vfrhokie
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Mar 26, 2008
- Messages
- 58
Pics are in this SMTR thread, but I thought I''d summarize the whole experience and pass along some things I learned, and give credit where it''s due.
First, thanks to Jon at Good Old Gold. After following some other folks experiences, I feel so fortunate to have found him at just the right time. The first stone he recommended to me is the one I picked. Since then, I''ve been keeping a casual eye on what''s been available, and there seems to something of a drought.
Next, thanks to Pete at Quest. My now-fiancee and I met with him once for a couple of hours, going through everything he had, picking bits from different rings we liked. One set of CAD drawings, a couple of phone calls about changes, and final set of CADs and we were done. A month later the ring appeared as if by magic, perfect. Again, hard not to feel fortunate given others'' stories.
Fun fact #1: There are 108 teeny little stones in the setting. According to Pete, once everything''s drilled out, a good benchman can set one about every 7 minutes. That''s a lot of time to stare through a microscope.
Fun fact #2: They broke about 10 of the pave diamonds during the setting process, roughly twice their normal rate. Apparently the multiple sizes and number of different surface areas and angles were to blame. Sorry, little guys.
I had Martin Fuller do the appraisal for me, and I can''t say enough about him. He did a great job of putting me at ease, talked me through everything as he did it. I got to play with his ASET viewer and ended up having to come home and order one.
After I gave her the ring, it was back to Pete for the care and feeding talk. He has an interesting philosophy, which boils down to "wear the hell out of it, bring it back every 6 months and we''ll take care of anything that needs doing". He suggested we not be either surprised or alarmed if she loses one of the little ones at some point, although normally he''d expect to pick it up in an inspection before it goes. He also said not to be concerned about using either an ultrasonic or a steamer for cleaning. Neither will cause any problem, in his opinion, although they might reveal some a little early; this basically matches the advice Martin Fuller gave me. I''ve since picked up one of the refurb''d Jewel Jets from ebay for her, and it does keep things shiny.
Finally, I want to thank all of the Pricescope folks. I learned a whole bunch just lurking, and got some great feedback, and even though everything went smoothly it was really comforting to know I''d have a group of knowledgeable people to turn to if it didn''t.
God bless you all.
First, thanks to Jon at Good Old Gold. After following some other folks experiences, I feel so fortunate to have found him at just the right time. The first stone he recommended to me is the one I picked. Since then, I''ve been keeping a casual eye on what''s been available, and there seems to something of a drought.
Next, thanks to Pete at Quest. My now-fiancee and I met with him once for a couple of hours, going through everything he had, picking bits from different rings we liked. One set of CAD drawings, a couple of phone calls about changes, and final set of CADs and we were done. A month later the ring appeared as if by magic, perfect. Again, hard not to feel fortunate given others'' stories.
Fun fact #1: There are 108 teeny little stones in the setting. According to Pete, once everything''s drilled out, a good benchman can set one about every 7 minutes. That''s a lot of time to stare through a microscope.
Fun fact #2: They broke about 10 of the pave diamonds during the setting process, roughly twice their normal rate. Apparently the multiple sizes and number of different surface areas and angles were to blame. Sorry, little guys.
I had Martin Fuller do the appraisal for me, and I can''t say enough about him. He did a great job of putting me at ease, talked me through everything as he did it. I got to play with his ASET viewer and ended up having to come home and order one.
After I gave her the ring, it was back to Pete for the care and feeding talk. He has an interesting philosophy, which boils down to "wear the hell out of it, bring it back every 6 months and we''ll take care of anything that needs doing". He suggested we not be either surprised or alarmed if she loses one of the little ones at some point, although normally he''d expect to pick it up in an inspection before it goes. He also said not to be concerned about using either an ultrasonic or a steamer for cleaning. Neither will cause any problem, in his opinion, although they might reveal some a little early; this basically matches the advice Martin Fuller gave me. I''ve since picked up one of the refurb''d Jewel Jets from ebay for her, and it does keep things shiny.
Finally, I want to thank all of the Pricescope folks. I learned a whole bunch just lurking, and got some great feedback, and even though everything went smoothly it was really comforting to know I''d have a group of knowledgeable people to turn to if it didn''t.
God bless you all.
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