If you did not know, then today we will enlighten you a little that, according to the principle of manufacturing technology, all chains can be divided into two groups: hollow and full-weight products. And now we will talk about what these two groups of chains are, how to distinguish them from each other, and which ones are better to acquire.
What is the difference between a hollow chain and a full-weight chain: how to determine
Hollow chain Is a piece of jewelry woven from hollow tubes. The blank wire is pre-made with a core (non-precious material in the middle), which is then chemically etched away, leaving nothing but a void in the middle of the wire.
The core of the hollow accessory can be:
- low carbon steel;
- copper;
- brass;
- aluminum.
Basically steel used for the production of low-grade and medium-grade items - red gold 385 or 585 assay value. Iron dissolves easily when etched with a 25–50% hydrochloric acid solution. After a period of time from 3 to 15 hours, there is no trace of the steel core in the chain. However, the characteristics of iron are very different from those of gold, which creates certain difficulties in machining, grinding, polishing and actually soldering.
Brass or copper in their behavior they are more like gold. These alloys are recommended for the higher grade yellow noble metal. Such a core is etched with nitric acid.
Aluminum cores are used in the manual production of intricately braided hollow chains, which is extremely rare. Etching of aluminum takes place with caustic soda.
Externally hollow chains look much thicker than full-weight of the same mass, but they need to be treated with extreme care. It is advisable to wear them only on the way out.
Full-weight chains... These products are knitted from solid wire without voids. Such accessories are much more durable than hollow jewelry, but their weight in gold is higher, and accordingly, their price is much higher.
There are two types of chains of such a warehouse:
- braided with a machine;
- made by hand.
Machine chains visually they look very beautiful and natural. Today, a huge number of types of weaving have been invented, which you can read about here. Suspensions, even the heaviest ones, can be easily hung on the machine chains.
A hollow gold chain means that it is not made of wire, but of small tubes.
There are also full-weight gold chains in stores machine weaving... These products are considered to be the most durable in the jewelry industry. The main types of weaving are bismarck and anchor.
Skilful Handles conducted an experiment, where they showed the tensile strength of the well-known bismarck. A weight of 16 kg was hung on a piece of jewelry without a fastener, and the chain did not break. How can you then break such beauty, you ask?
The optimum suspension weight for a chain is half, but better than a third of its weight.
So, the answer here is pretty simple. Jewelers understand that if you make the decoration very, very durable, then during sleep, the product can simply strangle a person. To prevent this from happening, one weak spot is specially left on the chain - this is the ring at the clasp carabiner. With a very strong jerk, the ring unbends and does not harm the person. This is done on purpose also from the considerations that if someone decides to rip off the chain from you in a dark alley, then this intruder at least will not break anyone's neck.
Handmade chains most expensive... They weigh more than machine tools. Accordingly, they are more expensive. But if you decide to pay money for this masterpiece of jewelry, then this is a good buy that will justify the money spent on it by the length of the socks.
Which chain is better: hollow or full-weight
Hollow chains are often brought to jewelers for repairs. They talk about the main reasons for the rupture of such jewelry:
- caught on a washcloth in a bath / bath / sauna or on a tree or branch
- the chain broke when playing with a dog or child;
- a 7 gram cross was hung on a gram chain;
- and the most "masterpiece": "she broke herself."
Remember that a hollow chain is almost impossible to repair without visible problems. Therefore, not everyone undertakes repairs.
Based on the options for unfavorable cases with hollow chains, jewelers recommend adhering to some rules if you are wearing just such a product.
In hollow chains must not:
- sleep;
- bathe;
- take a steam bath or sauna;
- go camping;
- go in for sports (yoga is also included in the list);
- it is undesirable to hang any pendants on hollow chains, except for very small jewelry;
- they cannot be used as main decorations, for wearing incense or crosses;
- chains cannot be used every day, preferably only for going out or an event.
Advantages hollow chains:
- low weight;
- minimum costs for gold;
- low cost;
- a large amount of jewelry, which visually makes the chains very expensive;
- a huge variety of types of weaving;
- for the same weight, the length of the hollow chain is much greater than the length of the classic cast;
- high quality hollow chain is made of gold of the same standard as the usual ones. Be careful when buying, a dishonest craftsman can leave an ignoble core in the hollow chain, increasing its weight and, accordingly, the price. It is best to buy such chains in jewelry stores with impeccable reputation, and in no case with hands.
- the strength of a modern hollow chain is quite high, but this fact is determined by the manufacturing technology, the type of weaving chosen and the diameter of the wire;
At large enterprises, all chains are controlled by the Quality Control Department, which ensures their high quality products.
- most often gold lightweight chains equipped with a spring lock or carabiner... They ensure the safety and durability of the product;
- another advantage is the ease of decoration when worn. Although, here, someone else - someone does not consider the weight of gold on the neck or wrist as a heavy burden, but many people like the weight of the product, emphasizing its solidity.
- the hollow chain can be worn in combination with a pendant. The only condition is that the pendant must be miniature.
The benefits of a full chain:
- heavy weight;
- high quality workmanship;
- long service life;
- these jewelry can be combined with pendants, various pendants;
- chains are suitable for daily use;
- products serve well as a basis for crosses, amulets;
The main technologies for the manufacture of hollow chains
For the manufacture of hollow chains, one of four technologies is mainly used:
- wrapping;
- coupling;
- cladding;
- system of "windows".
В wrapping on a chain knitting machine, the iron core is wrapped in a gold plate, the links are soldered using an open flame. In this way, the heaviest, but not very high-quality chains are obtained. The appearance of the chains (especially, armor and anchor weaving) is very attractive, but defects are visible, which are formed due to the fold of the metal when winding the wire on the needle.
RџSЂRё coupling a core of a certain profile is wrapped with a gold plate on a machine that allows, in the process of twisting the plate, to place inside the solder necessary for further soldering of the links. The chain is of good quality. This technology today is the most common due to the simplicity of execution.
Cladding... The two plates, made of gold and metal, adhere very firmly to each other under high temperature conditions under high pressure. Then the resulting sheet is rolled, cut into strips, which are rolled into tubes. It is important to observe geometric proportions and correct orientation when feeding the wire to the chain tying machine. In general, the entire production cycle is quite long and complex. Gold chains are characterized by high quality and excellent weight-to-length ratio
There is absolutely no etching gap in the circuits of the "window" system. The wire consists of three concentric layers: a gold core, a base metal middle layer, and the top layer is, of course, a standard standard gold alloy. For the penetration of acid in the links, windows are milled. Popularization of this method is hindered by complexity of production the original wire and an increase in the etching time.
How to visually distinguish a hollow chain when shopping in a store
To distinguish a hollow chain from a full-weight chain, you need to perform a few simple steps.
- Perform a visual inspection... The hollow chain looks more massive, openwork and wider than any other. Take a closer look at the product you like, try to evaluate by eye what beauty is made of.
- Ask the girl in the store, let her talk about the technology of making jewelry. These ladies should provide the buyer with full information about the offered jewelry accessories. If the saleswoman hesitates, it means that she really does not know anything or the chain is of poor quality.
- Search the same chains in several stores... And pay attention to their weight, full width, thickness of each link.
- Compare chain prices at different stores.
- If you buy jewelry online, then be sure to check with the seller or chat, what type of weaving was used for this decoration.
- We do not recommend buy chains of expensive precious metals from overseas countries: Egypt, India, Turkey or Tunisia. Such chains almost never correspond to the sample declared on them, since in these countries there is no mandatory stage for the passage of products through a specialized QCD inspection body (technical control department). The stigma on the products depends on the “imagination” of the master (often the declared sample is too high). The origin of the jewelry produced in these countries is not known, and the quality leaves much to be desired.
Hollow products look much more massive than solid ones, it is not without reason that the expression "blown gold" existed before.
Basic rules for the care of hollow chains
The basic maintenance rules for hollow chains are the same as for gold jewelry in general:
- they need to be removed at night;
- avoid contact with chemicals (household chemicals and cosmetics)
- store in special boxes with soft upholstery;
- clean properly.
- do not apply too much force to the chain lock, this may damage it.
About storage... It often happens that the chains get tangled. So for a hollow beauty, this is very dangerous. The problem is that when a full-weight chain is entangled, practically nothing is injured. Links are rarely deformed as they are naturally very strong.
But for the hollow chain any confusion threatens deformation of the links. The problem is that an unfilled cavity, as in any pipe, can flatten. This leads to link cracks and deformation. The chain begins to stretch gradually. You can track this phenomenon visually or using a ruler. For example, according to the tag, the length should be 40 cm, and after untangling you got 40 cm and a couple or more millimeters. Don't panic, but try to take the chain to the jeweler in advance and talk to him about what you can do.
So that you don't have these problems, hollow chains it is recommended to carefully store on separate hangers in a box... Inquire about these accessories at your leisure. It is possible that the boxes will save you from unpleasant waste of money.
Finally, let's add a few words about the benefits of hollow chains. The most important thing in these accessories is the price-quality-beauty ratio. The cost of jewelry made of precious metal directly depends on its weight, therefore it is so attractive to purchase a larger and longer chain at the price of a full-weight chain. At the same time, the mass of the precious metal and its amount will remain the same, but the product will look more massive and beautiful.
This appeal is achieved through chain design, as hollow chains are more conducive to experimenting with knitting and combining different styles. At a time of declining overall purchasing power and rising inflation, buying a hollow chain is a very profitable and beautiful purchase.
