Certs, reports, and Scopes?

[msb2ncsu]

Say after day of reading and talking to jewelers and I think I am more confused than I was before I started.

First off, its my understanding that an AGS report is done by AGS itself and not subject to any influence whatsoever by the distributor of the diamond (Are any reports/certs performed by the distributor itself... "I''m an XXX certified gemologist, I''d say my diamond is definitely ideal!"). So even the shadiest of vendors wouldn''t be able to inflate the value of a stone with an AGS report (assuming its not a complete switch or anything)? Could you submit a stone to AGS repeatedly and get different results? I keep hearing about ratings being subjective and that concerns me, but perhaps I am mishearing or in the wrong context. If I found a stone in a B&M with an AGS report thats virtually identical to an AGS report from an internet dealer could I be relatively certain that the stones will look pretty much the same (or at least as close as I could get to seeing the same stone)?

It also seems as though I come across a new scope or grading system every day. Firescope, Megascope, BrilliantScope, Ultra-EnFuego Scope of the Celestial Heart (tm), etc. Each of the reputable dealers on here seem to value a different one and discredit another so its hard to get straight which ones are worth a darn. Are there any that I should ask about specifically or know to avoid from a retailer (namely B&M)?

Sorry for so many questions but I can never seem to get answers in a store. If my question doesn''t seem to get them any closer to bagging a sale it seems like they want to just blow it off and not waste precious sales time.

 

[msb2ncsu]

Anyone? Even if you just have half an answer to just one of my questions... its more than I know currently.

 

[niceice]

Okay, let's see if we can make some sense of this for you...

AGS Diamond Grading Reports and Diamond Quality Documents are issued only by the AGS Laboratory. A GIA Graduate Gemologist or AGS Certified Gemologist Appraiser may issue an appraisal in conjunction with or separate from a diamond grading report which has been issued for a stone - and their opinion may vary.

Any time a diamond is submitted to a laboratory repeatedly it is possible that it might receive a similar, but slightly different grade simply because diamonds are graded by people and thus each person who evaluates a diamond might have a slightly different opinion of the stone... However, some of the laboratories have implimented system checks to reduce the chances of this happening by being able to identify diamonds that have passed through their hands before. In addition, their are standard grading practices used by each grader to reduce the level of differences that each grader might find in any one stone. The idea behind diamond grading reports is to provide consumers with an established level of grading that is unbiased and beyond the scope of the average retail jeweler who might be inclined to over grade a stone to his benefit in an attempt to sell it for a profit. This is "not" to say that all jewelry professional might be inclined to do this, but the fact is that "some" would... So diamond grading reports provide a sort of level playing field for the consumer regardless of whether they are issued by the AGS, GIA, EGL, HRD, etc... If a consumer is comparing diamonds graded by the AGS with other diamonds graded by the AGS they are essentially playing on the same field... If they are comparing GIA graded diamonds to GIA graded diamonds, the same is likely to hold true and so on... In-store and private label diamond grading reports should certainly be considered on a Buyer Beware type of platform.

Most of the scopes are designed to assist with selling diamonds cut by the diamond companies which promote each scope, with the exception of the Bscope which we're not personally impressed with at this point in time, but which we are watching the development of closely because at some point in time we think that it might offer some potential. We still think that a good set of trained eyes is the best scope that is available on the market, but hey, we're biased.

 

[valeria101]

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On 4/21/2004 12:22:44 AM msb2ncsu wrote:



Could you submit a stone to AGS repeatedly and get different results?
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Yes. Most labs would admit to a degree of variance in their results - otherwise they would not survive. This is not rocket science.


Would two stones with virtually identical AGS reports be different ?

Again yes, the AGS cert does not cover all details relevant to a complete descriptions of a stone. However, the AGS report is the most complete among major labs (GIA, EGL, HRD...).


Do the 'Scopes add anything to the AGS report?

Yes: AGS is a big lab - they cannot be as strict with their grading as a small, specialized seller. If the standard would be too strict, too few stones woudl maek the cut for the highest grades and... no one woudl want to send stones to AGS for certification anyway!

You can see some sign of this in the existing prices: the stones with the most comprehensive reports are also the most expensive, on average (AGS vs GIA vs EGL, for example).

The extra tests are built around cosely related quality criteria and optical properties: a stone that passes the extra tests for optics and 3D symmetry meets more strict criteria than AGS0.




Do those 'Scopes help seller slander each other's stones?

NO. The 'Scopes are not endorsed by only one seller. Some sellers use them all and the results are highly correlated anyway. For example, the Bscope and Isee2 are promoted by specialized comapnies, not diamond sellers.

Does this make sense?