getting good deal? 1st diamond purchase please help!

[kolchak]

Hi All
I''m brand new to this site & a little nervous as I''m about to propose to my GF of 3 yrs. I know she''d be happy with almost anything I buy her (short of a CE stone) but I''d like to get a ring she will really be proud of. I''ve purchased various items over the years from a VERY well respected local jewler and developed a friendship and degree of trust so I went to him first in search of a "deal." He is offering what seems to be a very good deal on an "estate" stone. The stone is a round & brilliant, 1.71 ca., I color, Sl1, excellent cut, very good polish & symetry with no flourescence & GIA cert.
Under comments it says additional clouds & surface graining not shown. I have the cert but don''t know how to relate the dimensions. Across the top of the diagram it says 56%, 15.5%, 35o, 62.2%, 43% & 80%. The jewler says it is perfectly cut as he rarely see excellent cut grades. He says he is offering me 20% off of RAPP pricing at $9,000.
I really wanted to keep the budget to 7,500 but could stretch if this really is the deal he''s telling me, however
from the quick price check I did on this site, it just seems "fair."
Any advice, comments or direction would be greatly appreciated as I''ve never purchased a diamond before, muchless an engagement ring.

thanks much!

 

[ct-appr]

Can you post the info from the cert? You could ask him if you could take it to an independent appraiser. That way you could get an unbiased opinion on the stone.

 

[kolchak]

All the info from the cert should be in the first post -
It is an estate stone - round & brilliant, 1.71 ca., I color, Sl1, excellent cut, very good polish & symetry with no flourescence.
Under comments on the cert. it says additional clouds & surface graining not shown. I don''t know how to relate the dimensions but across the top of the diagram it says 56%, 15.5%, 35o, 62.2%, 43% & 80%. The jewler says it is perfectly cut and he rarely see excellent cut grades. Am I missing any pertinent info?

He says he is offering me 20% off of RAPP pricing at $9,000. It looked like a beautiful stone but not quite as "white" as some other diamonds I''ve seen. My main question is can I get a comparable or better stone for 9k? I''m sure it''s worth at least what he''s aksing but in this economy I thought I might be able to do better.

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Date: 10/28/2009 11:51:56 PM
Author: kolchak
All the info from the cert should be in the first post -
It is an estate stone - round & brilliant, 1.71 ca., I color, Sl1, excellent cut, very good polish & symetry with no flourescence.
Under comments on the cert. it says additional clouds & surface graining not shown. I don't know how to relate the dimensions but across the top of the diagram it says 56%, 15.5%, 35o, 62.2%, 43% & 80%. The jewler says it is perfectly cut and he rarely see excellent cut grades. Am I missing any pertinent info?

He says he is offering me 20% off of RAPP pricing at $9,000. It looked like a beautiful stone but not quite as 'white' as some other diamonds I've seen. My main question is can I get a comparable or better stone for 9k? I'm sure it's worth at least what he's aksing but in this economy I thought I might be able to do better.

Your are missing one angle and the girdle information so scan the certificate and post it for us so we can help or get that missing angle.

1) Is it eye clean to your standards?
2) Is the girdle too thick or too thin? You want thin to thick or medium (not very thick or very thin).
3) Usually even with the full certificate we would ask for an Idealscope image.

Also just doing a quick search for 1.71 Ct I Si1 the range is around $9000 - 9500 so its not much of a bargain and will only be one if we can determine if the cut is indeed excellent. Some GIA excellents have leakage so we would want to check this. An estate stone not sure what that means but if you post a photograph we could sell you more. Also RAPP is not specific enough and really can't be used for any definitive pricing. If you aren't happy with the level of whiteness I'd suggest going with slightly smaller but better color.

 

[outatouch0]

Better yet, do you have the certification number so we can look it up ourselves?
I wonder how recent the cert is - an old one (pre-sale to original owner) doesn''t account for any possible damage by the wearer etc. In any case, on a deal like this, I wouldn''t do a thing without a recent cert and/or an unbiased opinion from an independent appraiser.
As to price, it may be a "deal" as far as B&M stores go. However, it is EXTREEMELY likely you can get a better cut and color etc through a PS vendor.

 

[stone-cold11]

Still short of 3 numbers, the star size, girdle variation and the lower half number. As mentioned before, post the GIA report number and we can look it up. So far, the numbers look promising.

 

[Lorelei]

I agree with Paul, thats the best thing to do and what I would suggest you do as it is an estate diamond, get an independant appraisal from an appraiser who can tell you more about the cut quality and maybe get detailed measurements, who can also give you an opinion on the price, and make the sale final on it checking out to your satisfaction in all aspects ( get this in writing).

appraiser listing

 

[kolchak]

Thanks again. When he got the stone used it was over 1.8 so he sent it to NY & had it recut where it became an excellent 1.71. The GIA report is dated 3/19/09 and the only number i see is a scanable bar code type - 210500484546 so hopefully this is what you''d need.


The very first number at the top right side is 50%. Directly below that is says slightly thick (faceted) 3.5%. the two numbers indicating the degree of angle were 35 & 41.
56%, 15.5%, 62.2%, 43% & 80%.
The reference diagrams show a very clean stone with some very tiny red dots or crystal indications on the top.

I love these type of forums and never make big puchases with out consulting with independent experts!

I think the stone I''m looking at is a "deal" for a B&M store but maybe not so much if I''m willing to use the internet.
Can anyone tell me approx how much I''d save on a comparable stone on-line?
TY!

 

[stone-cold11]

Numbers look promising. Maybe will have slight leakage to no leakage depending on how well cut it is, need an Idealscope image to definitely say one way or the other. Similar stats stones online is priced around 10k, so the price is quite good.

That is not the GIA report number. Should be on the left hand margin of the report.

 

[ChunkyCushionLover]

Date: 10/29/2009 9:15:08 AM
Author: kolchak
Thanks again. When he got the stone used it was over 1.8 so he sent it to NY & had it recut where it became an excellent 1.71. The GIA report is dated 3/19/09 and the only number i see is a scanable bar code type - 210500484546 so hopefully this is what you''d need.


The very first number at the top right side is 50%. Directly below that is says slightly thick (faceted) 3.5%. the two numbers indicating the degree of angle were 35 & 41.
56%, 15.5%, 62.2%, 43% & 80%.
The reference diagrams show a very clean stone with some very tiny red dots or crystal indications on the top.

I love these type of forums and never make big puchases with out consulting with independent experts!

I think the stone I''m looking at is a ''deal'' for a B&M store but maybe not so much if I''m willing to use the internet.
Can anyone tell me approx how much I''d save on a comparable stone on-line?
TY!

Well it still depends on the cut a top quality cut would be this one http://www.whiteflash.com/hearts_arrows/Whiteflash-ACA-cut-diamond-2192369.htm (much more expensive)
and it goes down from there into the range you are paying like Stone Cold said with minimal leakage its a fair to good price. But if the color bothers you are you use you want to compromise for size?

 

[kolchak]

sorry, i found the report number - 2105640455

From the comparable I''ve seen & the repsonses here it appears to be a good deal & since I do trust the jewler it might be the logical choice. If anyone has comments (now that I''ve found the correct cert #) I''m one giant ear.
Thank you, thank you!

 

[stone-cold11]

Ask to match the inclusion in stone with the inclusion plot on the report.

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 10/29/2009 9:15:08 AM
Author: kolchak
Thanks again. When he got the stone used it was over 1.8 so he sent it to NY & had it recut where it became an excellent 1.71. The GIA report is dated 3/19/09 and the only number i see is a scanable bar code type - 210500484546 so hopefully this is what you''d need.


The very first number at the top right side is 50%. Directly below that is says slightly thick (faceted) 3.5%. the two numbers indicating the degree of angle were 35 & 41.
56%, 15.5%, 62.2%, 43% & 80%.
The reference diagrams show a very clean stone with some very tiny red dots or crystal indications on the top.

I love these type of forums and never make big puchases with out consulting with independent experts!

I think the stone I''m looking at is a ''deal'' for a B&M store but maybe not so much if I''m willing to use the internet.
Can anyone tell me approx how much I''d save on a comparable stone on-line?
TY!

Thanks for the details. The angles are borderline steep deep, according to how tightly the stone is cut and GIA rounding issues it could be a great diamond or it could show leakage depending on the above factors. BTW we are not experts, just independant consumers!