right!!!

The best to you both!!!!

 

[computerguy]

I've had a chance to talk with another jeweller. This new person is more experienced in hand fabrication, especially platinum. The discussion was quite enlightening.

Yes, the height / thickness of the w-ring can be reduced in the channel set area. This other jeweller doesn't set his own channel set stuff. He sends it out to a specialist that only does settings (channel only?). The existing w-ring has one consistent depth channel cut into it. Since the diamonds and the sapphires have different girdle heights, a consistent channel results in a step-ladder setting of the stones.

I need to talk to my fiancee more. We might get the new person to make the exact same setting, or he might come up with something completely different.

I think the concept of a prototype is required for a lot of custom work. Either something done in wax, or a cheapo metal would be handy to help visualize stuff, etc. It would help to prevent the "I didn't think it would work / fit light that" utterance.

RWW

 

[chialea]

Has anyone seen a setting like this online? Maybe with pave? I never really liked the solitaire style, but this is pretty cool...

 

[computerguy]

No, Ron/Ronald Davidson (Davidson Designs) did not make my original ring.

It has been a little while since I posted my first post. Since then, I got married !!!

People have asked me to "out" the first jeweller. Well, it's time. The original jeweller is/was Tuan Ngo on Seymour Street in Vancouver. Did he screw up? Yes, he acknowledged that the work was not his best work. He did ask for another opportunity to fix the mistake.

My fiancee (now wife) and I decided not to give him the opportunity. We had waited quite a long while for the ring and emotionally didn't want to go through with a second potentially long wait. We went with another jeweller. Tuan was disappointed. In the end, he did the right thing. He admitted that it was not his best work and refunded us the complete cost of our cheque.

People might say, "Don't go to Tuan because he made a mistake.". I would say that if you are looking for a design in white gold (not platinum), go to Tuan. He will work with you to make the ring of your dreams. If he makes a mistake, he is honourable enough to admit to making a mistake. He's willing to make it better and he's even willing to give your money back.

I'll post an additional message about what the rings finally looked like.
RWW

 

[computerguy]

OK folks,

Since this is the "Show me the ring" forum, here are the rings.

This is shows the wedding ring (the alternating sapphires and diamond) eternity-like ring about to get inserted into the diamond solitaire:

This shows the two rings together:


In the end, we went with Davidson Designs in West Vancouver. It took a while longer than expected, but it all turned out well. The most important part is that she really, really, really likes the ring(s).

We definitely didn't encounter any of the problems that Thomasv encountered. We are satisfied customers. Davidson Designs is definitely a busy place and be prepared to wait a little while for the final result. (We did tell them that we were patient and the only deadline was that we had to have the rings before the wedding. They delivered a few weeks before the wedding.)

When I get a chance, I'll post some more pictures. I don't have a picture of a side profile shot of the wedding band. It is really nice. The transition between the stones and the regular band is very smooth and beautiful. The channel setting is done really well. It's kinda hard to see, but the profile and "integrated-ness" of the two rings is awesome.

More details a few weeks from now....
RWW

 

[MelissaSue]

your pics won''t post. you must have them hosted somewhere that won''t allow outside links

 

[katrina_33]

Bummer! I really want to see pics of the finished product! I loved that original design in theory....Can''t wait to see ''after'' pics!

 

[allycat0303]

Well I am glad that you got a refund. I think that is the important thing. I would feel comfortable going to that jeweler (maybe not for platinum). He made a mistake, he admitted it and refunded your money. I think that everyone is entitled to mistakes, and if they deal with properly then that is all that matters. I am glad you resolved your situation!

 

[belle]

i am so happy to see that this was resolved in good faith!
congratulations on your marriage!

hope we get to see the rings!!!

 

[computerguy]

Thanks for all the blessings!

I''ve re-edited the file.

Overall, I''m having trouble attaching pictures. Can someone help? Each file is only 4-5 kb in size and they are .jpg files.
RWW

 

[computerguy]

Here''s the rings again in about to be inserted. Sorry but I can only insert 1 picture per message.
RWW

 

[computerguy]

Here they are together.
RWW

 

[storm024]

Congratulations on your marriage!

I love the concept of your ring. I have been looking for similar styles, but the only thing I could find was this one from Forever Jewelers.

Has anyone seen anything like these rings?

 

[computerguy]

Date: 12/26/2004 10:48:37 AM
Author: storm024
Congratulations on your marriage!


I love the concept of your ring. I have been looking for similar styles, but the only thing I could find was this one from Forever Jewelers.


Has anyone seen anything like these rings?

Thanks!

There a few things to be aware of in the design that we chose. The cullet of the diamond must be protected from the insertion of the wedding band. In the sample you posted, the large diamond is securely mounted and protected by the basket. In our case (not shown), the small ring-basket was deeper/taller so that scraping would not occur.

This design is known as a "ring-jacket" design. I hope that helps.
RWW

 

[DiamondsRagirlsbestfriend]

Hi Computerguy!

Oh, I''m so happy for you and your new wife! The rings are absolutely perfect! And many congrats to you and your Mrs. on becoming husband and wife.

Best, Mary