Hard Pure Gold
Pure gold, or 24k gold, has been a staple within Asian jewelry culture for generations. With its rich yellow color and bright luster, pieces made out of pure gold have an unmistakable charm.
That being said, pure gold is malleable and soft. What this means is that 24k jewelry pieces generally must be worn with care; the bumps, nicks, and movement of everyday life can scratch or damage them.
This is the main reason why gold is alloyed with other metals in jewelry, as mixing it with other stronger metals helps increase the piece’s durability.
For years, this left buyers with a choice: to accept the softness of pure gold and wear it mindfully or even only on special occasions, or take a step down in purity and give up the hallmark warmth and luster in exchange for durability.
Today, that long compromise is being redefined. Developed in the early 2020s, Hard Pure Gold gives a new way forward for pure gold jewelry pieces.
With Hard Pure Gold, it is now possible to enjoy the richness and purity of 24k gold in a jewelry piece, while also benefiting from the strength and resilience that make it far more practical for everyday wear.
What is Hard Pure Gold?
Hard Pure Gold is gold with the purity of 24k that has been engineered to be significantly harder and more resilient than classic 24k gold.
There is no visible difference between a piece made in Hard Pure Gold and one made in standard pure gold – the colour is just as deep, and the luster is just as bright.
The difference lies in its durability and hardness. It can be over twice as hard as standard 24k gold. w
That added hardness is what makes it so much more practical for wear.
And because it holds its shape and resists wear so much better, it also opens the door to more intricate styles and designs that simply wouldn’t hold up in standard pure gold.
How is it possible?
With this in mind, you may be wondering – how is its strength increased, if it’s not alloyed? It all comes down to how the gold is processed.
Instead of mixing the pure gold with large amounts of other metals to strengthen it, the way a traditional alloy does, Hard Pure Gold is strengthened at the microscopic structural level through how the gold is refined, worked, and treated.By working the metal at this microscopic level, manufacturers are able to change the internal structure of the gold without changing what it actually is.
24k gold is naturally soft because of the way its atoms are arranged — they slide against each other easily under pressure, which is what makes the metal so malleable.
Hard Pure Gold disrupts that by refining the grain structure of the metal down to an extremely small scale.
It’s like the difference between coarse gravel you see in parking lots, versus tightly packed sand you see at the beach. The finer and more compressed the structure, the harder and more resistant the material becomes.
These properties are the result of technological innovations in recent years. There are different methods that manufacturers use, but they all follow the same goal to compress and refine the grain structure of pure gold and lock it in with heat. Some manufacturers may also treat the surface of the metal to add an additional dimension of protection. In these cases, trace amounts of strengthening agents may be used.
With all this said and done, the difference in durability between Hard Pure Gold and classic 24k gold is measurable.
Standard 24k gold typically has a Vickers hardness rating of around 25 to 30 HV. Hard Pure Gold, on the other hand, has a minimum rating of 60, but oftentimes can reach a rating of 80 to 120 HV. This can translate into a hardness 2 to 3 times that of traditional 24k gold.
Conclusion
If you love the look of 24k gold, but need something that’s more durable, Hard Pure Gold may be the right choice for you.
As a fairly new innovation, Hard Pure Gold pieces do come at an increased price point compared to traditional 24k pieces, but in return, you’re getting the same investment into pure gold, but in a more secure form. This makes Hard Pure Gold a great option for heirloom pieces, which is what 24k gold pieces are often sought after for.
Serving San Diego since 1981, we’re the city’s premier destination for gold jewelry pieces. We take pride in world-class service and a genuine commitment to jewelry excellence.
As specialists in 24k gold jewelry, we’re proud to offer one of San Diego’s largest collections of pure gold pieces— and we’re excited to offer a collection of Hard Pure Gold pieces as the latest chapter of this tradition.
We invite you to stop by our showroom and experience the world-class service and expertise that San Diego has come to know us for.