Here is the right link-Advice on this stone???

[lauraher]

Please what do you think of this diamond? It scores a 0.4 on the HCA with EX in all four areas-although it is right on the line for AGS0.
Thanks


http://www.whiteflash.com/diamonds/diamond_Details.aspx?itemcode=AGS-6550404

 

[Lorelei]

I answered your other thread but will do so again to say that diamond is fabulous!!!!

 

[Sundial]

That diamond looks like it will be quite beautiful!!!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

(Yay! You got the link pasted correctly this time!)

Looks like a very nice diamond!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

Oh, now I see you saying a .4 on the HCA. If that is correct, then I have read that sometimes those stones have a lack of contrast. Most people try to get a score between 1 and 2, but it might be okay. Personally, after going back and reading your parameters of an $18,000 budget, I'd be looking in the 1.8 range and trying to get a little better color and clarity...maybe G-H and VS. But that's just me.

 

[Carlotta]

Date: 6/29/2006 10:27:26 AM
Author: diamondseeker2006
Oh, now I see you saying a .4 on the HCA. If that is correct, then I have read that sometimes those stones have a lack of contrast. Most people try to get a score between 1 and 2, but it might be okay. Personally, after going back and reading your parameters of an $18,000 budget, I''d be looking in the 1.8 range and trying to get a little better color and clarity...maybe G-H and VS. But that''s just me.

Some people prefer diamonds to have an HCA score right around 1.
Your potential stone gets all excellents, but there could be a down side to that shallow pavillion, even thought the stone is overall probably very beautiful......
ALL of this is speculation based on afew numbers and a few images....

Are you trading in a stone????

Is there any way you could see this stone and one with slighly different specs in person/side by side????

I guess - for that budget - I would want to see the stone in person, or perhaps have an appraiser look at it for me first????

 

[diamondseeker2006]

On another thread, you did question the color a little, and I think that is something esle you need to be SURE of your limits. Everyone has different color preferences and you shouldn''t be too influenced by us, because some will prefer F and others will prefer J! I personally am looking at G-H.

Demelza ia a person on here with a gorgeous large diamond, I VS2, I think, and she is considering trading it in because she has decided the I color bothers her and the VS2 even has an inclusion that she can see. So be very careful about going lower than your comfort range in choosing a diamond. Here is Demelza''s link to see her deliberations for a similar size stone. You have to read down toward the end of the first page to see her qualms about the I color.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/calling-all-cut-experts-which-is-better.47130/

 

[mrssalvo]

I think an I, SI can be a great combo. DS is right it's all very personal and subjective so it's important to find out what your eye sees or doesn't see. I could easily go down to an I in a round and not see anything. i actually saw a pair of ideal cut J 2 ctw earrings a few months ago and I was shocked at how white they really did look. I'm just not that color sensitive. Now, mentally I'd like a G-H in my stone because that's what I had before and I liked it. It's mental though and has nothing to do with what I can see. I'm love a good SI1 too b/c it can really present a great value and I don't like paying for what I can't see. the low HCA is a problem for some, again it's what your eye would find pleasing. anyway to have it sent to an appraiser for you to look at?

I think Virginia's stone scored a .6 or .8 on the HCA. she ended up going to view it in person and fell in love. some would have ruled it out based on the numbers but at the end of the day, you're wearing a diamond ring, not the paper

ETA: just realized that's an H&A stone. I know Brian is very selective when chosing the H&A's.

 

[lauraher]

Thanks everyone for your help. I have not personally seen an I colored stone in person, so that is probably something I should go and do. My last stone was a G SI1 so that is why I am afraid I will notice the color in an I, but this stone is an ACA so maybe it will still face up white. I am going to contact WF and get some more info. My ideal stone would be an idealcut, ACA, AGS0, etc in the 1.8 ctw range, G-H in color and down to SI1-2(if eye clean and not dangerous to the stone), I will keep searching, but will still call about this 2ct. Thanks

 

[Mara]

definitely go into a store and see some colors, but only go into a store where they sell well-cut stones, aka if you can go into a local HOF dealer, they are excellently cut stones and the color will be similar to something you''d see in another H&A stone. don''t compare badly cut maul stones to an H&A color stone.

for me i had a G then an H and then a J and now another J and i loved them all. color just doesn''t bother me and sure i can see a diff from the G to the J but i didn''t see one whit of diff from G to H and just a little from H to J. for me i''d rather have a larger sized stone than a smaller better color stone, people see the spread of the stone and the size and don''t recognize color....that includes me and i look at my stone all the time!! from the side view you may see a tiny bit of warmth but it will be nothing spectacular.

but definitely get into a store and check out stones and find your thresshold for color. one of my best friends in real life just got a 1.6 K ACA and she LOVES it, it''s white from top down and just a hint of color from the side but it fit her budget and she was able to get larger and this stone is 10000% better than anything she could have gotten locally or in a store for the price. so it really just depends! good luck!!!

 

[lauraher]

Thanks Mara,

I really want a 2ctw stone, but I also want the best cut possible. I had a question about the HCA numbers, if the stone gets Excellent in all areas, but does not score above 1, why does that make it a less desirable stone? What is the optimal range I should be looking for?

 

[Mara]

if this stone gets a 0.4 on the HCA..there may be some loss of contrast in the stone. the way i was describinbg it to someone else the other day was, in my avatar you can see light and dark areas in my stone, in that picture right? well that is contrast. it''s the light and the dark playing off each other to result in a pleasing look to your eye. same with fire/rainbows and darkness playing off each other to kind of outline the sparkles and define them. if you didn''t have contrast in the stone, it would just appear all white and blurry or all fiery...it just wouldn''t be as appealing. no delinineation of what is what.

so there is some debate that HCA scores under 0.6 may have a loss of contrast. Brian at WF has told me he likes the score to be around 1. but since this is a WF stone, you may want to call and see what they think...i mean we can all speculate on here but they do have the stone in-house so if you can ask them to look at it or take some picturs for you when you call about it, maybe that can help set your mind at ease (or not!). we have all just heard speculation on this kind of thing but i don''t know that anyone has actually researched it and put findings out here. good luck.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I just wanted to add that while I am one of the ones who encouraged you to be sure about color, I was never able to tell much about color in jewelry store lighting. I went to at least three different jewelers including Tiffany''s, and their lighting made all the stones look about the same. I really need natural light to decide about color. I have had a couple of H stones to look at at home, and they seemed fine. But I couldn''t tell an F from an I at Tiffany''s because of the dim lighting.

 

[Demelza]

I wanted to add that this stone actually scores a .7, not a .4. I don''t know if that makes any difference to you, but that is quite a bit closer to 1. It''s the 40.6 pavilion angle that is causing the lower score. If you bump the pav angle up to a 40.7, the stone gets a 1. I would definitely NOT discount this stone because of 1/10 of a degree. Talk to Brian and see what he says.

 

[Carlotta]

Date: 6/29/2006 1:58:49 PM
Author: Demelza
I wanted to add that this stone actually scores a .7, not a .4. I don''t know if that makes any difference to you, but that is quite a bit closer to 1. It''s the 40.6 pavilion angle that is causing the lower score. If you bump the pav angle up to a 40.7, the stone gets a 1. I would definitely NOT discount this stone because of 1/10 of a degree. Talk to Brian and see what he says.

But the sarin has the pavillion angle from 40.4 - 40.6, so I think it''s a stretch to call it a 40.7......
I agree that it is best to see the stone in person or have someone else inhouse/and someone like a private appraiser to look it over.......

 

[Demelza]

Date: 6/29/2006 2:06:53 PM
Author: Carlotta

Date: 6/29/2006 1:58:49 PM

Author: Demelza

I wanted to add that this stone actually scores a .7, not a .4. I don''t know if that makes any difference to you, but that is quite a bit closer to 1. It''s the 40.6 pavilion angle that is causing the lower score. If you bump the pav angle up to a 40.7, the stone gets a 1. I would definitely NOT discount this stone because of 1/10 of a degree. Talk to Brian and see what he says.

But the sarin has the pavillion angle from 40.4 - 40.6, so I think it''s a stretch to call it a 40.7......

I agree that it is best to see the stone in person or have someone else inhouse/and someone like a private appraiser to look it over.......

I wasn''t saying that you can call the pavilion angle a 40.7, I was pointing out that simply changing the pavilion angle 1/10 of a degree would completely change the HCA score. My point is simply that it doesn''t seem necessary to reject the stone based on the HCA in this case since it''s really a very minor detail that is causing the stone to score lower than the poster would like it to. Also, it is my understanding that there is typically some discrepancy between the numbers on the Sarin and the official AGS report (although I also understand that now AGS uses Sarin reports to derive their numbers as well). The Sarin suggests that the pav angle is actually 40.5, but, personally, I would defer to the AGS report.

 

[strmrdr]

That angle combo can go either way and the sarin isnt a good way to tell.
Ask Brian to eyeball it for you, he knows what to look for and can tell you if its an issue.
Just ask him if it suffers an negative effects because of the pavilion angle and if so how much.
If he says little to none then your good to go.

 

[Mara]

i agree re: talking to brian and asking what he the thinks re: the pav angle. we saw some fab shallower pav angle stones in houston which were stunning.

the AGS cert says 40.6 and the Sarin says 40.5, so it seems like regardless it''s 40.5/40.6 which is a combo that is always up for debate, it wouldn''t bug me EXCEPT that the HCA also gives it that low contrast score which can be iffy, so definitely worth asking an actual expert who has the stone in house and can tell you what HIS eyes see. and i would definitely trust brian''s eyes any day of the week, he has never steered me wrong.

re: the whole one 1/10 of a pav angle making a difference, that is just how the HCA is. it penalizes big time for pav angles. if you have a 40.9 stone with other cherry #''s it will give it a great score but knock that stone over into 41 for pav angle and the HCA will drop the score hugely. so it''s very sensitive to pav angle changes.