Help me pick a diamond!

[GMK83]

Currently I''m looking at these three diamonds.


Whiteflash ACA

Good Old Gold 1.24 H VS2

Good Old Gold 1.20 H VS2



The diamond from Whiteflash is considerably cheaper. I''m no where near an expert so maybe someone might be able to explain such the large difference in cost? Any help would be appreciated. I''m hoping to make a decision and get the diamond to Leon Mege who will be making me a custom piece by next week. Thanks in advance for all the helpful information!

 

[GMK83]

Some pictures of the 2nd Good Old Gold diamond sent to me from Charles.

 

[GMK83]

Another picture

 

[GMK83]

Finally one last

 

[Corno]

Without having the full diamond certificates to compare side by side the only potential difference shown in the Whiteflash cert. that caught my eye was a thin to medium girdle thickness which may have resulted in a slightly lower grade and therefore a lower price per carat. The largest downfall of this from a goldsmiths point of view is the potential for fracture or damage during the setting process or during normal wear should your hand strike a hard surface accidentally. If the diamonds are by most means equal, which one cannot say without having them side by side to judge, a thin girdle can be best protected by a bezel setting should you choose the Whiteflash over the other. You might also want to check on the origin of each diamond.

 

[GMK83]

So would you stay away from the Whiteflash diamond then?

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 3/10/2009 11:52:39 PM
Author: GMK83
So would you stay away from the Whiteflash diamond then?

No, the girdle should not be a problem in my opinion with a hand selected diamond such as that ACA. The girdle of thin to medium range is fine and there is nothing lacking in that diamond - a hand selected h&a branded cut with the coveted AGS0 cut grade, top marks in everything. It should be a beautiful diamond and as to the origins everything will be completely in order. Pricing, it is a bit smaller than the other two which would influence price. The GOG diamonds look very nice too.

 

[Ellen]

Regarding the WF stone, I agree, it not the girdle. In looking at the Sarin, there is a pretty wide variance in the pavilion angle, for an ACA. However, averaging the numbers out wouldn't come to 40.7 (on the Sarin) It does list it at 40.6 on the cert (I would have thought 40.5). You might call and ask them about it. I can't imagine it getting the ACA brand with those numbers. Mistakes sometimes happen, in typing, or in listing a stone (ACA vs. ES).

If the numbers are wrong, and it's indeed an ACA, I'd go with that one. Prices on different vendors for same size/specs can vary, but this is pretty big. It looks good.

If it's really got that big of a variance, I'd go for one of the others myself. But I'm picky.

 

[Allison D.]

GMK, just to ease your mind a bit, the significant price advantage in the ACA stone isn't indicative of any defect in the stone.

With due respect to Mr. Corneau, this stone didn't earn a "lower grade" as he suggests. It earned the highest cut grade available from the most stringent cut-grading lab, AGS.

The grading reports for the stones show that the ACA stone was graded more recently. The price of goods has declined quite a bit during these last few months, so it's most likely that we were able to buy it at a lower cost and therefore offer it at a lower cost.

ETA: I understand your caution; a friend of mine had the same concern recently over a home that was listed for sale. She's ready to buy and noticed a home whose price was much lower than two other nearby properties she'd recently considered. It immediately made her think "ok, what wrong with that one?"

The answer was nothing - the owners of that house bought right before the ridiculous spike in market prices, so they weren't upside down on their loan. They could still sell for a reasonable profit because they bought lower, and they were motivated to sell to get into a more expensive property while the market is lower.

The other two similar properties were bought more recently (when the market price was crazy), so they couldn't offer a similar price without taking a loss.

 

[Judah Gutwein]

It is so true that people will sometimes be influenced by the ''if it sounds to good to be true (price), then it probably is. However, in many instances (including the question posed here), the price is not influenced by a negative factor related to the girdle designation of the stone.

Mr. Corneau, I do not believe your statement with respect to cut grade, can be accurately applied to a diamond, since it is obvious that untold numbers of the most precisely cut diamonds in the world, feature thin girdles.

 

[Dancing Fire]

Date: 3/10/2009 9:21:33 PM
Author: Corno
Without having the full diamond certificates to compare side by side the only potential difference shown in the Whiteflash cert. that caught my eye was a thin to medium girdle thickness which may have resulted in a slightly lower grade and therefore a lower price per carat. The largest downfall of this from a goldsmiths point of view is the potential for fracture or damage during the setting process or during normal wear should your hand strike a hard surface accidentally. If the diamonds are by most means equal, which one cannot say without having them side by side to judge, a thin girdle can be best protected by a bezel setting should you choose the Whiteflash over the other. You might also want to check on the origin of each diamond.

what are you talking about ?

plus...if you have problem setting a TN-MED girdle stone then you better find another job.

 

[GMK83]

I appreciate all the advise so far. Currently I've narrowed my search down to these two diamonds.


Whiteflash ACA

GOG 1.24 H VS2 Cut by ISee2


So I've spoke with Charles over at Good Old Gold and he informed me that the diamond I'm looking from them is from ISee2. I'm so confused as to which one to go with. Not being able to see the two I have no idea. I'd appreciate any and all comments on the two and opinions on which to go with are greatly appreciated. Thank god for the knowledge base and kind folks here. You're all helping me to begin to understand!