A Few Problems With Tension Set Rings and Potential Alternatives

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These pictures represent only a few rings I've made that share much the same appearance as tension set rings. Please feel free to click on any one of these to view and find out more about the specific ring. I can, additionally, provide many other examples beyond what you'll find on my web pages.

Three problems associated with tension set rings:

During the most of thirty years I've made jewelry, I've had a number of people come to me with the remnants of tension set engagement rings they'd purchased elsewhere, asking advice about how best to resurrect their rings. In most cases, the diamond had been dislodged from the ring and, in most of these instances, the stones had been lost. In a few instances, the rings needed to be resized in order to be able to be worn on the intended finger. My evaluation of these problems can be found below.

Tension set rings CANNOT effectively be sized. This is due to the inherent properties of any metal with a spring characteristic. It’s the spring property of the metal that literally squeezes against opposing sides of the stone when set by the tension method. To size such a ring by conventional methods creates in the metal a portion that will not be capable of imparting the force needed to effectively hold the stone in place. While I think tension set stones have a relatively stunning appearance, I know of nobody whose finger size hasn't changed over a period of years. Pragmatically speaking, I would fully expect the requirement for resizing to arise...and thus a serious issue for most anyone owning a tension set ring. A tension set ring very simply can't be effectively resized.

Despite the numerous and repeated claims I've heard that stones can't be lost from tension set rings, I've had more than a dozen people come to me asking advice after having lost tension set stones from their rings. Unfortunately, I can provide no viable fix. I rely, instead, on the more traditional and time tested method of channel setting. While it doesn't reproduce the exact appearance of a tension set diamond or other gem, this method does allow for me to closely approximate the appearance of a tension set ring.

And finally there are the legal issues I've encountered. Several years ago I unwittingly made a very small handful of rings, the stones of which were tension set. I didn't realize at the time that patents for the process were held by another person. My main interest in this method of setting stones had to do with exploring possible design approaches. I felt that the possible design options had barely been explored. Once I became aware of the patents, I immediately refrained from employing this method. In actuality, the stones in the rings I'm making are channel set, which is a traditional, time tested, and more secure method of setting stones that does allow for the possibility of sizing the ring.

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