Retipping prongs...????

[JLW05]

I have an older eternity ring I inherited. Most of the prongs on the ring are worn down and need to be re-tipped. A local jeweler offered to re-tip the prongs but I have never worked with him with anything other than minor repairs and I want to make certain I will be happy with the outcome. I'm really unfamiliar with re-tipping and was wondering if it is the kind of repair that requires a really skilled bench. Thanks.

 

[oldminer]

Show us a good close up photo of the prongs and diamond. We might be able to give you some advice.

 

[JLW05]

Thanks. On an impulse, I decided to travel into Manhattan to a gentleman who has made some lovely custom pieces for me. He offered to re-tip the ring but said that some diamonds were already chipped and he would advise recasting the ring. He is currently holding the ring for me.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

I purchased an estate eternity ring (full circle of 10 point stones) that needed the same kind of work you describe. I ended up resetting (platinum) and for me it was a great decision. I wore that ring for twenty years--then sold it to my friend who adores it!

cheers--Sharon

 

[Karl_K]

To be brutely honest I have never seen a re-tipping job on an eternity ring that looked all that great afterwards if more than a couple prongs were involved.
Getting them all the same and making them flow takes a lot of time and skilled work.
I suspect it would have to cost more than having it remade to do an awesome job these days. Skilled labor is expensive.
Disclaimer: the number I have seen has been small.

 

[JLW05]

Yep. That's what I'm afraid of - that it will look awful if I have it re-tipped. Guess I'll see what my guy wants for the reset and decide if it's worth having the work done or maybe putting the ring away for now and re-purposing the diamonds down the road. The ring is currently 18kt gold. Were I to decide to reset the ring, is platinum the way to go? I'd like to keep costs down but I do want durability. I am not particularly hard on rings - I remove them when I get home, don't exercise while wearing them, etc. Even still, over time you never know what can happen.

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

If you can--as Old Miner up thread asks--show a picture of your ring? Lots of factors here.........

cheers--Sharon

 

[JLW05]

Unfortunately, I left the ring in Manhattan with the gentleman who offered to either recast the ring or re-tip it.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I'd personally go with platinum. Gold prongs wear down over time and have to be retipped. Platinum holds up better.

 

[JLW05]

Thanks.