We are often asked about the thickness of our sterling silver and 14k gold items.
Quick Answer - ours numbers are in inches: example .018 of an inch, .035 of an inch (larger). Detailed answer below.
NOT ACTUAL SIZE-image is blown up to show differences
In American Wire Gauge (AWG), the bigger (larger) the number, the smaller the size.
This standard of measuring of wire in the US is called the American Wire Gauge (AWG). The higher the gauge number, the smaller the diameter and the thinner the wire (inversely proportional). The AWG standard includes copper, aluminum and other wire materials. Typical household copper wiring is AWG number 12 or 14. Telephone wire is usually 22, 24, or 26. This is also consistent with Brown & Sharpe (B&S=AWG).
However, metals are commonly measured in thousandths of an inch. Our sterling silver items and 14k gold items are measured in inches rather than gauges.
One "mil" = 1/1000 of an inch
Historically the US has used the American Wire Gauge (AWG) system, also known as Brown & Sharpe (B&S) Gauge system which is based on the division of an inch into 1000 units (thousands of an inch). The division of the inch (a standard unit of measurement in US) is required because very small sizes need to be measured and calculated with accuracy and a base of 10 is much easier to calculate with than a base of 12. A shorthand unit is used to refer to "one one thousand of an inch" (a mouthful) and is called a "mil."
The following are the most common thicknesses used on our website.
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