about to make the plunge and buy this rock...any last minute advice?

[dryice]

hi everyone, I''m about to purchase this diamond. Please let me know if I''m not getting a good deal:

certificate: GIA
Shape: Round Brilliant
Measurements: 6.56x6.59x4.09mm
carat: 1.10
color: F
clarity: VS2
Polish: Excellent
Symmetry: Excellent
Girdle: Medium, Facted
Fluorescence: None

Comments (on GIA report)
pinpoints, internal graining and surface graining are not shown
what does this mean? Is this bad?

Sarin report:
Diam: 6.57mm (6.56-6.59) mm
Depth: 4.09mm 62.3%
Crown: 34.8 degree, 15.1%
Pavil: 40.7 degree, 42.8%
Table: 3.72mm 56.6%
Culet: 0.9%, very small
girdle: 1.8% 1.7%, Medium

I was told this is equivalent to a AGS000 rating. HCA score is 1.3.
The factor that increased the score is a ''very good'' rating for ''Spread''.

out-the-door price is $6157.

Please offer your opinion. Thanks!

 

[Mara]

Sounds GOOD!!

Don't worry about the extra notes on the GIA cert....it's minimal. It probably just means that there were some other items but not worth plotting. I believe they only plot the major items. Plus this is a VS2 so you should be fine. Did you see the plot picture?




Nice stone, nice numbers, nice color & clarity & very nice price point. Light is GREEN!

 

[dryice]

Mara, thanks for your advice!

Yes, I did see the plot pic on the GIA report. It's a JPEG of a xerox copy of the actual report. So the quality is not very good. I can only make out 'dots' (can't tell if they are crystal, needle, or feather etc). Most of these dots are on the edge of the diamond. There's only 1 or 2 on the table.

 

[Mara]

Oh then it sounds fine. As long as there aren't any huge gashes across it...plus as I noted with VS2...you should be fine. GIA is quite strict.

 

[dryice]

Mara, I just spoke with Nacy Stacy on the phone. She charges ~$150 to verified that the diamond matches the certificates. I receive no verification report, in fact, no document what so ever. She said she will not appraise a loose diamond.

You mentioned that you're a frequent client of hers. Does this sound right to you? Everyone in these forums seems to quote a $75 appraisal fee. I imagine that they get some sort of document for it too.

 

[caratgirl]

Wow, that seems steep for no documents. I paid the same for mine (different GG appraiser) and got 3 pages, but it was set already. Maybe she just has too many clients right now. Why don't you try another appraiser listed on PS?

 

[Mara]

Do you plan to bring the stone back to her after the ring is set to get a final appraisal?




We took her our loose stone which she appraised to be sure that we paid the right amount--she had the stone for a week and appraised it's value, and then we took her the final piece for the total appraisal for insurance. She gave us this huge document of 20 pages or similar and the cost was about $125 per hour. That is pretty typical for independent appraisals from what I have seen. I don't know if her rates have gone up, but are you sure she didn't misunderstand you? She appraises alot of loose stones and I know people who have recently taken their online purchases to her as well (loose) (in the last month) with no problems.




??

 

[dryice]

hi CaratGirl, unfortunately she is the only PS recommended appraiser who's close to me. The next closest one is more than 300 miles away.
I guess I'll just have to take the hit for that peace of mind.

 

[dryice]

Hmm... that's strange. Yes, her rates has gone up. It's now $150 an hour. What she said was that she will not appraise loose diamonds for insurance purposes because inusrance company won't insure loose diamonds. I said that I don't need an insurance appraisal, just want to make sure that the stone and its certificate match. Nancy said that it won't be an appraisal then; it'll be a verification. She said that she can issue me documents, but they'll cost me. Also, she said that if I want the vendor to ship the diamond directly to her, she'll charge me an extra $75 for having the diamond in her possession and be responsible for it. Add all these up, I can almost buy a setting with that kind of money!

 

[valeria101]

There are a few things: a scan-of a xerox-of a cert is not a lab report. Also, even on that cert, are you sure that the plot of a VS2 should have that many markings (some in the middle, some on the side... as you say). If there was a cert which they xeroxed and scanned, why aren't you getting it. I would take me 5 min to produce such a "scan of a cert" even if there is no diamond report anywhere near here. I do not know the seller or anything, so this is why I eliberately make this sound harsh. My mantra is : "No papers, no buy". It may happen that a seller is awaiting the certificate and can give you the specs in the meantime, but here there was a cert for something. Surely there are other stones out there...

What is your reason to take the risk?

 

[Mara]

Hmm interesting. Nancy is kind of a curmudgeon type older woman

Sometimes abrasive but she knows her stuff. I didn't know about her extra $75 charge for receiving the stone...but I think it'd be worth it. Yes, sounds like for a verification it'd be different...I don't know why she charges so much for verification vs appraisal.




Don't fret, there is another option.




Willow Glen Jewelers will do verification of the stone for you for $75. I recall someone saying that recently on here. They are in San Jose in Willow Glen, downtown. I don't know what they give you in terms of paperwork though. While they are doing the verification, ask to see their EightStar stones. Should keep your eyeballs busy for a while until your stone is ready.

 

[hoorray]

Why don't you consider having the stone shipped to someone not local if you can't find someone nearby. In hindsight, I think that is a fine way to go. Seeing an individual stone without havig anything to compare it to was not as useful as I thought it would be. Especially one that specs out well. (An iffy stone would probably be different.) I think it is more valuable to have trained eyes on it that my untrained eyes.

Rich Sherwood, David Atlas and Rockdoc all are regulars here and could probably do it for you.

 

[dryice]

hi valeria101, thanks for looking out for me. I didn't make myself clear. I have not bought the diamond. Once I do, they will send me the origianl certificate. In the meantime, they emailed me a picture of it for reference. I can't imagine that the vendors can mail the original to anyone who's merely interested in the diamond.

 

[valeria101]

This makes sense. I was wandering why no one else brought this up... but they must have guessed. Your stone does sound great (cert and all). best of luck

 

[dryice]

hi valeria101, I'll ask my vendor about those 'dots' I see in my 'not-so-good-copy' of the GIA report. I'll ask him to look at the actual report and tell me what he sees. I'm beginning to have a little doubt after seeing the AGS certificate Mara posted for her beautiful diamond. It's also a VS2, but I hardly see any 'dots' on her plot. Thanks for your input!

 

[aljdewey]

DryIce...given the stats, you should be okay.




I would heartily recommend Rich Sherwood. I know he's in FL and you're in CA, but you're paying him to be your eyes......and he's phenominal at it.




I used him, and I live in MA. He's 1500 miles away from me, but I knew his eyes would be a far better judge than mine.....and I was right! He's very reasonable, and he does appraise loose stones if you want a full appraisal.




Dave Atlas is an excellent choice, too, and has a fine reputation here. I wouldn't hesitate to use either of them....and in fact, I'd trust them more than folks in my backyard.




Good luck, whatever you decide.

 

[dryice]

hi aljdewey, could you tell me more about how it would work if I ask my vendor to ship the diamond to this person you recommend in FL?

so:
1) vendor ship stone to Rich
2) he does an appraisal and says it's a-okay

Now...how do I get the stone from Rich? And while all this shipping is going on, how does that erode into the 7-day return policy? The vendor says that I have 7-days from the day that I receive the diamond to return it. Do I need to pay for shipping if Rich's the one shipping it to me?

 

[aljdewey]

----------------
On 1/8/2004 9:41:06 PM dryice wrote:





hi aljdewey, could you tell me more about how it would work if I ask my vendor to ship the diamond to this person you recommend in FL?

so:
1) vendor ship stone to Rich
2) he does an appraisal and says it's a-okay

Now...how do I get the stone from Rich? And while all this shipping is going on, how does that erode into the 7-day return policy? The vendor says that I have 7-days from the day that I receive the diamond to return it. Do I need to pay for shipping if Rich's the one shipping it to me?

----------------

Hi, DryIce.....well, a few possibilities exist. I didn't catch who your vendor is on the diamond, but if it's someone here.....most of them will let you ship to the appraiser for evaluation before you put out the money. Then when you get the okay from the appraiser, you pay the vendor and the vendor tells the appraiser to release the stone to you....(I think...I didn't do it that way myself.) They would send it Fedex, and you'd have it the next day.

I bought from Whiteflash....with a 10-day return policy. Before I paid for the stone, I called Rich Sherwood in FL to make sure his schedule had room for my appraisal....he did. I paid Whiteflash on a Thursday, and they overnighted the stone to Rich for Friday morning. He did the appraisal on Monday. He normally would then have shipped it to me via Fedex so I'd get it Tuesday morning.....but I had WF send him the Tiffany style mounting too, so he had the stone set for me and that took an extra two days.

I confirmed with Whiteflash that my inspection period began when *I* received the stone.....which was true.

Sending it right to the appraiser usually saves shipping costs, too. Most vendors pay the shipping from them to you. If you have them ship to the vendor, they'll pay that shipping, and then you'd only pay the extra shipping from the appraiser to you (about $40 or so). So......it only costs the one extra shipping leg - $40 - to get it appraised by a non-local appraiser.

Incidentally, Rich's rate for a full appraisal was MUCH better than the quote you got, and there was no $75 charge for the "responsibility", so I figure you'd come out *ahead* of the game on money by going this way instead. And he gives a comprehensive appraisal with photos, diamond calc....the whole she-bang.

But you need to decide if you're okay with letting someone else be your eyes. I was totally okay with it....his were much more qualified than mine, anyway! ehhehehee

Good luck, and let us know how it turns out.

 

[dryice]

awesome feed back aljdewey, thanks!!

I'm planning to buy the Superbcert Tiffany 6-prong 'replica'. Maybe I can do this the same way you did. I'll buy the setting, have Superbcert ship it to Rich. Then he can set the stone and give me an appraisal for the whole ring.

Now, who was the jeweler that actually set the stone for you? How did you come to trust his/her skills? Could you tell me more?

 

[aljdewey]

When I had WF send the loose stone and the ring of my choosing to Rich Sherwood, I had already spoken to Rich to ask if he could set it after appraisal. He doesn't do setting himself but he knows a master jeweler nearby. That was good enough for me.....a master setter!




Once Rich did the appraisal, he took it to his friend the master setter, who set it. Then Rich shipped the complete ring to me! You have to pay a bit extra for the setting - mine was about $50.......pennies to have it done right! I couldn't be happier.

 

[canadiangrrl]

Just wanted to chime in with another recommendation for Rich Sherwood.

Rich appraised my engagement ring as well and did an excellent job - quick turnaround time, lots of information, and a reasonable price.

 

[dryice]

thank you everyone for your kind advice!

I think I'll contact Rich Sherwood right now and set this process in motion.

This is really nerve-racking to fork out thousands of $$ for something that I didn't even see in a real picture! I guess there's no free-lunch: if you want decent price and top-quality product, you gotta take some risk