[Jewelry making - Article 01146] - Re: [Orchid] Platinum vs Palladium for engagement rings

[Mark Parkinson]

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Hi Bill,

    Either platinum or 950 palladium is suitable for a use in an
    engagement ring, if the ring is made well. Because platinum prices
    have sky rocketed, 950 palladium has been pushed into the market as
    a less expensive substitute. Although palladium is nothing new, the
    950 palladium alloy is a relatively new alloy. 

    We have been using 950 palladium heads for most of our center stones
    for the last 18 months. We have a no questions asked, lifetime
    guarantee on anything we sell. So if we had any problems we would
    drop it like a hot potato. We have had no unusually wear problems or
    stone loss in that time. We have been making 2-3 custom 950 palladium
    engagement rings each month in that time, and again, we have had no
    problems with it. 

    The advantages are that while it has similar properties to platinum,
    it costs much less. It is actually slightly whiter than platinum. It
    never needs to be rhodium plated (but it can be with some
    difficulty). It wears better than white gold and more like platinum,
    so the prongs and shank will last longer. It's lighter than platinum
    (the only benefit here is that help keep your costs down). 

    The disadvantages are that some alloys can be very soft, so you want
    to be sure that the engagement ring is reasonably substantial. It's
    not a good idea to make a super delicate engagement ring out of 950
    palladium. And the palladium solder currently available can leave a
    faint gray line. An experienced goldsmith can work around that, but
    it's possible a ring could be delivered with a gray sizing seam for
    instance. 

    All in all we confident that the 950 palladium rings we send out the
    door will last a lifetime. But if it was for my wife, I'd still give
    her platinum just because we have so many more years of experience
    with it.. 

Mark
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