Is this diamond a dud?

[Nexxo]

Hi Experts,

I'm in the process of looking for a diamond, where I just came across this one in my price range. As far as I can tell it has excellent cut and angles (scores a 0.9 on the HCA). My only concern is the feather clarity characteristic, which is causing it to get a SI2 clarity grade.

Here is the GIA report: http://www.gia.edu/cs/Satellite?pagename=GST%2FDispatcher&childpagename=GIA%2FPage%2FReportCheck&c=Page&cid=1355954554547&reportno=2208668597



I believe the feather is in the top right area, around 1 O'clock. Is this going to cause the diamond to be a dud?

I don't have any other images of the diamond.

Thanks for any feedback.

Cheers,

Nexxo

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I personally would not buy an SI2 diamond with the primary inclusion being a feather (crack). If I were you, I'd look at H SI1 diamonds instead. However, the only way to know if that diamond has any danger from a feather is to have an appraiser look at it for you. It might be trouble and expensive, but you could order, send to reputable appraiser, then send back if the feather could cause the stone to chip when hit against something, etc.

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Because it is a dossier report there is no stone plot to understand the size or location of the feather. But the report would indicate that it is significant given the Si2 grade and no mention of other clarity feathers.

I suspect that the still image is unintentionally misleading as to the prominence of the feature. Feathers can almost dissappear when viewed from certain angles and then be very visible from others. A video could help you understand the stone better.

 

[gr8leo87]

A pavillion view of the stone will be more helpful. Or a side view. The picture is hiding the actual relief of the feather. At si2 a feather is supposed to be much worse than it appears in that image. It is probably a larger feather starting at just below girdle and extending to some part of the pavilion. Do remember that every feather breaches the surface and hence its plotted as a feather.

 

[Rockdiamond]

A pavillion view of the stone will be more helpful. Or a side view. The picture is hiding the actual relief of the feather. At si2 a feather is supposed to be much worse than it appears in that image. It is probably a larger feather starting at just below girdle and extending to some part of the pavilion. Do remember that every feather breaches the surface and hence its plotted as a feather.

There's actually conflicting statements published by GIA on that aspect.
In real life, many imperfections graded as feathers do not reach the surface. For this reason thinking of them as "cracks" is misleading. I've yet to hear of a case of a round diamond "cracking" due to a feather graded SI2 by GIA.
Also, an SI2 sized feather can be nearly invisible, even with a loupe- or a magnified image.
AS Bryan mentioned, some feathers can disappear unless viewed from exactly the right angle.
I've seen SI2's that required a lot of hard looking under a loupe to find the feather.
Nexxo- you might be right about placement in the pic.
Mind you I am not recommending or dissuading you from that diamond- vendors are not allowed to do so.
But in general, well placed feathers can be "desirable" imperfections as they can be less visible than some other types of clarity characteristics, but of course it's case by case.

 

[gr8leo87]

A pavillion view of the stone will be more helpful. Or a side view. The picture is hiding the actual relief of the feather. At si2 a feather is supposed to be much worse than it appears in that image. It is probably a larger feather starting at just below girdle and extending to some part of the pavilion. Do remember that every feather breaches the surface and hence its plotted as a feather.

There's actually conflicting statements published by GIA on that aspect.
In real life, many imperfections graded as feathers do not reach the surface. For this reason thinking of them as "cracks" is misleading. I've yet to hear of a case of a round diamond "cracking" due to a feather graded SI2 by GIA.
Also, an SI2 sized feather can be nearly invisible, even with a loupe- or a magnified image.
AS Bryan mentioned, some feathers can disappear unless viewed from exactly the right angle.
I've seen SI2's that required a lot of hard looking under a loupe to find the feather.
Nexxo- you might be right about placement in the pic.
Mind you I am not recommending or dissuading you from that diamond- vendors are not allowed to do so.
But in general, well placed feathers can be "desirable" imperfections as they can be less visible than some other types of clarity characteristics, but of course it's case by case.

I agree with you. I haven't yet come across a diamond that cracked 'because' of the feather. True about the angles. Tilting the diamond while viewing through the loupe is a good way of actually gauging the relief of a feather. I have seen feathers at a supposed SI grade totally invisible from face up and only visible from the pavillion view. If a feather is parallel to the angle of the pavilion and sits close to the pavillion it could be difficult to view and this is just one of the many possibilities. That's why every diamond is so unique.

 

[Nexxo]

Thanks everyone for your input. I agree it probably is too risky to purchase the diamond without getting a full view of the diamond to see how or if the feather becomes visible.

I contacted the seller asking if there was any more images of documents on the diamond. He told me that he had a document that he wasn't able to physically share, but in that document it detailed that the feather was completely inside the diamond and did not break the surface. It also indicated that the feather was only seen from looking below.

This sounds a bit suss to me.... do sellers have access to this extra information? Or has he just made this up?

Cheers

 

[Texas Leaguer]

Thanks everyone for your input. I agree it probably is too risky to purchase the diamond without getting a full view of the diamond to see how or if the feather becomes visible.

I contacted the seller asking if there was any more images of documents on the diamond. He told me that he had a document that he wasn't able to physically share, but in that document it detailed that the feather was completely inside the diamond and did not break the surface. It also indicated that the feather was only seen from looking below.

This sounds a bit suss to me.... do sellers have access to this extra information? Or has he just made this up?

Cheers

There's always uncertainty involved in purchasing a diamond that the merchant does not have in hand and on which there is limited information. The uncertainty is greater in the Si2 range. From the photo it looks like it could be a good one but you want to make sure you have a return option in case you decide it is not for you.