Can a ring be set too low, risking the culet?

[digdugger]

I just made a custom ring and the culet seems dangerously close to the band. Less than 1mm buffer. Gap only noticable with a loupe.

question is. Is that dangerous like if the diamond gets knocked on the top? Will the culet be more susceptible to chipping?

how much tolerance should there be between the cad drawimg and the actual ring. A gap was present in the cad picture but much less on the actual ring.

your thoughts?

 

[Lorelei]

I just made a custom ring and the culet seems dangerously close to the band. Less than 1mm buffer. Gap only noticable with a loupe.

question is. Is that dangerous like if the diamond gets knocked on the top? Will the culet be more susceptible to chipping?

how much tolerance should there be between the cad drawimg and the actual ring. A gap was present in the cad picture but much less on the actual ring.

your thoughts?

Hi dig,

If I am visualizing your description correctly, I don't think you would have a problem, I would be more worried about the top of the stone and your finger if the ring suffered enough of a blow to damage the culet by it hitting the metal below with any force, but let's keep this bumped for a pro's input, looks like Garry is around so he might have some advice for you.

 

[chrono]

I like my stones set extremely close to the finger so I would not be fussed if it were set as low as you described (1 mm thereabouts). If the blow is so strong such as to make the culet hit your finger, then the amount of force would have been great enough to mangle the ring itself. Human skin/finger isn't so tough as to be able to chip the culet of a diamond.

 

[digdugger]

Hi chrono.. the culet does rest on the metal band and not on the skin. I wouldnt worry if its on the soft fingers of my girl

 

[digdugger]

I just made a custom ring and the culet seems dangerously close to the band. Less than 1mm buffer. Gap only noticable with a loupe.

question is. Is that dangerous like if the diamond gets knocked on the top? Will the culet be more susceptible to chipping?

how much tolerance should there be between the cad drawimg and the actual ring. A gap was present in the cad picture but much less on the actual ring.

your thoughts?

Hi dig,

If I am visualizing your description correctly, I don't think you would have a problem, I would be more worried about the top of the stone and your finger if the ring suffered enough of a blow to damage the culet by it hitting the metal below with any force, but let's keep this bumped for a pro's input, looks like Garry is around so he might have some advice for you.

Yeah would like some pros input... i dont really want to trouble my jeweller. But i would only do so if it is a risk.

 

[chrono]

Is it like this? If so, then you are fine. In this picture, it looks like the culet is touching the band, but it isn't. It's just sitting inside the depression to allow the stone to be set as low as possible. The prongs are holding the stone up in the setting.

 

[OoohShiny]

Thanks for that picture, Chrono

May I ask what the weight/depth of that stone is? The other half does not want a stone to stick out a lot, which is difficult when I'm looking at 0.75ct or so... lol

 

[chrono]

OoohShiny,
I have no clue what the depth is, only that it is quite deep because it is an asscher type cut design. Furthermore, it is a spinel, which are generally cut much deeper than a diamond. The spinel is 1.75 ct and measures 6.5 x 6.5 mm.

 

[Cricketcat]

I have had this same question. I asked a couple of jewelers locally. They told me basically the same thing as what Lorelei stated above. It would be nice to have the experts here chime in on it.

 

[digdugger]

Heres my setting. Zoomed in. Experts?

 

[pyramid]

I have read that it shouldn't be so low that a ring mandrel, the stick for measuring rings a jeweller uses, could be pushed through the ring and touch the culet. I read that doing that without care would damage the culet.

 

[pyramid]

It looks fine to me, but then it is magnified so best get someone to check unless one of the jewellers here can answer from your photo.

 

[digdugger]

anybody in the trade care to comment?

 

[WinkHPD]

Heres my setting. Zoomed in. Experts?

Hard to tell from your picture, but it looks like there is slight, but sufficient space between the culet and the metal. I would normally like a little more in case you whack your hand on something. It would be a shame if in addition to the bruise that you end up with a chip running up from the culet towards the girdle.

We can not see in the picture how well your diamond is seated in the prongs. They appear to be good heavy prongs which will add security to the diamond. (If the diamond is properly seated.)

Since you are uncomfortable you would be well to seek out a local expert who can show you the ring under the microscope and also discuss the seating of the diamond with you.

Wink

 

[digdugger]

Heres my setting. Zoomed in. Experts?

Hard to tell from your picture, but it looks like there is slight, but sufficient space between the culet and the metal. I would normally like a little more in case you whack your hand on something. It would be a shame if in addition to the bruise that you end up with a chip running up from the culet towards the girdle.

We can not see in the picture how well your diamond is seated in the prongs. They appear to be good heavy prongs which will add security to the diamond. (If the diamond is properly seated.)

Since you are uncomfortable you would be well to seek out a local expert who can show you the ring under the microscope and also discuss the seating of the diamond with you.

Wink

Hi wink
I just had a word with my jeweller over the phone. Through the same photo reference. He says that the height is optimum, it is normally the way they set it and the culet is definitely safe. He said that resetting the diamond could also not be done due to the necessity of recrafting the entire ring.

In your opinion. Would the "small risk" warrant me a request for a reset? Would it trouble my jeweller alot?

 

[digdugger]

perhaps the question would be what would be a safe tolerance? 0.5mm? i guess that would be dependent on the intergrity of the prongs as wink pointed out.