A little worried about my 4 prongs...

[Heel_Yes]

I purchased an E-ring back in April ''04 for my fiance. It is 1.04 ct, round, ideal cut, etc.
It is sitting in 4 prongs and the band is platinum. I purchased the ring from www.millennimdiamond.com
I gave the ring to her in May ''04. We are both very happy with the ring. Around the first of June, the stone became loose. Nothing was wrong with the prongs, however the stone could be slightly twisted with your fingertips. The stone was in no danger of falling out of the prongs. However, since she I had just given her the ring, I took it to a local jeweler to have them tighten the stone. The jeweler said this was pretty normal for the stone to become loose. He said my fiance may have bumped it against something and knocked it loose.
The jeweler charged me $15 to tighten the stone. I informed millenniumdiamond of the problem and they quickly reimbursed me the $15. I was very impressed with that.

Now, about 1 1/2 months ago, the stone became loose again. Looser than before, but not loose enough to fall out. Once again, there was no damage to the prongs. My fiance gets very nervous about the ring whenever the stone gets a little loose. So, we took it to a different local jeweler. He explained that the stone may become loose from time to time, but it was in no danger of falling out. He tightened the stone for no charge (I think he was trying to win me over for future business).

Either way, it has happened twice in less than a year. Is this a problem my fiance and I will have to continue to deal with? Does this problem occur with 6 prongs? The 2nd jeweler I took the ring to said that this is a common problem with round stones because they do not have "edges" for the prongs to catch them on as would be the case with a square stone. In other words, it is easier for the round stone to become loose because it has no corners for the prongs to hold on to it like a square stone.

Just thought I would ask the message board for their thoughts.
Thanks

 

[snlee]

Hi Heel_Yes - I''ve had my 6 prong platinum ring for 2 years now and haven''t had that problem once.

I would be worried too if it has come loose twice in the past year. I don''t think that should be happening. Maybe some expert on PS can give you some input.

 

[Hest88]

I find it difficult to believe that a well-made, well-fitted 4-prong would come loose so often unless she''s banging her ring around a lot.

 

[chantal990]

Hi-I am in the same situation as Snlee I have had my 6 prong ring for almost a year (althouth I have only been wearing it for a few months) and the stone and prongs seem secure. I have another diamond ring which has a six prong setting and it seems secure as well and I wear it heaps.

 

[MichelleCarmen]

Date: 12/9/2004 6:34:16 PM
Author: Hest88
I find it difficult to believe that a well-made, well-fitted 4-prong would come loose so often unless she''s banging her ring around a lot.

Definetly, I agree with Hest! A well set stone in an appropriately fitting mounting WILL NOT have such a problem as this. I''ve had my RB in a four-prong setting and I''ve had it for approx. 10 years and NEVER (knock on wood) has it become loose. Oh, and I bang it into things ALL the time. Super clumsy! lol

 

[PhillipSchmidt]

Platinum can be quite soft after it has been cast. Any knock or re-tightenbing will actually harden the metal. Platinum once hardened is hard enough to accomodate a classic tiffany 4 prong setting.

Your setting could be readjusted to be hard enough, but as you might believe the setter is just after money for a fancyfull task, you might not be offered that.

4 prong settings are notorius for this. If the setter used a hammer attachment you wouldn''t have the problem, but this technique is far from being a common practice. Some jewellers tumble platinum rings in steel shot to both polish and harden and this helps in preventing dints and slightly hardening the setting, but only on the surface.

The platinum will harden over time, so if you really like the ring you might have to endure this for the next year.

I am assuming there is no bezel. Is it like the classic tiffany setting? If it is seated in a bezel, it should be sat firmly, in that and the 4 claws are pushed firmly against the solid base and it should never move.

PS

 

[SeaOats]

I had a similar problem with my four prong platinum e-ring. The stone became slightly loose after less than a month. We brought it to our local jeweler, who tightened the prongs and told us that this was nothing unusual. But he told us if this happened again within a couple months, the head of the ring might need to be replaced. Well, about two or three weeks later, I noticed one of the prongs was catching on clothing, so I brought it back to my local jeweler and spoke with the goldsmith himself. He looked at the ring with a loupe and then a microscope. He discovered that one prong was split, and two were stretched so far that he could not believe the stone hadn''t fallen out!! So the point of my story is since this has happened twice, maybe you should have an expert goldsmith take a look at the prongs and make sure that there are no other problems that may sacrifice the security of your stone. And good luck!!