Tungsten Carbide Frequently Asked Questions
Some of the questions we are frequently asked about our tungsten rings
Tungsten carbide is a chemical compound consisting of equal amounts of both tungsten and carbon atoms.
The binder we use in our tungsten rings is Nickel. The nickel content is within the tolerance of the EU Nickel Directive. We do not use a cobalt binder in our tungsten rings.
Tungsten rings are extremely hard, and very durable in wear to the point that you are unlikely to scratch a tungsten ring. It is possible to scratch a tungsten ring if it has an abrasion with diamond tipped tooling.
Tungsten rings are so hard that you will not bend them in wear, however this hardness can make them brittle with very hard impacts such as throwing up in the air, or a hard impact on concrete. In normal wear a tungsten carbide ring should give you no issues.
All our tungsten rings come with a 2-year guarantee so in the unlikely event that you do break one, we will replace for you.
If you are a particularly heavy-handed person, and tungsten is a concern then either cobalt, titanium or tantalum may be a better option.
While tungsten rings cannot be cut off due to being an incredibly hard metal, tungsten rings can be removed safely by cracking the metal rather than cutting it, this is relatively easy to do. We do have videos on the website showing how to do this, link below.
Emergency Removal of Tungsten Rings
Tungsten is the hardest metal and therefore, tungsten rings are very scratch resistant and cannot be bent out of shape. However, under extreme impact tungsten rings can crack or shatter.
Pros of Tungsten
Incredibly hard
Scratch resistant
Affordable
Nice weight
Can be removed safely, quickly and easily in an emergency
Tungsten rings don’t bend out of shape
Tungsten rings are hypoallergenic
Cons of Tungsten
Due to tungsten rings being incredibly hard, they cannot be resized so a completely new ring is required should the finger size change
Tungsten rings can crack or shatter under extreme impact as they are very hard and cannot be bent
Tungsten rings cannot be resized, they are however inexpensive to repurchase the correct size. We will change any incorrect ordered sizes within 30 days of purchase subject to our terms and conditions.
Yes, tungsten rings can be engraved, but only by machine due to the extreme hardness of the metal, however most jewellers should be able to offer this service. We no longer offer this service though.
We don’t sell black tungsten rings, as the black is a plating and not very durable. However, we do sell zirconia ceramic rings which are naturally black and are not plated.
Tungsten rings can be gold plated, however, we do not offer this service as the gold plating when o tungsten rings is not very durable and comes off relatively easily.
Tungsten rings are very low maintenance and are tarnish resistant but can discolour when in contact with cleaning chemicals. Therefore, would not be suitable for swimming or hairdressers using chemicals.
Tungsten rings can be re-polished with a diamond polishing paste that can be purchased from Ebay, due to the time and effort this would take it is not usually commercially viable for a business to offer this service due to the low cost of tungsten rings. You can however do this yourself with a Dremel and some diamond polishing paste.