Can a ring be stretched or shrunk?
In some cases it may actually be safer to stretch or shrink a ring rather than cutting and soldering to change its size. Tools are available that will allow the jeweler to enlarge the ring size by tapping with a special hammer or literally stretching the metal on a special cylinder designed for the process. In most cases this process thins the metal so minutely that the difference in thickness is hardly noticeable, and its strength is not decreased. Some rings such as plain wedding bands can be shrunk by using special equipment to compress the metal. Generally, stretching or shrinking rings are processes reserved for small changes in size.
