HELP! My eternity band is ruining my engagement setting!

[MyDreamRing]

Ok, I have a diamond eternity band and a platinum engagement ring. They are not a matching set, and they are not soddered together. We have been married for 2 years 4 months, so I haven''t had them for a very long time.

I just noticed that the diamonds from the eternity band are wearing the side of my platinum engagement ring. The diamonds have literally carved a straight line into the platinum setting (just below the prongs), from the two rings rubbing back & forth.

And, since I clean my rings and don''t always put the engagement ring back on the same side (because lets face it...the ring doesn''t really doesn''t have a top and a bottom), the line is carved into both sides of my engagement ring.

I have attached a picture of my actual engagement ring. I will have to wait till I get home tonight to take some more pictures of the setting and the damage as I just realized this before leaving for work this morning. Ugh!

Has anyone had this problem? Any advise? Can my engagement setting be fixed without totally re-creating the setting? Is there a way to prevent future damage? Keep in mind that I really don''t want to sodder the rings together because I like that I can wear them separately if I want.

My biggest concern is that I amy worried about the long term effects of this over time and what it will do to the engagement ring. I mean the ring is only 2 1/2 years old....what will it look like in 30 years if this keeps up?

 

[brooklyngirl]

Hi MDR,

I''m not sure what can be done to fix up your e-ring at this point, but I would suggest a thin spacer band to wear between your rings, so that neither of them get scratched up.

As far as fixing up your ring, perhaps go back to the jeweler where it was originally purchased, and see if they can polish your e-ring.

P.S. Beautiful ring!

 

[belle]

well....the ''good'' news is, the diamonds can only wear so far and it''s likely the damage is already done. you could have the prongs remade but the wear would just occur again unless you use a spacer band in between to keep the diamonds from touching the prongs. i would just have the ring checked to make sure the integrity of the setting is not compromised. as long as the setting is safe, you should be fine.

 

[tberube]

Date: 1/16/2008 10:11:02 AM
Author: belle
well....the ''good'' news is, the diamonds can only wear so far and it''s likely the damage is already done. you could have the prongs remade but the wear would just occur again unless you use a spacer band in between to keep the diamonds from touching the prongs. i would just have the ring checked to make sure the integrity of the setting is not compromised. as long as the setting is safe, you should be fine.

Belle makes a good point - perhaps the diamonds have worn enough of the ering away that they now sit where they want to, and won''t wear on it any further. I''m sorry this has happened - I fear it happening to my rings as well, so it''s probably quite common.

 

[mrssalvo]

unfortunately it's a big problem with shared prong eternity bands. I agree with Belle re: the damage may already be done. Soldering them together is the next best solution. even some sets that were made to go together have come up with similar problems so don't feel bad, it's the nature of the ring. there are some companies who do make their eternity bands to sit lower so the diamond girdles don't touch the e-ring baskets and I heard Signed pieces resigned their sets to avoid the problem, but don't know if it worked or not. Memoire is the only company i pretty sure of that doesn't have problems but that's because their sets are designed to fit together like a puzzle, so no banging together.


ETA: you might look at getting another wedding band to wear every day that has metal sides and just save the eternity for special occasions. I believe kaleigh ran into the same problem with her eternity eating into her ring and bought a Tiffany legacy band that she wears most of the time now. Just an idea...

 

[Dee*Jay]

I used to wear my sapphire and diamond three stone ring with my eternity band a lot until I noticed the grooves that were being worn in the prongs of the three stone by the e-band. That was the end of that (except for special occasions).

Depending on how deep the grooves really go maybe you can have the damage polished off rather than the prongs totally redone?

 

[NewEnglandLady]

This is common--many buy their wedding bands knowing it will eat into the prongs. The good news is that with platinum it doesn''t compromise the structure, it''s just an aesthetic preference. My eternity band is eating into the basket of my ering. I was going to have a 1mm spacer made, but now I think I''m just going to get a dainty sapphire eternity band that sits very very low to put in between. Right now I wear a cheapie QVC sapphire and diamonique eternity band between the two rings.

 

[MyDreamRing]

What is a spacer band?

 

[surfgirl]

Date: 1/16/2008 11:38:00 AM
Author: MyDreamRing
What is a spacer band?

It''s just a plain thin band that you wear in between your wband and ering so they dont rub together. You can get a 2mm or so plain band and just wear that in between the two so any rubbing goes onto the plain band. As others have said, take both rings into your jeweler to have them inspected to ensure that there is no loss of integrity to either setting. Then get a spacer band and enjoy!

 

[Love Street]

I know I'm late but the same thing has happened to my e-ring - my eternity w-ring has eaten a big groove in the prongs of my e-ring. I almost worry about its safety since the thinnnest part is fairly thin - this will be added to my list of justifications for my 5 year "upgrade" so that I can wear my eaten-away ring as a RHR and save it from further harm (though I think it's reached its angle of repose). I'll see if I can attach pics....

ETA: the red line on the right represents the original line of the prong - this is a Tiffany setting and I loved the delicate prongs, but oh well. I'm going to keep this issue in mind for my new e-ring since my Tiffany sales person didn't mention this would be an issue. Can't wait to go the PS vendor route this time around!

 

[Love Street]

this pic shows the big groove my w-band has created in the center stone prongs, right under the bezel:

 

[Love Street]

And finally a profile view where you can see the nice cozy spot the w-ring has carved out for itself into the prongs (it''s a little separated because of the finger contortions for the photo, but you see how it''s created a nice fit for itself

.

 

[Diamond*Dana]

Date: 2/16/2008 1:54:30 PM
Author: Love Street
I know I''m late but the same thing has happened to my e-ring - my eternity w-ring has eaten a big groove in the prongs of my e-ring. I almost worry about its safety since the thinnnest part is fairly thin - this will be added to my list of justifications for my 5 year ''upgrade'' so that I can wear my eaten-away ring as a RHR and save it from further harm (though I think it''s reached its angle of repose). I''ll see if I can attach pics....

ETA: the red line on the right represents the original line of the prong - this is a Tiffany setting and I loved the delicate prongs, but oh well. I''m going to keep this issue in mind for my new e-ring since my Tiffany sales person didn''t mention this would be an issue. Can''t wait to go the PS vendor route this time around!

Oh wow, your wedding ring certainly has made itself right at home carving into your e-ring, hasn''t it!?