Nervous about stone swapping (when resizing)

[doopie]

I was disappointed to find that all my attempts to size the e-ring correctly failed- I ended up going slightly too big.

I live in Boston, but bought the ring in NYC. Due to his summer hours I can''t get back to my jeweler without taking a day off work (plus I want my fiancee''s hand there too, so that''d mean both of us would have to travel down). I''d like to have it resized in Boston and have asked around for referrals. Some places I''ve contacted can turn it around same-day and others quote up to a week. I am very nervous about leaving the ring, especially with a stranger, since I''ve heard horror stories about stones being swapped.

I do have a certified diamond with all the paperwork, but that gives me only so much comfort if I then have to prove the diamond I searched months for is no longer there.

My questions/concerns:

How do you combat stone swapping?

Are there jewelers that will resize a ring in front of you? Is that a reasonable request? Am I too paranoid?

I''m not sure how complicated it is to resize the ring (platinum band with 5 channel-set stones on each side of the center stone) but it was handmade- Are there issues about having a different jeweler do work to it?

What is a reasonable amount of time needed to resize a ring? Obviously, I don''t want to take it to somebody who can do it quickly but then hacks it up. However, I also don''t want to leave it somewhere for a week.

Any recommendations for jewelers in Boston?


Any help is appreciated!!!

 

[denverappraiser]

Doopie,

Stone switching does occasionally happens but it’s extremely rare. It’s nowhere near as big a risk as people are inclined to believe. In the cases where you feel that there is a potential risk, the secret is to be able to recognize your jewelry both before and after the work is done. Assuming that you have a complete and accurate appraisal, it is a fairly simple matter to go back to the same appraiser and determine if the stone has been changed. The appraiser should also be able to point out things about your stone that will help you to recognize it on your own so you only have to get the second appraisal if you’re pretty sure of a problem. If a switch ever occurs, you have a valid insurance claim under whatever coverage you have involving any other form of theft. It will then up to the insurance company to take it up with the jeweler and pursue any legal remedies that may be open to them. A diamond quality report on the center stone does not, by the way, generally accomplish this purpose because it does not serve as evidence that this was the stone originally in the piece when the policy was bound. This is one of the reasons to get an independent appraisal up front and one of the reasons that the insurance companies require you to get things re-appraised every few years. Make sure that the appraisal is done by someone who is hired by you, not by the seller, so that it is an unbiased statement of the description of the piece AFTER you received it. This prevents the criminal from being able to blame it on the original jeweler for the stone not being what you expected.

www.gemprint.com offers a service for just this concern

I’ll let one of the platinumsmiths address your technical questions about sizing.

Neil Beaty, GG, ISA
Independent Appraisals in Denver
www.gemlab.us

 

[Regular Guy]

Though sorry to say I have no personal knowledge of jewelers in Boston, I can see from the Pricescope forum section on local Jewelers that ADCO Jewelers has been recommended highly, and more than once.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

There's a couple jewelers down here in Sarasota who specialize in setting & sizing while the customer waits & watches. They actually like it, because then there's no chance of the consumer accusing them of switching their stone, plus they charge a little more for the convenience of the service.

Boston's a pretty big town. There must be jewelers there in Boston doing the same thing.

Make sure you find a jeweler proficient in working with platinum though. It's a metal which requires someone who knows its moods.