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Tungsten vs. Titanium and recommended vendors?

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DiamondDense

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i have decided to forgo platinum and look towards one of these two metals.

pros and cons of each metal? i am leaning towards tungsten due to how tough it is - but it does seem there are a real lack of vendors.

seems like e-weddingbands, Boone and TungstenWorld (seems like an amateur site - are they reputable?) are the three oft-recommended vendors for these types of metals. am i correct?

thanks!
 
I've also had good luck with Amazon Collection for wedding rings.
 
i will check out Amazon. anyone else?
 
Here's a long thread that discussed titanium a other metals.
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...recious-are-there-any-other-drawbacks.241333/

You might look into titanium not tungsten. Tungsten is very brittle and can and will shatter. That is potentially good news in that they are easy to remove in an emergency, but more than one person I know has had their tungsten band crack in their daily life. The correct grade of titanium will be easily cut off with bolt cutters.

For titanium, it is critical to NOT get aircraft grade. Commercially Pure (CP) Grade titanium grades 2 to 4 are what should be looked for (Ti-999 is what it is called; you want alloys at the softer end, not the hardest). Also a poor electrical conductor. Not harmed by chlorine or salt. A cheap black titanium has been on the market which is really an iron coating, which is bad. CP 2 may be more scratch prone, but that is a function of the alloy not the metal itself. Titanium scratches less easily than precious metals, but more than tungsten.

Vendors:
https://www.titaniumringsforever.com/ {my DH bought his ring here 18 years ago}
https://www.boonerings.com/sc.htm {have some incredible alloys like one that mimics mokume gane}
 
Here's a long thread that discussed titanium a other metals.
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...recious-are-there-any-other-drawbacks.241333/

You might look into titanium not tungsten. Tungsten is very brittle and can and will shatter. That is potentially good news in that they are easy to remove in an emergency, but more than one person I know has had their tungsten band crack in their daily life. The correct grade of titanium will be easily cut off with bolt cutters.

For titanium, it is critical to NOT get aircraft grade. Commercially Pure (CP) Grade titanium grades 2 to 4 are what should be looked for (Ti-999 is what it is called; you want alloys at the softer end, not the hardest). Also a poor electrical conductor. Not harmed by chlorine or salt. A cheap black titanium has been on the market which is really an iron coating, which is bad. CP 2 may be more scratch prone, but that is a function of the alloy not the metal itself. Titanium scratches less easily than precious metals, but more than tungsten.

Vendors:
https://www.titaniumringsforever.com/ {my DH bought his ring here 18 years ago}
https://www.boonerings.com/sc.htm {have some incredible alloys like one that mimics mokume gane}

i want to go with Bruce Boone and have been in contact with him. the only thing is, reading the comments here it seems most people favor tungsten as it's not as easily scratched and arguably more durable?

hmmm.
 
i want to go with Bruce Boone and have been in contact with him. the only thing is, reading the comments here it seems most people favor tungsten as it's not as easily scratched and arguably more durable?

hmmm.
Tungsten won't scratch as much as titanium, but it will crack/shatter under pressure. That pressure is less than you might think. So, its really about what how you weight the pros and cons.

My husband has been wearing his titanium band for 18 years. His is like this one. You can see lot so scratches on the gold bands. There is one scratch on the titanium that is distinct...he has no idea what that is from. The niobium has faded, but is in otherwise good condition. If he sent the ring back to them, they could probably make that colors pop again. He wears this ring 24/7 save for when working on the car.

Boone has a great reputation and if we were buying now, we'd go with them.

upload_2018-6-12_21-25-28.png
 
My son-in-law chose tungsten and it still looks like new 7.5 years later. His was from Tungsten World. They have a nice selection and they offer engraving inside. I’d definitely recommend them. Even for men who want platinum, I’d highly recommend a tungsten band to wear for times when the platinum band might get scratched, damaged, or lost.
 
Here's a long thread that discussed titanium a other metals.
https://www.pricescope.com/communit...recious-are-there-any-other-drawbacks.241333/

You might look into titanium not tungsten. Tungsten is very brittle and can and will shatter. That is potentially good news in that they are easy to remove in an emergency, but more than one person I know has had their tungsten band crack in their daily life. The correct grade of titanium will be easily cut off with bolt cutters.

For titanium, it is critical to NOT get aircraft grade. Commercially Pure (CP) Grade titanium grades 2 to 4 are what should be looked for (Ti-999 is what it is called; you want alloys at the softer end, not the hardest). Also a poor electrical conductor. Not harmed by chlorine or salt. A cheap black titanium has been on the market which is really an iron coating, which is bad. CP 2 may be more scratch prone, but that is a function of the alloy not the metal itself. Titanium scratches less easily than precious metals, but more than tungsten.

Vendors:
https://www.titaniumringsforever.com/ {my DH bought his ring here 18 years ago}
https://www.boonerings.com/sc.htm {have some incredible alloys like one that mimics mokume gane}
So, interestingly, Bruce Boone recommended the "Aerospace Grade", NOT the Commercially Pure "as it's a bit harder so will hold a finish better"...
 
and some more detail from the Boone site:

Q: You use 6Al4V titanium. What is it and what about the other grades I've been hearing about?
A: The 6Al4V titanium is an alloy with 6% Aluminum and 4% Vanadium added for strength. The alloy is used extensively in aerospace. Pure titanium, also called Ti999 or Commercially Pure Titanium is relatively soft. It makes for good hip joint implants, but will not stand up as well as 6/4 in a ring. The other common alloy, 6/6/2 contains tin. There are a lot of different alloys containing tin coming from old Russian subs. The tin tends to make the metal "gummy" to machine, and it doesn't finish as well. I use an 8-1-1 alloy for my upgraded rings, which contains Aluminum, Vanadium, and Molybdenum. It has the upgraded strength without the tin.
 
So, interestingly, Bruce Boone recommended the "Aerospace Grade", NOT the Commercially Pure "as it's a bit harder so will hold a finish better"...
That is true, but it will not be easy to cut. You want a grade that is cuttable with standard bolt/ring cutters. You can ask them which one's fit that among their blends.
 
My husband has had his tungsten ring for at least 10 years and it still looks new. He wears it 24/7 and never takes it off no matter what he has been doing. It's been very durable for him. He loves it. It has a yellow gold band in the middle.
 
My DH has both, the titanium is from BB and holds a tension set diamond. It's nearly 10 years old and he basically wears it 24/7. Plenty of scratches on it but over time it evens out. He has a cheap tungsten band too that he'll wear when he doesn't want to risk losing or damaging the BB one. Since it was $30 he's not worried about it cracking, he'll just get another.
 
Think I'm going titanium with a scratched finish via Boone.
Nice choice - I like a scratched finish, it means adding your own damage unintentionally is a lot less annoying because they blend right in! lol
 
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