cheap cutter?

[agapitor]

hi all,

I made an impulse ebay bid for a 4ct round blue sapphire and won. Fortunately, it was a REALLY cheap stone so I'm not too concerned with its quality. Now, I'm wondering what to do with it. I'd like to possibly set it in an inexpensive silver ring but fear that 4ct may be too big. Do you think it would be possible to get this stone cut down to approx 2.5 ct What would be an approximate cost to getting something like this?

thanks

 

[chrono]

Depending on the clarity of the stone and the location of the inclusions, it may not be advisable to recut the stone (it may end up cracking or have a fracture grow and then you'll end up with nothing). The price will vary according to the individual lapidary, difficulty and time, so it might be anywhere from $100 and upwards.

 

[agapitor]

thanks Chrono.. maybe I should wait and take a picture of the stone once it arrives. At this rate, it may be worthwhile just keeping it at 4 ct and maybe turn set it as a pendant? This means another gem purchase

 

[chrono]

Yes, definitely best to wait until you have the stone in hand. The lapidary will want to also see the stone in person before making a final judgment but might able advise you on a recommended course of action if you can provide good clear and detailed pictures.

 

[Michael_E]

I made an impulse ebay bid for a 4ct round blue sapphire and won.

How about a link to the sellers auction and the picture there? If the stone is dark to the point of being almost black, then it may not get much lighter with a recut and so not really be worth messing with. As Chrono mentioned, you also have the potential problem of internal fractures which can get so close to the surface during a recut that a chunk of the stone can pop out.

In any case, most cutters will charge anywhere from $100 to $300 for this sort of thing, with the bulk of them being closer to the middle of that range. The cost difference can be attributed to the low end being a hobby cutter, tinkering in their spare room, to the high end being a professional who may be very busy, but willing to do it if you're willing to spend that much. The middle of the road are the professionals who just like cutting sapphire and getting a little extra business. Just to be clear, it's not about quality, in fact the hobby cutters are also the ones who win cutting awards, since they can afford to spend 10, 20 or even 30 hours on a stone to get it as close to perfect as possible for a competition.

 

[agapitor]

ooh I found the link to the site. I thought it would have been taken down since it was sold

http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260668573776&ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:CA:1123

please don't laugh if the piece is crap. Like I said, it completely impulsive. If it is a bad purchase.. I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned

 

[Roger Dery]

ooh I found the link to the site. I thought it would have been taken down since it was sold
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260668573776&ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:CA:1123
please don't laugh if the piece is crap. Like I said, it completely impulsive. If it is a bad purchase.. I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned

Hello agapitor,
The vendor noted in your purchase is notorious for not shipping (or stated they shipped when in actuality they have not) when the item sold well below their expected price. You may want to have a peek through their feedback to see what others are saying now -- especially those noted as "Neutral". I believe the same firm also goes by the moniker: S.W.Tap and are also based in Thailand.

I hope you find this a little bit helpful.

 

[agapitor]

ooh I found the link to the site. I thought it would have been taken down since it was sold
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260668573776&ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:CA:1123
please don't laugh if the piece is crap. Like I said, it completely impulsive. If it is a bad purchase.. I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned

Hello agapitor,
The vendor noted in your purchase is notorious for not shipping (or stated they shipped when in actuality they have not) when the item sold well below their expected price. You may want to have a peek through their feedback to see what others are saying now -- especially those noted as "Neutral". I believe the same firm also goes by the moniker: S.W.Tap and are also based in Thailand.

I hope you find this a little bit helpful.

Oh no! thanks for the heads up.. well that's about the worst case scenario ain't it. I'm wondering how long does it typically wait for items to arrive before I can dispute it or contact ebay or cancel the paypal payment. Fortunately, the payment was made through my MC so I can dispute the charge.

Is there an alternate place I can go to buy some cheap gem stones. I'm just beginning to explore buying CS and don't want to spend too much yet until I've determined exactly what I like.

Thanks again for all your help.. diamond shopping seemed to go much smoother

 

[iLander]

I never buy from a seller with less than 100% feedback. If I'm really tempted I will scan through their feedbacks and read any negatives. If I need to get more clarification, I use this site:

http://toolhaus.org/

This is where negative ebay feedback goes to die (if the seller somehow talks the buyer into retracting their negative).

 

[agapitor]

I never buy from a seller with less than 100% feedback. If I'm really tempted I will scan through their feedbacks and read any negatives. If I need to get more clarification, I use this site:

http://toolhaus.org/

This is where negative ebay feedback goes to die (if the seller somehow talks the buyer into retracting their negative).

Thanks iLander. I am so bummed! I should have known that what was too good to be true usually is. I think I'll lay my ebay purchasing to rest. I've just been waiting for my 10 yr upgrade to finish and needed something to tide me over. alas.. ebay was not the answer. I've always been leery of buying from ebay and this was only my third purchase. Maybe CS isn't such a good idea from there.

 

[chrono]

Alarm bells and red warning sirens are flashing everywhere when a 4 ct blue sapphire sells for under $6. And no, it doesn't look like crap. I wonder if this is a diffused sapphire as I just read that huge diffused blue sapphires are now hitting the market.
http://www.giathai.net/pdf/Beryllium_diffused_blue_sapphires_at_June_26th_2009.pdf

 

[agapitor]

Alarm bells and red warning sirens are flashing everywhere when a 4 ct blue sapphire sells for under $6. And no, it doesn't look like crap. I wonder if this is a diffused sapphire as I just read that huge diffused blue sapphires are now hitting the market.
http://www.giathai.net/pdf/Beryllium_diffused_blue_sapphires_at_June_26th_2009.pdf

That could very well be. I wasn't expecting anything spectacular or great for that matter.. especially for that price. .I was expecting to have it shipped though. Guess we'll wait and see. Thanks everyone for all your input and enlightening me. I've found a new love for CS that wasn't anywhere near my radar before. I better get cracking on research.

 

[Deia]

Look synthetic to me... but that is just a guess! It's pretty whatever it is

 

[Lee Little]

A lot of people in toolhaus agree it is synthetic as it appears. Still pretty and cheap, can be re-cut easily, no inclusions. An inexpensive education. Best regards, Lee

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Synthetic, BE Diffused, Even CZ, its way too cheap.
What is the shipping amount you paid and by what method?

 

[agapitor]

Synthetic, BE Diffused, Even CZ, its way too cheap.
What is the shipping amount you paid and by what method?

shipping was only $10 and I used paypal but using a credit card.

 

[lelser]

ooh I found the link to the site. I thought it would have been taken down since it was sold
http://cgi.ebay.ca/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=260668573776&ssPageName=ADME:L:OU:CA:1123
please don't laugh if the piece is crap. Like I said, it completely impulsive. If it is a bad purchase.. I'll chalk it up to a lesson learned

Hello agapitor,
The vendor noted in your purchase is notorious for not shipping (or stated they shipped when in actuality they have not) when the item sold well below their expected price. You may want to have a peek through their feedback to see what others are saying now -- especially those noted as "Neutral". I believe the same firm also goes by the moniker: S.W.Tap and are also based in Thailand.

I hope you find this a little bit helpful.

Oh no! thanks for the heads up.. well that's about the worst case scenario ain't it. I'm wondering how long does it typically wait for items to arrive before I can dispute it or contact ebay or cancel the paypal payment. Fortunately, the payment was made through my MC so I can dispute the charge.

Is there an alternate place I can go to buy some cheap gem stones. I'm just beginning to explore buying CS and don't want to spend too much yet until I've determined exactly what I like.

Thanks again for all your help.. diamond shopping seemed to go much smoother

I swear it looks like curved stria in the inverted photo, which would indicate a synthetic.

Cheers,

Lisa
www.lisaelser.com