Last October Scott Kay introduced his new line of SK-Cobalt with much fanfare comparing the virtues of his BioBlu27 alloy to popular Tungsten Carbide. The assertion made was that Tungsten-Carbide will fracture on hard impact and that Carpenter Technologies BioBlu27, a Cobalt/Chrome alloy, would likely last a lifetime. Both are true and accurate statements. In fact Cobalt / Chrome alloys in the ASTM class of F75 like BioBlu27 have been used for many years by the medical industry and by other jewelry designers but, with the clear understanding that they are very difficult to cut or drill with conventional tools.

On hearing about the introduction of SK-Cobalt, I made what I would consider now a “knee jerk” reaction to the use of a Cobalt Chrome alloy for bridal goods without adequate means to remove a ring in an emergency. The blog post garnered quite a bit of attention including accusations of bias and ulterior motives and with of the comments from Mr. Dan Scott the Chief Marketing Officer at Scott Kay. Mr. Scott assured me that a tool was being developed and that my concerns would be addressed. Thus to avoid potential damage to Scott Kay’s reputation, I took an unprecedented action to remove the blog post pending a solution.

Today, I am happy to say that I will be eating crow for dinner as Scott Kay has indeed demonstrated a rather simple and innovative method for removing a BioBlu27 ring. The device is an adaptation of existing inexpensive tools available from most jewelry supply and hardware stores. As well the entire process seems relatively quick and easy. I am truly happy for Scott Kay BioBlu27 fans and wish for them great success. I should also point out that this new tool will open up an acceptance of traditional F75 alloys joining the growing group of alternative jewelry metals. Kudos to Scott Kay and his staff for sharing with us this new development.

JCK