How often do you inspect your ring? Do your ring prongs hold the gemstone tightly? Or maybe you are the one who notices that the stone is a bit loose, the prongs are broken or bent and still keeps wearing the ring? That’s a huge mistake.
Take Off the Ring if the Stone is Loose
A lot of people think that it’s not a big problem if the prongs of their ring get loose or bend a bit. They think they can take care of it later and continue wearing the ring until they find time to go to the jeweller.
Even if you put off visiting your jeweller, it’s not a wise idea to keep on wearing your ring until then.
Once the prongs are bend or broken, it’s very easy for the stone to fall off. Being on your hand, the ring is in constant motion and the risk of losing your stone is really high.
This is especially sad if you have an expensive diamond as losing it may cost you a lot of money.
The role of prongs is to keep your stones in a fixed position, and if your gemstones are out of alignment, they can crack or even break very easily if hit. That’s why it’s best to take off your ring and not wear it until you get it repaired.
Inspect Your Prongs Regularly
If you wear your ring often, you should check it at least once every two or three months. Take off your ring and look at it carefully, best using a loupe.
You should have your ring checked by a professional jeweller at least twice a year. This way you will make sure that you are not at risk of losing any of your stones.
Check if any of the prongs are out of alignment. All prongs should hold the gemstone tightly, and the stone itself should not be loose.
Are there broken prongs? These should be repaired immediately. What if you notice worn out prongs? This is also a sign that they need to be replaced or re-tipped.
What Are the Repair Options for Prongs?
In case your prongs are just bent, the jeweller will straighten them and put in the alignment. Don’t try to realign them yourself – you may damage the stone.
If some of the prongs are broken or worn out, they may need to be replaced or re-tipped.
If the prongs are broken, the jeweller will take off the stone, remove the damaged prongs and put new ones in place through soldering. This option works the best for newer rings.
However, once a prong has been replaced, the new one will be weaker than the original, and you will need to be more careful with it.
If the prongs are worn out, the jeweller may need to rebuild them by adding some material to the prong tips that are weakened.
If more than two prongs have been damaged, your jeweller may replace the whole ring setting. This is especially true for older rings.
In general, replacing the whole setting is always a good idea since this ensures that the new prongs will last longer.
