Solid vs Hollow Cuban Link Chains: Weight, Price and Dents

Both kinds are real gold. The difference is what is inside each link. A solid Cuban is made from solid gold wire, so every link is gold all the way through. A hollow Cuban is made from gold tubing, so each link is a shell of gold with air inside.

That one difference changes everything else. Hollow gives you a wide, bold chain at a price and weight that solid can only match at a much narrower width. Solid gives you a chain that survives years of daily wear, keeps its shape, and holds more gold value.

If you wear a chain every day, sleep in it, or train in it, buy solid. If you want a wide look for occasional wear and a lower price, hollow is a fair choice as long as you know what you are buying.

A Cuban link chain is a curb chain made of oval links that are twisted so they lie flat and interlock tightly. In a solid chain, each link is cut from round or flattened solid wire, then shaped, linked, soldered closed and polished. The surface is often diamond-cut, meaning small flat facets are cut into the top of the links to add flash.

In a hollow chain, the maker starts with gold tubing, often built by wrapping thin gold around a core that is later removed. The tube is then formed into links the same way. From the outside, the link shape, width and finish can look identical to solid. The wall of the tube can be quite thin, which is where the weight and price savings come from.

There is also a middle option some makers sell, often called semi-solid or "lite." These use thicker walls or partly filled links. Ask for the weight in grams, because the label alone does not tell you how much gold you are getting.

Weight is where the difference shows up most clearly. These figures are published by one New York retailer, Avianne, for its own 14K chains. They are examples, not universal numbers: each maker builds links differently, and other sellers publish lower weights for the same width.

Two comparisons stand out: a hollow 12 mm chain at 18 inches is listed lighter than a solid 8 mm chain at the same length, and a hollow 15 mm chain lands close to a solid 9 mm. In other words, hollow lets you wear a chain several millimeters wider for about the same gold.

For a full size-by-size breakdown, see the Cuban link weight chart and the Cuban link width guide.

Gold chains are priced mostly by weight, so hollow chains cost far less per millimeter of width. You can see it in our own 10K line:

The 5 mm Miami Cuban costs about the same as the 8.5 mm hollow chain, even though it is 3.5 mm narrower. That is the solid-versus-hollow trade in one line: the same money buys either a narrower chain with more gold in every link or a wider chain with less.

Each of these chains is listed at one price across its lengths, from 16 to 26 inches depending on the style, so pick the length that fits rather than the one that seems cheaper. Use the Cuban link chain buying guide to settle width and length.

This is the real cost of hollow. A thin tube gives way under pressure that a solid link ignores:

• Catching the chain in a car door or a gym bar.
• Sleeping on it, which presses links against each other.
• A child or pet grabbing and twisting it.
• Dropping it on tile, clasp first.

Once a hollow link is crushed, a bench jeweler can sometimes push it partly back out, but the tube wall often creases or cracks, and the fix shows. A kinked hollow chain may not lie flat again. Many jewelers decline to work on badly dented hollow chains because heat from soldering can collapse the thin wall.

Solid links can be bent back, soldered and re-polished. A broken solid link can usually be replaced so the repair is hard to spot. That is why solid chains are the ones people pass down.

1. Weigh it. Compare the grams against published solid weights for the same width and length. A chain far lighter than expected is probably hollow.
2. Look at the link ends and inside edges. Some hollow chains show a fine seam where the tube was closed, or a tiny hole at the link ends.
3. Feel how it drapes. Solid Cubans settle and lie flat. Hollow ones feel springy and can flip on the chest.
4. Check the clasp end. Hollow chains often have a light, thin box clasp compared with their width.
5. Read the paperwork. An honest listing says "hollow" in the title, the way our hollow Cubans do.

Never squeeze a link to test it. That is how hollow chains get dented. If you are unsure whether the chain is real gold at all, start with how to tell if gold is real.

Weight scales almost straight with length. Every extra 2 inches adds about one-eighth of the weight of a 16 inch chain. That matters twice as much for solid chains because each inch carries more gold. Using Avianne's published solid 8 mm figures as the example, the same chain is listed at about 96.8 g at 18 inches and about 172 g at 32 inches.

On a solid chain, going from 20 to 24 inches can add the weight of a small ring's worth of gold or more. On a hollow chain, the same step adds very little weight, which is one reason hollow chains are popular in long lengths.

A pendant pulls on a chain at two points: the bail and the clasp. A solid Cuban handles a heavy iced pendant without trouble. A hollow Cuban carrying a heavy pendant has a problem: the bail rubs the same few links all day, and thin tube walls wear through or dent at that spot.

• Light pendant (a small charm or initial): either construction works.
• Medium pendant: solid, or a hollow chain worn only now and then.
• Heavy iced pendant: solid chain, or a Franco, which is built to carry weight. Compare in Cuban vs Franco chain.

If you go hollow, a few habits keep it looking right for years:

1. Take it off to sleep, shower, work out and swim.
2. Store it flat or hanging, never balled up under other jewelry.
3. Put it on and take it off by the clasp, not by pulling the links.
4. Keep it away from kids who like to grab and twist.
5. Clean it with warm water and mild soap, then dry it fully, since moisture trapped inside tubes can leave marks at the seams.

Gold buyers pay by weight and karat, not by width or look. A hollow chain that cost less also returns less, roughly in proportion to its lower gram weight. A dented hollow chain may only be bought as scrap. A solid chain of the same width holds far more gold, so far more value. If resale matters to you, compare chains by grams of gold per dollar, not by width per dollar.

Browse all Cuban link chains, the gold Cuban link lineup, and diamond Cuban link chains. Want a solid Cuban in a width or length we do not list? We quote the exact price before anything is made through custom jewelry.