friends, recently there has been some discussion about white gold
that is white enough to market without rhodium plating. can anyone
please remind me of the source for this new alloy? i checked the
archives without success.
friends, recently there has been some discussion about white
gold that is white enough to market without rhodium plating. can
anyone please remind me of the source for this new alloy?
In an article dated 7-1-04 W.R. Cobb and Co. has announced the
patent of a proprietary white gold alloy known as Precise White Gold
that maintains its color without the need for rhodium plating. I
hope it works so we can be rid of all the off color white gold
pretender alloys.
I saw a sample of an 18K Palladium white gold at the Platina Casting
booth at the MJSA show. It was nearly as white as Platinum. Platina
is located in NYC.
Most alloy makers have alloy that does not require rhodium plating
at least in 14kt. The trick is if it will work for you and your
process. Cobb makes “Precise White” we (PMWest) make "Ultimate White,
Fell makes Winter or maybe Snow White. This is just to name a few.
18kt is more difficult for obvious reasons. 10kt is easy.
High nickel alloys always run very hot. Usually very hard too unless
you use a “grain refined” version and can keep it well blended via
induction stirring or similar. High palladium alloys are soft but
pricey.
Cobb has been aggressively marketing of late you may be thinking of
theirs. Be sure to catch up on the work of the White gold task Force
now that the White Gold Color Index is done.
Help others make informed buying decisions with Hoover & Strong. We
welcome your opinions and experiences with their products, ordering,
customer service and and over all satisfaction.
Eugene C. Gentile (Gino)
National Accounts Manager
Hoover & Strong, Inc.
295 Princeton-Hightstown Road
Unit 11-364
West Windsor, NJ 08550
877-687-7770
Fax: 609-936-1838 EGentile@hooverandstrong.com
Cobb makes "Precise White" we (PMWest) make "Ultimate White, Fell
makes Winter or maybe Snow White.
My experience, other than you must buy 14kt grain from Cobb, whereas
you can buy alloy from Fell, which makes it much less expensive, I
had more trouble with Cobb “rhodium free” white gold cracking than I
did with the Fell alloy that I used to make winter white. Had to
size and bend the gold, which dramatically increases cracking. I do
not do production, I have only done a few custom wedding bands,
similar to two piece puzzle rings that be hammered somewhat to fit
tight together.
I saw a sample of an 18K Palladium white gold at the Platina
Casting booth at the MJSA show. It was nearly as white as Platinum.
Platina is located in NYC.
Thanks, Joel. 18K? Really! I used some 14K Palladium white for
fabrication and really liked it but still detected a pale yellow
cast. Different source, I suppose but would love to see this 18K
white.
There is nothing new about high nickel white gold that does not have
to be plated. The only problem is that it has a high nickel content
and that it is harder then hell. Hope noone is alergic.
The white gold you may be refering to is marketed by PureGold. It
matches platinum for it’s color, is 20K and casts well. They also
have a solder available that color matches it.
Help others make informed buying decisions with PureGold. We welcome
your opinions and experiences with their products, ordering, customer
service and and over all satisfaction.
In an article dated 7-1-04 W.R. Cobb and Co. has announced the
patent of a proprietary white gold alloy known as Precise White Gold
that maintains its color without the need for rhodium plating. I
hope it works so we can be rid of all the off color white gold
pretender alloys.
Depending on the price point of the intended item, it seems to me
there are 3 other white metals/alloys available that don’t need
rhodium plating, Argentium silver, Platinum silver & Platinum.
I saw a sample of an 18K Palladium white gold at the Platina
Casting booth at the MJSA show. It was nearly as white as Platinum.
Platina is located in NYC.
Thanks, Joel. 18K? Really! I used some 14K Palladium white
for fabrication and really liked it but still detected a pale
yellow cast. Different source, I suppose but would love to see this
18K white.
There are two families of palladium white golds, the low palladium
alloys and high palladium alloys. The high palladium alloys are
very a nice grey color and have no detectable yellow tint in 14k and
only the barest hint of it in 18k. The low palladium alloys have a
definite yellow tint. Due to the high cost of palladium many are
willing to live with a slight yellow tint it is still way better
than many of the so called white alloys that are nickle based.
Jim Binnion
James Binnion Metal Arts
Phone (360) 756-6550
Toll Free (877) 408 7287
Fax (360) 756-2160
@James_Binnion
Member of the Better Business Bureau
I thought the KEY differentiating selling point of WR Cobb’s precise
white alloy is that it passes the European Union’s nickel testing.
What really puzzles me is that, according to Cobb’s website, that
precise white alloy actually uses MORE, not less, nickel than their
other nickel based alloys. something like 44 to 50% nickel content!
Does anyone know how this is suppose to help the nickel testing?
somehow makes the nickel bond better??
Depending on the price point of the intended item, it seems to me
there are 3 other white metals/alloys available that don't need
rhodium plating, Argentium silver, Platinum silver & Platinum.
I’ve been reading the stuff about white gold with increased interest
lately. I have a project in mind that seems to demand a higher-end
solution than silver, and that should be “white”. I work with some
yellow gold, but never yet white gold or platinum. I want nothing to
do with rhodium plating! I would be fabricating, not casting, so I’m
leery of working with white gold. Very timely discussion!
Anyway, the question that the above comment brings up is, does
anyone have experience with how the new silvers are accepted by the
customer? Do people see A-950 as higher-value than regular sterling?
If so, how does the perceived value compare to the cost? In other
words, is it more or less profitable than traditional sterling? Than
gold? Same question for platinum silver? My guess is, having
platinum in it will raise the perceived value…
So, for someone first starting to work with “the other white
metals”, which of the choices makes most sense? Any input will be
much appreciated!
Anyway, the question that the above comment brings up is, does
anyone have experience with how the new silvers are accepted by
the customer? Do people see A-950 as higher-value than regular
sterling? If so, how does the perceived value compare to the cost?
My only experience so far has been by asking my customers’ opinions
on whether they’d be more amenable to the Argentium. These are only
the clients who don’t ordinarily buy silver jewelry. Some of them
are interested because they’ve always liked silver (and its
affordability), but just don’t have time to clean up the tarnish all
the time. The rest say they’ll never buy silver jewelry, and prefer
gold or platinum. These same people would never buy industrial metal
jewelry, either. My guess is that it doesn’t have the same “snob
appeal.”
In other words, is it more or less profitable than
traditional sterling? Than gold? Same question for platinum silver?
My guess is, having platinum in it will raise the perceived
value...
So, for someone first starting to work with "the other white
metals", which of the choices makes most sense? Any input will be
much appreciated!
With silver at $7.34, gold at $440.00 and platinum at 868.00, I’d
say it raises the actual value, as well. But I see what you’re
asking. Because of my “snob appeal” theory, I’m betting that my
group who haven’t been attracted to sterling silver will do an
about-face when it is presented as “platinum silver” for precisely
the reason you mentioned; perceived value. And I also believe that,
because of it’s qualities, they’ll pay a lot more for it than
traditional sterling silver.
Over the next few weeks, I’ll be asking around with exactly your
post in mind, Noel". It’ll be interesting to see what happens. This
may be my excuse to get off my rear and start working with this
material. Thanks
Noel, We’ve been casting with arg. since SWEST had it a few years
back, and love it, I cast it and solder with it -as far as value
it’s what $10:00 an ounce-more or less. Have never heard of platinum
silver-and PLATINUM is a whole different metal. About $900. an ounce
Different to work and solder. A lot of co. Rodium plate silver and I
can"t say for sure but I believe HOT DIA’S. does. I rodium some
silver and like the look. Look at our silver pcs. in the catolog,
they are arg.silver.