N8-Star
Rough_Rock
- Joined
- Jan 9, 2007
- Messages
- 37
Hey fellow pricescopers, I'd like to preface this topic by thanking everyone who participates in this forum. I've been lurking here for about 4 to 5 months now reading nearly every single post and gathering and compiling data before making a decision about a diamond and a setting. I'm nearly complete in my conquest and thought that I would show my gratitude to those who've helped shape my decision. I've been influenced by opinions that I've come to admire…. Marty Haske, Rock-Doc, Rhino, and Wink.. and many others...
To make a short story long, I have been on a search to find a stone in the color, clarity and size that I am looking for. (Emily-my GF... left the diamond buying decision all in my hands). CUT, thanks mostly to pricescope, has been my biggest learning experience since shopping for a diamond. I admit that going through the local Brick and Mortars had left a bad taste in my mouth and I felt I was always getting the same sales pitch from every person behind the counter. Every store I visited had a vested interest in selling what they currently had in stock. (which is understandable of course).. But, it wasn’t like comparing apples to apples.. more like apples and onions. (oranges weren’t even in the picture here). Several B&M’s had made attempts at getting in other diamonds that were assured to be of the highest quality. I just didn't see anything that jumped out and grabbed me (or my gf for that matter). It was around that time I started doing my homework on diamonds. I discovered pricescope, discoverd diamonds, and discovered that I was in way over my head. It's taken a few months to dig into the technical aspect of diamonds. For that I really enjoyed reading the debates between Marty, Gary H, Rock-Doc, Wink, and others. Everyone from GOG and Whiteflash are amazing sources of knowledge.
Thankfully, there are thousands of other people who have posted great sources of information over the years... and I've spent many months searching archives and current topics narrowing it down to several diamond dealers and several ring manufactureres.
We fell in love with the idea of a tension set ring... I like the contemporary non-traditional look. Gelin-Abaci has an amazing selection of tension rings and several styles that we liked. But, our Gelin dealers in this area were less than helpful and disliked our idea of purchasing a diamond elsewhere and getting just the setting from them. They weren't against that notion... but our idea went off like a fart in church. How could we possibly know THAT much about diamonds? They were the experts and happy to show us diamonds of "equal quality". Ummm, no thanks. At least we were able to find out that we would have a size limit on our diamond due to a ring sie of 3.5. This was the only thing I wasn't able to find on pricescope. (FYI: Smaller ring sizes through Gelin or any tension ring may have restrictions on diamond sizing. I contacted a Gelin rep and they said that the largest stone that could be set in their TR40 with a ring size of 3.5 would be a .9 ct. They've set one of that size before. )
My pricescope experience has been all about gathering as much information as I could, and learning how to search till I found what I wanted. I kept leaning towards the elusive Eightstar and researching everything I could about them. from what I have learned about their stone, I feel that there is no other diamond like theirs. Others have tried, or copied... but that would be like buying a fake Rolex. Sure it's about 98% of the way there... but it's not the same. I'll stray from sounding too much like a salesperson for them... But, let's just say that I am extremely happy with my selection... Dealing directly with Richard Von Sternberg, president of EightStar, has been an absolute pleasure!!
Here's the fruit of my efforts....
Diamond: .925 Eightstar, F, VS1
Oddly enough, GIA lab tested:
Diameter 6.3-6.33
Depth % 61.4
Crown% 16.0
Pavillion% 43.0
Crown Angle 34.5
Pavillion Angle 40.8
Table % 54.0
Girdle Thickness- Medium-Sl. Thick
Culet- None
Polish- the official language of Poland. Excellent
Symmetry- Excellent
Flourescence- None
Currently, this stone is in the very capable hands of Bill Lieberum (aka Rock Doc)... and going through some rigorous testing I might add. WOW…. I will sing his praises soon enough… For those who are looking for an amazing appraisal, Rock Doc is phenomenal.
It shall soon be sent to Bruce Boone, who will be creating the tension setting for this ring. I've decided that Titanium will have a deeper meaning for us than going with Gelin and platinum as initially planned. Emily, GF of two years, had major back surgery about 18 months ago… and now has a spine fused with foot and a half long titanium rods. Despite amazing posture and no longer any pain… no super human abilities. But, having a ring made of this material will be sentimental.
I will post photos for this ring when it all comes through.... The proposal will be the end of Feb, somewhere near a volcano in Costa Rica... more details about that another time. I've been lucky to have escaped being caught in searching for this ring and stone.... It's all still a surprise... She has no idea what's going on while I sit at the computer every night for hours.... Sssshhhhh!
Thanks again Pricescope... and sorry for the lengthy accolades. Now, that I’m out of the shadows I’ll try to make more posts… it seems that a lot of newbies bail out after getting what they need. I’ll do my best to hang in there.
-Nate
Virginia Beach, VA