Need your expertise and thoughts re: these diamonds.

[Gadabout44]

Greetings,

As you may know, I've been in search for an engagement ring. Its been a wild ride, but I thought instead of asking the community to help with my search, I'd take the initiative and search through the various websites that is suggested by this forum and list the diamonds that meets my budget as well as specifications. The best I can do is provide a GIA report, and list any diamonds with a very good or better HCA score. If it passes PS's approval based on the report, I will request images and hopefully ASET or Ideal Scope can be provided as well.

I will list a few diamonds on a daily or every other day basis. I'd appreciate your comment, please let me know if any are an easy scratch or if any are worth requesting images or ASET / Ideal Scope. Thank you!

These are all slightly above or below the $9,000 range. And just as a reference the specifications I am looking for are listed below:
Budget: $9,000
Carat: 1.25
Color: GIA G, or a quality GIA H
Triple Ex
Priorities: Maximum light output, and fire.

04/09/18
1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)

 

[Gadabout44]

This one I'd like to share since I've just placed it on hold. From the pictures and the HSA score. It looks promising. At $9,000.00 it meets my budget. My concern is the Medium fluorecent.

(Link deleted) - Gadabout44

 

[the_mother_thing]

This one I'd like to share since I've just placed it on hold. From the pictures and the HSA score. It looks promising. At $9,000.00 it meets my budget. My concern is the Medium fluorecent.

Just an FYI, that diamond doesn’t appear (as of 5 seconds ago) as being on hold; rather, it shows available. I’m not copying the link in case you want to remove it for now until it appears (on the website) as ‘on hold’ so that it doesn’t get snagged.

 

[Gadabout44]

Just an FYI, that diamond doesn’t appear (as of 5 seconds ago) as being on hold; rather, it shows available. I’m not copying the link in case you want to remove it for now until it appears (on the website) as ‘on hold’ so that it doesn’t get snagged.

Sorry, here you go. I feel really good about this one. But again, I need to double check with the community. the 360 picture looks great, I am not sure how much of a factor would a Medium Fluorecscent diamond grade will affect its color

 

[the_mother_thing]

Sorry, here you go. I feel really good about this one. But again, I need to double check with the community. the 360 picture looks great, I am not sure how much of a factor would a Medium Fluorecscent diamond grade will affect its color.

No apology needed; just trying to save you another potential ‘let down’ if it wasn’t ‘fully’ reserved yet.

Rhino/Jonathan as well as Brian Gavin having offered a few YouTube tutorials/videos with regard to fluorescence. I’m sure there are more, and others may share some as well or chime in, but here are the two I saved and found particularly helpful when deciding whether to go with MBF in my recent acquisition. I would be sure to ask JA’s gemologist if/how the MBF impacts the stone’s appearance and/or performance since they have it in-hand and can best advise. That’s what I did when I purchased mine from WF, and they were honest and informative with their assessment (which was that it did not negatively impact my diamond at all), but no two are alike, so ... ask!

Rhino:

Brian Gavin:

 

[Gadabout44]

No apology needed; just trying to save you another potential ‘let down’ if it wasn’t ‘fully’ reserved yet.

Rhino/Jonathan as well as Brian Gavin having offered a few YouTube tutorials/videos with regard to fluorescence. I’m sure there are more, and others may share some as well or chime in, but here are the two I saved and found particularly helpful when deciding whether to go with MBF in my recent acquisition. I would be sure to ask JA’s gemologist if/how the MBF impacts the stone’s appearance and/or performance since they have it in-hand and can best advise. That’s what I did when I purchased mine from WF, and they were honest and informative with their assessment (which was that it did not negatively impact my diamond at all), but no two are alike, so ... ask!

Rhino:

Brian Gavin:

Thank you I will do that right now. Other than the fluorescent, are there any other red flags you can see based on the report and pictures?

[Update] JA's reply when asked about the impacts of the fluorescent
JA: "We would not be able to see that without purchase. Less than 1% of diamonds have a negative affect from fluorescence though. Those are generally closer to D in color and Strong."

 

[Matthews1127]

#2:

#4:

Definitely worth requesting videos, ASET & IS on these two.

 

[737liz]

Hi gaddabout,
I'm not knowledgeable enough to chime in on comparisons...
but just in case you blacked out the report # to prevent sniping, you should go back and black out the gia inscription as well, as these are one and the same.

 

[diamondseeker2006]

The one you have on hold looks good. I am kind of puzzled about a few that you posted in the original post, though, because some aren't even close to the numbers we have given you to look for. Don't just look at the HCA numerical score. Look at where it says light return or scintillation very good. Those should say excellent. Everything should say excellent except spread usually does not in ideal cuts.

 

[the_mother_thing]

The one you have on hold looks good. I am kind of puzzled about a few that you posted in the original post, though, because some aren't even close to the numbers we have given you to look for. Don't just look at the HCA numerical score. Look at where it says light return or scintillation very good. Those should say excellent. Everything should say excellent except spread usually does not in ideal cuts.

Ditto this!

@Gadabout44 I fear you may be entering into ‘analysis paralysis’, and I can relate because I find myself there sometimes as well and get easily overwhelmed with so many options, so please know that I don’t mean that as a slight at all. I just wonder if perhaps you might want to take a step back for a moment, refocus your search within the parameters of your priorities (stated by you at the top of this thread) and the specs DiamondSeeker noted when searching on sites like James Allen, Blue Nile, etc. where you CAN enter additional search criteria (table, depth, pavilion, crown). Using those parameters will limit your results so that you’re only looking at diamonds that are most likely to be excellent performers in ‘ideal’ range with the results you said you want to see: maximum light output and fire.

If you really want those two things, stick to the recommended specs and you’ll get there. The right diamond IS out there for you, but it’s easy to get mired down in the weeds, process and minutiae during the hunt.

 

[Gadabout44]

The one you have on hold looks good. I am kind of puzzled about a few that you posted in the original post, though, because some aren't even close to the numbers we have given you to look for. Don't just look at the HCA numerical score. Look at where it says light return or scintillation very good. Those should say excellent. Everything should say excellent except spread usually does not in ideal cuts.

Hi DS. This is new to me. I had assumed tripple excellent would be Polish, Sym, and Cut. Which all has. I do not see a light return scale or scintalliation in the reports. Am I missing another key aspect? It seems as though when I feel I've learned just about enough to search on my own, there is something new. Just a few days ago I've learned about "painted" girdles or crowns. I know I've been asking for too much help; and I appreciate the help and patiences I am receiving, but even I can tell its just becoming tiresome and I feel I just need to pull the trigger on one.

The JA diamond I have on hold seems like my best bet. As long as I am not getting ripped off, I think I will be satisfied at this point.

Ditto this!

@Gadabout44 I fear you may be entering into ‘analysis paralysis’, and I can relate because I find myself there sometimes as well and get easily overwhelmed with so many options, so please know that I don’t mean that as a slight at all. I just wonder if perhaps you might want to take a step back for a moment, refocus your search within the parameters of your priorities (stated by you at the top of this thread) and the specs DiamondSeeker noted when searching on sites like James Allen, Blue Nile, etc. where you CAN enter additional search criteria (table, depth, pavilion, crown). Using those parameters will limit your results so that you’re only looking at diamonds that are most likely to be excellent performers in ‘ideal’ range with the results you said you want to see: maximum light output and fire.

If you really want those two things, stick to the recommended specs and you’ll get there. The right diamond IS out there for you, but it’s easy to get mired down in the weeds, process and minutiae during the hunt.

I totally agree. I think there is just an overwhelming amount of characteristics to look at. I think I need to just accept that every diamond is going to have a flaw.

I may have missed it, but I dont remember reading the ideal Table, Depth, Pavilion, and crown numbers. I did notice this search feature. I never really used it because I dont know what to enter.

 

[Gadabout44]

Hi folks, I am really close to purchasing one of these two diamonds and ending my journey. I just need to follow up with the rest and share their opinions on whether the purchase would be a decent one. Both diamonds are on hold.

Both are identical in price.

1) WF 1.25 G VS2 GIA#2185247123
https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut-loose-diamond-3907168.htm

2) JA 1.30 G VS1 GIA#5286449581
https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...g-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4662181

[EDIT] Using the_mother_thing's instructions below. It seems that JA is the superior diamond compared to the WF stone based on measurements and HCA score. I think the JA is the one to go with.

 

[the_mother_thing]

@Gadabout44 Here is my primer (compiled from the countless helpful posts on this forum) with two options in conjunction with support from this forum to finding/buying a great diamond. If you follow this, you will get there! And I would ask any of the other PSers to chime in if I missed or misrepresented something below.

Option 1: Do the legwork to find one:
In addition to your own specs (budget, color, clarity, etc.), here are the parameters that are usually suggested to nail down a great performer when looking at GIA XXX diamonds that are in ‘virtual inventory’ or on sites that don’t offer up-front the IS/ASET imaging:

• table: 54-58
• depth: 60-62.3
• crown angle: 34-35.0 (up to 35.5 crown angle can sometimes work with a 40.6 pav angle)
• pavilion angle: 40.6-40.9 (sometimes 41.0 if the crown angle is close to 34)

Once you enter your own criteria (budget, color, clarity, etc.) into the diamond site’s search tool, add these additional parameters which will result in diamonds that are more likely to have ideal specs. Then you’ll plug the few of those results that catch your eye most into the HCA tool (https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca) to find those that score < 2 AND have Light Return, Fire & Scintillation results = Excellent, and Spread = Very Good (normal for ideals); discard any that score >2. Just know that anything below a “2” is worth considering; a “1.3” isn’t necessarily any better than a “1.9”.
Those additional HCA results should look like this:


What remaining diamonds from that further ‘whittling down’ likely warrant an IdealScope & ASET image (in addition to an actual picture/video of the diamond if not already available) to assess cut, potential leakage, light return, etc., if you can get them from the vendor (not all dealers provide them). Just note that some vendors (such as James Allen) will only allow you a limited number of these images, so find that out and choose your requested diamond images carefully!

Post those options on PS for comment, ensuring that no identifying notations are shared to prevent sniping (e.g., the GIA or stock #), and get feedback from the folks on here as to what they’d pick and why, or why they wouldn’t pick something you’ve chosen.

Then, it’s up to you to decide and pull the trigger on one.

Option 2: Let someone else do the leg work for you:
Choose an HPD-CBI, WF-ACA or ES, or GOG-Ascendancy (these three will typically provide the imaging up front so you don’t have to ask for it.) This option may add a few dollars to the price of a diamond, but you get the peace of mind knowing that the diamonds you’re looking at HAVE been vetted by experts and are assured to be great performers, and it’s (IMO) FAR less stressful/frustrating/confusing, especially if you don’t want to invest the time, effort and understanding to go through the motions of Option 1.

HPD: High Performance Diamonds
WF: Whiteflash
GOG: Good Old Gold


Comparing Option 2 to Option 1, there is obvious FAR less ‘legwork’ for you to do, and that - IMO - is worth any additional pricing that diamonds from those vendors might have over ‘virtual inventory’ type searches. I don’t personally have the patience to go through Option 1 for myself, and am more of a ‘buy it now’ person vs. dabbling in auctions, but some folks love the ‘thrill of the hunt’ or may not find what they want in HPD/GOG/WF offerings - everyone is different.

In addition to the two roads above and ALL those variables, there are other things to consider when deciding where to purchase, such as upgrade policies (if you should ever need/want to do so, what do they offer, what will they not offer, etc.), any taxes you may have to pay such as state, import, etc., and probably a few other things that I’m forgetting. And of course, don’t forget to get insurance on your purchase if it’s at/above an amount you wouldn’t likely be able to easily replace if lost.
Either way you decide to go, we’ll be here to help you along the way!

 

[Gadabout44]

@Gadabout44 Here is my primer (compiled from the countless helpful posts on this forum) with two options in conjunction with support from this forum to finding/buying a great diamond. If you follow this, you will get there! And I would ask any of the other PSers to chime in if I missed or misrepresented something below.

Option 1: Do the legwork to find one:
In addition to your own specs (budget, color, clarity, etc.), here are the parameters that are usually suggested to nail down a great performer when looking at GIA XXX diamonds that are in ‘virtual inventory’ or on sites that don’t offer up-front the IS/ASET imaging:

• table: 54-58
• depth: 60-62.3
• crown angle: 34-35.0 (up to 35.5 crown angle can sometimes work with a 40.6 pav angle)
• pavilion angle: 40.6-40.9 (sometimes 41.0 if the crown angle is close to 34)

Once you enter your own criteria (budget, color, clarity, etc.) into the diamond site’s search tool, add these additional parameters which will result in diamonds that are more likely to have ideal specs. Then you’ll plug the few of those results that catch your eye most into the HCA tool (https://www.pricescope.com/tools/hca) to find those that score < 2 AND have Light Return, Fire & Scintillation results = Excellent, and Spread = Very Good (normal for ideals); discard any that score >2. Just know that anything below a “2” is worth considering; a “1.3” isn’t necessarily any better than a “1.9”.
Those additional HCA results should look like this:


What remaining diamonds from that further ‘whittling down’ likely warrant an IdealScope & ASET image (in addition to an actual picture/video of the diamond if not already available) to assess cut, potential leakage, light return, etc., if you can get them from the vendor (not all dealers provide them). Just note that some vendors (such as James Allen) will only allow you a limited number of these images, so find that out and choose your requested diamond images carefully!

Post those options on PS for comment, ensuring that no identifying notations are shared to prevent sniping (e.g., the GIA or stock #), and get feedback from the folks on here as to what they’d pick and why, or why they wouldn’t pick something you’ve chosen.

Then, it’s up to you to decide and pull the trigger on one.

Option 2: Let someone else do the leg work for you:
Choose an HPD-CBI, WF-ACA or ES, or GOG-Ascendancy (these three will typically provide the imaging up front so you don’t have to ask for it.) This option may add a few dollars to the price of a diamond, but you get the peace of mind knowing that the diamonds you’re looking at HAVE been vetted by experts and are assured to be great performers, and it’s (IMO) FAR less stressful/frustrating/confusing, especially if you don’t want to invest the time, effort and understanding to go through the motions of Option 1.

HPD: High Performance Diamonds
WF: Whiteflash
GOG: Good Old Gold


Comparing Option 2 to Option 1, there is obvious FAR less ‘legwork’ for you to do, and that - IMO - is worth any additional pricing that diamonds from those vendors might have over ‘virtual inventory’ type searches. I don’t personally have the patience to go through Option 1 for myself, and am more of a ‘buy it now’ person vs. dabbling in auctions, but some folks love the ‘thrill of the hunt’ or may not find what they want in HPD/GOG/WF offerings - everyone is different.

In addition to the two roads above and ALL those variables, there are other things to consider when deciding where to purchase, such as upgrade policies (if you should ever need/want to do so, what do they offer, what will they not offer, etc.), any taxes you may have to pay such as state, import, etc., and probably a few other things that I’m forgetting. And of course, don’t forget to get insurance on your purchase if it’s at/above an amount you wouldn’t likely be able to easily replace if lost.
Either way you decide to go, we’ll be here to help you along the way!

This is really helpful! I dont mind doing the leg work. And using Option 1, I just realized that the JA stone is superior compared to the WF stone I've posted above.

I feel great about the JA stone. I have it on hold for another day, I requested a few more images from JA. But overall, I think I am comfortable with the purcahse now

 

[diamondseeker2006]

This is really helpful! I dont mind doing the leg work. And using Option 1, I just realized that the JA stone is superior compared to the WF stone I've posted above.

I feel great about the JA stone. I have it on hold for another day, I requested a few more images from JA. But overall, I think I am comfortable with the purcahse now

That’s not a WF stone. When you search there, you check in house only. The rest are virtual stones just like James Allen. It’s the WF in house stones that are top cut.

I am so sorry if I haven’t given you the stone measurements before. I thought surely we did previously. About 80% of stones sent to GIA are graded excellent, so you can kind of see that the range can’t really all be excellent!

 

[Gadabout44]

Just to update everyone.

I just made the purchase with JA. They assured me the fluorescence will not provide a negative impact on the Diamond. However they will still have it inspected by a gemologist in which I can finalize the purchase or decide to return it.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...g-color-vs1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4662181



I had 2 others in mind that I chose to pass:

1) https://www.goodoldgold.com/diamond-search/1.28-Round-EX-GIA-F-SI1-diamond-stock-16556-cert-

2) https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-di...g-color-si1-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-4531548


I am somewhat excited. I just hope all turns out great again. The purchase price was about $9,000

 

[farrahlyn]

i love the stone you purchased, VERY nice! Have you discussed how you'll be setting the stone??

 

[Gadabout44]

i love the stone you purchased, VERY nice! Have you discussed how you'll be setting the stone??

Not yet, but I have a couple in mind through their inventory which I will be comparing soon.

I do not know why I am not as excited as I was with the first purchase I made that was apparently sold before I could finalize the deal. I do feel the stone is promising. Maybe I am just worn out

 

[ringo865]

Looks promising. Did you mention pricescope or JA's advantage discount to hopefully get an additional couple hundred dollars off?

 

[Gadabout44]

Looks promising. Did you mention pricescope or JA's advantage discount to hopefully get an additional couple hundred dollars off?

I did! Thank you to this community