Wedding band metal.

[lagori]

What do you guys think about a man's wedding band in palladium? What do you think about the metal? Considering that we are talking about a simple band (no stones), Is it considered an acceptable substitute for platinum/white gold? is there something about this metal that I should be aware of?

 

[affguy]

I'm going with titanium (tension set) with a palladium inlay, just because the inlay is cheaper than platinum. From what I've found, the only signficant difference between palladium and platinum is weight (platinum being noticeably heavier), and if I were worried about weight, I wouldn't be going with titanium. I see no reason to spend the extra cash for a material that is visually and functionally identical, so I'd go with palladium over platinum without hesitation.

 

[lagori]

That's my thinking as well. As long as the two metals are visually and fuctionally identical, I would be fine with palladium. My concern is that I may be looking at it too simplistically and not taking something into consideration, e.g. how easily it gets scratched, damaged. Is it really visually the same as platinum?

 

[aviastar]

There are lots of 'acceptable' metals for jewelry, including wedding bands. It just depends on your style preference, budget, an lifestyle. Personally, I find straight palladium to be a little grey/brown and prefer the look of platinum or white gold, even a palladium alloy white gold. I would think that being in the platinum family it will wear in a similar fashion, i.e. develop a patina, show daily wear, but have never worn palladium so cannot speak from experience. But palladium is certainly a valid choice in a nice budget range. If you and your fiance like it, go for it!

 

[affguy]

Aviastar, are you particularly color sensitive on diamonds too? Just curious because I hadn't expected to see a reply that the color difference was a factor, as most things I've read have indicated there is no perceptible color difference from platinum. I've also read that you're correct about the wear, patina, etc.

 

[aviastar]

Hmmm, sorta I do notice color differences, and I like to be specific when talking about secondary colors, tints, and modifiers (I've done a little painting, too, so that's where a lot of it comes from). But, I actually love to see all the differences in diamonds, colored stones, and metals and finding the right combinations, so I am not color sensitive in that only a certain range is acceptable or pretty to me.

As for palladium, as I said, I have never worn it, but I do have friends with palladium and palladium alloy rings so I have compared them to my platinum ring with my own eyes and they did not look the same to me. Very slight difference, but while they are of the same family they are not the same metal, and I don't think they look the same.

Practically speaking, however, I would guess that they will look very similar at first glance and without a direct comparison. I would think it would be more noticeable if you tried to mix a palladium band with a platinum e-ring, for example. Yssie has posted a lot about her quest to get different pieces of unplated 18K white to match- and those are supposedly all the same metal! So there is some context regarding color that's important, too. Alloys, stones, and matched sets all factor in, I guess, as to what your eye picks up and what it glosses over.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

My son-in-law chose Tungsten and it is a beautiful ring! It is harder than the other metals and extremely scratch resistant. I'd rather have it over palladium.

http://www.tungstenworld.com/

 

[lagori]

Hi Damondseeker,

Would you choose that metal over palladium for practical reasons only or because of the look? I have seen a few pictures of wedding bands in that metal and to my eye they seems to look somewhat crude. Granted, I have seen pictures only.

 

[stargurl78]

I choose palladium for my husband's wedding band I definitely would not recommend it. We have been married for 7 months and his ring is so dented up and it looked terrible after about 3 months. I think the color looks fine and he doesn't mind how light the weight is, but the metal must be very soft or something. I really wish I would have just went with white gold.

 

[Gypsy]

My husband is OCD about scratches on his rings. His original wedding band is a Palladium Scott Kay. He wore it only for 3 months. The light scratches and dings drove him NUTS. So I bought him a Tungsten band and the Pallaium ring sits in the jewelry box. He's much happier with the Tungsten.

I wear platinum and my platinum would drive my husband nuts as well. So... my advice is-- figure out if scratches and things are going to bother him. If so... skip the Palladium as many benches won't work on it. I have send his back to Scott Kay to get polished.

 

[OCgirl]

We decided to get my fiance a tungsten band as well. I don't think guys are as careful with their hands and I don't want the band to look all scratched up after a few months. My fiance is also not into the highly polished/silver look since he thinks it's a bit to feminine for him. He likes the color and texture of the tungsten rings. The only downside is tungsten is quite heavy. It is a VERY cheap alternative though. So I think an upside is if you lose it, NO BIGGIE!!!

 

[stargurl78]

My husband is OCD about scratches on his rings. His original wedding band is a Palladium Scott Kay. He wore it only for 3 months. The light scratches and dings drove him NUTS. So I bought him a Tungsten band and the Pallaium ring sits in the jewelry box. He's much happier with the Tungsten.

I wear platinum and my platinum would drive my husband nuts as well. So... my advice is-- figure out if scratches and things are going to bother him. If so... skip the Palladium as many benches won't work on it. I have send his back to Scott Kay to get polished.

My husband honestly doesn't care about the scratches but they drive ME nuts I really want to buy him a new one in white gold but he says we spent too much on the first one and doesn't care enough about the scratches for either of us to spend more. I might decide to buy him a new one and just switch them out one day, he'll never know the difference

lagori - I agree with Gypsy, find out if the patina that comes with palladium or platinum will bother him. Also find out if he is picky about color. My husband did not like any of those darker metals at all but some guys prefer them.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Hi Damondseeker,

Would you choose that metal over palladium for practical reasons only or because of the look? I have seen a few pictures of wedding bands in that metal and to my eye they seems to look somewhat crude. Granted, I have seen pictures only.

Maybe you were looking at some cheaper ones? My son-in-laws ring was the smoothest, most well polished ring I have ever touched. I loved the way it felt. It had weight to it but was so perfectly finished. I really wouldn't mind having one of the plain bands for myself.

The color is hard to describe but beautiful. It is shiny but definitely a more platinum gray color.

http://www.tungstenworld.com/Tungsten-Wedding-Bands/

I think my SIL has the 6mm Ardent.

 

[slg47]

Hi Damondseeker,

Would you choose that metal over palladium for practical reasons only or because of the look? I have seen a few pictures of wedding bands in that metal and to my eye they seems to look somewhat crude. Granted, I have seen pictures only.

Maybe you were looking at some cheaper ones? My son-in-laws ring was the smoothest, most well polished ring I have ever touched. I loved the way it felt. It had weight to it but was so perfectly finished. I really wouldn't mind having one of the plain bands for myself.

The color is hard to describe but beautiful. It is shiny but definitely a more platinum gray color.

http://www.tungstenworld.com/Tungsten-Wedding-Bands/

I think my SIL has the 6mm Ardent.

my FI also has a tungsten wedding band-we purchased his from Larson Jewelers. There is a 'white' tungsten that is not the darker color if that is what you prefer.

 

[lagori]

Thank you all for your advice! I will definitely look into the tungsten option for the WB.

 

[lagori]

Diamondseeker and Slg47,

These are tungsten rings from the two sites that have been recommended here:

http://www.tungstenworld.com/8mm-Unique-Mens-Tungsten-Ring-With-High-Shine/#reviews

https://store.weddingringhotline.com/product.php?xProd=1125&xSec=57

Based on yor experience, is there a justification for such a difference in price? Granted, compared to wg and platinum rings, this is a negligible price difference. However, given the low prices of tungsten rings in general, do you think the price difference reflects quality of the products? What should one look for when assessing quality of workmaship in this case?

 

[geckodani]

My husband is OCD about scratches on his rings. His original wedding band is a Palladium Scott Kay. He wore it only for 3 months. The light scratches and dings drove him NUTS. So I bought him a Tungsten band and the Pallaium ring sits in the jewelry box. He's much happier with the Tungsten.

I wear platinum and my platinum would drive my husband nuts as well. So... my advice is-- figure out if scratches and things are going to bother him. If so... skip the Palladium as many benches won't work on it. I have send his back to Scott Kay to get polished.

Spot on with what Gypsy said. I have palladium for my wedding set and like it. That said, getting it worked on is a pain (the rings have to be sent back to their makers any time work needs to be done). Local folks just don't know what to do with it. I have found that it doesn't patina as fast or thoroughly as platinum, (the non-scratched areas stay really shiny), bu I wouldn't recommend it for a plain band or a man's ring, personally.

Tungsten may be an awesome choice (my DH has a tungsten band) just make sure he is okay with the weight.

 

[CatrinaKitty]

It's really easy for men to choose a metal for their wedding band because many don't care if their ring "looks pretty" or shiny. In this case, palladium is a great choice. It's very strong, though it can still scratch from simple interactions with other surfaces. Other great metals include tungsten carbide, cobalt, titanium, and platinum. My personal favorite would have to be tungsten. Tungsten wedding bands just last longer in terms of shine and quality. Just be careful not to drop it! My husband has had his tungsten wedding band for about 5 years now, and still no scratches!

 

[yssie]

My husband is OCD about scratches on his rings. His original wedding band is a Palladium Scott Kay. He wore it only for 3 months. The light scratches and dings drove him NUTS. So I bought him a Tungsten band and the Pallaium ring sits in the jewelry box. He's much happier with the Tungsten.

I wear platinum and my platinum would drive my husband nuts as well. So... my advice is-- figure out if scratches and things are going to bother him. If so... skip the Palladium as many benches won't work on it. I have send his back to Scott Kay to get polished.

My husband is very not OCD about scratches and dings. He has worn a plain palladium wb from e-weddingbands for almost two years now and refuses my not-infrequent nudging to get another.

It definitely scratches and dings, which drives *me* nuts - same issue that I had with platinum. I would suggest not choosing a brushed/matte finish unless your DH is careful with his hands, because it gets shiny as it scratches & buffs and you wind up with a calico palette of shine, matte, scratches, dings, nicks, and fleabites from using it as a bottle opener


ETA oops. Just realised how old this is.