Asscher for a newbie

[swingirl]

Hi. I am a newbie here although I have been lurking around and reading as much as I can. I am looking at asschers but still don''t know what a good one looks like.

I am confused about how much dark there should be in the center square area. Some have a lot, some have a little, even when they are rated as Premium cuts or VG cuts. Here is what I am getting close to buying although if anyone has an opinion please let me know. It seems shallow to me compared to others of the same weight. The jewler does not have any of the fancy Sarin equipment so its just my eye, the lope and tweasers. Help! and thanks to you all for informing me on so many topics!

6.75 x 6.62 x 4.31 mm
1.52 carat
depth 65.1%
table 55%
culet none
polish V G
symmetry Excellent
SI1
color H
Flour - none

 

[strmrdr]

All 3 of these are kicken asschers of different styles which you like better is up to your eye.

si1 - im a little leary in asschers I havent found one yet that was totaly eyeclean.


here is the picture:

 

[strmrdr]

here are computer generated images that show the patterns without any tilt:

 

[swingirl]

Wow. Thanks for the photos. So it looks like the black areas can be a good thing as long as it is stepped with white and is symmetric?

Alberta

 

[in search]

Asschers are very hard to find as it is, I''m still searching! Measurements are good to go by, but you have to trust your eyes, and good pictures help!

I have seen an SI1 in person and I couldn''t readily find the inclusions without help, so it is possible, but like Storm said, be cautious about SI1 asschers, they definitely must be seen first.

Good luck on your search!

 

[strmrdr]

Date: 4/20/2006 12:44:33 PM
Author: swingirl
Wow. Thanks for the photos. So it looks like the black areas can be a good thing as long as it is stepped with white and is symmetric?


Alberta

yep
They are what make asschers asschers.

check the crown height when looking at them in person, look from the side and if you think thats a high crown its just right :}
if you can get the numbers over 10% is the target.
but asschers can totaly be judged by eye and there are different ones that different folks prefere.
Some even like the big table ones with 70% tables which I think are blah .
They like the glassy look that is a turn off to many other people.

 

[swingirl]

The asscher I am looking at does not have any angle measurements on the GIA report. The vendor doesn''t have a photo although I wonder if I took my camera if I could take a picture myself. It seems a lot of folks on PS get some pretty good photos of their stones. (I''d have to practice at home)

I really like seeing photos like the ones you posted. I wish I could see those stones in person to see what a great one looks like.

WhiteFlash doesn''t have too many on their website. Do they have more in stock that they don''t post? who else carries a good selection?

Alberta

 

[strmrdr]

none of the vendors carry a lot of asschers in stock but they will order them in on request.
There is a charge of usualy between $40-$50 per stone if it passes their tests and you turn it down.
That happens from time to time but less than it used too.
www.goodoldgold.com is another great vendor for asschers they will sometimes bring a couple in for free if there is hole in their stock and they would be calling them in anyway.

If you seeing it in person just look for eye square outside, concentric patterns that are pleasing to you.
View it under different light conditions in different conditions the various parts come into play.
The pictures here are good guidelines on what to look for.
eyeballs beat numbers with asschers.
If you do get picture post them here and ill tell you what I can see.

 

[swingirl]

Thank you for the info and offer to look at something for me. I am in California but would love to take a trip to WF or GOG since these guys get good reviews from the people on PS who have bought from them.

I need to see more stones because I think I should only buy one that knocks my shorts off. We''re talking $8-9K and I want to be kick-my-heals-up thrilled with my diamond for that price.

 

[Kaleigh]

I bought mine from GOG, and highly recommend them. You have a very nice budget, ask for Jonathon, he''s great to work with. Good luck!!!

 

[valeria101]

Date: 4/20/2006 12:18:25 PM
Author:swingirl



It seems shallow to me compared to others of the same weight.

... which may mean the others you saw were 'too deep' for someone keen on a larger looking diamond. Small looks and extra depth seems to be forgiven about asschers, while not-too-deep ones are hard to find. You were lucky, IMO. Again IMO, 65% is deep enough (50% would be shallow, alright).





The jeweler does not have any of the fancy Sarin equipment so its just my eye, the lope and tweezers.

Cool - so he can tell you if this SI1 looks clean or not quite (if it does, it makes a nice catch because this is not extremely common among step cut diamonds). And if taking pictures is not in the cards (it is hard, so they might not want to start doing so for you if never done before), you should be able to take a look at the diamond before the sale becomes final - there is a return policy, right ?

If you are concerned that receiving just one diamond to look at doesn't tell you what you are missing (i.e. if there is way better out there in some way, or something different might look nicer to you)... an appraiser's advice could help with the first issue, and looking around for asscher cut diamonds to see what variations of cut are out there should take care of the second. Pictures should do some good, but looking at (any other)diamonds is very useful to get some idea what these things are about. It is all to easy to get hung into details 'on paper'.

Online, you may find a good handful of asscher pictures to look at for what that's worth.


IMO, it shouldn't be so hard to pic a nice one out - usually more brilliance is better, and the rest (square vs. hexagonal shape, small vs. large table, color... or what not) should be up to your personal taste and good will.

My 2c

 

[MacClure]

alberta....''swingirl''......i dunno much around here, but, i have some slight experience with asscher cut diamonds...now, please keep in mind that my experience is very short lived, but, i have purchased one. and, it took me quite a while...like you, i didn''t know ''what a good one'' looked like....as far as the pics you may be lookin'' at, please understand that the ''pics'' do nothin'' to show you what the actual asscher may look like. although the pic zoomed in 40x will show you the ''cut'' corner look and ''windmill'' cuts, that''s about it. i know that may seem frustrating, but, in my experience, that''s what i discovered....pics aren''t gonna show you the real deal of what the asscher performs like IN PERSON. again, this is just my lame opinion. now, if it were me, based on your specs...here''s how i''d feel...

"6.75 x 6.62"....it''s not gonna be as ''square'' as you''re probably expectin'' from an asscher cut...but, then again you probably won''t notice the difference....not a major reason to turn the diamond down. depth of 65 is not as ''deep'' as many would suggest. but, again, not a reason to totally eliminate this asscher cut. ''ideal'', according to some, is late sixties....''66-''70. table...ah, now, that''s what you''re lookin'' for....no less than 55 tho''...but, go up to early 60''s....culet? well, ''none'' to ''small'' is good...again, in my lame opinion. vg/ex on the pol and sym is great.....i don''t think your eyes are gonna know the difference....mine sure didn''t when comparin'' asschers.......really. SI1? well, that''s up to your budget. the experts say that if you stay within'' the ''vs'' range (vs2...and up) you really can''t see anything with the naked eye....color? well, dependin'' on the ''cut'' quality of this asscher....the ''color'' can vary to your eye......i bought a J. yeah, a J. but, the cut is awesome. it''s the most beautiful diamond i''ve seen with my own eye. so........H....may be fine. you''ve gotta see for yourself. and, seein'' for yourself (havin'' the diamond shipped to you or an appraiser near you) is up to the dealer...that you''re dealin'' with.

good luck, ron....