Rant: That old car mechanic in Tulsa set me straight on channel length

I used to set my engagement ring prongs way too deep, thinking it looked cleaner. Then a jeweler named Frank in Tulsa called me out and said 'you're hiding the stone, not protecting it.' He showed me a 0.5mm difference makes the sparkle pop instead of drowning it... now I measure every single channel with a caliper before filing. Has anyone else had a pro change their whole approach with one sentence?

2 comments

2 Comments

phoenix_brown857d ago

Wait, did Frank also mention anything about how the light hits those angled facets? Because I had this one watchmaker, old dude in a dusty shop, who told me my crown was too tight and it was killing the movement's natural rhythm. He just said "you're choking it, not protecting it" and I swear I loosened up by half a turn and the thing ran like new for ten years. Sometimes it's those tiny mechanical margins that pros just feel in their hands, you know?

linda_reed7d ago

you're hiding the stone, not protecting it" - that one line just changed everything for me too.