Every engaged couple needs to purchase  a platinum wedding band before the ceremony .  The usual   engagement ring  for women  are diamond engagement rings. Most guys  prefer a simple high polished wedding band with a raised rounded top usually called a half round wedding band . Of course you could go for a flat style wedding band or even a knife edge that has a inverted v design. The style  really is not important when it comes to getting a good value .

Another option  for all the wedding band styles is known as comfort fit. Comfort fit is when the inside edge of the band is rounded off  to feel smoother on the finger and allows for a very smooth inner ring edge. As with most things  after the term became popular some jewelry makers  took advantage and applied  the name for rings that are so thin and light weight the rounded edge can’t even be seen . A classic style comfort fit wedding band has a  very well  defined rounded inside edge that can be seen and felt.

The well made comfort fit style  will be heavier  than the half round since additional depth  is required  to prevent the inner  edge from becoming sharp when rounded. A sharp edge is a problem with very light weight half round and poorly made comfort fit wedding bands. A light weight band of average width between 4mm and 6mm should be at least 1.6MM depth. A  well designed  comfort fit with a well defined rounded top and inside  edge would be closer to 2.25mm. The same comfort fit in a flat band may only be 1.5mm depth but due to the style may weight more than the rounded top  style.

After you select a style  you like take a look at both gold and platinum. You can go with 14K yellow gold or 18K yellow gold. The 18K will have more weight due to the extra gold content and also a brighter richer yellow color. The alloy used will change  the color but overall most yellow gold looks about the same. Experts may define  one mix as greener  or slightly red but to most novice jewelry buyers it is all yellow gold. White gold is a totally different story. Traditional white gold with nickle has a lot of issues . It can crack easy, has a yellow hue  when the normal white plating wears away  and can cause skin allergies . A better mix is made using palladium but is also a lot softer than the traditional mix. Stuller manufacturing has a mix known as 14K X1 which is a good balance between durability  and white color that does not require plating.

The other option for white wedding bands is platinum. A platinum wedding band is much heavier than gold and has unique  properties. While it does scratch it will literally last for generations due to it density. If platinum just too expensive take a look at palladium. It is lower cost and very light weight with a pure white color that never changes. It is a member of the platinum group metal family but is not platinum and does not have the value of platinum at this time in the metals market.

When doing a price comparison  you need to know the exact gram weight of the gold or platinum wedding band. You can also compare pennyweights but remember that one pennyweight or DWT is 1.55 times the weight of one gram so convert to the same  measurements for easy comparison. The next step is recording  the width and thickness or depth. Knowing the gram weight, thickness and width will allow you to compare one product to another . OK you should also know if they are cast rings or struck from solid tube. Compare the better  tube manufacturing to others made the same and cast to other cast products. I suggest only buying the bands cut from extruded tube over a cast wedding band.Cast bands can have porosity problems that don’t show up for several months or only after they are sized.

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