One thing that makes platinum rings so much more expensive than gold is that gold is heavily alloyed and platinum is not. An 18k gold ring is 75% gold and a platinum ring is generally 95% plat. With gold around 1480 per oz. and plat at 1700 you can see where the problem is.
Most white gold is quite a bit harder than plat., so will patinate more slowly, but plat is tougher so will wear more slowly.
Spike C
"The Buddha resides as comfortably in the circuits of a digital computer or the gears of a cycle transmission as he does at the top of a mountain."
Pirsig
damn, Im dropping by a gold smith this weekend, have to stop shopping on the net and see for real (just for once). The mix of online shopping and alcohol, have brought some really interesting things to my door.
In the U.S., plain platinum bands are catalog items unless they come from a premium jeweler. Any small-time shop should be able to order one from a wholesaler, so you can negotiate a price in advance if you know what you want. Internationally.. i don't know how import duties or other taxes might affect the retail price.
I've got a platinum band in a closet somewhere, you guys are making me wonder what it is worth..
"Experience" is what you get when you don't get what you want.
I used Whiteflash for my wife's engagement ring, and both of our wedding bands. All are platinum. They were not inexpensive; in fact, it was quite a bit more expensive then the gold bands from my first marriage (and back when gold was at $250/ oz).
Whiteflash was great to work with. I had to send back the engagement ring for resizing, and it went smoothly (and was done at no extra cost).
And with that being said, I would pick Del's mokume over the platinum bands in a heartbeat. But I did not know about Del or his mokume back then, plus her band has some rocks in it
__________
David (WildBoar's Kitchen)
Del works with meteor rocks. Those are way cooler than diamonds!
My wife would, however, disagree! Haha
If I ever get around to marrying the surly, line-cooking wench I live with, I'll be getting Del's mokume rings. Assuming he's still making them in a few (twenty... thirty... forty) years.
+1 on the Blue Nile suggestion. I've always had great luck with them.Originally Posted by Amon-Rukh
I have a platinum wedding band that I like a lot. I especially like the heft; it feels much more substantial than a gold ring. It will scratch and scuff fairly easily but it's really easy to bring it back with a Dremmel tool and the polishing compound that's sold to go along with the Dremmel. I do it once or twice a year and it takes about five minutes.
Platinum is pretty tough stuff. I had my ring slip off my finger and eventually found it in my parking garage near my spot. It had clearly been run over, but other than a rough patch on the edge where it had been ground into the concrete it was no worse for the wear.
Tom
Went to a store today. Gonna go for white gold ring
But here is a tip:
Never ever enter a goldstore with your GF!!
Keep in mind that I'm only 26 and I've never even set foot into a jewelry store or even considered buying any sort of engagement ring, so maybe I'm just naive, but can the average person even tell the difference between white gold and platinum or even silver based on looks alone?
They do look different, butt is subtle. The real difference is in the weight, big difference there.
Spike C
"The Buddha resides as comfortably in the circuits of a digital computer or the gears of a cycle transmission as he does at the top of a mountain."
Pirsig
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