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Does laser inscription in Asscher show up as flaw?

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
Dear P.S.ers,

Recently, I was looking longingly at some Asschers online and noticed as they were spinning that I kept seeing weird flaws... only when I paused the spinning did I realize that I could see "GIA" followed by the report number. It was the laser inscription! My eyesight is generally terrible so I was surprised to be able to see it, even though I realize the diamond is being photographed under magnification.

This got me wondering: does the "hall of mirrors" in an Asscher reflect the laser inscription in a way that a round brilliant would not? And if yes, should one try to avoid an Asscher that is laser inscribed?

Also, what magnification is being shown on sites like BlueNile, Adiamor, JamesAllen - is that 10x magnification or 20x or ??? Trying to get a sense of what would be visible or not... I am attaching a screenshot - hope it shows up well.

Asscher w GIA laser inscription.jpg

Thanks!
 

Karl_K

Super_Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Aug 4, 2008
Messages
14,632
I have never seen an inscription in the real world reflected inside the stone in person with just my eyes and I have looked a lot.
In the real world that refection is super tiny 2-3 human hairs thick.
 

monipod

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
1,041
As @Karl_K said, you won't be able to see the reflection in real life and once set, it'd be that rare angle where you might get it reflect. When my Asscher arrived it was so sparkly that there was no chance that I'd be able to see the actual inscription with the naked eye, nevermind a reflection of it.
 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
I have never seen an inscription in the real world reflected inside the stone in person with just my eyes and I have looked a lot.
In the real world that refection is super tiny 2-3 human hairs thick.

Thank you, Karl! I feel very reassured by you saying this!
 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
As @Karl_K said, you won't be able to see the reflection in real life and once set, it'd be that rare angle where you might get it reflect. When my Asscher arrived it was so sparkly that there was no chance that I'd be able to see the actual inscription with the naked eye, nevermind a reflection of it.

Thank you, Monipod - where did you end up finding yours? I haven't shopped for a diamond in many years and there are so many new retailers online. Also, Asschers seem tricky. I have been reading old posts about them on this site and realize that even when the numbers tick the boxes, sometimes they don't "sing" - so I also want to make sure I buy from a place with a good return policy in case the stone ends up not making me swoon in person.
 

monipod

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
1,041
@Rosa - Oh my... The Asscher journey was long lol I wish they had numbers to work with but there's just no such thing as the right table or depth percentage with Asschers! It either looks right to you or it doesn't!

I ended up needing to broaden my pool to include lab stones as options, and indeed found my perfect (for now) Asscher amongst lab stones. Very happy with my decision, though I understand you may prefer a mined stone. The perfect one is out there! Rare Carat is proving to be a good starting point to find vendors with the best selection.
 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
Thanks, Monipod - I have a Rare Carat search going but for some reason they are sending me stones that cost 2x what I asked my budget to be! Ouch! And even the really expensive stones just look square with really small cut corners and of course, I want the wider cut corners! That is a big part of the appeal! Just started my search last week and was hoping to buy sooner rather than later but will try to be patient... Time for me to get to bed but thank you again for the advice.
 

monipod

Brilliant_Rock
Joined
Jun 25, 2019
Messages
1,041
Even if you don't buy from them, James Allen always has a good selection of Asschers so if anything, it's a good way to find the shape you like the most and work out from the stats to see if you can find something similar elsewhere. Good luck!
 

Matthews1127

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 7, 2017
Messages
5,207
What size and budget are we seeking/working with?
Can you throw out some preferences so we can try to help you? I have a specific stone in mind, which is why I’m asking for details.
FWIW: my EC is laser inscribed, and, under magnification, the number is reflected in my steps.
With the naked eye....not seen.
;)2
 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
What size and budget are we seeking/working with?
Can you throw out some preferences so we can try to help you? I have a specific stone in mind, which is why I’m asking for details.
FWIW: my EC is laser inscribed, and, under magnification, the number is reflected in my steps.
With the naked eye....not seen.
;)2

Thanks, Matthews1127, for the reassurance about the laser inscription.

The exact budget is currently mired in top-level diplomatic talks (haha) between DH and me.

I am hoping to find a great "value" e.g., I've been searching for 3.5-4.5 carats with H-I color and medium blue fluorescence as I read that will help them face up whiter. Also have been searching for VS2 or eye-clean SI1.

Of course, the cut has to be optimized!

On Pricescope and RareCarat, I've found some stones that seem "on paper" when one looks at the certificates or photos (if online) to tick all those boxes EXCEPT for the shape box - the price range for the ones I've seen are in the $30s and $40s.

The shape I'd like would be ideally like that depicted by CR 22 or CR 26 - as shown in the table below.

Thanks for any suggestions! This is a once-in-a-lifetime purchase so I want to take my time and find something I love!

We are avoiding public places b/c of health issues in our family, and covid cases are spiking near where we live, so DH and I are unable to go view stones in person anywhere. However, it seems like any stone can be shipped (I'm in the U.S.) so hoping to find the "right" one based on photos and the stats on certificates.

This link has the values I've been using as a general guideline: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/what-is-the-ideal-asscher-cut.19989/

(p.s. signing off of the computer until tonight but will look forward to anyone's input!)

AGS geometry Asscher different corner ratios.jpg
 

lissyflo

Brilliant_Rock
Premium
Joined
May 23, 2016
Messages
1,719
To allay your worries about the inscription being visible, just scale it down from the photo you posted. Take the mm measurement of the inscription in the pic and scale for the mm measurement of the asscher in the pic vs its actual mm measurement. It’ll be minuscule!
 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
To allay your worries about the inscription being visible, just scale it down from the photo you posted. Take the mm measurement of the inscription in the pic and scale for the mm measurement of the asscher in the pic vs its actual mm measurement. It’ll be minuscule!

Thanks, lissyflo - I just tried that and definitely can't see it - and fortunately, my eyes are only getting worse as I age, haha!

Years ago, when my DH was shopping for a diamond to propose, he asked me to give him an idea of what I wanted in terms of an e-ring. At the time, we lived in NYC and my office was walking distance to the Diamond District so I could wander over to 47th St at lunch! So, I have looked at SI1 round brilliants with inclusions that I could easily see despite the stones being sparkly (and sometimes I could not see the SI1 inclusions) but at that time I didn't look at any Asschers in person so especially wondered if the inscription would be a bit like an SI1-type inclusion.

But Karl_K and others on here all assure me it is impossible to see with the naked eye, so I feel reassured. My round brilliant e-ring diamond is not laser-inscribed - seems like it wasn't nearly as popular many years ago when we got married.
 

Matthews1127

Ideal_Rock
Premium
Joined
Apr 7, 2017
Messages
5,207
Thanks, Matthews1127, for the reassurance about the laser inscription.

The exact budget is currently mired in top-level diplomatic talks (haha) between DH and me.

I am hoping to find a great "value" e.g., I've been searching for 3.5-4.5 carats with H-I color and medium blue fluorescence as I read that will help them face up whiter. Also have been searching for VS2 or eye-clean SI1.

Of course, the cut has to be optimized!

On Pricescope and RareCarat, I've found some stones that seem "on paper" when one looks at the certificates or photos (if online) to tick all those boxes EXCEPT for the shape box - the price range for the ones I've seen are in the $30s and $40s.

The shape I'd like would be ideally like that depicted by CR 22 or CR 26 - as shown in the table below.

Thanks for any suggestions! This is a once-in-a-lifetime purchase so I want to take my time and find something I love!

We are avoiding public places b/c of health issues in our family, and covid cases are spiking near where we live, so DH and I are unable to go view stones in person anywhere. However, it seems like any stone can be shipped (I'm in the U.S.) so hoping to find the "right" one based on photos and the stats on certificates.

This link has the values I've been using as a general guideline: https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/what-is-the-ideal-asscher-cut.19989/

(p.s. signing off of the computer until tonight but will look forward to anyone's input!)

AGS geometry Asscher different corner ratios.jpg

Not quite the shape of C22 or C26, but, lovely, nonetheless.

What do you think?

 

Rosa

Shiny_Rock
Joined
May 29, 2008
Messages
164
It is lovely! Thank you for sending. Will have to inspect further tonight when the kids are in bed! RareCarat emailed me a few more to look at but am supposed to be cooking dinner right now so will try to post tonight and see what you experts think!
 
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