Ahh,
the Million Dollar Question! People are always confused over this choice. They're confused that they even get a choice! 4 prongs or 6 prongs for their round-cut Engagement Ring?
So if one of the choices is better than the other, then why offer a choice to begin with? Good question! Why do Jewelers offer both 4 prongs and 6 prongs?
The problem is, there are good points and bad points to both 4 prongs and 6 prongs. In my eyes, they pretty much balance each other out.
Let me show you...
4 Prong Heads
When you look at a 4 prong head, the prongs grasp the outer edges of the Diamond's Girdle and gently bend over the top of the crown holding the Diamond down.
4 prongs, equally spaced apart from the top down, tends to look like a box. (see picture) They give your Round Diamond a more square look. With 4 prongs, since more of the Diamond is exposed, it lets more light come in and makes your Diamond shine.
The prongs on a 4 prong head are generally thicker and heavier than it's buddy the 6 prong. Diamonds set in 4 prongs will often look bigger and brighter. You can see more of the table and crown of the Diamond and it really makes your Diamond pop with bright light!
So why even talk about a 6 Prong Head?
6 prong heads have 6 prongs that are a little bit thinner than the 4 prong heads. That's just because there are more of them and they all have to merge into the base of the head.
6 prongs do cover up more of the Diamond. A lot more! And if you have a small Diamond, you may have a hard time seeing the Diamond through those prongs. 6 prongs block a lot of light from entering the Diamond and also make it harder to clean underneath the Diamond.
So good golly, why would anyone think about 6 prongs?
For one very obvious reason...
6 Prongs are safer than 4 Prongs!
With 6 prongs, if you break a prong, pull the prong back or snap the prong off, you'll still have 5 more prongs holding your Diamond in the mounting.
With 4 prongs, most of the time if you break your prong off, the Diamond will fall out of the mounting and it is lost! Not good! 6 prongs makes your Diamond look smaller and darker, but when viewed from above it does keep your Round Diamond looking Round. And that's good!
But the biggest reason to choose from 4 prongs or 6 is...
