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orchid

Rough_Rock
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Jun 11, 2004
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hello... my friend has an 18k white gold engagement ring.

it''s been about 1 1/2 and she showed me that underneath, the ring is yellowing.. almost like it''s wearing away!

I just recently got engaged and my ring is 14kt white gold. Is this going to happen to mine!!! does this happen to all white gold rings?

can someone excplain this to me? Is there different kinds of white gold rings? is hers plated and maybe that''s why that happened.. isn''t that really cheap?

i really don''t want this to happen to my ring and don''t know if it happens to everyone, or if maybe her ring isn''t ''really'' white gold, or what?!

Info. is much appreciated
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My understanding is there is no such thing as actual white gold; it's really just an alloy of 75% yellow gold and 25% white metals like silver and palladium. These metals are then coated with rhodium to help the ring look more white. Unfortunately, over time this coating will wear away. In other words, plating is standard, not something cheap, and everyone with white gold will need to get their rings re-plated every 1-1 1/2 years.
 
BTW, sorry if my spelling is off--or if I mixed up the metals! I looked into white gold a while ago, but decided on platinum because I didn't want my ring to ever look yellow.
 
Yes. I was just chatting with a goldsmith the other day. He went to his workshop and took out a work-in-progress. It's supposed to be a white-gold ring he made, and it looked very yellow. He said it's not finished. The end product will be polished and white.

So, mine will definitely be PT900.
 
Thank you for your quick responses! good to know, but too late i guess! pt900 is platinum?

how much will it cost to replate?
 
I don't think it costs that much, maybe around $100. And depending on your original alloy and a few other factors, you can sometimes go as long as 4 years before replating.

Keep in mind that people with platinum rings need to get theirs polished to retain the same shine if they don't like the patina look that occurs over time!
 
Yes... PT900 is 90% Platinum.
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I have heard that the 100% Platinum ones get warped after some time. PT900 is more rigid.
 
Isn't the more common the 950? Does that make the 900 more or less rigid?
 
If you can afford platinum I'd go for that.

Most nickel-based 18K white gold in the U.S. needs to be rhodium-plated. However, if you can find white gold that's alloyed with palladium (or silver) you can get white gold that is such a natural silvery white that you don't need rhodium plating.
 
Nickel! That's what I was trying to come up with! Thanks, Hest88! I knew I had a few things off but couldn't place my finger on it. It seemed odd to have alloyed gold and white metals plated with rhodium, but I couldn't quite remember what else it could be that would require plating. Listen to Hest88, Orchid!
 
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On 6/29/2004 2:49:13 PM Hest88 wrote:

If you can afford platinum I'd go for that.

Most nickel-based 18K white gold in the U.S. needs to be rhodium-plated. However, if you can find white gold that's alloyed with palladium (or silver) you can get white gold that is such a natural silvery white that you don't need rhodium plating.----------------


Ah, maybe that expalins it! I've been wondering about this too. I've had my 14kt white gold ering for over 4 years now, and it looks as "white" as the day I got it. I have never had it rhodium plated, it just hasn't needed it.
 
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On 6/29/2004 8:34:15 PM doxiemom wrote:

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On 6/29/2004 2:49:13 PM Hest88 wrote:

If you can afford platinum I'd go for that.

Most nickel-based 18K white gold in the U.S. needs to be rhodium-plated. However, if you can find white gold that's alloyed with palladium (or silver) you can get white gold that is such a natural silvery white that you don't need rhodium plating.----------------


Ah, maybe that expalins it! I've been wondering about this too. I've had my 14kt white gold ering for over 4 years now, and it looks as 'white' as the day I got it. I have never had it rhodium plated, it just hasn't needed it.
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My too... I have a white gold anniversary ring that was purchased in Finland. It has never had any yellow tinge at all, but I did finally have it rhodium dipped about 6 months ago, as it had "grayed". The rhodium made it look great and the dipping only cost $40 or so. I wear it with my platinum 950 e-ring all the time, and even people in the business don't see the difference. I've never known why it doesn't yellow, but it does get grayer. Maybe its tarnishing?
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My Jeweller recommends PT900. I don't know why, but I have spoken with a couple of jewellers here, and they tend to recommend PT900 for a 4-prong solitaire setting. They think that it's more rigid and secure. They also say that the aesthetic difference between PT900 and PT950 is negligible... and PT900 is a bit cheaper.
 
I hope I'm not hijacking this thread by asking this, but I was going to consider setting my diamond in 19 K WHITE GOLD - has anyone heard of this metal? I've heard that this has the hardness of gold, but will not turn yellow like 18 K white gold (a big concern of mine), nor will it scratch as badly as platinum (and is cheaper than pt.).

Is this a good choice for a diamond ring, and if so, where can I get someone who works in this medium?

Thanks,
-AH
 
As people have said above, it really matters what the gold is alloyed with. 19k just tells you what proportion of the alloy is gold... now, there may be some "standard" 19k alloy (like 900 PT is generally 10% iridium), but I can't find the compostion easily on the web (though I have found several people claiming they have some special proprietary alloy, and several coloured gold sellers who use a 19k alloy).

it would be at least worthwhile to confirm that the alloy your jeweler would lbe using would be the same as the alloy they're claiming doesn't yellow -- and to confirm that you don't get accelerated wear or alloy breakdown with common chemicals (or at the very least avoid them!)

(disclaimer -- all I know about alloys comes from knowing materials science people and owning jewlery)
 
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