First time buyer with some questions

[oldbruce]

Hello to all! I've been shopping around for a while looking to purchase an engagement ring soon and wondering what some thoughts were on this diamond I've been checking out. The stone looks great to my very untrained eye, my biggest issue is not knowing if the price is fair or if there may be a better value out there. Some specs...

AGS 104053521001
http://agslab.com/reportTypes/pdqr.php?StoneID=104053521001&Weight=.906&D=1

AGS#: 104053521001
Report Type: Diamond Quality™ Report
Shape and Style: Round Brilliant
Measurements: 6.09 - 6.22 x 3.76 mm
Carat Weight: 0.906
Total Depth: 60.7%
Table: 60.4%
Girdle Description: Thin to Thick, Faceted
Culet: Pointed
Polish: Good
Symmetry: Good
Color Grade: AGS 1.0 (F)
Clarity Grade: AGS 5 (SI1)
Fluorescence: Negligible
Table: 60.4%
Crown Angle: 34.1
Crown Height: 13.5%
Girdle: Faceted, 1.5% to 5.4%
Pavilion Angle: 40.7
Pavilion Depth: 42.9%
Star Length: 55%
Lower Girdle Length: 84%
Total Depth: 60.7%
Culet Verbose: Pointed

Not sure really how to tell how the cut is graded on the AGS report. I found some tables, but was thinking I was using them incorrectly.

The store wants $7300 for the stone - a slight drop in price from their initial retail offering. Any thoughts - would I be paying to much? If I can provide more info to help let me know.

Much Thanks!!!

 

[0-0-0]

The old GIA report: https://myapps.gia.edu/ReportCheckPortal/getReportData.do?&reportno=10922510&weight=0.9

IMO overpriced and there are much better options out there.

http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/F-SI1-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1378576.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1435429.asp
http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-VS2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1384426.asp

 

[marchesa6989]

that stone does not have ideal or even excellent cut, which is most important for ensuring the diamond performs well and is super sparkly, firey and brilliant. for that quality of stone, the price they quoted you is nuts.

if that's your budget here are some stones i found that are much larger in size and have excellent/ideal cut, scoring 1.20 G SI2 $7450 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1389640.asp
1.13 G SI2 $6610 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/G-SI2-Premium-Cut-Round-Diamond-1444562.asp
1.10 H SI2 $6300 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI2-Ideal-Cut-Round-Diamond-1437522.asp
1.09 H SI1 $6730 http://www.jamesallen.com/diamonds/H-SI1-Premium-Cut-Round-Diamond-1444582.asp

what i would do is ask James Allen to get their gemologist to review the diamonds are confirm if they are:
eye clean
get an idealscope to look at light return and performance of the diamond
comparison to see which of the stones they recommend as being the best choice for you

the stones i recommended may look scary on the highly magnified images, but a few of them have a type of inclusion called twinning wisps which are eye clean most of the time. if you find an SI2 stone that has twinning wisps that are not visible, its a great way to get best value for money. my own ring is H SI2 with twinning wisps and i've advised some other members to explore that option too: [URL='https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/newbie-engagement-ring-help.168987/']https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/newbie-engagement-ring-help.168987/[/URL]

worth considering and investigating further!

 

[oldbruce]

Thanks for the quick reply and the links as well. Kinda what my gut feeling was as well.

My brother looking with me today and about a year ago he had purchased a very similar diamond size/clarity/color - wise, but princess cut. He paid about $4500 for his diamond. Does a round stone usually command a much higher premium? The employees reason for the price premium had to do with "waste" during the cut, and also said things were 20% more expensive this year versus last year when he purchased. I still don't think that would justify that much of a price difference.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Definitely overpriced and you can get a better stone than that, too. Don't go below excellent for polish and symmetry with an AGS graded stone or very good for a GIA graded stone.

I like a lot of the options posted by the other posters from James Allen, although I personally prefer not going below SI1.

 

[slg47]

Thanks for the quick reply and the links as well. Kinda what my gut feeling was as well.

My brother looking with me today and about a year ago he had purchased a very similar diamond size/clarity/color - wise, but princess cut. He paid about $4500 for his diamond. Does a round stone usually command a much higher premium? The employees reason for the price premium had to do with "waste" during the cut, and also said things were 20% more expensive this year versus last year when he purchased. I still don't think that would justify that much of a price difference.

yes, rounds are more $ per carat. also, there has been a large price increase in diamonds recently.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Prices absolutely are higher this year, but that stone was overpriced as you can see since there are better cut stones for considerably less on the James Allen site. Princess cuts has a smaller diameter than rounds and are priced a little lower in general for the same weight.

 

[oldbruce]

Thanks for the reply. Great info for me on cut as I was questioning that aspect about that diamond. Knowing that information, would have to agree with all that this is not the right one for me. I do have a budget of about $8000 for the diamond and think I can get far more for my money than what was offered to me today. I'll definitely have to start with the links you and others provided for some new research.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Vendors with excellent reputations for ideal cut stones with pictures, etc. besides James Allen which was listed previously are Good Old Gold, WhiteFlash, and Brian Gavin. I have actually bought items from the latter three.

 

[oldbruce]

I *BIG* thanks to all who posted a response to my question. I feel like I've averted a few thousand dollar mistake. Not that I won't end up paying just as much in the long run, but now I don't feel like I'm walking around in the dark. Before I had found this site I had a deposit down on previous mentioned stone, with the hard sell coming on strong. My gut said no, and I walked out with only a fully refundable deposit to hold. Just a couple days later, the hold is cancelled and I'm immensely more informed and aware of what my dollar will buy me.

There are a few stones that I'm considering on JA and Whiteflash. I've also found a small, local jeweler who is searching for diamonds that meet the criteria I'm looking for and will bring them in with no obligation. 1 - 1.2 ct, AGS or GIA cert Ideal/Exl cut, G H I, SI1 or in that range, around $7500. The HCA is an interesting tool to use as well for comparison. Any thoughts on what I'm looking for and how it fits within my budget?

A question as well on some of the AGS reports. Some that I've looked at are the "Platinum Light Performance Diamond Quality Document" while others look to be just more of the standard. Why do some stones have these specific different certs?

Thanks,
ob