1.5 RB for under $10K??

[slizatch]

Well my search continues.

You can hit me once you guys get sick of my questions. I thought I had found a winner yesterday but then everyone told me it was probably not a good deal.

ARGH!! Well better now than after I had bought it.

Ok so here''s my latest query. Do you think that it is possible to find a well cut (scoring near a 2 or better on the HCA) 1.5 RB H SI1 (or better) for under 10K? I''ve pretty much given up hope of making that happen.

Of course today in a moment of despair thinking I would never find that ''perfect'' stone a new idea hit me, "Ah...hell with the budget lets just go all out and get something bigger and better."

Actively fighting that impulse and hoping someone has some good guidance.

 

[strmrdr]

How big a hurry are you in for it?
The ones in your price range are going going gone fast right now it might pay to wait untill jan.

Edit to add its very do able just not easy.

 

[slizatch]

I'm not in a BIG hurry but am at the point that I could buy something today if I found what I'm looking for. I think I'm just frustrated because I've been looking for about 2 months (B&M and online) and am yet to find exactly what I'm looking for.


You think I'll have better luck in Jan?

That's a good question actually how frequently do online sellers get new inventory?

 

[strmrdr]

Im not an expert but during jan they will start restocking for valentines day giving you a shot at finding the diamond you want.
You might also ask some of the pricescope vendors if they will keep an eye out for the diamond you want.
With the Christmas rush there isnt much chance of that happening right now but in jan. it might be???

Maybe it would be good to take a week off and not look if your getting frustrated.

 

[Mara]

Here are some options--not sure if you saw these....they are all slightly over $10k though....




http://www.whiteflash.com/diamonds/diamond_Details.aspx?itemcode=GIA-12927331


1.65c H SI AGS0 WhiteFlash Ideal stone $10,300...awesome idealscope image, even though it's not technically H&A. Gets you a bit more carat weight. You may ask WhiteFlash for a picture of the actual stone and inclusions to see what it looks like.




http://www.whiteflash.com/diamonds/diamond_Details.aspx?itemcode=AGS-4132507


1.57 H SI1 ACA H&A $10,800 - again a great stone, this is a H&A, A Cut Above for a sweet deal...a bit above your $10k but I am not sure if you have some flexibility? Also sometimes WhiteFlash will be willing to discuss discounts, but you'd have to see what they say.

Worth a try.




http://www.whiteflash.com/diamonds/diamond_Details.aspx?itemcode=GIA-12742649#


1.51 F SI1 AGS0 WhiteFlash Ideal $10,300 --again a POPPING IdealScope image, look at those reds. Not H&A but really nice.




BTW all the WF prices are Pscope prices, so they give a discount for Pscope referrals. Be sure to mention to get the best deal...not their listed price.




Also, have you touched base with GOG? They have about 5-6 brokered H&A's that fit your range:




1.54 H SI2 H&A $8500


1.57 G SI2 H&A $9330


1.50 F SI2 H&A $9600


1.43 G VS H&A $9800


1.52 H SI1 H&A $10050




Worth a call?

 

[Mara]

Yeah that 1.51 F SI AGS0 has some good numbers and I can't get over that IdealScope image. Blood red for a non H&A!!




Sliz what are your thoughts? You said you have been searching to no avail but we found you 4+ stones that seem to fit your bill in less than 10 minutes....come on boy...get those search skills honed!

 

[slizatch]

I guess I should have been more specific. Sorry for my slow response I was out of town last night and this morning. I'd like to try and get the ENTIRE ring for 10K. I looked back at the post and realized that I wasn't that clear. I've been doing some more searching (after the results of my post from the other day) and think that I might go down to about a 1.25ish size. The setting I'm looking at is a pave with a tcw. of about .5 so that's not helping the budget any.

Seriously thank you to everyone who has been helping out along the way. I've really gotten some good pointers. I went into a B&M this morning to get a better idea of the difference between a 1.25 and 1.5 I knew more than the sales girl. It wasn't a pretty scene. Anyway thanks again for the help. I'll post a little later today to hear what you all think about the stone that is the NEW front runner.

 

[strmrdr]

How much is the setting?
Giving us the exact amount you want to spend sure would speed this up.
Also knowing if its a hard limit or soft limit would help...
ie: soft limit = keep it within a couple hundred , hard limit = not one penny more.

 

[Chrisk327]

you can get a setting for only a few $$ but to get 1.5 it looks like SI2 but I'm no expert.

keep looking. you can always ask a vender ot look for one for you.

Chris

 

[valeria101]

----------------
On 12/18/2003 1:53:10 PM slizatch wrote:

I'd like to try and get the ENTIRE ring for 10K. ----------------

How about that "1.50 F SI2 H&A $9600" in a basic 4 prong "holder" (i.e. setting). What kind of setting are you looking for? This ring has great potential for all that $ and al PS's wit

 

[Mara]

Pave with .5ctw? Don't pay more than $1500 for it...and DON'T pay for a brand name (e.g. more like $2500). Have it custom if you have to in order to save $$. Have you see the A. Jaffe set? It's got something like .20c of pave in a very thin band (2mm or so) and the thinner band makes the head of the stone look huge. It's $775 in platinum. There are two matching wedding bands that fit flush on either side, $775 each. Entire set is around $2200 which is about what we paid for my ONE pave eternity engagement ring, 20/20 hindsight, the AJ set was not out when we were looking for something like that.




Just an example of what you can get if you shop smart...the AJ set is amazing in person and it's about 1/2 of what prices I saw around in other stores. Even our jeweler was suprised AJ priced it so reasonably.




If you did something like the AJ e-ring it would give you $9200 or so of stone to buy...I'd float more on the stone than the setting anyday.

 

[Mara]

Here's a picture of the A.Jaffe set

 

[slizatch]

This is the type of setting I'm searching for. I've gotten a variety of quotes as far as the price anywhere from $1200 up to $1950. What do you think is a fair price.


The 10K? I'd like that to remain FIRM. It's looking more like I'll only have about $8000 left for the stone. I'm thinking I may have to go down a bit in size if I want to maintain a great cut.

 

[Mara]

Pretty setting! Too fat for me, but I like the pave. I'm a thin ring girl. Do you know that your girlfriend likes thicker rings?




The $1200 for that setting sounds good to me! Why the discrepancies in pricing? $700 is alot of money, I'd go with the cheaper one if the quality is good.




Then you'd have $8800 for the stone!

Did you see this one...it's a GOG Brokered stone:




1.54c H SI2 H&A AGS0 HCA: 1.0 EX EX EX EX (!!) ID/ID for $8538




If it's eye clean that could be a SWEET stone, the HCA is excellent and the price is excellent and it's 1.5c!

 

[slizatch]

Thanks for the TIP! I've been talking to GOG quite a bit but didn't see that one. A lot of what pricescope turns up in searches doesn't appear on the GOG website. Does this mean that the stone is sold or maybe just not listed? Just curious.

Also to answer your question she does like a thicker ring, which I'm not so sure about as she's a small gal. But hey she's wearing it not me and if that's what she wants that's what she'll get.

I think the price has varried because each quote was for a SLIGHTLY different setting (.5tcw vs. .58tcw vs. .62tcw).

 

[Mara]

Oh if its just the ctw making the price difference on the setting...definitely get the cheaper. Visually the difference between those 3 sizes is minimal. Esp if you can get a better/bigger center stone. HANDS DOWN my choice. I love melee on the sides but center diamond shrinkage happens fast mentally, so I would not drop to a 1.25c to get more ctw on a setting. My two cents

That said, the stone I posted is a GOG Brokered stone which means Jonathan won't have it on his website, it's through a broker that he works with. It won't have all the reports that his stones do unless you want to pay something like an extra $125 or something to get them done (I personally would have them done...why not). But the numbers look awesome, EX HCA, so if its eye clean I bet that the reports on it would POP.

Keep us posted.

 

[slizatch]

="padding-bottom:0;marginTop:0;marginBottom:0;">----------------
On 12/18/2003 6:34:39 PM Mara wrote:


I love melee on the sides but center diamond shrinkage happens fast mentally, so I would not drop to a 1.25c to get more ctw on a setting. My two cents

----------------[/quote]



When you say 'diamond shrinkage' do you mean because of the setting that I've selected it will make the center stone appear smaller or in general that will happen with any setting??

 

[Mara]

Well a fatter setting makes the center stone look smaller...thinner makes the stone look larger. When the diameter of the stone is the same or less than the width of the setting (e.g. 7mm stone and 8mm setting), your center stone looks smaller. I saw this firsthand when I tried on wedding rings with my e-ring. Would caution anyone against getting a set of rings that will dwarf your center stone...always make sure the center stone 'hangs' over any rings that you wear with the e-ring.




That said, I doubt this setting is going to be 7.5mm so you should be fine....




When I said diamond shrinkage, I am referring to the mental disease that accompanies most women after wearing their ring for a while (a week?). Basically you get used to seeing the ring on your finger, and eventually it doesn't look big anymore. Then you want a bigger one.

 

[Jax172]

What about dropping down to a 1.33 range. My diamond is a 1.34 and looks plenty big. It looks bigger than 1.25 and a tad smaller than 1.50. Just a thought. You don't have to drop all the way down to 1.25. Although, a 1.25 is still a sizable stone. I think most women would be blown away if they were presented with a 1.25 diamond in the quality you are looking for! Best of luck!

 

[aljdewey]

----------------
On 12/19/2003 1:04:56 PM Jax172 wrote:

I think most women would be blown away if they were presented with a 1.25 diamond in the quality you are looking for!----------------

I have to agree with Jax on this.....I just got a 1.244 stone, and I've been wearing it for a week now. I still think it's HUGE - probably because I never thought we'd be able to swing a diamond of this size.

 

[Mara]

No way...1.5c all the way. I have stone of a visual look of 1.35 and it looks nice and all but I'd hands down go for 1.5c and get a smaller ctw setting if I had the chance.

My girlfriend has a 1.5c and I can visually see a difference in size between hers and mine.

 

[fire&ice]

If you have the time, wait until something just shy of the 1.5 mark. Rarer, but they do come to market. I have a friend that saved quite a bit going w/ a 1.41 stone. Also, my mantra - try going lower in color in a stone w/ med/strong blue fluor. Also, blasphemey one this board, but try something in the 1b/2a range. Your eye is not going to see any difference w/ ex/ex polish & sym. Your eye will not see any difference with a stone that scores a 2.3.

Good luck. I don't think necessarily that inventories are depleted duing this time of the year. I just think the stones move quicker than one can even list them.

 

[slizatch]

Thanks again for great ideas guys. I'm really considering going down a bit in size. The price difference is HUGE! I know that this shouldn't be a time when I'm thinking of saving a buck but (a little MORE background) I just bought a house (with the idea that we'd be getting married sometime soon) so that is in the back of my mind too.

Here's a stone that aljdewey turned me on to in a different post from the other day. It's pretty nice.


1.282 RB
H
SI1
Depth=60.3
Table=57
Crown Angle=34
Pav Angle=40.8
Cul.=pointed
HCA Score=.9
HCA Ratine=ex/ex/ex/ex

pol.=id
sym.=id

$6300

What do you think of that price?? Good? Bad? Fair??