10k rose gold junk?

[Laila619]

Anyone know anything about 10k rose gold? Is it brittle? Likely to tarnish or turn skin green? I found a gorgeous stacking band but it only comes in 10k rose and so I hoped to find out some info on this metal before I pull the trigger. I've owned 14k pieces, but never 10k. Thanks!!

 

[rockysalamander]

10 k with be harder than 14k. 9 and 10k are pretty common in vintage pieces. If you turn green, you would have turned green at any karat level of rose gold.

 

[TI in America]

I recently bought a 10k rose gold ring with from Amazon. I wear it with my 14k band and a 14k diamond band. Cannot tell the difference in metals. FYI Amazon has 10k bubble, band and twist rings for a steal.

 

[Tophat1]

Depends on the alloy. There is no standard rose gold alloy. I’m had some that stays perfect and others that will tarnish - independent of karat

 

[Karl_K]

I depends on the person and the alloy.
10k usual has more copper in it.
That gives it more color but also makes it more reactive.
All rose gold is somewhat brittle but again it depends on the specific alloy.

 

[Bron357]

I have numerous pieces of antique / vintage in 9ct Rose Gold (that’s the minimum gold contact for Commonwealth countries whereas the US has 10kt as their mininum) and it’s beautiful. It’s not brittle and doesn’t tarnish,

 

[Arcadian]

I have a couple of 10K stacking bands that I tend to like moreso than the higher KT ones. They're very thin but have never went out of round.

 

[Laila619]

Thanks, guys! Sounds like it should be okay from what you're saying. My 14k rose doesn't turn me green. Hopefully the 10K won't either, even with the increased copper content.

 

[Laila619]

I have numerous pieces of antique / vintage in 9ct Rose Gold (that’s the minimum gold contact for Commonwealth countries whereas the US has 10kt as their mininum) and it’s beautiful. It’s not brittle and doesn’t tarnish,

That's good to know!

 

[Laila619]

I depends on the person and the alloy.
10k usual has more copper in it.
That gives it more color but also makes it more reactive.
All rose gold is somewhat brittle but again it depends on the specific alloy.

Karl, is it the high copper content that makes it brittle? Would 10k be more brittle than 14k which would be more brittle than 18kt? Or again, is it all dependent on the alloy mix?

 

[Bron357]

I have a few 9ct gold rings and they wear better, less scratching than 18ct gold and none have even broken.
Going back in time, in Australia and England nearly all gold wedding rings were in 9ct gold. They are still being worn and enjoyed some 100 years later!
They are most certainly not going to “break” while you are wearing them.

 

[Karl_K]

Karl, is it the high copper content that makes it brittle? Would 10k be more brittle than 14k which would be more brittle than 18kt? Or again, is it all dependent on the alloy mix?

yes, and it depends on the mix.
Silver and other metals can be added to mix to make it less brittle.
Remember alloys are mixed by weight so by volume there is much more copper than gold.
Copper work hardens and gets brittle quickly where gold and silver bend and flow.
That said there are modern alloys that are much better than the strait copper gold mix and the common gold/copper/silver mix by adding other metals to the mix. Zinc is one of them but there are others.

 

[jen2mc]

I recently bought a 10k rose gold ring with from Amazon. I wear it with my 14k band and a 14k diamond band. Cannot tell the difference in metals. FYI Amazon has 10k bubble, band and twist rings for a steal.

Nice! Any links you can share?!