Gems Log

Titanium in jewelry

Because of its durability, titanium has become more popular for designer jewelry in recent years, whereas until recently the metal was too difficult to work into the intricate shapes with the precision necessary for fine jewelry. Today, titanium rings — including engagement rings and wedding bands — are one of the fastest growing segments of the titanium jewelry market, in part due to the ability of the metal to be grooved, inlaid, and carved without losing strength. Some titanium jewelry also incorporates diamonds or other gemstones, typically in close settings such as bezels, flush, or tension designs. Its inertness again makes it a good choice for those with allergies or those who will be wearing the jewelry in environments such as swimming pools.

Titanium-Jewelry dot com, a leading online retailer of titanium rings, tungsten rings and unique titanium jewelry, today announced that affordable and stylish alternatives are highly demanded as price increases in precious metals limit options for grooms seeking men’s wedding bands.

Across the United States and abroad, many grooms have discovered that they are being priced out of the market when shopping for traditional wedding bands in gold and platinum. The average person does not pay attention to the price of gold, platinum and other precious metals on a regular basis. As such, most do not know that the cost of men’s wedding bands made of platinum or gold, have tripled in cost over the last 5 years. “It can be shocking when a young man heads into the jewelry store with his fiancee and eyes a basic platinum wedding band selling for $2,000, or more. With the rising costs of weddings, many grooms simply can no longer afford the traditional platinum wedding band,” stated Ron Yates, owner of Yates & Co Jewelers in Modesto, CA.

The reason for the dramatic increase in men’s wedding bands made of white gold or platinum is due to the rising cost of precious metals, which have increased by as much as 30% over the past year. The price of gold has risen from $600 per ounce to over $750 per ounce. Platinum has also increased from $1100 to over $1400 per ounce since this time last year. According to Curtis Hesler, editor of the Forbes Newsletter, The Professional Timing Service, “The first quarter of next year, could see gold push the $800 level.” The increases in the precious metal market, has negatively affected the choices available to many couples looking to select wedding or other fine jewelry.

The solution: modern, alternative metals such as Titanium, Black Titanium and Tungsten Carbide. For the past several years many younger grooms have been purchasing titanium and tungsten wedding bands mainly for their durability and hypoallergenic qualities. However, cost is becoming the primary motivating factor. With the increasing number of younger grooms being priced out of gold or platinum wedding bands, couples are overwhelmingly choosing contemporary metals. Wedding bands made of Titanium, Black Titanium, Tungsten Carbide and Carbon Fiber, are viable choices for wedding bands and wedding rings, offering customers affordable quality and modern styling.

Platinum wedding bands for men in 6mm widths are selling for $2,000 and more. Titanium rings and tungsten rings in the same widths can be purchased at a fraction of the cost. A leading online retailer of contemporary jewelry, Titanium-Jewelry.com, has many styles of tungsten and titanium wedding bands for as low as $79.

“We’ve seen a huge increase in men choosing contemporary metals for their wedding rings. Just three or four years ago most guys never heard of titanium rings or tungsten rings,” stated Yates. “Now couples are considering these rings as a viable choice for their wedding rings. They like modern designs, durability and the affordability,” Yates concluded.

Titanium is the only element that offers the unique combination of beauty, strength, light weight and bio-compatibility.

Titanium now commands the highest levels of quality for many consumer product industries; including sporting equipment, medical, automotive and marine, art and architecture, gift ware and, of course, jewelry. Even credit cards now tout their ultimate achievement with a titanium designation.

Unique and exceptional properties of titanium

• Highest ratio between strength and density of all metallic materials
• Extreme mechanical and thermal loading capacity
• Extreme tensile strength - stonger than steel but 42% lighter
• High corrosion resistance, particularly against oxygen
• Extremely bio-compatible because of it’s tissue compatibility and it’s elastic attributes

Titanium is inert.
Titanium has been embraced by the medical world for its superior bio-compatibility, and is the preferred material for surgical instruments and implants. Titanium is inert and therefore completely corrosion resistant. It does not react to salt water, sunlight, or any body chemistry. Titanium is 100% hypoallergenic. Titanium is the preferred material for surgical tools, implants, pacemaker cases and other internal casings. It won’t react with any part of the body, making it a great choice for even those persons most sensitive to other materials. When a person has an allergic reaction when wearing a pair of gold or silver earrings due to the alloys, it is recommended that they switch over to titanium earrings. And unlike silver, titanium will never tarnish!

Titanium is extremely durable and strong.
Titanium is more resistant and has the highest strength to weight ratio of ANY known element, which is why 85% of the Space Shuttles structure is titanium. In fact that is why many titanium ring manufacturers have a lifetime warranty. In jewelry applications, titanium’s strength allows for design capabilities that were otherwise impossible. For example, tension set rings made with titanium provides maximum security for the stone. Softer materials such as gold, silver and platinum cannot make this claim! In fact, even the softest forms of titanium start with over 30,000 psi tension, much more than platinum. Titanium can be worn throughout active and demanding lifestyles without concern for the excessive wear and tear that would be exhibited by gold and platinum.

Titanium is lightweight.
Only slightly heavier than aluminum with the strength of steel. Today, “light’ is the quality standard in all fields. With jewelry, titanium’s light weight translates into comfort. Platinum, gold and silver must sacrifice style and function to reduce weight and costs.

Titanium is pure.
The World Titanium Council endorses Spectore’s grey titanium which is 99+% commercially pure. No other conventional material can boast this claim. 14kt gold is 58% pure and platinum is generally 90% pure. For those who wish to wear a pure metal, titanium is the logical choice.

Titanium is a noble element.
Titanium is the first new element to enter the noble metals arena of platinum and gold in over 3,000 years.

Titanium is leading edge.
The technology used in working with titanium has significantly and positively impacted manufacturing methods throughout the entire jewelry industry. Titanium is the perfect marriage of art and science.

Titanium is virtuous.
Many say that had titanium been discovered before platinum and gold, it would be the leading jewelry material today.

Titanium is fashionable.
Titanium provides the stylish rich grey tones of platinum at a much more attractive price. Many designers such as Edward Mirell are designing fashion forward cutting edges styles for titanium jewelry. Titanium is at the forefront in the designer jewelry community. No other metal has experienced such a dramatic rise in popularity as titanium.

Why different grades of Titanium?
No doubt you have noticed that there are many different grades of titanium jewelry on the market. Most titanium jewelry products being sold are some type of alloyed titanium - not pure titanium. We use a commercially pure (CP) grade of titanium. Within the CP category the most popular are grades 1 through 4. CP Grade 1 is the softest and Grade 4 is the hardest. The primary difference between the grades is the quantity of Oxygen, the addition of which creates the increases in hardness. We use CP Grade 2 in all of our gray titanium products. We found it to be the ideal balance between titanium’s hardness and workability. It can be cut off, refinished, and engraved, yet it is resistant to marring and polishes well.

What is Black Titanium?
Titanium is naturally a grayish white color. However to achieve the beautiful black color, Black Titanium employs a process using Black-Ti™. Black-Ti™ is a proprietary titanium alloy made entirely of rare earth and strategic elements, with insignificant amounts of trace elements. This distinctive alloy is far more costly than other titanium products due to the rarity of the alloy materials. All of the alloy materials are inert but extremely reactive at high temperatures, and must be processed at every stage in very tightly controlled environments. This a revolutionary alloy even within the Titanium World. Black-Ti™ is a registered trademark of Spectore Corp. Click here for some examples of black titanium rings.

Black Titanium is not an applied coating but is formed from the outside and works inward. It is a result of the chemistry between the Black-Ti™ alloy, temperature and atmospheric conditioning.

It has been compared to a ceramic like surface, resisting scratches. However, it is not scratch proof. With heavy wear and tear the outer black titanium shell can be nicked. Because of the increased hardness, and, to address the concern of cutting the ring off in case of emergency, the thickness of the blackened portion does not go all the way through the ring.

Tungsten Carbide

Tungsten is the only rare and exotic metal that can be permanently polished. The polish and finish can last as long as your commitment to each other - up to 50 years!

With gold, platinum and even titanium rings, you will notice varying degrees of scratching, denting and surface mars. However, with tungsten rings, the surface will maintain it’s original beautiful shiny finish.

Many people also enjoy the heavy weight of a tungsten ring. The enduring polish of a tungsten ring together with the solid weight, speak of commitment, security and an everlasting bond.

Some facts about tungsten carbide rings:

• Tungsten rings are the most wear resistant rings available on the planet.
• Tungsten is about 10 times harder than 18K Gold, 5 times harder than tool steel, and 4 times harder than titanium.
• Tungsten measures between 8 and 9 on the Mohs hardness scale. (Diamonds are a 10 - the highest.)
• Due to their extreme hardness, Tungsten Rings will hold their shape and shine longer than any ring on the market.
• Tungsten rings will NOT bend.
• In the event of an emergency, a ring can be removed by a medical professional.
• Each tungsten ring is individually hand crafted using assorted diamond abrasives and poly crystalline diamond tooling.

 

Source
Source