Tungsten or titanium jewelry : is it a good choice?

In the last decade or so, new materials came to compete in the jewelry market. Tungsten , titanium, cobalt, ceramics, carbon fiber…etc.

Sounds like a car factory materials supply list.

These materials represent the future: strong, durable, hard to scratch or dent and very inexpesive-they became favorites for making components or parts in the car and airplane industry.

How about jewelry? Why spend $200 to $500 on a gold or platinum wedding band when you can get an “alternetive metal” band for half of the price?

How come jewelry makers decided to use these new materials to create the symbol of marriage : the wedding band? They did not! Ask any of the jewelers out there, if they personally make titanium or tungsten bands or if they can re-size them. The answer will be 100% : NO! But the vendors of jewelry (those jewelry stores who sell, sell, sell, but have no goldsmith on the premises) seized the opportunity for making huge profits. The majority of these wedding rings made from titanium, tungsten, cobalt,ceramics or other similar materials are made in the same factories where cars components are made and they cost only  $0.50  to $1.50 to produce, because these materials are left overs from ” the main production line” (that’s right : 50 cents to one and a half dollar !!) So selling them for $60 to $400 or even more, generates huge profits.

To give you an example :

This website sells extremly high quality titanium bearings for skateboards:

http://www.tactics.com/lucky/titanium-skateboard-bearings

and the price ( for a set of 8 !!) is only $18.95   and this is the RETAIL PRICE !

Now, compare the complexity of a bearing like this (which contains,-beside the inner core and the outer core-about 20 prefectly shaped and polished titanium spheres, stainless steel shields, teflon lubrication and removable crowns):

, with the complexity of a wedding band like this:

The retail price of this titanium wedding band is $215.20 (on sale )For one piece.

Of course, these materials provide high strength and durability, but manipulating people’s minds into associating these materials properties with the durability of their marriage is priceless !

Therefore, you can present your loved one a tungsten ring insead of a gold or platinum one, or a ring from a can of soda ( it will never oxidize) and pretend that because of the ring, your love for her (or him) will never dent or rust! Or, you can just work on the relationship like everyone else, with patience, understanding, love….

Yes, gold or platinum wedding bands will get scratched, but they are easy to polish again and again (titanium or cobalt get scratched too), and they are also easy to re-size. However, all these “alternative metals” can not be sized at all. And in my over 25 years of experience as goldsmith/designer I have not seen anyone who didn’t need their ring re-sized…

one more thing…

If you injure your finger while wearing an”alternative metal” band …..

I will let you be the judge of this , in the mean time…thank you for reading my blog!

http://weddingbandsdesign.com/home.html