Inlay Question

[JAKE N]

I have a customer who wants a white gold ring with a 24K yellow gold inlay. Is this even possible? I am also interested in different combinations of metals that engravers have successfully inlayed into each other. Here is all I have successfully tackled so far.

Copper =into=> Steel

24K yellow gold =into=> Steel

24K yellow gold =into=> Sterling Silver

I am still very much an amateur when it comes to all of this, just looking for some advice and input to see what's possible.

Thanks,
Jake

 

[Sam]

Yes, you can inlay 24k into white gold. If it lacks contrast when finished, outline the inlay with hairlines.

 

[JAKE N]

thanks sam. is there any specific type/ karat of white gold I should look for? Customer wants a ring.

 

[mitch]

thanks sam. is there any specific type/ karat of white gold I should look for? Customer wants a ring.

ALL of them will be significantly harder than 24Kt. you shouldn't have any problem inlaying into any of them.

 

[Sam]

Your choices are usually 14k or 18k white. Probably quite a bit of price difference between the two.

 

[James Roettger]

I've done a lot of inlay into white gold, platinum and palladium. I like it deep, at least .4 mm to .5mm minimum. On bands I also will sometimes solder the ends of the wire down as wedding jewelry gets hard wear over many years. The top ring is in white gold and the bands are palladium which is similar in hardness. The inlay metal is 24K and like Sam suggested I engrave a hairline outline to make it jump out. It really seems to need outlining and I would plan that into your design or it will be hard to see the color difference.

 

[rod]

James,

Glad I had a chance to admired the quality of your work. Rings are very small canvases to do such detailed work, very, very nice!

Rod

 

[Tira]

James - beautiful work!

 

[Chujybear]

So what about the rest. White gold is going to certainly be hard enough to inlay into. What about silver?

 

[gantzi]

James, these rings are beautiful!
Did you use 24K gold or lower karat?
Does the gold get scarred or wear off after some time?
Thanks
Guy

 

[James Roettger]

Thanks for the compliments. I have used 24K and 22K rose gold. I would try to limit it to 24K but the 22K rose worked fine without problems. The 24K is denser so wears slow. The surrounding metal acts as a "bumper" to protect the inlay. I did my first ones about 6 years ago and recently saw the clients and they looked fine. I won't be trying it on silver.
I also "set" the inlay like one would set a stone. I undercut the white metal and then when hammering can feel the gold plunge into the undercut area. I then hammer smooth the whole area white gold included to set the wire like one sets a stone. The white gold is compressed around till any gaps are closed tightly, The the work is sanded smooth before engraving.

 

[gantzi]

Thanks a lot James, it really helps!

Guy