Rhodium plated ring

[Victoria]

Hiya

I've been commissioned to remove a stone setting from an 18ct white gold ring & put in a new setting with a different stone. However I've found that the 18ct white gold I have for the new setting is much darker than the ring, which makes me think that the ring is rhodium plated.

If I solder/pickle the ring, will it remove the rhodium plating to reveal either 18ct yellow gold or a dark 18ct white gold underneath?

I'm wondering whether to offer to remove the rhodium plating altogether - can this be done by filing alone or does it require a kind of reverse plating process?

I don't plate jewellery & don't know the first thing about it so re-plating isn't an option without contacting another jeweller to do it for me.

Thanks
Victoria

[ps_bond]

So you're taking an existing shank and matching it to a new setting? Don't suppose you can persuade them to shell out for a shank in an alloy that matches? Less labour, more materials, no additional charge for replating...

Rhodium is an abomination. :) Mechanical removal before soldering is about the only way - I've been hunting for an electrochemical removal method and haven't found one yet.

[Victoria]

Yep that's right. I'm going to suggest a new shank but I suspect they won't want to spend the money.

So when you say "mechanical removal" you mean elbow grease, right?? I'm guessing that it takes a long time to file off? It's a plain band so no fiddly bits to file or worry about filing off a pattern.

[ps_bond]

Preferably something like sandpaper or rubber abrasives in a pendant motor, but yes. You should be OK with just the area around the solder joint, but there's bound to be some that burns.

A new shank is £50 for a light one (FPR S201) from Cooksons + VAT.

The job then becomes 1 soldering operation, clean, set, hallmark, final polish as opposed to unsolder, remove plating, solder, clean, set, final polish, replate.

How long before the shank wears too thin and you need to replace the shank? Trigger's broom springs to mind :D

[SteveLAO]

....and of course if you're replacing the setting, and I'm guessing that the new setting weighs in at more that 1g, then you'll have to send it to an assay office for them to check that the metal ties up with the existing hallmark....so an added expense :( I think I would follow ps_bond's advice above!

[Victoria]

The new setting weighs 0.6g (had to go & double check! but it's only little) so I can get away with that but still a good point!

I've gone back to the customer to offer to provide a new shank, or make in a different metal but deliberately haven't offered to remove the plating as it's too much hassle! :)

[Lucie]

I've had a number of old rings re-plated. It's been a while, but it was only about £10-£15 (ish) or £30 for palnic rhodium plating?

[adam p]

Why don't you just replate the whole ring? I can do that for you in rhodium for £30.00.

[Victoria]

Thanks for the offer Adam - I confess I had just assumed it would be more expensive! I would have probably had to go to a local high street jeweller, all of which are very pricey round here.

I'll suggest it to the customer & come back to you...

Cheers

[Lucie]

Chances are, your local highstreet jeweller is sending it off to some nice person in Hatton Garden who plates it and returns it. They are then putting their own mark-up on it, so the price is going to be ridiculous. I know that what most of ours seem to do anyway.
Adam's £30 seems about right :)

[adam p]

Chances are, your local highstreet jeweller is sending it off to some nice person in Hatton Garden who plates it and returns it. They are then putting their own mark-up on it, so the price is going to be ridiculous. I know that what most of ours seem to do anyway.
Adam's £30 seems about right :)
I used to have a workshop in Clerkenwell, so know what the overhead is like. I do everything in house now, as that way I have control of the costs.

[Tabby66]

Won't the existing rhodium need removing anyway, since if not, it will turn black when heated to solder in the new setting, before the whole piece when finished can be replated?? Or am I thinking of something else??

I have the blackened plating to remove from a rather fiddle ring when I return from holiday,.....still, I won't think of that challenge too much just yet!!

[Dennis]

It is not certain that the ring has been plated until tested, Victoria. It could just be a different shade because it comes from another source. In either case, once you have successfully removed the old mount and soldered on the new one, you will need to send it to a plater.

However you will not need to do any further sanding, because preparation, possibly by blasting with an abrasive, will be part of the process. You can confirm that with them before you send it.

It is as well to warn the customer, that at some time in the future, any plating will wear away in part, exposing the colour beneath. Dennis.