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Cutratediamonds.com

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bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
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6
Just wondering if anyone has done business with this website. Thanks....
 

alexah

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Feb 14, 2004
Messages
1,233
Kind of. Don't like to say negative things but you asked & you should probably know our experience before you go through it yourself...

We bought a stone from them - EGL certified.
We were nervous about the color/clarity being off so they told us they would have their "expert" check it out & confirm that the gradings were correct before we went to see the stone.
They claimed that the gradings were spot on so we went to see it.

First of all, when we got to their cutting floor, the stone we'd picked on line didn't match the stone they showed us- they said the info was entered incorrect into the website (on the site, the table was wrong, as was the depth & the girdle).

We still bought the stone & they said they'd to appraise it for us too. We declined & brought it to an independent appraiser instead. Turns out the color/girdle measurements/flourescence was off.

We asked to see a different stone but they said it was sold (I later found out it wasn't & bought it elsewhere). Instead they showed us a stone that was mounted.

We said we wanted our money back and the man was rude but complied.

The whole experience happened before I found PriceScope. Now I know there are much better vendors out there.

I could never in good conscious recommend Cut Rate (I think their name describes their customer service). For your own sake, I recommend you look elsewhere.

Have you done a PriceScope search? I think CR's stones are carried by vendors here & at better prices.

Good luck with whatever you decide!
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bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
Messages
6
Sorry to hear you had a bad experience, but at least you got your money back! That is a good thing! Other people have had good experiences so I am going to give it a shot. I found an asscher cut diamond 1.26 carat, F color, VVS2 clarity with excellent polish and symmetry for $7100. Seems like a good deal. Anyway, thanks for the info and I will post how my transaction turns out!
 

alexah

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Feb 14, 2004
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1,233
I do wish you luck.
...And I do hope you get the stone independently appraised.
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baltneu

Shiny_Rock
Joined
Feb 28, 2004
Messages
371
HeyBobpro28--

The person who responded to you had a bad experience with them and told you do diplomatically, so with all the good and reliable vendors on this forum, my question to you is the following: Why take this risk when you don't have to?
And as far as getting a great deal on a rock, the old saying still applies, "you get what you pay for" Best of luck whatever you do.
 

diamondsman

Brilliant_Rock
Trade
Joined
Nov 11, 2002
Messages
648
If I were you i would check the web for similar stones,
Similar stones are being sold for aroud $500.00-600.00 less.

do your homework,and then make your decision.

good luck
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bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
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Update on my diamond from cutratediamonds.com!! I got the stone last Wednesday, a 1.26 ct VVS2 F color asscher cut. It is the most beautiful diamond I have ever seen!! The step cut is amazing and I could just look at it sparkle for hours!!! My girlfriend is going to love it!!

I took it to Nancy Stacy, the only independent appraiser in the Bay Area to get her opinion. She checked out the stone as being exactly what the GIA cert says and agreed with me that I have found an absolutely beautiful diamond at a great price!

So for anyone out there thinking about using Cutratediamonds, I say go for it. Barry was a pleasure to deal with and answered all of my questions, even at 9 PM on his cell phone when I was having trouble locating the UPS tracking number online.

Now onto the even more important task of finding a great setting for our diamond. Anyone out there have some suggestions for an Asscher cut? I would like to find something in Platinum, but with some yellow gold as my girlfriend wears some yellow gold jewelry as well. Any suggestions or recommendations would be greatly appreciated!!!!! Thanks!!!
 

iggynyus

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 20, 2004
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2
Had the best experience with those guys from CutRateDiamonds.com
I did A LOT of research on the internet prior to choosing their site. The reason people are scared to buy online is because you don't get to see/ don't get to touch what you are about to pay a lot of money for. Went to their website and saw scanned copies of the GIA certificates next to many diamond listings, found the best diamond in my $ range (round H SI2 1.01ct $3,080 with few minor 'clouds' located in the periphery of the stone where no one can see them with a naked eye), wrote an email, got a lightning response back, everything else is history. Couldn't be happier. Those guys don't have a storefront - so their margins are razor-thin. When I was doing my research I saw an exact same loose diamond (round H SI2) for close to $6,000 at Macy's in Manhattan.
My only suggestion to them would be to scan as many certificates as possible, I'd never buy something on just "dry data" w/o being able to see the picture.
Will be back for the wedding bands.
Good luck to everyone.
 

valeria101

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 29, 2003
Messages
15,809
I wish there was enough data on a scanned lab cert to get an idea what you pay for...

Even among the stones posted here (and I would immagine there is even more variation out there,as you mention) 1carat H-SI2 go from $3000/ct to $5000/ct. Based on color and clarity grades all 500+ diamonds listed are the same! probably half would have decent inclusiosn plots and the depth / table numbers were ok to begin with.

So... should I just assume that there is no difference wahtsoever between two H-SI2 once you have the GIA certs scanned on the screen ?
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budgusto13

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 21, 2004
Messages
3
I just bought a stone from CutRateDiamonds.Com and I must say that I was extremely happy with the quality and service of Steven and Barry.
I noticed recently some negative feedback about their service and I am very proud to say that these two gentlemen are the most honest salesmen I have ever bought from before. Everything they advertised was 100% legitimate and the quality of the stones did not compare to anything I was shown by other companies I researched.
They made my online buying process quick and easy.DB
 

Rank Amateur

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Feb 26, 2003
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1,555
I call bullshit on this one.
 

Nicrez

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 21, 2004
Messages
3,230
What...
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R/A: You don't believe super happy posters who show no pictures, give no stone details. mnetion nothing of who or where they searched, how the process actually went (with details) and have a history of 1-3 posts? WHY!?

You are SO cynical!
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bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
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Nicrez,

I have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with CutRateDiamonds.com. I searched the web, found the diamond I was interested in and actually found the exact same diamond at three different sites (Diamond of Virginia, Whiteflash, and Cut Rate I think). I could send you the exact lot number if you think I am lying. Cut rate had the best price, so I bought it from them. I had a great experience dealing with cut rate and I just passed along my result on this board. Is that not what this forum is for? I am sorry that I am new to pricescope and have not posted enough to make my posts believable. If you think I am making this up, call Nancy Stacy yourself and ask her if she had a client who recently bought an Asscher cut from Cutratediamonds and ask what she thinks of it. Maybe you are cynical in thinking that someone can't have a good experience with a new vendor???

When I get the diamond set, I will post pictures......

Bob
 

Mara

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
31,003
I am seeing Nancy Stacy next week !
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I think the original poster is legit...the other guy who chimed in suddenly..eh not quite sure.
 

valeria101

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 29, 2003
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15,809
----------------
On 4/21/2004 6:28:15 PM bobpro28 wrote:



Maybe you are cynical in thinking that someone can't have a good experience with a new vendor???

When I get the diamond set, I will post pictures......

Bob----------------




No, I second Mara on this. It is also quite likely that your stone was definitely above the range where a shop might take shortcuts. There seem to be a serious thirst of ECs on this forum
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Yours will be most welcome, sure that!
 

bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
Messages
6
Thanks Valeria and Mara,

I am still deciding on a setting. The problem is my girlfriend wants some yellow gold in the ring as well, but I don't want yellow gold too close to the diamond because I think it will show up in the stone when you look at it. I have been looking at Simon G settings in platinum with princess sidestones. Escobar diamonds in San Jose is trying to get a couple of rings from the catalog that they don't have in their showroom so I can look at them before select one. Escobar diamonds also thinks I got a great deal on my diamond btw.

Bob
 

Mara

Super_Ideal_Rock
Joined
Oct 30, 2002
Messages
31,003
I love Joe Escobar for settings, they have an excellent selection and are very nice. They are the only store I will go to in the BayArea for extensive setting selections. Good luck and let us know how things turn out.
 

Nicrez

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Jan 21, 2004
Messages
3,230
----------------
On 4/21/2004 6:28:15 PM bobpro28 wrote:

Nicrez,

I have ABSOLUTELY NOTHING to do with CutRateDiamonds.com. I searched the web, found the diamond I was interested in and actually found the exact same diamond at three different sites (Diamond of Virginia, Whiteflash, and Cut Rate I think). I could send you the exact lot number if you think I am lying. Cut rate had the best price, so I bought it from them. I had a great experience dealing with cut rate and I just passed along my result on this board. Is that not what this forum is for? I am sorry that I am new to pricescope and have not posted enough to make my posts believable. If you think I am making this up, call Nancy Stacy yourself and ask her if she had a client who recently bought an Asscher cut from Cutratediamonds and ask what she thinks of it. Maybe you are cynical in thinking that someone can't have a good experience with a new vendor???

When I get the diamond set, I will post pictures......

Bob----------------



Ok, I am happy that you found the stone you wanted. I didn't buy my stone from any vendor on Price Scope, so I am not saying anything like "anyone who is NOT on PS is not useful".

What I AM saying is that lately people will come on the site, and post one post about a company "they dealt with" and rant and rave about it, but sometimes it's just shameless self-promotion for that store. Again, the usual signs seem to be that they only post "when they buy" they ask NO questions, they post NO stone information, and don't post pictures.

Honestly, I was more suspicious of the fact that you asked people for their opinion on the company, and then when you get one negative you go there anyway without asking a question, without waiting for more posts. Sorry, but it sounded like a vendor yet again, and I apologize if you are personally offended by my sweepingly broad statement.

So, if you have found a good vendor and a great stone, by all means tells us everything about it, post stats, tell us about the service specifically and your search, as well as the mandatory posting of pictures!

No personal harm meant, just sort of laughing at the amount of times legitimate posts end up being shamelessly faux.
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But again PLEASE post pictures of your Asscher! Also, Mike Asscher, from the Asscher family posts here on ocassion, I am sure he'd love to see one too!
 

bobpro28

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 29, 2004
Messages
6
Nicrez,

I didn't necessarily view the reply I got as negative. The guy got his money back, which is what I wanted to hear. If he hadn't gotten his money back that that would have been a problem!! For what it is worth, I had already checked with the Better Business Bureau and the Jeweler's Vigilance Committee and found no problems. I had talked several times with Barry Moskowitz over the phone and didn't get any bad vibes. I don't want to be confused for a pitch man again, but he did answer all of my questions and was great to deal with. He even gave me an extra 10 days to look at the diamond and make my decision because they were closed for Easter!! When they shipped my diamond, he called me with the UPS tracking number. A few hours later I checked UPS's website and found no record of the number. I freaked out and called him on his cell phone at 9 PM. He quickly reminded me that UPS doesn't update their database until the morning. He was right and the next morning the tracking info was there and it arrived and I absolutely love it!

When I posted my update about getting the diamond, no one responded so I just assumed that people weren't too interested. I didn't think people thought I was just a pitch man. I will post pictures as soon as I can, but it is tough to get the camera and the diamond in the same room without the girlfriend around!!!

Not being the expert in diamond cuts, I don't know if what I have is a true asscher. As the GIA cert says, it is a square emerald cut. I am not exactly sure what the difference between asscher and square emerald is. I know the royal asscher has more of the stop sign look with more facets. What I do know is that love the diamond! The step pattern is great!!! You can get lost looking into it!!
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Nancy Stacy checked it out and thought it was a beautiful stone too. She had trouble finding the small inclusions because they are tiny pinpoints on one side and a very small needle right near one of the facet edges. As far as the specs: 1.26 Carats, F color, VVS2 5.99x5.96x4.15, Depth 69.6%, Table 61%, EX/EX on polish and symmetry, no fluorescence, and no culet. The girdle is thick. Nancy did say too that she would rate the fluorescence negligible rather than none, but I guess this is just a difference in wording used by the GIA. The fluorescence isn't enough to affect the value, but still has some.

So I am looking for setting and want to find something with platinum and 18K yellow. The less 18K the better though, but my girlfriend really really wants some gold accents in it. The Simon G settings I have seen so far are mostly platinum with small yellow gold accents and look amazing. But I am willing to entertain other suggestions anyone may have!

Anyway, I have rambled on enough. Thanks!!!!

Bob
 

valeria101

Super_Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Aug 29, 2003
Messages
15,809
Is a YG shank out of the question?

Platinum detractors can be quite fanatic!
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Sorry for this whole story. It did happen to me too... Among my first posts on PS there were lots of mentions of a seller I favored. After a few mentions they intervened on the forum with a silly little ploy (two new posters one posing as buyer from that source and the other as the seller himself taking up the praise - ridiculous). Guess what? They just made me wander how lucky I really was to get a one-time good deal from them and haven't mentioned them again! Not that my word is worth much, but most buyers are in the same position as myself.
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iggynyus

Rough_Rock
Joined
Apr 20, 2004
Messages
2
In all honesty, I'd trust a guy with 1-2 posts (a happy customer who had a real experince, came home, wrote about his experience and disappeared/ went on with his life) instead of someone who has thousands of negative remarks and who actually 'lives' in those forums. Makes you wonder about his integrity and reasons for pouring all that dirt out on others.
I had a good experience with them and I wrote about it. I am not gonna write any more posts of a 3rd grade level "You are stupid" - "No, you are", etc.
All the best to everyone.
 

pricescope

Ideal_Rock
Joined
Dec 31, 1999
Messages
8,266
No fighting guys
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Let's be corteous and positive to each other
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