I absolutely adore rings such as this one - 22 carat gold, lots of detail, etc. I’m looking at it as an every-day ring, something I’d basically wear all the time. Mr. Bry tells me I’m nuts, that 22 carat gold, regardless of what they tell me at the store, is simply too soft for a ring that I’ll wear constantly, and that I need something harder.
There’s not much info that comes up about it on Google, and pretty much all the info I find is from jewelry stores selling such rings. They say “Suuuuure, you can wear 'em all the time! Smash 'em into hard objects! Throw 'em in the welder! They’ll survive.” I’m not sure what to believe. Anyone have any experience with such things?
My experience is limited to college class rings, but yeah, there’s a BIG difference between grades of gold for everyday use.
My uncle has his ring in 18k gold, and after 44 years, it’s so worn down that you can barely tell what school it’s from or what’s on it.
My father’s ring, on the other hand, is 10k gold, and he’s had it for 36 years, and it’s very slightly worn down all around, but not to the point where it’s illegible, etc…
I’ll go ahead and extrapolate that 22k gold would wear and deform even more dramatically than 18k gold would, but that might be offset by the relatively simple design of the ring you’re talking about.
I buy gold rings(among other things) for a living. I may have personally bought 25,000+ gold rings in my life. These are all previously owned rings. They were mostly 10K/14K, as this has been the standard in the US for 75+ years. But I’ve bought my share of 18K bands, and a few 21-24K ones.
21-24 karat is just too soft for a ring. It’s somewhat analogous to the current fad for platinum bands. We tell people that their platinum band they just “have to have” is soft, will scuff easily, etc. They just don’t listen. But they’re back within the year, complaining.
Most 22K+ jewelry is made for the Asian/Middle Eastern market. Mostly the people in these areas don’t have the Western tradion of a everyday ring. If I’m incorrectly generalizing about this, I’ll gladly defer to others who know. I’m just going on what I’ve bought over the years. 99+% of all the 22+ karat gold I’ve bought is in the form of chains, bracelets, etc. They don’t wear the same as a ring would in everyday use.
Although I wish I were carried around by 4 male servants all day, in reality I’m a computer jockey, which I gather falls between the two extremes you mention. I do on occasion wash dishes. I garden, too.
And oh yeah, change “Mr. Bry” in the OP to “Mr. Athena” please. I’m getting my message board handles mixed up. Must not post before coffee.
Back to the original subject, <sigh> I really really love the look of 22 carat gold like that. I wonder if they can make harder gold with the same unpolished yellowish look? Must investigate.
As a plain gold band (wedding) it could be OK. But not with all those fru-fru’s on it- not for “everyday” use. Yes, you could wear it “out to the Opera”. It is nice, though.
I have an 18K gold ring that has dents from wearing it only on special occasions. I really don’t walk around punching walls or anything! As lovely as that ring is, I’ll bet it would be a smushed wreck after six months.
The ring is, for all intents and purposes, indestructible. The shine is amazing and virtually scratch-proof. I highly recommend it for a mens wedding band. I get more comments about it than my wife does for her ring…
Aestivalis- does it have a funny odor? I have a titanium ring, and it is odorless, but many metals such as copper and steel smell strongly when in the presense of human skin and sweat.
I have to admit that I like the look of the tungsten rings, might even get one someday.
My 24k wedding band has been worn every day for almost 11 years (just a few weeks away). It is soft. It’s no longer round, and some of the details are worn down (it has some chinese characters, some floral designs, and I think what was a dragon and phoenix) but it is structurally sound. I have no doubts that it will last, but it’s likely the remaining details will continue to be worn away with time.
