Tighten rings every year?

[PierreBear]

Hi PSers,

In terms of protecting your rings, have you ever found a slightly loose stone to the touch? Do you annual visit the jeweler to get the stones reviewed and tightened even if the vendor is out of town? Just curious how others maintain their rings.

Any other precautions to be aware of as I've been now been made aware that ultrasonic cleaners might not be the best thing for rings?

Thanks in advance!

 

[Rockdiamond]

Hi PB,
Regular inspection is a great idea.
In many cases you can do it yourself. Inspect the ring closely- and tap it- many times a loose stone makes a little noise when tap the ring.
If you notice a lose stone, by all means, take action.

There's sellers that require inspections to fulfill the warantee......but in some cases they're just trying to get you back into the store.

Lastly- I'm a believe in insuring the ring. In case you miss a loose stone and it gets gone.

 

[bmfang]

Hi PSers,

In terms of protecting your rings, have you ever found a slightly loose stone to the touch? Do you annual visit the jeweler to get the stones reviewed and tightened even if the vendor is out of town? Just curious how others maintain their rings.

Any other precautions to be aware of as I've been now been made aware that ultrasonic cleaners might not be the best thing for rings?

Thanks in advance!

My wife doesn't usually check her rings. She just wears them and leaves it to me instead to do the checks. So I do the tap thing first before getting my loupe out to check the prongs. Thus far, no issues. Would take it back to the jeweller for a review each six months, but given that they relocated the shop where we bought our ring to another shopping centre 35km south of where we are, we'll go there only if there is something major to be done (like resizing).

We've been advised the same thing re: ultrasonic cleaners as well. These days, for cleaning all we use is some warm water with a little dishwashing liquid in it, soak the ring in it for a couple of minutes and then use an old soft/extra soft bristled toothbrush to give it a gentle clean and brush in the water.

 

[Sunstorm]

I disagree about ultrasonics, I think the opposite is true. Home ones are great for daily cleaning. I am an avid fan of them, I use them daily on my jewelry.

Now, they are the best method to test if you have a lose stone. It is true that an ultrasonic will knock out a stone, when it is already loose. So, actually I find that it is a great way to test and if something does come out, at least it will be in the ultrasonic not on the street. Never throw out water though before checking water and jewelry.

This is why setters usually test their work in them, they will find out if a setting is loose.

You will only lose badly set or lose stones in them. Obviously always use a plastic basket in metal ones so the stones and jewelry are not banged around.

Otherwise, I agree about tapping but an ultrasonic works on pave. Once I lost a fancy vivid yellow, not worth a lot, one teeny stone but would have been hard to replace in the exact size and color. This way I found it and we could reset it right away. Without the ultrasonic, it probably would have come lose elsewhere and get lost.

 

[LawmaLlama]

Hi pierrebear,
I have 2 experiences to share.

I once had a loose stone that I noticed. It was a larger step cut blue topaz. When I touched the surface, I could feel it rocking a little in the setting. So off I went to have a jeweler tighten the prongs in the 14k white gold setting and haven't had problems with that ring since.

I also once had a chain jeweler offer to clean my EC diamond former ering in a plat setting. After cleaning in what I can only assume was an ultrasonic, they told me the center stone was loose and offered to tighten the prongs. When I went to pick up, they confessed that they cracked the stone during the tightening. Yes, diamonds do crack under pressure. They even told me this happens about once per year at their store, typically with ECs and princess cuts due to the corners. Ultimately, after much haggling and hassle, and many months later, they provided me with a satisfactory replacement stone which is now in a RHR. Needless to say, I won't ever use a chain jeweler again. The plus side? I found PS, and feel much more educated about diamonds and jewelry.

Anyway, the point of these 2 examples is that I personally would not tighten prongs on any ring on an annual basis solely for the sake of tightening them. Maintenence should be done as needed, not as a routine. Figuring out if you need the maintenance should be routine.

I do home clean my rings (with water, a little dish soap, and a soft brush), and loupe them quite regularly. I also have a trusted jeweler now that I visit as need be.

I insure my jewelry, and I make sure I understand what is and is not covered. For example, most people don't realize that your own coverage does not cover jewelry while it is "in repair." That is typically covered under the jeweler's commercial policies.

 

[PierreBear]

Thank you all for sharing your input. I'm glad there is a community here to help one another!

 

[motownmama]

I've had my prongs need tightening once, after I bent one - that's in 22 years! LOVE my ultrasonic to death!!!! My jeweler says it's fine to put pave in, and he's put my band in at his shop.But, I stick to channel, prong settings (never gypsy set). Absolutely no problems. My solitaire has probably bathed in it close to 100X! Everyone swears by their own methods though, and that's how it should be, of course. To my eyes - Dawn and a toothbrush just doesn't hold a candle to my ultrasonic.