Is this a good deal?

[kcivloh]

Hi Everyone,
I am new here, and I was wondering if someone could tell me if this diamond is a good deal or not. It is from DiamondsOnWeb. Have you ever used them? Good Experiences? Bad Experiences? Here is the information on the diamond. It is a pear shaped stone.
Thanks

Grading Lab: GIA
Carat weight: 0.57
Measurement: 6.76 - 4.77 x 3.01
Cut* Excellent
Polish: Very Good
Color: H
Symmetry: Good
Clarity: VS2
Fluorescence: None
Depth%: 63.1%
Girdle: Slightly Thick to Very Thick
Table%: 58%
Culet: None
L/W Ratio: 1.42

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/30/2009 6:14:13 PM
Author:kcivloh
Hi Everyone,
I am new here, and I was wondering if someone could tell me if this diamond is a good deal or not. It is from DiamondsOnWeb. Have you ever used them? Good Experiences? Bad Experiences? Here is the information on the diamond. It is a pear shaped stone.
Thanks

Grading Lab: GIA
Carat weight: 0.57
Measurement: 6.76 - 4.77 x 3.01
Cut* Excellent
Polish: Very Good
Color: H
Symmetry: Good
Clarity: VS2
Fluorescence: None
Depth%: 63.1%
Girdle: Slightly Thick to Very Thick
Table%: 58%
Culet: None
L/W Ratio: 1.42

Welcome!

It is really very important to have photos of fancy shapes which include pears and preferably an ASET image to help decode the light travelling through the diamond and its quality. If you could ask the vendor for at least some photos that would be a huge help, pears can vary so much that it is really buying blind without images. You can only get so far with numbers as they don''t tell the whole story with these shapes, it looks promising on paper, the very thick part of the girdle isn''t ideal but it might not be an issue if the very thick part is only a small area.

Also pears can show what is called a bow tie, which literally looks like a bow tie running across the stone, you can''t always get away from them but they can be minimized in some cases. I don''t know much about this vendor unfortunately to know if the diamond is owned by them and therefore they can discuss it with you and provide images, or whether it is what is called a virtual stone and is owned by the suppliers. It would be best to ask them if they have the stone in their possession.

If you are unfamiliar with ASET images, this page explains

http://www.highperformancediamonds.com/index.php?page=education-performance

 

[phoenixgirl]

All I can tell you is that the price, $873, is fairly competitive. The same stone is listed through 4 Price Scope vendors, price ranging from $870 to $1133. The web site you're considering has unlimited lifetime upgrades (as long as you spend $1000 more on the upgraded stone or 30% more if the stone cost more than $3500). That said, I've never heard of them, and I'd want to do some research to make sure they are a solid company who will be around to honor the upgrade policy. The vendor I liniked to, James Allen, also offers a lifetime upgrade (must spend 2x) and has many positive reviews here on PS, so you might consider them too.

Like Lorelei said, there's no way to know if this is a well cut stone without images. That's what it all comes down to.

 

[kcivloh]

I talked to DiamondsOnWeb, and they are going to get back to me about the ASET image. If they won''t provide me with one, I should not buy a diamond from them, Correct? What is the best place to buy a diamond online from your experience?

 

[FB.]

I don''t like the sound of symmetry being only "good". I also don''t like sound of the thick-very thick girdle. Put the two together and there''s surely no way that such a stone could have a cut grade any higher than "very good" - and certainly would never make an "excellent" cut grade.
GIA don''t provide a cut grade on anything other than rounds, so the "excellent" cut grade is the seller''s opinion.

 

[kcivloh]

I searched James Allen for stones I might be interested in, and I think that I the one I found is the same one that is on DiamondsOnWeb. All of the statistics for it are the same. This stone is $980. Does anyone know if this could be the same stone? I have contacted each of the companies about ASET images, so hopefully I will hear back something from them by tomorrow.
Thanks

Shape: Pear
Carat weight: 0.57
Cut: Ideal
Color: H
Clarity: VS2
Certificate: GIA
Depth: 63.1%
Table: 58.0%
Polish: Very Good
Symmetry: Good
Girdle: Slightly thick to very thick
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.76*4.77*3.01
Ratio: 1.42

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/30/2009 6:47:13 PM
Author: kcivloh
I talked to DiamondsOnWeb, and they are going to get back to me about the ASET image. If they won''t provide me with one, I should not buy a diamond from them, Correct? What is the best place to buy a diamond online from your experience?

Really no images = no deal for me with fancy shapes, its too risky as you have no idea of what you will get when you open the box. If they won''t supply images then try these vendors.

www.goodoldgold.com

www.whiteflash.com

www.niceice.com

www.engagementringsdirect.com

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/30/2009 11:23:37 PM
Author: kcivloh
I searched James Allen for stones I might be interested in, and I think that I the one I found is the same one that is on DiamondsOnWeb. All of the statistics for it are the same. This stone is $980. Does anyone know if this could be the same stone? I have contacted each of the companies about ASET images, so hopefully I will hear back something from them by tomorrow.
Thanks

Shape: Pear
Carat weight: 0.57
Cut: Ideal
Color: H
Clarity: VS2
Certificate: GIA
Depth: 63.1%
Table: 58.0%
Polish: Very Good
Symmetry: Good
Girdle: Slightly thick to very thick
Culet: None
Fluorescence: None
Measurements: 6.76*4.77*3.01
Ratio: 1.42

Yes it could be, what is called a virtual stone. This means it is listed with multiple vendors but is owned by the supplier. This method of listing with multiple vendors gives many of them a shot at the sale, the downside is that the diamond would have to be called in and images and evaluation performed where there might be a charge for this. But in my opinion it is essential to have at least photos for fancies and an ASET image if possible. If the diamond is listed cheaper with another seller then it is worth asking the one you choose to buy from if they will do a price match for you.

This article explains further

http://journal.pricescope.com/Articles/12/1/Why-are-there-several-dealers-offering-the-exact-same-stone.aspx

 

[Lorelei]

Date: 6/30/2009 7:12:34 PM
Author: FB.
I don''t like the sound of symmetry being only ''good''. I also don''t like sound of the thick-very thick girdle. Put the two together and there''s surely no way that such a stone could have a cut grade any higher than ''very good'' - and certainly would never make an ''excellent'' cut grade.
GIA don''t provide a cut grade on anything other than rounds, so the ''excellent'' cut grade is the seller''s opinion.

Actually you see symmetry of good frequently in fancy shapes, it needn''t be a deal breaker. Also the naked untrained eye can''t usually distinguish between good and above.

Read more here - http://diamonds.pricescope.com/symm.asp

The girdle isn''t perfect, as I explained earlier the very thick part isn''t ideal but again if it is only a very small portion of the girdle which is affected then it might not be an issue. This is where a trusted vendor is invaluable who can inspect the stone and advise.

Yes absolutely right with the Excellent cut grade, this is probably vendor applied and therefore is no guarantee of cut quality.

 

[kcivloh]

I am trying to get pictures of the stones, but it is proving to be very difficult. I will post them if I ever get them.

 

[kcivloh]

I just heard back from DiamondsOnWeb, and they told me that they do not have access to take a picture of the diamond. Does this mean that they do not own the diamond, and that is it just a virtual listing? This is the GIA Report that they sent me. Do you think that I should look somewhere else for a stone?

 

[Lorelei]

Ah....sounds like a virtual stone then. Ask then if they can call it in for photos. If not then I would look elsewhere.