Deciding between 2 FIC Rounds

[srgraves]

Hi Everyone,

I just wanted to start by saying thankyou for the wealth of knowledge shared here. Pricescope forums have been the best resource in my search for a diamond. I'm trying to decide between 2 FIC diamonds.

Diamond #1:
Price: $6,810
Carat weight: 1.01
Cut: Ideal
Color: G
Clarity: VS2
Depth %: 62.1%
Table %: 54%
Crown Angle: 36.5
Pavillion Angle: 40.5
Symmetry: Ideal
Polish: Ideal
Girdle: Thin
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.41x6.47x4.00 mm
HCA Scores: 1.8 - Excellent within FIC range
Light Return: Excellent
Fire: Excellent
Scintillation: Very Good
Spread or diameter for weight: Very Good


Diamond #2
Price: $6,644.00
Carat weight: 1.04
Cut: Ideal
Color: G
Clarity: VS2
Depth %: 61.8%
Table %: 55.2%
Crown Angle: 36.0
Pavillion Angle: 40.6
Symmetry: Ideal
Polish: Ideal
Girdle: Thin to medium
Culet: None
Fluorescence: Negligible
Measurements: 6.53x6.50x4.02 mm
HCA Scores: 1.7 - Excellent within FIC range
Light: Return Excellent
Fire: Excellent
Scintillation: Very Good
Spread or diameter for weight: Very Good

Any comments or thoughts you have would be greatly appreciated (or any other FIC's that are available). I found these diamonds on one of the big databases and although FIC's are rare they seem a little expensive for what they are.

Thanks again,
Scott

 

[strmrdr]

Whats the angles on the second?

The first has kicken angles for a fic.
Do you have idealscope images so we can tell the optical symmetry?

 

[srgraves]

Crown and Pavillion Angles added. Thanks!

 

[strmrdr]

hmmm both have good angle combos.
The second has a little better spread and is cheaper.
With the limited info available id go with #2

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

Date: 2/13/2006 6:11:32 PM
Author: strmrdr
hmmm both have good angle combos.
The second has a little better spread and is cheaper.
With the limited info available id go with #2

I second the second
an ideal-scope opinion would be nice though

 

[Kaleigh]

I agree #2 would be my choice!!

 

[Dancing Fire]

wish i could see the stones.

 

[srgraves]

Thanks for the input from everyone so far. The first 2 FIC's were from Blue Nile (no images) but I found a 3rd one with even better scores on the HCA: http://www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=8881095 plugging that info into GIA's Report Check: http://reportcheck.gia.edu/ GIA# 14779046 and get a crown of 36 and pavillion of 40.4

The Cavity near or on the girldle with 2 feathers radiating outward makes me real nervous. Should I pass this one up? All comments are appreciated. Thanks!!!

HCA .8 FIC
Light: Return Excellent
Fire: Excellent
Scintillation: Excellent
Spread or diameter for weight: Very Good


Date of Issue: December 06, 2005
Round Brilliant
Measurements: 6.39 - 6.41 x 3.97 mm
Carat Weight: 1.00
Color Grade: G
Clarity Grade: VS2


Proportions:
Depth: 62.0 %
Table: 56 %
Girdle: Thin to Slightly Thick, Faceted
Culet: None
Finish:
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Fluorescence: None
Additional Information
Crown Angle: 36°
Crown Height: 16 %
Pavilion Angle: 40.4°
Pavilion Depth: 42.5 %
Star length: 55 %
Lower Half: 85 %
Cut Grade: Very Good
Comments: NONE

 

[valeria101]

It looks like you can't go wrong between these two!

It has been a while since the last FIC was mentioned around here. It was about time.

Good for you

Don't know what to say about the inclusions on the last: the descriptions sounds terrible, but this being VS2... all that history of cavities and feathers should be about some very, very small things. Is the stone particularly attractive in some other way?

About the price on the fist two - at least the H&A G/VS2 are slightly more expensive. So if these come up to par, they don't seem to be relatively high priced.

Why no SI1 on the list?

 

[strmrdr]

I like the sound of the dcd one.
They can bring it in and get IS images and pictures for you.
the inclusions are vs2 so they are unlikley to be a poblem.
dcd could tell for sure by bringing it in.

Another vendor maybe could get the blue nile diamonds in to check out for you if blue nile doesnt own them and most they dont.

 

[Regular Guy]

Scott,

Looks like you''ve found some nice options; I only stumbled onto an FIC, and from DCD, too.

Do you have any strategies you''d like to share for having found these?

 

[Dancing Fire]

i would love to check them with an ideal scope.

 

[srgraves]

Hi Regular Guy,

My Strategy:
· Search PS (Cut Quality Search hasn’t yielded anything) and the larger databases
· Don’t be afraid to look at the 2006 GIA’s very good and good cut diamonds, some of them get great scores in the
HCA. The same is true of some premium cuts in databases.
· Stick to AGS and GIA certificates where crown and pavilion angles are easier to get
· Sort the data by table (anything from 50 – 56) and look for diameters in the high 6.30mm’s low 6.40mm’s (1ct
diamonds, size is at the bottom of my 4C’s list, I’ll be using a thin 2.4mm band which should visually offset any
diameter issues)
· Toss out anything with a thick girdle, or polish and symmetry below good
· For diamonds with the angles provided I only look at diamonds with crown angles greater than 35 (higher better) and
pavilion 40.6 or lower
· For other candidates I use GIA’s Report Check: http://reportcheck.gia.edu/ for pre 2006 – diamonds to get angles
(Does anyone know the beginning date for when GIA started recording crown and pavilion angles so that I can find
them in Report Check?)
· After getting the angles I plug everything into HCA and keep anything lower than 2.0 and in the FIC range.

I’m looking for an HCA FIC 1ct diamond with highest color (E-G) lowest clarity I can get away with (VS2 or preferably SI1) with medium blue florescence. I want as many prismatic sparkles as I can find, white light mirror reflections are secondary. I feel good that I know what I want and fortunately I’m not in a rush to buy so I can be patient and find it. I’m looking to spend less than $6,500.00

Once again thanks everyone for your input.

Good luck!
Scott

 

[bookworm21]

What''s an FIC? I went on the Blue Nile website and looked at all the cuts and I have no idea what it is. Please excuse my ignorance and curiosity.

 

[Shay37]

Date: 2/16/2006 1:01:39 AM
Author: Cinderella
What''s an FIC? I went on the Blue Nile website and looked at all the cuts and I have no idea what it is. Please excuse my ignorance and curiosity.

Acronym for Fiery Ideal Cut

shay

 

[JZMINBNEE]

Hello Scott,
I am also a newbie and have been following your search and reading up on the FICs in past threads. It takes alot for me to process all of the information that I have been reading ( hours a day of research) I am impressed with the clarity with which you presented your search criteria and methods. You have distilled Hours of discussion to an elegantly consise process. Please continue to share. I believe that the FICs are outstanding and hope to own one soon myself. I am an artistic type/ romantic and struggle with the science and numbers stuff. But I appreciate some of the finer distinctions of beauty.and color.I am cheerleading for you to find the magnificent stone you desire. Please continue to share. I greatly appreciate it and I expect others do to.
Thank you
Joni

 

[Regular Guy]

Scott,

I agree with Joni, you''ve obviously come up with a protocol, involving ingenuity and elbow grease to make discoveries that up to now have reportedly only been accidental, clearly made possible largely by GIA''s new presentation of data. Although the search by cut db used to offer greater promise of help, although they''ve now disallowed sorting on crown & pavilion angles (why?), that''s never helped when I''ve tried, and although the characteristics of FICs have been I think unusual enough, at least up to now, that have kept them off our vendor''s shelves as "ready to have" goods, the availability of cert data on at least many vendor''s web sites, does l see let you do this, and I''m delighted by your success.

 

[srgraves]

Thanks for the compliments everyone. I guess it should be an even bigger compliment that 2 out of the 3 FIC''s I found yesterday are now gone (enjoy them lurkers !!! In the future I''ll be disguising my potential FIC''s or putting them on hold first. No hard feelings, my ideal diamond is still out there.

Scott

 

[JZMINBNEE]

MAN!

Scott,
THAT IS A BUMMER! I hope you find the right and PERFECT one for you at a great price SOON.
I guess dont "advertise" your stone till its on hold.
Best of luck hunting!
Joni

 

[srgraves]

Hey Everyone,

I found another FIC that I have on hold and I wanted to get your opinion on it:

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00439390&keyword_search_value=LD00439390

I would be greatful if someone could plug this into Diamond Calculator and post the image. Although it is a little deep I think it should still be quite top heavy.

Thanks again!!!
Scott

AGS Ideal 0
Carat weight: 1.01
Cut: Ideal
Color: F
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 62.3%
Table %: 54.5%
Crown: 35.7
Pavillion: 40.5
Symmetry: Ideal
Polish: Ideal
Girdle: Thin to medium
Culet: None
Fluorescence: Negligible
Measurements: 6.46x6.41x4.01 mm

HCA Total Visual Performance 0.8 - Excellent
within FIC range

Factor Grade
Light Return Excellent
Fire Excellent
Scintillation Excellent
Spread Very Good

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

That will be a great looking stone

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 3/8/2006 7:23:39 PM
Author: Garry H (Cut Nut)
That will be a great looking stone

Garry
does FIC usually come with a 62+% deep b/c of the high crown?

 

[Stephan]

Do someone agree with me to say that a FIC only has more fire than a BIC and a TIC under low lighting?
I saw a lot of BIC's that had incredible fire under stronger, direct lighting.
And then again, we should always consider the other facets.
In my diamond buying experience, I think I can now say that I prefer "flatter" upper girdles.
- My ACA was a new line, I didn't hesitate at all when I saw it next to the others and I didn't know it was a new line.
- My little 0.64 that I never will sell also has that kind of girdle.
- The 1.26 that I'm buying right now at Wink also has a slightly lower upper girdle angle (I saw it next to the 1.29, and the difference is obvious).
I should perhaps tell you that I only use one eye, the other is blind.
That is perhaps why this strange taste.
If you buy a FIC, remember that you often loose some spread, maybe you even loose scintillation. If the fire you are looking for is "fire under halogene", you should be happy with a TIC, and why not a BIC...

 

[Garry H (Cut Nut)]

Date: 3/8/2006 7:51:18 PM
Author: Dancing Fire

Date: 3/8/2006 7:23:39 PM
Author: Garry H (Cut Nut)
That will be a great looking stone

Garry
does FIC usually come with a 62+% deep b/c of the high crown?

Yes DF
Queens Mum - the loss in spread is made up by some extra height.
Also with 1 eye you will find a larger number of scintillation / sparkles with the steep crown smaller table

 

[valeria101]

Date: 3/8/2006 3:41:42 PM
Author: srgraves


I found another FIC that I have on hold and I wanted to get your opinion on it:

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00439390&keyword_search_value=LD00439390

I would be greatful if someone could plug this into Diamond Calculator and post the image.

N'ah... it would be a model vaguely related to your diamond - nothing more. Cute, but no more info than you alreday have.

Stephan is right that all diamonds show dispersion in some lighting. The fiery cut ones more so everywhere. IMO, there is quite a difference between the extremes of fire-ness and firelessness (FIC and BIC) possible within the HCA ideal range.

As said, DC is useless here.

But the darn thing sure is fun!


Btw. the last is the winner - IMO.

 

[tarssarb]

Date: 3/8/2006 3:41:42 PM
Author: srgraves
Hey Everyone,

I found another FIC that I have on hold and I wanted to get your opinion on it:

http://www.bluenile.com/diamonds_details.asp?pid=LD00439390&keyword_search_value=LD00439390

I would be greatful if someone could plug this into Diamond Calculator and post the image. Although it is a little deep I think it should still be quite top heavy.

Thanks again!!!
Scott

AGS Ideal 0
Carat weight: 1.01
Cut: Ideal
Color: F
Clarity: SI1
Depth %: 62.3%
Table %: 54.5%
Crown: 35.7
Pavillion: 40.5
Symmetry: Ideal
Polish: Ideal
Girdle: Thin to medium
Culet: None
Fluorescence: Negligible
Measurements: 6.46x6.41x4.01 mm

HCA Total Visual Performance 0.8 - Excellent
within FIC range

Factor Grade
Light Return Excellent
Fire Excellent
Scintillation Excellent
Spread Very Good

Wow, I am impressed that you found FICs with such ease... have you seen one in person yet? I was making a fairly large effort to see a FIC in person but had to give up. The cut information is too scarce and most jewelers don''t know what you are talking about anyway. I didn''t think about digging deeper into the bluenile site... the pricescope cut search had no hits and same for GOG, so I figured it would be a small miracle to find a FIC.

Can anyone post some pictures of FIC and TIC in candlelight?