What is Black Titanium and does it last?

Titanium natural colour is grey. Many companies are selling black titanium rings - which in fact does not exist.

We have found alternatives to those people wanting black rings - our high strength composite does the job. It is similar to teflon - it is not a coating but a solid teflon like inlay. It will not wear off, although it is not as durable as titanium so it will scrtach if treated badly. This is not a big problem as we can easily refurbish and replace the compostie inlay at any time.

I have yet to see any black titanium that has any lasting properties .... and believe me, I have looked.

There are two ways to colour titanium black:

Black Rhodium Plated titanium rings

The first is to black rhodium plate the titanium. It is not jet black but a very dark grey. This finish looks good but does not last. In fact I would say that a black rhodium plated titanium ring will loose it's color or coating within weeks of wearing. This is really not an option - the coating is on the surface only and is a complete waste of your money. Stay away from this type of black titanium.

Black titanium rings that have been impregnated.

The other method is a technique that has been developed by a U.S. company. I do not know how they do it.... and they are not saying. The rings look fantastic. The colour is jet black and in the polished form is really something to see. Apparently the titanium is not coated but actually impregnated. The black actually goes into the titanium. They claim the black goes halfway through the ring?

I purchased 10 of these rings in the hope of figuring out how it is done - but I had no success. I wore a ring for a few weeks and it seemed fine. After a few month however the wear started to show. If you are a little rough on your black titanium ring then this is also not an option as it will not last the lifetime of the ring. They claim they will not wear and is very difficult to scratch - I don't know how they can make this claim as the rings I purchased all failed the test. These black titanium wedding rings are beautiful - if it is for a dress ring I would recomend them - if it for a black titanium wedding band I would say you should make another choice.

What I also did was run some sandpaper over one of the new rings - the black coloured titanium was toast. The sandpaper removed the colour and it was back to grey.

From my perspective, one of the great things about titanium rings is that they will last forever. They are hard and durable and can be treated very badly without too much trouble.

If I am to sell a ring I do not want it back in a few months - and I am afraid that I have yet to find a black titanium ring that will stand up to normal wear and tear. The prices they charge are high - and for a ring that will not live up to it's promise I would say that black titanium as a lasting piece of jewellery, is a myth.