2nd opinion

[shel]

I wish I knew about this site before I bought my diamond. But I think I did OK in retrospect. I was wondering if someone could offer an opinion on the quality of my stone and whether I paid a fair price.

Round Brilliant
Carat: 1.76
Clarity: SI2
Color: H
Cut: Ideal, see below

Also has an H&A inscription which I think means "Hearts and Arrows."

GIA report says:
Cut Grade: excellent
Polish: excellent
Symmetry: excellent
Fluorescence: medium blue

The topic of cut is where I have my real question.

First the specs (according to GIA report, dated June 2006):
Measurements: 7.72 x 7.77 x 4.81 mm
Depth %: 62.1
Table %: 56
Crown angle: 35 degrees
Crown %: 15.5
Pavilion angle: 41
Pavilion %: 43.5
Culet: none

According to this website, the diamond would be an AGA class 1B American Ideal cut.

http://diamonds.pricescope.com/round.asp

I also plugged the numbers into the Holloway Cut Advisor and got a score of 2.3 (Very Good).

Seemed pretty good so far... and to my eye, it''s certainly brilliant and fiery.

But just to make sure, I solicited "free" advice from a company (that will remain nameless). A representative e-mailed me (and I quote):

"If the total depth is over 61% on a round stone it''s a class 4. Class 4''s
have little or no resale value and fog out very quickly once they are worn.
They also look much smaller that [sic] a well cut class 1 or class 2 of the same
weight. The only advantage of a class 4 is the inexpensive price. This
rock shouldn''t cost you more than $5,237.76."

Is this correct?

By the way, I paid $10,478.

Don''t worry. I will go to a qualified, independent appraiser soon (recommended by Pricescope!).

Thank you. I respect and appreciate your advice.

Shel

 

[JulieN]

Two guesses for you: Blue Nile and Fred Cueller?

 

[belle]

don''t listen to that nut.

you can do a search for his name or company here and see what his reputation is.
enjoy your brilliant and firey diamond!

if you want to do a price comparison, just use the search engine above.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Well, maybe you need to send them that cut chart which shows that up to 62.3 is class 1A American Ideal Cut.

 

[shel]

You''re good!

Right about Blue Nile. Before I say anything about the 2nd guess...

Am I allowed to divulge the name of my "source" or is that frowned upon?

 

[JulieN]

yes, you can say pretty much whatever you like as long as you're within forum rules.

 

[:)]

Oh! Oh! Oh! That IS Fred Cuellar - they said almost the exact same thing to me on a diamond we were considering (on his diamond cutters international website) before I ever found this website!!!!!! They advertise to plug in your numbers and they will give you a free estimate ''endorsed by fraud prevention, etc, etc, etc'' I can''t believe it!!! They said the same thing about the fogging out!!!

 

[:)]

LOL - I still have the email from June! ...

"If the depth is over 61% on a round stone it’s a class 4. Class 4’s have little or no resale value and fog out very quickly once they are worn. They also look much smaller that a well cut class 1 or class 2 of the same weight. The only advantage of a class 4 is the inexpensive price. The rock shouldn’t cost you more than $5,358.60. I hope that helps. Have a great weekend!"

Welcome to pricescope - get ready to learn a TON!!! Everyone here is really nice and extremely helpful - you will be so glad you found this site!!!

 

[shel]

OK. I''ll confirm that it was Fred Cuellar (or a rep), since everyone seems to have guessed that already.

Seriously though, thank you for all the great advice so far. Seeing your replies really makes me feel better.

By the way, where is the link where I can check out the reputation of Cuellar and his company?

Thank you all!

 

[:)]

My rep was Alex "the diamond guy helper". The stone we were considering was a 2.3 carat (when I said ''June'' above I was referring to the month that the email was sent). Funny that the prices they gave were about the same! If you do a search on this forum under "Fred Cuellar" you will find some interesting stuff.

 

[:)]

BTW, they will emphasize over and over here to go with your eyes - the Holloway Cut Advisor is just used to weed out stones you don''t want to look at. That said, everyone here (I think!) will agree that if you love it and it looks beautiful to your eyes then ignore any numbers and go with your heart - it is easy to get wrapped up in the numbers if you are not careful. I did plug in the approximate numbers you gave into the price comparasion tool - I looked for GIA reports on H SI 2 with stones from 1.7-1.8 carats with table of 55-57 and depth of 61-62 - your price looked about right (ESP if you purchased in a regular store and not on the internet, as the internet gets you lower prices). Hope this helps - I will defer the rest to the experts on here!

 

[shel]

I agree completely about going with my eyes. And the diamond does pass my and my fiance''s "eye test."

Thanks for looking into prices. I did the same thing on the comparison tool and am relieved to know that I paid a fair price.

To

Yes, it is strange that our quoted prices were almost the same. Probably a form e-mail reply from Cuellar''s company.

By the way, reading the forum posts on Cuellar was very illuminating....

 

[shel]

Oops. I meant fiancee. (Always get those 2 mixed up.)