Pewter or silver for a ring??

[Captain Charlotte Savvy]

Hey mates -- Long time no post, and all that *guilty grin* ... but now I come with a burning question ...

Okay. For some weeks now, I have been saving my pennies for a Jack Sparrow replica ring. I at long last have the pennies, but it's now also left me with a quandary -- silver replica, or pewter?

Does anyone know what the DIFFERENCE is?? I can't find a comparison online _any_where ... specifically, what I'm wondering is, between a pewter ring and a silver one, which one will last longer? I am willing to dish out a fair amount of money for this thing, but as a result of that, I want it to _last_ -- to be able to stand a little wear and tear. I mean, I'm not planning on wearing the thing when I go out hiking or camping or sailing or something; I will be taking good care of the piece, to be sure -- but I want this thing to last.

So, betwen pewter and silver -- which one tarnishes less, or is less likely to scrape and get bent out of shape, or just lasts longer and in the better condition? Again, I'm not (too) worried about price -- so any thoughts on the subject would be appreciated.

Thanks so much! :)

(And have a round of drinks on me, as I welcome meself back to the board ...)

[Dorian Lasseter]

Hmmm...

In me 'umble opinion...

I'd go wi' silver...

I canna say which will last longer or hold up better... I have had my share o' both rings n' pendants of both metals...

The Pewter is cheaper in cost, but tarnishes easily...

The Silver shines nicer and longer, but costs more....

So....

I have distroyed many pewter rings, yet I still own and wear several silver ones, though I may be retiring one or two soon...

[Duchess]

The difference is of course one is made of silver the other of pewter!

The silver will shine better. The pewter is more brittle and apt to break. There are very distinct reasons it is considered a "cheap" metal. It may also green your finger or discolor it in some way. For things that rest directly on body parts your best bets are gold, silver, platinum and surgical steel.

[callenish gunner]

pewter is an alloy containing high amounts of tin

[William Brand]

Silver.

[Patrick Hand]

Pewter is a good metal..... but silver is better...... If you can afford it, go with the silver.... If your cheap like me, well... heck pewter....

I had a good cheap pewter skull ring.... Easyrider (the Biker Magazine had a company that sold them..... ) Pewter is soft, so the ring will bend.... it looks nice, but Silver... well IT'S Silver..... there is a reason that silver cost more....you might want to think about it......

Ultimatly, it's your desission, but if you can afford silver, go for it.... if cash is tight, go with pewter.....

[renfairpirate]

i got one in silver on ebay 3 months ago and have worn it everyday and it still looks as good as the day i got it i give it a shine about once a month i have one of the pewter ones and after 2 weeks of tooling leather with it on it look kinda ragged

[kass]

Simply put, silver is a precious metal and pewter is a base metal. You make pots out of pewter. You make jewelry out of silver.

Now silver isn't perfect. It will scratch and it will tarnish. But a polish with a silver rag (available at jewelers or department stores where real silverware is sold) or a dip in some silver cleaner when the ring starts to look black will do the trick easily.

On the other hand, pewter is a very soft metal and will mark up rather badly and really show signs of wear.

The only metal I know of (and I don't know about them all) that doesn't tarnish is gold. This is why you see jewelry in "white gold", not silver. White gold doesn't tarnish. And it's more resistant to scratches than silver.

But my wedding ring is silver and after more than five years of constant wear, my husband's and mine have only minor scratches and no tarnish.

[Iron Bess]

Silver m'lad... go with the silver.

[Captain Charlotte Savvy]

You've all convinced me -- silver it is. I've been saving my spare doubloons for long enough that I can afford to spring for the silver ... and, while I understand what you're saying about silver still being prone to scratch and tarnish, the fact that silver still has a far better quality to it all around, and will last in much better condition for far longer ...

Yah, I'm convinced. Silver. Thanks to everybody for their input -- that was _exactly_ the sort of information I was looking for. Thank you, thank you! :)