I have a new ring (had about 2 weeks) with a large Moissanite center stone. I was playing congas on New Year’s Eve and the vibrations must have knocked the stone out. I found it but now not sure how to put it back!!!
Welcome to the site! I’d advise you talk to a jeweler near you to make sure it’s secured.
I’m only viewing your image on a tiny phone screen, but it appears to me that the prongs may not have been set on the pavilion of the stone as well, securely, as they should be.
The prongs appear to be suffiecient, but the shape i think I’m seeing would suggest that the prongs may not have been solidly fitting the stone, leaving gaps at the prong tips. Gaps which will catch on material, and may have lifted them off of the gemstone.
I could be wrong, as its only a grainy image i am looking at, but that would be what I check first, were it to come into my shop for service.
Everyone is correct here. You should take this ring to a jewelry store with a good repair department to diagnose and resolve the problem. It looks like a nice ring and should be repaired by a professional.
Since the ring is only two weeks old, you can bring it back to where it was purchased and they’ll probably repair it at no charge.
Hope that helps!!
Jeff
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Thank you all for your replies! Yes, I’m new here and thought this might be a good way to start learning the craft. The jewelry store has agreed to send me a replacement and to not wanting the original ring back (they are in Australia) so this one I will have to “work on” if I go down that path. I originally contacted a couple of jewelery stores but then I got to thinking maybe there was a way to work on the prongs myself, then I found this site and thought it was a wonderful resource for the community. I’ve only done very basic work (wire wrap and stringing) so no experience on ring work, but I would like to learn…
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Wow! That’s great to have that ring to be able to play with. Do you know what the metal is or did you already say and I forgot already?
I started with simple bezels to learn jewelry and I would be a little bit intimidated to work on that kind of a setting without a bit more knowledge because I would be afraid that I wouldn’t be able to secure it correctly.
I know that there are some very good teachers out there and knowledgeable people that understand prong setting and hopefully some will weigh in here but I do think it might be more on the advanced side of things.
Regardless of that, it’s great to have another voice on here, you’ve found a lovely group of really kind knowledgeable people.
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I’ve been trying to figure out how to answer your question. It’s actually fairly complicated. Resetting a stone that has fallen out isn’t the best way to learn how to prong set. After thinking about it overnight I think your best bet is to learn prong setting with new settings first. Then you’ll have a base of knowledge. Prong setting is like playing a musical instrument. It takes repeated practice. Hardly anyone gets it right on the first try.
Again repairing and resetting is its own thing. For instance, you can bend prongs over against a stone once and there’s a good chance they won’t break. If you’re lucky, you can bend them twice, but if you bend them a third time they’ll break and snap off. That’s a guideline, but is pretty much true.
Like ringdoctor said, the prongs probably weren’t flush against the stone when it was purchased. That means you’ll have to regrind or file the prongs and adjust them. The margin between the right amount and too much is very small. It’s super easy to mess it up and make it worse or destroy it.
As a Ganoskin member you have many resources to learn. For instance here’s a stone setting module to work through. You can also search the forum for ideas and suggestions.
One other path would be to take your ring to a jewelry store that does repair work and tell them the truth. That you’re trying to learn and ask the jeweler how they would reset the stone? They might be able to give you some free in-person advice.
Hope all that helps!!
Jeff
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