Should 10K White Gold Get Scratches in the Band?
White gold rings are made by mixing gold with other alloys or plating gold with rhodium, a rare and hard metal. Historically, white gold rings were made by mixing in a lot of silver or palladium. Rhodium plating is a recent practice. Both types of white gold do wear and scratch with time.
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What Is White Gold?
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White gold is gold mixed with another harder metal alloy, or is yellow gold plated with rhodium. This coating is used to make rings very shiny and mirror-like and is rarer and more expensive than gold. Mixing gold with another metal makes it harder and less prone to scratches and dents. Mixing it with a white or pale metal, such as silver, makes it white gold. Adding other metals lowers the purity of gold, which is measured in karats. Almost pure gold is 24 karats. Other common karats are 22 karats, 18 karats and 10 karats. If a gold ring is 10 karat, it contains 10 parts pure gold and 14 parts of another metal alloy.
Gold Is Very Malleable
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Pure gold is useful for jewelry in part because of its malleability, or the metal's tendency to deform under pressure. A small amount of pressure, such as a bump on the corner of a table, can dent pure gold. This trait allows gold to be pulled, shaped and molded without a lot heating. Unfortunately, it also makes jewelry fragile, which is why pure gold is mixed with harder metals to firm it up a bit.
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Silver, Palladium or Rhodium
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Mixing gold with enough silver makes it very pale. A 10-karat white gold ring looks just like a silver ring. This mix firms the metal, while maintaining its market value with another valuable metal. Silver is almost as malleable as gold, so it stills scratches easily. Other metals, like palladium, are harder than gold and significantly decrease malleability. Palladium is rare and lighter than gold. Yellow gold or a white gold is plated with rhodium to improve its look. Rhodium is very hard, but wears away with daily use. If the gold underneath is yellow, the first few scratches are more noticeable. Jewelers can re-plate rings with rhodium to restore their look.
Care and Maintenance
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Re-plating a rhodium-plated ring every 12 to 18 months keeps it looking new. Prevent scratches on these and other white gold rings by storing them in a soft cloth-lined container. Remove all white gold jewelry before working with your hands, cleaning or starting a strenuous activity. Clean white gold in warm, soapy water with a soft cloth. Apply jewelry polish to keep the gold bright and shiny.
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