Funky, Flirty, Fun and Fabulous. Shiny, dazzling and brilliant – never Blingy! The relatively new kid on the block in the jewellery world. Tungsten Carbide! Used in promise, friendship, anniversary, eternity, engagement, or wedding rings. To our male customers – no longer any excuse not to wear your commitment ring!
Tungsten, Swedish word for heavy stone, is found in the Earth's crust, at an estimated 1.5 grams per ton of rock. Carl Wilhelm Scheele (Swedish) made a number of WOW! chemical discoveries in the 1700’s. Among other, “Oxygen” “Chlorine” “Manganese” and “Tungsten”. The poor guy, shame, seldom got the credit for his discoveries, as others took that for themselves, by publishing, reporting, announcing, and broadcasting before he could get to that. Perhaps, he was just so intrigued by his findings that he was never interested in publicizing.
A greyish-white lustrous metal, with the chemical symbol “W” or Wolfram. This name, due to the fact, that the ancient German smelters found that Tungsten ate into Tin and devoured it, like a wolf would his prey. Having the highest melting point of all metals (3410˚C) it makes Tungsten the metal with the highest tensile strength (@1000˚C, psi 50,000 – 75,000).
Tungsten carbide (TC) is a chemical compound which is formed when tungsten and carbide powders are forged or brazed together at 1400 - 2000˚C by using metal binders, such as nickel. A process called sintering is used to form this compound into tools, jewellery, machinery, armour-piercing rounds, ball tips of ball-point pens and even coating for disc brakes in high-performance cars (as the hardness and tensile strength improves performance and reduces brake dust). Impressive!
This tungsten carbide has 2 – 3 times the density of steel and is 10 times harder than 18ct gold and 4 times harder than Titanium. Making it virtually indestructible and scratch proof. It is a rare metal which measures 9 on the Mohs hardness scale. Diamonds are thought to be the hardest at 10. (Although, Graphene is harder than diamonds and 200 times stronger than steel, and still very flexible! It is used in precise sensors, anti-corrosive coatings, solar panels, and electronics). TC has high-impact resistance. However, this hardness can be shattered under certain circumstances with enough force applied to it. In emergency situations and accidents to hands (with possible swelling to the fingers) these rings can be removed quickly and easily with special tools, such as locking pliers. Whereas, precious metals (gold, silver) would bend and get deformed in accidents; injuring or hurting the person wearing them, and will require cutting to remove them. This could cause more bodily harm and damage.
The only metal that can be polished (by using diamond wheels and abrasives, like cubic boron nitride) to a permanent polished look and shine. Both, stylish and durable, with unbelievable strength. It is the new funky and cool metal to use in the making of classic and stylish jewellery. Or uniquely enhanced with natural materials like wood, gemstones, or shells.
Jewellery (especially Men’s rings) were traditionally made of Gold (2.75 -4 on hardness scale) and Silver (2.5 on hardness scale) with later addition of Titanium (6 on hardness scale) and Platinum (4 – 4.5 on hardness scale). These “softy” metals do not leave designers with many options in the manufacturing process.TC is extremely hard (9) and can be customized by twisting, rolling, rotating by various forces, and enhanced by inlays to give that much sought-after appearance. A variety of finishes can be applied like engraving, IP Plating, Rhombic cutting, frosting, brushing to name but a few. These adding to the magnificence of these pieces of art our customers love so much.
Benefits, to name but a few:
-most scratch resistant metal known to man.
-does not bend or get deformed, incredible durability
-hypoallergenic, stable, and unreactive, (especially to people who are allergic to gold jewellery)
-will not tarnish, rust, fade or develop a patina.
-hold its shine and polished look for years to come
-are low maintenance -can only be damaged by the abrasion of diamonds or corundum.
-is comfortable to wear, without that pinching feeling most men hate so much
-can be designed to be stylish, classic, modern, or natural with wooden inlays.
-wear-resistant for active lifestyles
-affordable option to gold, silver, etc.
-available in a natural gun metal grey colour, or all colours in the rainbow spectrum
So, we said TC rings are nearly indestructible, unless you:
-open your beer bottle with it
-throw a tantrum and your ring lands on the floor
-drop it from a height to test its hardness
-apply enough shock or pressure to it in emergency situations
-use it for any other activity than that the designer had in mind
Do you still need convincing to get yourself one, or two, or more of these beauties? Get those fingers on the buttons to swoon over the stock on our online store www.orbitrings.co.za With names like Silver Moon, Northern Lights, Astro Blue, Milky Way, Star Burst you will be in 7th Heaven.
