" Evaluating my diamond dealer "

[mike2]

Thanks everyone, I am new to this site, and really need and appreciate all your help and comments.

To determine if my "diamond dealer" is a good one, my girlfriend and I have asked the dealer to do a few things for us before we purchase a loose stone from him.

1. have the egl graded diamond sent to gia for a certification.
2. have an independent appraiser come in with us at the time of purchase of the stone

Since the dealer has agreed to this, we feel he is honest.... what else do we need to do before we buy from this dealer?

Thank you,

 

[Lugus]

How about 100% money back for any reason for, say, two weeks or so? Then send the stone to the appraiser and let him really test it.

Get that in writing.

 

[Mara]

Yes...definitely get a return policy on the stone. 15-30 days is ideal. Don't bring your appraiser in with you at time of purchase as there is a very limited amount of info he can get just by eyeballing the stone in the store (and if he says differently..he's not the appraiser you want to use anyway!).

Check pricing on the stone, compare it to online vendors (Pricescope has a great listing that will let you compare similar stones), as well as other B&M pricing (did you look at other stores) to be sure you are getting a good deal.

Take the stone after purchase into an independent appraiser to get it confirmed and checked out. I say 'independent' because that means they are not affiliated with the jeweler or a store or similar and really should have no hidden agenda since you are the one paying them to find out if the stone meets your criteria. They should run a sarin/megascope/ogi report, confirm the certificate (if its EGL or GIA etc), take magnified pictures of the stone (to show inclusions magnified), and some can do brilliance or light scope reporting, and idealscope or firescope imaging to show you how the stone returns/leaks light.

If all checks out and your pricing is competitive, you have a winner! Good luck and keep us posted.