Do you recommend this book ? Gem Identification Made Easy,

[garfield]

Hi,

I have seen this book (2nd edition) gets many positive feedback at amazon - I then discovered there is actually a 3rd edition from May 2003

http://www.gemstonepress.com/347.htm

1. Do you recommend this book as the all-in-one Gems & Diamonds source ?

2. Do you recommend any other book that covers both gems & diamonds as well as this one ?

3. Where can I find a good on-line dealer for diamond and gem tool (10X loupe, Chelsea Filter, Dichroscope, tweezers etc.)

4. Any recommendations for loupes ? Anyone had experinced Holloway''s 10X plastic loupe yet ? the HCA man says they are the best -

Garry - are you 10X blue plastic loupes really give the same quality as Zeiss, Nikon, Bausch & Lomb ? I will take your word on this as I highly respect you.

Best Regards

 

[NewYorker]

I have this book and couldn't put it down for a week after getting it! I love it! It's the second addition too - I found out after I bought it there's a 3rd addition. I'm sure there's not MUCh difference between them.
I bought some tools cheap on ebay from a great seller instrumentsdepot. I bought a spectroscope and refractometer from them I think. I also bought a Bausch and Lomb triple 10x loupe from YourGemologist. I also have an eye loupe and the Bausch and Lomb is better.
I bought a dichroscope on ebay cheap too and a chelsea filter. I could not find tweezers so I bought them from JewelersSupply.com I also bought calipers from them, but they're backordered.
I just bought another good book called "Gemstone Buying Guide" from Newman. I checked it out at the library and liked it so I bought it from Barnes and Noble online. Newman also has a books dedicated soley to diamonds, sapphires and rubies, emeralds, etc...
I'm embarrased to admit that I have had the spectroscope and refractometer for a month now and haven't tried them out.

Good luck and have fun! I hope this helps.

 

[garfield]

Thanks Tanya for your help.

Are you also into learning by yourself just as a hobby ?

I am that kind of guy who likes to discover and enjoy this journey into the undiscovered realms of Gems. At first all I cared for was diamonds but lately I am drawn to the other gems too. I almost did the same thing and bought the 2nd edition from AMaz*N as they cleverly "hide" the 3rd edition (probably trying to sell the older 2nd edition abd make a better margin) luckily I happened to discover the www.gemstonepress.com website and find the newly published 3rd edition. It suppose to have better coverage of synthetic diamonds so If I were you I would have tried to get the 2nd edition back for a refund.

I ordered the 3rd edition book from amaz*n and really liked it because it seems down to earh and practical - glad you also liked it that much.

My biggest question to you - where do you go from here ? You have THE book, all the right tools, the motivation and wit to learn and ....? How do you get to try all the different identifying techniques ? How to you get gems and fakes and faux to test and practice your skills ?
This frustrates me as it leads me to think that it is impossible for someone like myself to study the subject without the help of a class/course with lots of samples.

What are your suggestions on self-teaching of gemology ? Is there a way or place where I can get a set of diofferent kind of stones to practice (like Garry Holloway cleverly offers a 6mm CZ ideal cut to demonstrate users of his ideal-scope what should an ideal cut diamond lopok like).

I would appreciate any inout on this.

Meanwhile Tanya - thanks again for your feedback. great to hear from you.

G

 

[NewYorker]

Well, I'm just starting out myself and it's more of a hobby (I'm notorious for picking up expensive hobbies). It's only a hobby because I haven't figured out how to make money from it yet. I'm trying though.
Another good book to get is Handbook of Gem Identification by Liddicoat. I don't think it's in print anymore , but I bought a used one from someone on Barnes and Noble. It's good for use with the spectroscope.
I bought a bunch of gems off various people on ebay and have gotten really good gems for less money and really crappy gems for little money too. It's a crap shoot on ebay unless you know a good seller.
Fortunately, I can get any sythetic or genuine gem I want (if I have the money) from a dealer in the diamond district in manhattan. (they think I'm in the trade thanks to some connections). I just showed up at their office 2 days ago and got myself some CZs (6mm AAA rounds for $1.70 a piece). BTW, it looks just like my real diamond. I don't know if it's ideal cut. They have everything! All I need is money. (isn't that always the way).
You can get really cheap synthetic loose gems on ebay too though.
Yes, I am teaching myself. Actually, I just started getting more interested in diamonds. Gems are my first love but don't get me wrong, I LOVE diamonds too.
If you want to email me off board please do and we can find a way to learn together and I can help you out with obtaining some gems to study.

 

[mike04456]

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On 8/21/2003 5:14:30 PM NewYorker wrote:
Another good book to get is Handbook of Gem Identification by Liddicoat. I don't think it's in print anymore , but I bought a used one from someone on Barnes and Noble. It's good for use with the spectroscope.

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I believe you still get a free copy if you take the GIA course, but they also sell them separately:

http://www.gia.edu/geminstrument/mySearchResults1.cfm?CFID=1938136&CFTOKEN=57123449&productID=54&display=detail&categoryID=13&name=Books&filterFor=liddicoat

 

[LuLu B]

Now this sounds exciting! Sort of like a diamond treasure hunters club ... I would love to be involved! Please add me to your email list and may we have many great tales to tell! Maybe it would be a good string for this site ..

 

[NewYorker]

Oooh, that sounds good. Email me off board and we'll see what we can do about it.

 

[Richard Sherwood]

The Kassoy site is a great one for tools and instruments.

http://www.goldtesters.com/loupes01.htm

 

[chantal990]

Hi,

I have just received this book today from Amazon.com and I love it. It is so helpful!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I am practically bouncing off the walls as I was looking so hard and long for something like this as there are not a lot of courses available where I live.

I have both the Rene Newman and Antoinette Matlins Buying Guides but I think this book may end up being even more helpful especially with people who are just getting started and can''t afford to or get to a in classroom kind of course.