emerald cut girdle very thin to thin & more questions

[wstt2]

I found this great GIA certified 3ct emerald cut stone with the exact dimensions I was looking for and I even found it for a great, great price.
My only concern is that the girdle is very thin to thin. Will that make it difficult to set in a raised setting with just 4 prongs? (sorry if my terminology isn''t correct but I want the stone to be set higher with a prong on each corner holding the diamond.)

The stone GIA certifcate says 1997, is that any reason to be concerned? I called GIA and they looked up the certificate which was a little tricky at first as I called California and at first they couldn''t find the matching certificate but later found it in the New York Certificate Database. When the found it, the specs all matched the GIA certificate I was looking at. I do plan on getting it appraised right at purchase just to make sure the stone matches the certificate.
Do diamonds change over time?
It''s a VS2 with color E, depth of 61.7%, table of 66%, no culet, good symmetry, & no flourescence.
Any advice here would be greatly appreciated. Especially about the girdle.

 

[Moh 10]

Chips will change the grade.
This is a concern especially with a very thin girdle.

Get an appraiser to examine it.
Or send it back to GIA.

 

[chrono]

Date: 3/18/2009 8:44:47 PM
Author: Moh 10
Chips will change the grade.
This is a concern especially with a thin girdle.

Get an appraiser to examine it.
Or send it back to GIA.

Agreed. And it's not just a thin but very thin to thin grading. I know of many old cut stones with girdles like this that are prone to damage and do get chipped/nicked which can change a VS1 grading down to a SI1 depending upon its severity. As for the 1997 cert, I would not worry about it. It is most likely still "valid" and would only require an independent appraiser to verify that the stone matches the cert.

 

[strmrdr]

no way
way to big a chance of damage over 12 years with a v-thin girdle.
I would be inclined to pass anyway but for sure would with a 12 year old report.

 

[Lorelei]

Welcome to Pricescope

No deal unless it got a good report in all aspects from a trusted independant appraiser, and that the very thin part of the girdle wasn't a durability issue.

Here is a tool you can use to find an appraiser in your area.

http://www.pricescope.com/appr_list.aspx

 

[wstt2]

I would be getting it at an excellent price from someone who sells estate sale and bankrupcty jewelry. LIke I said, it has a 1997 GIA certificate, and the seller has a gemologist on staff who looked at it and "said" there were no chips. The price really is excellent but if no matter what the price is, getting a very thin to thin girdle is a big mistake then I guess no price is low enough. Doesn''t insurance cover chips and cracks?

My concerns about the transaction and fraud are a whole new topic which I''ll put in another post but no matter who I purchased a diamond from, I''d be skeptical.

I don''t mean to make this sound critical but from what has been said here, it sounds like diamonds with very thin to thin girdles are worthless because they are too prone to chipping. If it''s an older stone, you wouldn''t want it because it is likely chipped and if it''s a newer stone, why would anyone purchase it, if it''s most likely going to chip, and it will also be worth less down the road because no one wants an old stone with a very thin girdle. Am I missing something here?

 

[strmrdr]

yes a v-thin girdle reduces value and resalability.

In a bezel I wold consider it but in an open 4 prong... I wouldn''t...

Either way you need to get it checked out by a pro viewing the diamond in person if you are considering it.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 3/19/2009 10:19:51 AM
Author: wstt2

I would be getting it at an excellent price from someone who sells estate sale and bankrupcty jewelry. LIke I said, it has a 1997 GIA certificate, and the seller has a gemologist on staff who looked at it and ''said'' there were no chips. The price really is excellent but if no matter what the price is, getting a very thin to thin girdle is a big mistake then I guess no price is low enough. Doesn''t insurance cover chips and cracks?

My concerns about the transaction and fraud are a whole new topic which I''ll put in another post but no matter who I purchased a diamond from, I''d be skeptical.

I don''t mean to make this sound critical but from what has been said here, it sounds like diamonds with very thin to thin girdles are worthless because they are too prone to chipping. If it''s an older stone, you wouldn''t want it because it is likely chipped and if it''s a newer stone, why would anyone purchase it, if it''s most likely going to chip, and it will also be worth less down the road because no one wants an old stone with a very thin girdle. Am I missing something here?

It depends - but I wouldn''t say worthless and any diamond can chip. One of the experts has always taught me that very thin girdles need careful evaluation to see if they are a potential durability issue or not, it isn''t always the case that they are problematic but an independant expert can evaluate this particular one for you and tell you for sure.