Finding a Ruby For this Particular Mount

[Ella]

Folks, no synthetics per our forum policies please. Thanks for your help.

 

[chroman]

How goes the hunt? I noticed that the 1.06 at gemfix seems to have sold, fwiw.

 

[RubyGent]

How goes the hunt? I noticed that the 1.06 at gemfix seems to have sold, fwiw.

sorry for the late response. my life at work has been crazy. someone left for another gig and right now i'm stuck doing two jobs as one person.

we both went to intergem and we did not see a ruby anywhere as close to the color from the picture i submitted. it's becoming quite clear that having a red ruby like that is what is important and to have the clarity be good so that light can shine through.

i did find an ohio reseller that works with ruby's as everyone at intergem told me to go their booth called Best In Gems.They said they actually have the exact mount i was looking for but didn't have it on the floor. However, all the ruby's they showed me did not look anywhere close to as good as the one i posted a picture of. I'm not sure why i cannot find another ruby like that. That either makes me believe that it's an insanely good ruby, or that, it's a fake.

all this is honestly leaving me so confused. it also doesn't help that the other folks are telling me prices that are way cheaper for the mount than the guy with the ruby i want, which is a bit aggravating.

 

[chroman]

Bummer you didn't see anything decent at Intergem, but it sounds like you are getting a good picture of what you want. Its now a matter of finding the right stone.

If a jeweler is claiming to have "that setting" at a signifigantly lower price, thats a sign that what they have is a stock piece (along the lines of the Stuller settings posted earler, though perhaps not as good a quality). Getting something custom fabricated will always come with a cost premium, as there are various economic forces that make the stock setting cheaper (economies of scale, global labor makets, lower quality work or melee, etc).

One way or another, it sounds like the setting is under control. If you want to check out the Ohio offering, thats cool, just remember that it may or may not end up fitting the stone you end up with. Stone first!

That either makes me believe that it's an insanely good ruby, or that, it's a fake.

Your spider sences are keen - ruby are pretty much always included to some degree, if they are totally clean and big, with great color, at some low price, thats a red flag. Poke around the mall and you can see various 2ct super-clean stones (in settings) for low low prices. They're either fake or heavily treated.

The one you saw and liked is a more reasonable size, so jumping to the immediate concusion that its fake wouod be premature. But, it could have various treatments to improve its clarity, many of which are hard-to-impossible for a consumer, or even a jeweler, to onow without a lab report, and knowing those treatments can inform what a fair price for it would be.

If it was me, I'd be itching to see that Pearlmans stone in person!

ETA: I meant to also add.. Given that your seem to be liking cleaner stones (and probably well cut ones at that), I'll throw out one more red spinel. I know you said it should be ruby for a variety or reasons, but spinel is a much clearer stone. The hard part is finding one that is a red to compete with a nice ruby. For a chunk of history, people referred to both spinel and ruby as "ruby", fwiw. If you are completely set on ruby, nevermind!!
http://gemfix.com/gems/spinel-338-portuguese-style-cut-oval-1-12cts

 

[qubitasaurus]

I am not sure more suggestions will help you, but when I saw this the other day it reminded me of your search

https://www.etsy.com/sg-en/listing/...heat-only-no-flux-red?ref=shop_home_active_17

Down side is it is a little shallow, and definitely has a tilt window. Upside is that it had an agl cert saying heat only and looks relatively clean.

 

[RubyGent]

If it was me, I'd be itching to see that Pearlmans stone in person!

ETA: I meant to also add.. Given that your seem to be liking cleaner stones (and probably well cut ones at that), I'll throw out one more red spinel. I know you said it should be ruby for a variety or reasons, but spinel is a much clearer stone. The hard part is finding one that is a red to compete with a nice ruby. For a chunk of history, people referred to both spinel and ruby as "ruby", fwiw. If you are completely set on ruby, nevermind!!
http://gemfix.com/gems/spinel-338-portuguese-style-cut-oval-1-12cts

It looks like that pearlman's sold this morning. I was just a tad too late. This is what they said they have that is comparable:

http://www.pearlmansjewelers.com/gemstones/?sku=8121

The hand profile makes it seem scratched up a little no? Does this one seem like it would be able to refract the light well though?

 

[chroman]

It looks like that pearlman's sold this mornin

Someone seems to be on a ruby buying bender. I noticed that 3 other very nice gemfix stones seem to have sold in the last few days.

 

[GemstoneNoob]

Seems you have a pretty simple solution. If she really likes that Ruby, and you like it, buy it. Then you can either buy a setting elsewhere, and have that company set it, or you could make a custom setting, or you could buy a setting and take it to your local shop to have them set it. I've been trying to build my engagement ring for a bit over 6 months now, and the stone is the hardest part. You can find much better deals online, but the colors aren't always represented correctly in the photos and videos. Or you get the gem in the mail and find out it has a severe cutting flaw that wasn't visible in the picture.

For me, the stone is the hardest part. If you've found yours, go for it. The rest will fall into place. There are custom setting vendors out there who will work with you (ebay and etsy, check the colored stone vendor list on these forums), and stock settings like stuller that are Very affordable. If you check the websites for the jewelers near you, many of them will have a stuller web shop (or you can go to the stuller site), so you can find a setting you like, plop in your type of stone and see how it looks.

 

[RubyGent]

Seems you have a pretty simple solution. If she really likes that Ruby, and you like it, buy it. Then you can either buy a setting elsewhere, and have that company set it, or you could make a custom setting, or you could buy a setting and take it to your local shop to have them set it. I've been trying to build my engagement ring for a bit over 6 months now, and the stone is the hardest part. You can find much better deals online, but the colors aren't always represented correctly in the photos and videos. Or you get the gem in the mail and find out it has a severe cutting flaw that wasn't visible in the picture.

For me, the stone is the hardest part. If you've found yours, go for it. The rest will fall into place. There are custom setting vendors out there who will work with you (ebay and etsy, check the colored stone vendor list on these forums), and stock settings like stuller that are Very affordable. If you check the websites for the jewelers near you, many of them will have a stuller web shop (or you can go to the stuller site), so you can find a setting you like, plop in your type of stone and see how it looks.

yeah i think i might just need to bite. it just seems like prices are all over the place.

I did find this one other 0.59 ct ruby that i am also liking alot.

What do you think about this cut?

New Ruby that os 0.59 ct

https://youtu.be/gdyS61L1S5k





Just for example, the previous ruby that we also liked at 0.5 ct

 

[canuk-gal]

HI:

http://www.spectralgems.net/ruby/rubyrd1_13ct_9508/

cheers--Sharon

 

[RubyGent]

It looks like that pearlman's sold this mornin

Someone seems to be on a ruby buying bender. I noticed that 3 other very nice gemfix stones seem to have sold in the last few days.

I agree. I think it comes down to these two for me? Any thoughts at all on what you think?



the one on the left is the original that we liked. It is that diamond cut.
the one on the right is the we recently see.

here is a close up of the one on the left, the original. You can see the way it is inside are like "lines."



I found out this is where they get the "diamond cut" like ruby's.

http://www.stuller.com/products/round-genuine-ruby/182418/?groupId=92583

has anyone heard of this retailer?

 

[chroman]

I'll punt and say that its more of matter of which one *you* like better

Stuller is a good vendor for sourcing settings, but I'm not sure about their CS. My gut says that there is a high chance of heavy treatment involved with things they would sell, but I have no evidence to back that up.

 

[GregS]

I agree with the above, Stuller has very nice settings, but I wouldn't source stones from them.

If you want to get calibrated a stone check out AfricaGems, I have had very good luck with their calibrated stones.

They also have a few "free size" Rubies that look good and will meet your size requirement.

 

[chroman]

Good suggestion GregS, maybe something like this one could be another option:
http://www.africagems.com/round-ruby-gemstone-79812180.html

Or, this, thought it might be pushing your total budget:
http://www.africagems.com/round-ruby-gemstone-75811776.html

 

[Niel]

Yes I suggested stuller to you earlier on this thread

 

[chroman]

Niel - but for settings, not CS, right? I read it as the OP's jeweler was sourcing rubys from Stuller.

 

[boerumbiddy]

Just to put in my two cents -- and that's about all I have this month, about two cents -- that second Africagems stone is pretty close to what I consider an ideal red. Depending on level of treatment, it seems like a really good choice. In fact, it looks very much like that Pearlman's ruby that came up earlier in the discussion, just bigger and still on the market.

 

[Niel]

Niel - but for settings, not CS, right? I read it as the OP's jeweler was sourcing rubys from Stuller.

Correct the settings I think are perfectly acceptable but no I wouldn't get a stone from them

 

[RubyGent]

Niel - but for settings, not CS, right? I read it as the OP's jeweler was sourcing rubys from Stuller.

Correct the settings I think are perfectly acceptable but no I wouldn't get a stone from them

can you tell me why you wouldn't get a stone from them? i'm just curious why people wouldn't recommend stuller.

both my girlfriend and i honestly love the stone a lot is why i'm wondering. It just has so much fire. I know people are talking about how there isn't much to the diamond cut the thing, but the way he explains it does make sense. The ruby from stuller holds most of it's weight on top and it's triangular almost from the side; whereas, the other ruby's seem to curve down with a fatter belly on the side.

also if i look at the two pictures below of the differing rubys where the left is stuller and the right is more of a gem cut with the fatter belly... it looks like on the stuller there are "lines" inside that make the light reflect very nicely whereas with the one on the right, it's more like little dots of light it seems.

here is what the stuller stone looks like:


here is what the other stone looks like:

 

[RubyGent]

Just to put in my two cents -- and that's about all I have this month, about two cents -- that second Africagems stone is pretty close to what I consider an ideal red. Depending on level of treatment, it seems like a really good choice. In fact, it looks very much like that Pearlman's ruby that came up earlier in the discussion, just bigger and still on the market.

i don't think i can afford that. honestly based on seeing all these ruby's i'm fairly scared of ordering online.

 

[GemstoneNoob]

I get it now! The diamond cut they keep referring to... the "lines" you like? It's just a style of cutting called Concave. Typically, a diamond like cut is just a round faceted stone. I think this is where the confusion was coming from. So. Its not that its a diamond cut, It's that it is a concave cut... and the guy selling you the stone, not knowing the difference, irks me a tad.

So here's the deal. If you really like the correct proportions (the less rounded belly {that happens because a lot of gemstones are cut for weight}) you can always purchase a precision cut stone. It will cost more. If you're trying to be price effective about it, and still get a nice stone, I'd buy one with the color you love, bigger than you wanted, but with a poor cut (disproportioned, but still in the shape you want) then send it off to a cutter for a precision re-cut into a concave. There are even cutters listed in the vendor section of this forum. Just google "concave cut gemstone" and you'll get some examples, and see that it comes in many shapes and sizes. Buying the right color, but with a poor cut (windowed, etc) and then recutting, is a decent way to get a better deal on a stone, IMO. You just have to remember that it will lose size during the re-cut, and buy bigger than your intended size.

As other people have said, stuller is great for settings, but their gemstones aren't fantastic. In any case. Make sure it comes with a certificate that discloses any treatments, and if it's all acceptable to you, and you love it that much, then just get that one

 

[GemstoneNoob]

I couldn't figure out how to edit my post, so I figured I'd just add this in.

I found this little tidbit, as an explanation as to why you aren't finding many concave cut rubies, which essentially backs up the opinion on stuller stones. http://www.ajsgem.com/articles/concave-cut-gems.html