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4 prong v 6 prong

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Lonestar66

Rough_Rock
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Dec 27, 2006
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I heard that a 6 prong setting could cause the bowtie in an oval cut to appear more prominent because of shadows. Is this true?
 

Cehrabehra

Super_Ideal_Rock
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Date: 1/20/2007 11:51:06 AM
Author:Lonestar66
I heard that a 6 prong setting could cause the bowtie in an oval cut to appear more prominent because of shadows. Is this true?
shadows on what? "bow tie" is a reflection from above, not a shadow from below...
 

Officers girl

Shiny_Rock
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Jan 16, 2007
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I havent ever heard of that. Usually bowtie is due to the stone not the setting.
 

Kaleigh

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Date: 1/20/2007 11:51:06 AM
Author:Lonestar66
I heard that a 6 prong setting could cause the bowtie in an oval cut to appear more prominent because of shadows. Is this true?
No it''s not true. It''s about the stone more so than the setting.
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Good luck, HTH.
 

Lonestar66

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Thanks everyone. I didn''t think it was true. I was told that the 6 prongs could make the bowtie appear more promiment.
 

denverappraiser

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I much prefer 6 prongs to 4 on ovals. There are 2 reasons.


First, there is a potential problem with security. Normal wear occasionally loosens up a stone in the setting. This is not really such a huge deal and it’s easy to deal with but there is a slight complication with fancy cuts. If the stone rotates in the setting, it can unlock like a key from a keyhole. It increases the chance of losing the stone before you notice that it’s loose. With 6 prongs, there’s really no way for it to rotate in the setting even if it gets loose.


The second is purely esthetic. I think 6 prongs accentuates the ovalness of the stone. There are 2 prong configurations for 6 prongs with ovals. One has 3 prongs on each side sort of like the legs on a spider (albeit a mutant 6 legged spider) and the other has 2 on each side and 1 on each end. Depending on the cut of the stone and the design of the mounting, this decision can be used to either accentuate or minimize the ‘long thin’ look of an oval. With 4 prongs there is really only one sensible arrangement with prongs at the 10-2-5-7 o’clock positions since putting them at the compass points aggravates the above problem. For stones that are in the 1.5:1 sort of l:w ratio, this tends to make them look ‘off round’ instead of looking oval.


Neil Beaty
GG(GIA) ICGA(AGS) NAJA
Professional Appraisals in Denver
 
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