GIA grading -- does polishing matter ?

[mwq3434]

I now have my diamond removed from the setting for submission to GIA.

I was told there was a minor chip on the surface and that it could be polished out (as well as the whole diamond).

However, if that doesn't influence the grading process, I was just as soon do that later.

I'd like to get it certified and numbered asap without moving it here and there too much.

I did clean it with a soft toothbrush and mild detergent, rinsed and fan dried it immediately (hopefully making it clean enough for GIA ?)
Under my digital microscope, it looked pretty good.

THANKS.

 

[kenny]

Ask GIA what the Polish and Symmetry grades would be before and after a repolish, assuming a successful job polishing off the chip.
Ask them, or your cutter, to guess likely weight loss of a re-polish.
Small chip = low weight loss, large chip = more weight loss.
I had a chip polished off the girdle once with less than 0.01 ct loss.

Then price both diamonds factoring in re-polish cost and the loss of money for re-polish time and regrading time.
Select the most profitable decision.

It may be more profitable to leave the chip there, especially if the clarity grade is not that high, and if the chip is in a location that can be covered by a prong.

 

[mwq3434]

Kind of sounds like I should go ahead and do it before sending it to them. As it's a large diamond, I'll have to find someone who can do it while I watch. (?) It's on the very top and near center and honestly when I run my fingernail across the top lightly, I don't feel anything but I can see a "scratch" of sorts with my microscope.

 

[mwq3434]

I know you'd have to see the damage but typically what would it cost to have the scratch polished out? (just an idea)

 

[denverappraiser]

Chips affect clarity, not just polish. How much will depend on the nature of the chip and where your clarity is to begin with. Often it's substantial.

As far as I can tell, GIA will not provide recut consultation services but they'll usually clean it if needed before grading.

What's your reason for getting it lab graded in the first place?

 

[distracts]

Chips affect clarity, not just polish. How much will depend on the nature of the chip and where your clarity is to begin with. Often it's substantial.

As far as I can tell, GIA will not provide recut consultation services but they'll usually clean it if needed before grading.

What's your reason for getting it lab graded in the first place?

iirc this person has a 5 or 6 carat diamond that they are wanting to sell.

 

[denverappraiser]

Chips affect clarity, not just polish. How much will depend on the nature of the chip and where your clarity is to begin with. Often it's substantial.

As far as I can tell, GIA will not provide recut consultation services but they'll usually clean it if needed before grading.

What's your reason for getting it lab graded in the first place?

iirc this person has a 5 or 6 carat diamond that they are wanting to sell.

Assuming this is the case, the place to start is with a competent appraisal, not GIA. They need to decide if it's worth doing work on the stone in order to maximize the sale and there are cheaper, faster and better ways to do this than by getting a GIA exam at this point. Live and in person is the only way to make this call in a useful way. If they decide to change something they'll have to sent it back to GIA, wait and pay AGAIN. They're almost certainly going to want a GIA or another flavor lab report as a sales tool at the end but there's darn little benefit to doing it more than once. Tiny details make a big difference unless we're talking about an I-2 or about the boundary between 'fair' and 'poor' cutting (and maybe even then).

On a typical sort of 5 carater, a single clarity grade and/or a single bump in cut grade can affect the selling price by $2000-10000 PER CARAT. That's a big range and it's not chump change. Guessing at this in the hopes of avoiding a few hundred dollars in professional fees or the time and shipping required to show it to someone strikes me as a poor choice. On low grades the numbers are smaller but the percentage is even worse. I2->I1 is often close to a factor of 2 in price and saleability goes way way up along with it.

 

[mwq3434]

the goal is an eventual sale and the sales manager at a local high end store put it's value in low 6 figures (retail). he (and others) have said the 1st step is a GIA appraisal but I was thinking of taking care of the chip first. ?

BUT --

it's nerve wracking taking the stone around with me for this and that.

I want to get it certified and numbered asap.

besides, if improvements are made and someone suggests another trip to GIA, there prices are certainly very reasonable. I was just wondering if the chip will interfere with their grading process. to me, (but I know nothing) it's seems like a small "scratch".

any idea on the fee to do this polishing?

sure wish GIA could do it for me -- that would be great.

 

[denverappraiser]

A chip will not affect the GIA grading process. It will probably affect their results. If you're ok with that, take it in.

Recutting/polishing costs anywhere from $200/ct to about $500 per carat depending on who you hire and exactly what services you require. Recut consultation ranges from free to a couple of hundred dollars depending on who you hire and what overall you require. All of this will be about the same whether or not you have a GIA exam done in advance.

If you've chosen an expert already, and apparently you chose the sales manager at a local store, talk to them about it. Frankly it sounds like they didn't offer a complete service or even one that applies to your situation but that's your call. If you count them as a useful advisor, ask questions and listen to their advice. If you don't, ignore them and find someone else. I know nothing about their skills, qualifications, tools or even what services they offered, much less what services were actually delivered. You are asking high end gemological and appraisal questions here and I have to say, most people who describe themselves as 'sales manager' are not qualified to answer them. Your guy may be different. GIA does not offer 'appraisals' and they don't offer the services you're asking for. A theoretical 'retail' value in isolation from other facts is not helpful information and may actually be destructive, even if it's correct. Did they tell you anything else? Was their exam done in your presence? What did they do? Did they give you any sort of a written report?

What you need to know is:
What you have now.
What are the options for what it might become?
What are the risks and costs associated with those various options?
What are the available markets for selling it?
What are the risks and costs for those various options?
What additional steps are required to pursue those options?

You have none of this data at the moment. A GIA exam would mostly, but not completely, answer #1. The rest remain unanswered so you're STILL going to need professional assistance. That's why I'm suggesting you start there. Free advice online from people who have never seen the goods, including me, is NOT the answer. A trip to GIA is probably in the cards before you end up selling it, but it's not the first step.

You may actually want to start with an insurance appraisal. This is different from any of the above but it may allow you to insure the thing while you go through the rest of the process, which should reduce your stress level over it.

 

[jeweln]

BGD does recutting/polishing .in fact I just sent my own 1.25 ct diamond to them to be evaluated for a recut or repolish to improve light performance.

 

[distracts]

You may actually want to start with an insurance appraisal. This is different from any of the above but it may allow you to insure the thing while you go through the rest of the process, which should reduce your stress level over it.

This. In all of your posts you seem very stressed about losing the stone, so you should get it insured ASAP.