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Sterling silver question (.925)



 
 
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  #1  
Old January 17th 04, 09:03 PM
porkchops
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Default Sterling silver question (.925)

Hello,

In 1998 I got a ring at a small gift shop at the mall called "Fire and
Ice" as a gift from my mom (not sure if any of you have heard of it,
but I think it closed down). Anyways, it's a sterling silver (has a
..925 engraved inside the band) oval peridot split shank band ring.
It's awesome and I have been wearing it all the time.. everyday, night
and day, since I got it.
It hasn't discolored or rusted at all, but the band has sorta of bent
on the side, where it meets my other finger. This happened after about
2-3 years or so. It was pretty noticeable and made the ring feel weird
on my finger.
Anyways, a friend of mine used some plyers on it to try and straighten
it out. And it worked okay. But my friend said it bended back into
shape a little too easily and scratched up pretty easily from the
plyers, and suggested that perhaps the ring was made up of a very
cheap, soft kind of silver, or metal.
Even before that, it's gotten easily scratched up over the years, and
I don't do any rugged work with my hands at all.

So, my question is.. it was said when we bought it, that it was just
"sterling silver" and it does indeed have the sterling silver marker
for .925.
Is this normal for sterling silver? Could have using the plyers made
the band weaker, and later on cause a problem?
It cost about $45.00, if I recall clearly. I do not know anything
about silver really. Or the different types of silver and strengths,
etc.
Isn't a .925 rated ring really good quality silver? (then again, any
store could probably engrave their jewelry with that, and it not even
be silver..)

When looking at the ring on the outside, it's a shiney silver.
However, inside the split shank opening, there are areas that are not
shiney and polished, but show a more gritty kind of rougher material.
I'm not sure if the outside of the ring has been polished with some
permanent silver polish or something (if that's even possible)..
I can't explain it unless you saw it.

Any idea what kind of silver this is?
Is sterling a typically strong metal? Well, strong as in, where it
won't snap or break on me? I'm not worried about it scratching up or
bending.. as long as it won't ever break on me, from just everyday
wear, without rugged hand usage.


Any info will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.
Ads
  #2  
Old January 18th 04, 07:29 PM
Don T
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Posts: n/a
Default

"porkchops" wrote in message
...
Hello,

In 1998 I got a ring at a small gift shop at the mall called "Fire and
Ice" as a gift from my mom (not sure if any of you have heard of it,
but I think it closed down). Anyways, it's a sterling silver (has a
..925 engraved inside the band) oval peridot split shank band ring.
It's awesome and I have been wearing it all the time.. everyday, night
and day, since I got it.
It hasn't discolored or rusted at all, but the band has sorta of bent
on the side, where it meets my other finger. This happened after about
2-3 years or so. It was pretty noticeable and made the ring feel weird
on my finger.
Anyways, a friend of mine used some plyers on it to try and straighten
it out. And it worked okay. But my friend said it bended back into
shape a little too easily and scratched up pretty easily from the
plyers, and suggested that perhaps the ring was made up of a very
cheap, soft kind of silver, or metal.
Even before that, it's gotten easily scratched up over the years, and
I don't do any rugged work with my hands at all.

So, my question is.. it was said when we bought it, that it was just
"sterling silver" and it does indeed have the sterling silver marker
for .925.
Is this normal for sterling silver? Could have using the plyers made
the band weaker, and later on cause a problem?
It cost about $45.00, if I recall clearly. I do not know anything
about silver really. Or the different types of silver and strengths,
etc.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Sterling is a strong metal. Sterling is also a relatively soft metal =
until
it gets work hardened some. Pliers are not the tool I would have used,
instead I would have slipped it over a ring mandrel and whacked it a
couple-thirty times with a rawhide mallet.

--=20
Don Thompson

"The bravest are surely those who have the clearest vision of what is =
before
them, glory and danger alike, and notwithstanding go out to meet it."-
Thucydides

"Men are never really willing to die except for the sake of Freedom:
Therefore they do not believe in dying completely."-
Albert Camus




  #3  
Old January 18th 04, 07:29 PM
porkchops
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Default

Also, if let's say they did mess up on the other alloy metals to add
to the silver (by adding a weaker metal to the silver).. and the ring
has lasted this long to begin with, what are the chances that the ring
could completely break on me, just with casual everyday wear? (If I
don=B4t do any rugged work with my hands or anything like that.)
  #4  
Old January 18th 04, 08:37 PM
Peter W. Rowe
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Default

On Sun, 18 Jan 2004 10:30:53 -0800, in rec.crafts.jewelry
(porkchops) wrote:

Also, if let's say they did mess up on the other alloy metals to add
to the silver (by adding a weaker metal to the silver).. and the ring
has lasted this long to begin with, what are the chances that the ring
could completely break on me, just with casual everyday wear? (If I
don=B4t do any rugged work with my hands or anything like that.)


Please rest your mind regarding this "inferior metal", or "faulty ring" =
train
of thought. The chances of your ring being made from any unusual or =
inferior
alloy are very small indeed. In fact, it would be difficult to make an =
alloy
that was somehow weaker and softer. Usually, if the wrong things were=
added
to the alloy, it would usually become harder and more brittle, prone to
cracking, not softer. And softer is not generally weaker. Just easier =
to bend.

=46rom your descriptions of the ring and what it's done, it's behaving =
perfectly
normally for sterling silver. Differences in texture that you describe =
are
also normal for commercially made silver jewelry, where recesses and =
maybe even
the inside of the ring, etc, would have gotton less complete finishing =
and
polishing. Like I said, that's normal. So too, is a ring bending out of=
shape.
happens all the time. Compared to gold alloys, sterling silver is =
generally
pretty soft and pliable, and over time, the metal does wear down a bit =
thinner,
making it weaker. That's normal wear and tear. You've had it a while =
now, and
it would be expected that the ring would be wearing down. This happens
gradually, so folks don't notice the reduction in thickness from when it =
was
new. But silver wears down more quickly than gold alloys, and you've =
been
wearing it continuously now for about six years. I can guarantee that =
it's a
good deal more worn now, than when you bought it, and this means it will =
be
thinner and easier to bend. That's entirely normal.=20

Please accept that this just happens to jewelry as it wears. Consider =
the brake
pads in your car. They're a LOT thicker than a ring to start with. They
certainly don't last six years without change, do they? Granted, that's
different from a ring, but wear, friction, and abrasion are facts of life=
for
jewelry, just as with anything else that's exposed to wear. our hands =
are in
constant contact with lots of things, and most of them cause at least a =
little
abrasion and wear to the metal. For people to expect precious metals to =
not
wear down with use is naive. Some metals, like platinum, wear down a LOT=
more
slowly than others. Silver is not one of these. It wears down faster =
than gold
alloys. For many people, six years continuous wear would just about =
destroy the
average ladies silver ring. if your's is still in decent shape, even if =
needing
repair, then it's doing pretty well, all told. =20

However, next time it gets bent, and you can expect it to do so now and =
then,
given how people use their hands, please let someone with the proper =
tools do
the job right. Some pliers made for jewelry work are good for this job. =
But
most of the pliers people just have around the house have seratted jarws,=
and
the wrong shape jaws, which can leave deep tool marks in the metal, and =
not do
as good a job either. And even if the silver is soft enough so you've =
bent it
out of shape, Improper straightening (and sometimes even doing it the =
right
way) can sometimes stress the metal enough to crack it, so it's best to =
let
someone with some experience do the repair, in order to minimize the =
chance of
needing more costly and expensive repairs.

As to the chances of your ring breaking completely with normal light =
wear?
Almost guaranteed, if you have it long enough. Eventually, like anything=
in
constant use, you'll wear it out. Even if you're not doing rugged work =
with
your hands, you DO grasp things, and rub your hands against things, and
otherwise frequently expose the ring to slight flexing and abrasion. =
Consider
that even house dust, almost unavoidable in everyday life, amounts to =
tiny
particles most of which are hard enough to cause abrashion. So just =
putting
your hands in your pockets exposes the ring to slight abrasion. And for =
flexing
and pressure on the ring? How about a good grip on the steering wheel? =
Or
anything else, for that matter. The net result is that eventually, any=
ring
will wear out. At some point it gets thin enough that some stress breaks=
it.
Just when that occurs is hard to predict. When it happens, it will be =
time to
either visit your local jeweler and have it properly repaired, or visit =
your
local jeweler's show case, and get another ring. Imagine how worn a pair=
of
blue jeans, worn every day for six years, would look. Those too, cost in=
the
same order of magnetude as your ring. Expecting the ring to last =
forever, when
we know most other things wear out, is unreasonable. So don't worry =
about it
too much. Wear it, enjoy it, and when it's time, repair or replace it. =
=20

By the way, just out of curiosity, what sort of condition is that stone =
in?
Natural peridot is rather soft and fragile. I'd expect one worn in a =
ring for
the last six years to be pretty abraded and scratched up. If it's not,=
it may
be one of the much more durable synthetic substitutes, which are widely =
used in
"birthstone" jewelry, class rings, and the like, for just that reason. =
Plus,
they're less costly...

cheers

Peter
  #5  
Old January 22nd 04, 10:40 AM
porkchops
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Posts: n/a
Default

Peter W. Rowe pwrowe@ixDOTnetcomDOTcom wrote in message By the way, just
out of curiosity, what sort of condition is that stone
in?
Natural peridot is rather soft and fragile. I'd expect one worn in a
ring for
the last six years to be pretty abraded and scratched up.



The stone seems to be okay. Like I said, I don't do much rugged work
with my hands nor do I get my hands in anything that might cause any
damage to the stone. It's not a very big stone though and it's
embedded into the frame really well. So only the upper part of it is
exposed.

It does have a few scratches that only I can notice in good lighting,
from which I expected, by the way I handle it. Not that many
scratches and they aren't that bad.

I assume this is a real, authentic peridot. It's got a little piece of
what looks to be a piece of sand or dirt inside the gem.

It doesn't really look like oen of those fake ones.

I was told when I got this that it was a real rock.

Any other ways to tell?
  #6  
Old January 24th 04, 03:11 AM
Typhoon News User
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Default

Sounds like your ring is indeed sterling silver. If you bend sterling with
plyers it will become weaker somewhat. And also some craftsmen coat the
sterling with rhodium plate. Its a substance that makes the silver more
shiny. But after a few years it tends to wear off. But does not affect
your silver. Or tarnish. Plus the outside of the ring is usally more
polished that in inside. That's normal.
Silver is a soft metal and is normal for it to take the conformation of
your finger. If it isn't soft, that means it contains more other metals
and in turn would tarnish on your finger...ick!
So sounds like you have a good quality silver ring. Just take care of it
like any other piece of jewelry and clean it with a soft cloth and mild
soap. Or you can purchase any jewelry cleaner from your local jewelry
store.
Hope this clears any concern.
Karen Thimot
Digby County. NS

porkchops wrote:

Hello,

In 1998 I got a ring at a small gift shop at the mall called "Fire and
Ice" as a gift from my mom (not sure if any of you have heard of it,
but I think it closed down). Anyways, it's a sterling silver (has a
.925 engraved inside the band) oval peridot split shank band ring.
It's awesome and I have been wearing it all the time.. everyday, night
and day, since I got it.
It hasn't discolored or rusted at all, but the band has sorta of bent
on the side, where it meets my other finger. This happened after about
2-3 years or so. It was pretty noticeable and made the ring feel weird
on my finger.
Anyways, a friend of mine used some plyers on it to try and straighten
it out. And it worked okay. But my friend said it bended back into
shape a little too easily and scratched up pretty easily from the
plyers, and suggested that perhaps the ring was made up of a very
cheap, soft kind of silver, or metal.
Even before that, it's gotten easily scratched up over the years, and
I don't do any rugged work with my hands at all.

So, my question is.. it was said when we bought it, that it was just
"sterling silver" and it does indeed have the sterling silver marker
for .925.
Is this normal for sterling silver? Could have using the plyers made
the band weaker, and later on cause a problem?
It cost about $45.00, if I recall clearly. I do not know anything
about silver really. Or the different types of silver and strengths,
etc.
Isn't a .925 rated ring really good quality silver? (then again, any
store could probably engrave their jewelry with that, and it not even
be silver..)

When looking at the ring on the outside, it's a shiney silver.
However, inside the split shank opening, there are areas that are not
shiney and polished, but show a more gritty kind of rougher material.
I'm not sure if the outside of the ring has been polished with some
permanent silver polish or something (if that's even possible)..
I can't explain it unless you saw it.

Any idea what kind of silver this is?
Is sterling a typically strong metal? Well, strong as in, where it
won't snap or break on me? I'm not worried about it scratching up or
bending.. as long as it won't ever break on me, from just everyday
wear, without rugged hand usage.

Any info will be greatly appreciated!

Thanks.

  #7  
Old January 24th 04, 07:42 PM
porkchops
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

Cool.

(What happened to Typhoon News's reply? It was here a few minutes ago
but now it's gone.. hmm.)

Anyways, so I guess pliers was a definately stupid idea afterall,
LOL!!
What is everyone else's opinion on this ring's chances of completely
breaking in half, if I keep wearing it like I am?
Since the pliers event, the ring seems to have bent again slightly..
in the opposite area.

If I took this into a jeweler.. they'd still be able to fix this for
me, even though it's a somewhat cheap ring and nothing fancy like an
engagement or wedding ring, right?
Could they be able to add an extra layer of sterling silver or
something to it to strengthen the band without fully replacing the
band?
The gem isn't installed with prongs or anything. The gem is sort of in
thios silver oval frame with little rope-like silver design made
around it, in a circle, and the whole frame setting is sort of...
built out of the band itself. It's hard to explain unless you saw it,
but replacing the entire band would be a total mess.

I just wondered if there's some sort of reinforcement thing they can
do to already existing the band.

Any information will be GREATLY appreciated.

Pork
  #8  
Old January 24th 04, 07:58 PM
Peter W. Rowe
external usenet poster
 
Posts: n/a
Default

On Sat, 24 Jan 2004 10:42:35 -0800, in rec.crafts.jewelry
(porkchops) wrote:


(What happened to Typhoon News's reply? It was here a few minutes ago
but now it's gone.. hmm.)


newsgroup messages, as you see them, are what you're machine has
downloaded from your news server (in this case, AOL's news server).
once you've read it once, it's then marked as read in your machine. It
may or may not still be visible. if you delete it on your machine, then
you no longer see it, even though it still exists on the news server.
Keep in mind, too, that newsgroups don't exist as a single news server
for everyone. Each ISP has their own. So everyone reading a message is
seeing it as the copy that exists on their own ISP's news server, not as
a universal situation. Each individual news server/ISP is free to do
what they wish with messages, as far as how long, and if, they keep it
there. Some ISPs keep messages for only a short time, while others keep
them there longer.

The point to all this is that when you ask us, here in the group, what
happened to a message you were looking at, you're asking the wrong
folks. We don't know. Most likely, all that's changed is what YOU did
on your own computer's copy of the message that you downloaded. You can
usually reset the newsgroup by unsubscribing, closing down your
newsreader (in AOL this would mean signing off and closing the AOL
software and connection) and then starting it up again and
resubscribing. This will then show you all available messages on your
news server, including any you'd already read or deleted. In some
software, you're asked, when you unsubscribe, if you wish to keep the
setting and records of the group your unsubscribing from, or not. If
so, answere no, so your machine clears those records, or when you
resubscribe, it would take you back to where you left off.. Hope that
helps...

now to the rest of your questions... (more briefly)


Anyways, so I guess pliers was a definately stupid idea afterall,
LOL!!
What is everyone else's opinion on this ring's chances of completely
breaking in half, if I keep wearing it like I am?


Eventually, it will break. Everything wears out when used continuously.
Without actually seeing it, and seeing how thin it is, or signs of
stress in the metal, there's no way any of us could accuratly predict
how long this might take. Might be tomorrow, might be years away. Even
seeing it, one could only guess, but it would be a more accurate guess.
If you want a more accurate assessment from us, take a good closeup
photo, or photos, of the ring. (Or put it on a good scanner, and scan
it. That often produces a good image.). Then post those images on your
AOL home page, or elsewhere on the web. Then put the URL to those
images in a newsgroup message, so we can all go see it for ourselves.
Remember that you are NOT allowed to post actual attached messages to
the newsgroup itself. Put them on the web, and give us the link.

Since the pliers event, the ring seems to have bent again slightly..
in the opposite area.

If I took this into a jeweler.. they'd still be able to fix this for
me, even though it's a somewhat cheap ring and nothing fancy like an
engagement or wedding ring, right?


Right.

Could they be able to add an extra layer of sterling silver or
something to it to strengthen the band without fully replacing the
band?


Silver is an exceptionally good conductor of heat. This means soldering
or welding on it, without the rest of the ring heating up, can be
difficult. there are ways to do it, of course, but the ease with which
an area can be reinforced, when the ring has a probably temperature
sensative stone in it, is limited. With a laser welder, it would be
fairly easy to do, but not many jewelers have these costly machines yet.
By traditional methods, it might be possible, but probably at a cost
that would approach that of a new ring.

The gem isn't installed with prongs or anything. The gem is sort of in
thios silver oval frame with little rope-like silver design made
around it, in a circle, and the whole frame setting is sort of...
built out of the band itself. It's hard to explain unless you saw it,
but replacing the entire band would be a total mess.

I just wondered if there's some sort of reinforcement thing they can
do to already existing the band.


Probably. Just how it would be done depends on the skill, and equipment
(lasers, etc) of the jeweler you took it to, as well as the exact
details of the ring, which we cannot quite be sure of via text
descriptions. Why haven't you just asked a local jeweler? Find a shop
with a good repair or custom department, and ask their opinion.
Opinions vary of couorse, and with silver, some jewelers will just tell
you not to do it, but others will be more willing to give you some help.
It's free to ask...

Hope that helps.

Peter Rowe
 




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