Is the e vendor worth it....

[devientdrow]

This is now my third thread about the same darn thing.......I am upgrading my ering and after doing all types of research and getting everyones lovely opinion I had ruled out Jared and thier IGI cert stones for good, excellent financing and credit programs be damned!, and stuck with Smyth (independent B&M here in MD or e vendor) to make a long story short I had went into Smyth and my hubby and I put a .704ct, I SI2 on lay away. In my earlier thread I posted all the specs which are:
AGS Ideal 0 Round Brilliant
5.73x5.76x3.51 mm
Light Performance 0
Proportion Factors 0
Finish 0
Polish: Ideal
Symmetry: Ideal
Color Grade: I (AGS 2.5)
Clarity Grade: S12 (AGS 6) This is "eye clean" however
Carat Weight: 0.704 cts
Comments:
Flourescence: Negligible
Table: 55.7 %
Depth: 61.0%
Crown Angle: 34.2
Pavillion Angle: 40.8
Pavillion: 42.9 %
Crown: 15.0%
Girlde: Faceted 1.2% to 3.6%

I found myself not quite deliriously happy. I can to terms that I didn''t feel 100% comfortable with purchasing a diamond online w/o seeing it first. But I would be bothered by the excellent prices I would see online for bigger diamonds of possibly equal value. So then I contacted an e vendor that I found out was located in MD. I asked him if I could view a diamond at his office and he said yes. The original I was intersted in was being viewed by someone else...then I found this one:
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamond.asp?cid=131&item=451575

I talked to a few people who worked there, excellent customer service may I say, and the sent me the GIA dossier and told me that upon inspection it is indeed eyeclean. The dossier included table % and depth % and that fell into the ''ideal'' proportions. I asked if the GIA ideal was the same as AGS and they said for this one, yes it is cut the same as an AGS diamond. I asked if they could tell me more specs on it...ie pavillion angle, crown ect and they said when I came in they could give me this info as well as letting me view it under an ideal scope.

To me this diamond seems a better purchase....I was hoping for as close to a 1ct as possible and this one is definatly larger than the smyth diamond and $100 cheaper! Has anyone dealt with them before?

Also i''m upgrading so i''m going to need to head replaced in my ring...anyone have an e vendor do this for you? Would a B&M do that for a setting AND a diamond that I didn''t purchase there???

Last question....when you buy at a B&M you usually get a warranty and you go in and have your ring cleaned every 6 months and they cover it for life ect ect....I don''t plan on trading up anymore but thats also a good policy to have. I don''t think this e vendor has that? Is that giving up a lot? Will it cost me every 6 months to have my ring cleaned and checked?

Thanks!!!

 

[strmrdr]

kewl
jamesallen is a good vendor with a ton of happy clients around here.

Very thin girdle needs to be checked if its a very small area it should be ok but if its a large portion its a problem.

IS image and some numbers should allow you to nail it down.

 

[decodelighted]

Oooh I''m bad

Why don''t you just keep going into wherever you''ve been getting it cleaned now and never tell them you''ve done anything to the ring? Do they check your "papers" everytime?

If I was choosing a round stone that''s easy to judge by the numbers, I''d buy online from a reputable vendor for sure. James Allen has a good reputation from everything I''ve heard. Ask if they can replace your head & set the stone (maybe even make a pendant from your old one?)

I''d keep thinking I could have had something bigger too ... worry about the cleaning costs later ... go big now!

 

[Kaleigh]

James Allen has a very fine reputation here and will help you find a gorgeous stone. Also find a local jeweler who you are comfortable to do routine cleaning etc... Always good to have a nice relationship with someone local. Most jewelers will clean your ring for free. At least the one''s I''ve been to anyway. Did think Deco''s idea was kind a cute, haha.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

The B&M jewelry store we bought from is farther away from my house so when ever I am in the mall I usually get it cleaned. Anyone where will do it for you for free.

 

[devientdrow]

Deco
That is SOOO hilarious that you said that!!! It was the same thing I said!! Funny thing was when I got my engagement ring from Gordons they listed on the paper that I need to take with me every 6 months: .90ct Plat Engagement Ring. I have a round solitaire in the middle baugettes on each side. When a local VERY reputable B&M looked at it they told me NO WAY was my ring even total carat wieght .90. They showed me how my middle compared to others and i''m lucky if it''s even a .30.....and as nicely as she could say she baiscally pointed out that she doubted my baugettes were .30 on each side. It''s more likely my total carat wieght is .50....a .30 middle diamond and baugettes at .10 each, .20 AT THE MOST. SOOOOOOO I just said to my husband tonight "Hey! If my paper already says .90 Plat engagement ring and I replace the center stone with a .83.....even with the baugettes it would probably work!" Hahahaha hey thats what they get for being lazy!!!! The jeweler who looked at it just figured that they needed to enter a sku of some sort when selling it to us and just listed in the description line the closest possible thing. However my hubby pointed out the dead giveaway might be the new diamond in it that would be 10x better quality than anything they would carry!!!

However it''s worth a try hehehe

 

[devientdrow]

Strmrdr,
Ok so the girdle being thin at points is ok right? Just not in large portions and I can view this through the IS scope? Will it just come up as more white area? Or should I be looking for something else?

 

[Regular Guy]

Good luck with your pursuit of your diamond I purchased with Jim 1 and 1/2 years ago, and am very satisfied with the purchase. Some questions come forward, though...

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamond.asp?cid=131&item=451575

I talked to a few people who worked there, excellent customer service may I say, and the sent me the GIA dossier and told me that upon inspection it is indeed eyeclean. The dossier included table % and depth % and that fell into the ''ideal'' proportions. I asked if the GIA ideal was the same as AGS and they said for this one, yes it is cut the same as an AGS diamond. I asked if they could tell me more specs on it...ie pavillion angle, crown ect and they said when I came in they could give me this info as well as letting me view it under an ideal scope.

To me this diamond seems a better purchase....I was hoping for as close to a 1ct as possible and this one is definatly larger than the smyth diamond and $100 cheaper! Has anyone dealt with them before?

Also i''m upgrading so i''m going to need to head replaced in my ring...anyone have an e vendor do this for you? Would a B&M do that for a setting AND a diamond that I didn''t purchase there???

Last question....when you buy at a B&M you usually get a warranty and you go in and have your ring cleaned every 6 months and they cover it for life ect ect....I don''t plan on trading up anymore but thats also a good policy to have. I don''t think this e vendor has that? Is that giving up a lot? Will it cost me every 6 months to have my ring cleaned and checked?

Thanks!!!

I''m guessing that this diamond is not in house, which is why he didn''t just provide the additional crown & pavilion data up front. If this is true, although another post about SI 1s on this board provides advice from Garry on how a diamond could be viewed from a certificate, and how reasonable inferences could be made from the cert to suggest if it was eye clean, but especially with an SI2, I really think this would need to be seen first...so perhaps he spoke to someone that now holds the diamond, and asked them.

That you''ll be able to see the diamond in person is the main thing, and the Idealscope is regarded as a good instrument for helping you make purchase decisions. One caveat...an advantage with the AGS locally in hand is that it''s been evaluated with the best of optical equipment, and given the AGS0 for light performance. Jim will measure crown & pavilion angles with OGI, I learned later, and although some of this board''s best appraisers also use this, I hear mixed things about this technology''s quality, and so, if I wanted to bother to have the diamond proof checked before purchase (not sure), getting it to an appraiser away who would do that is something I''d entertain (as no one local has any of this equipment). Basic level sarin apparatus may not be significantly better than OGI, however, and I''m not certain really of who has what.

Jim has a relationship with a jeweler in Texas he works with, and he can have it sent out to them for work, I believe. I''ve heard he will allow it be sent back to himself for viewing before sending to you, which can''t hurt; you may want to determine from Jim if you and he thinks this will help. In my case, some details of craftsmanship were picked up from the appraiser after diamond and ring were put together, and these did need to be attended to. The very thin girdle is something they should take care to work with in setting it, supposedly, and this can be checked for.

Developing, separately, a relationship with a nearby jeweler for care is an issue I''ve not resolved. I''ve last brought in earrings to be made into clip earrings, and had the ring checked simultaneously, as a way of feeling OK about feeling good about the work. Although my friends here are right...jewelers readily provide assistance at no charge, still, you are asking for service, and it would be nice to feel that you have a basis for a relationship.

Best of wishes. It''s not easy to say either shop locally, or get larger. Each will have it''s advantages, and the trade off may be just like that.

 

[AndyRosse]

Date: 12/8/2005 11:56:38 PM
Author: devientdrow
Strmrdr,
Ok so the girdle being thin at points is ok right? Just not in large portions and I can view this through the IS scope? Will it just come up as more white area? Or should I be looking for something else?

If the very thin girdle is just in a small area, then it should be okay. But if a larger portion of the girdle is very thin, then you increase your risk of chipping the girdle during the diamond''s setting and normal wear.

Talk to James Allen about it. They will give your their honest opinion.

 

[AndyRosse]

Oh, and as for cleaning and checking your ring, I haven''t ever been into a jewelry store that charges for that! Actually, I have been in many stores recently looking for a wedding band, and three of them have come right out and said that I am welcome anytime to bring in my rings to have them cleaned and checked. And of course, I quickly told them that I hadn''t purchased the ring from them. All of them quickly said it doesn''t matter in the slightest.

So please, don''t worry about about that when you are making your decision!