Black color plain band ring suggestions?

We were really broke when I proposed to my wife, and neither of us follow typical social conventions anyhow, so we never even considered an engagement ring.

Sometime in the following year, and before our wedding, she found some hematite rings in a gift shop, and has been wearing one for the subsequent 26 years. 

I say wearing one, because they are brittle, and periodically will break. They may last for weeks, or years, but they all break eventually.

We bought a few on eBay and had some in reserve, but she's down to the last one, and it's too large and doesn't fit right.

We haven't been able to find replacements this time, and she suggested we consider something more durable. She likes the look of the plain black band, so something in black or something like a dark graphite color would work.

Any suggestions? Her birthday and our 25th anniversary are a few months away, and I would like to have something for her.

What won't work is any sort of stone (she's not interested, wouldn't wear it), or titanium (I don't consider titanium rings safe).

Edit, forgot the photo of the current one:

Carbon Fiber?

Mine:

It's pretty durable. I've only had it touched up once. 

Mr_Asa said:

Carbon Fiber?

Hadn't thought of that. Will have to investigate.

ShawnG said:

Mine:

It's pretty durable. I've only had it touched up once. 

Cool, but won't get the reaction I'm going for. :-o

Silicone? They're super cheap, flexible, lightweight, durable and they're safer if your your wife spends a lot of time around rotating machines (maybe a long shot, but it's still a feature). You can find them in different thicknesses, some are  flat while others are more rounded, and some even have designs molded into them.

My tungsten one is a nice dark gray, and they are pretty inexpensive. Unlike the titanium if you get enough of a pinch to deform it instead of squashing your finger it will probably shatter. 

Second that.  My original gold band got scratched and nicked to death so had it turned into a ring for my wife; the inexpensive tungsten carbide band that replaced it has been near indestructible. 

Another vote for tungsten I've had my second one for 7 years. Most places offer a lifetime warranty on it. The black has worn off mine turning it mostly gray but I can hve it replaced free again if I want

Lots of cool options in tungsten.

If you mess around with cars, go for something nonconductive.  If you're a machinist, get the tattoo.

I have a tungsten band, but only wear it for special occasions. My day to day ring is silicone since I spend so much time working on stuff. 

Both can be found in the style you're looking for fairly inexpensively, and will last forever. 

What's wrong with a titanium ring?

sterling will tarnish to black rather nicely.

In reply to Floating Doc :

You're kidding me.

My wife still has the original Hematite ring from 9 years ago. I've gone through 5 or 6 at least.

I get mine here:https://www.amazon.com/L-M-Treasures-Hematite-Rings/dp/B001BZHRR2/ref=pd_sbs_201_3/144-0085625-1685335?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B001BZHRR2&pd_rd_r=99370b7d-4a63-425e-80f1-b59794826250&pd_rd_w=caaI0&pd_rd_wg=7rKBV&pf_rd_p=7cd8f929-4345-4bf2-a554-7d7588b3dd5f&pf_rd_r=X9QP5WHGH9JGDM1YM1GA&psc=1&refRID=X9QP5WHGH9JGDM1YM1GA

We talk about getting something else, but never seem to go any farther than that. I like the tattoo idea. She wouldn't do that though.

I love the silicone rings, easy and cheap on amazon. My original ring was just a standard brushed stainless band, also from amazon. 

Thing is, I always take my ring off when working on the cars or house, so for our anniversary I went the ShawnG route and had a simple dotted line inked. My reasoning was, I'm doing this once... if this doesn't work out, she gets to keep the finger.

In reply to STM317 :

Silicone rings are great if you are working with electrical or places where your fingers can get crushed, but if you are working with rotating machinery they still have the ability to pull your hand and arm into the machine.

Tensile strength of silicone is high enough that degloving is a possibility, and I doubt they go through and rate the various ring thicknesses and designs for safety.

Had a guy at work get his finger degloved.  I dont recommend being around when it happens.

Try cutting a tungsten or titanium ring off the finger.

Emergencies can happen.

Tungsten should shatter if it gets crushed, yeah?

In reply to Mr_Asa :

There's still a soft, squishy finger under it.

I wouldn't want to try -crushing- a ring off of a finger.

If you get a broken, mangled, burnt, etc finger, you want a soft metal that can be cut off.

Never mind me being a mechanic, I caught the palm side of my ring on a door striker plate once while walking and I thought I had nearly yanked it off. 

Less than 1 mm of deformation can break a tungsten ring, it acts more like ceramic than metal.  A c-clamp or vice grip will do it without injuring the finger.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T8G98lJeEik&t=45s

In reply to Shadeux :

The problem is the size. 5 mm isn't common. 5.5 might work, but it's rare to find them below 6 mm.

The link is appreciated, but I'd be surprised if any of them fit.

I wear a silicone ring most of the time (either grey or black). Got a two pack at Wally World for a few bucks in the sporting goods section. Do not get them from Target as the same thing is almost $20 more for one ring. My original tungsten black ring wedding ring is from Amazon and I wear it for special occasions.

I hated tungsten rings, they weigh a lot more than anything else of it's like.

To most this probably isn't a problem, but I never wear rings and I play guitar. The one I had was a couple ounces and it was weird playing guitar with it

I liked my tungsten ring, but of course 1 drop on tile and a chunk of it disappeared. I still have it though. 
 

now i have my stainless cheap band. Its scratched and its been through some real crap, but its still good. Kinda symbolic of my relationship. 
 

ive always heard about the titanium rings and how they will rip your finger off, but i gotta figure about any metal ring is going to win against flesh in a tug-of-war.