Now $9K-$10K budget! What''s available!!

[james100]

Hi again,
I think Mara will like this!

What do you think is the biggest and a loveliest stone I can get if my budget is now $9K-$10K instead??

It has to be a brilliant round stone with at least a F and VS2 ,no fluor, at least of very good symm and polish, very good proportions,girdle not thick but thin to med ,lots of fire, brilliance and scintillation, not much light leakage ....the works!


Any ideas?!?!
J

 

[Lanee]

This is delicious. I can't believe no one has responded, I'm not that good yet to throw out a recommendation. Sorry!

 

[Mara]

Ooh I just noticed this. I will get started and take a work back...back in a few!

 

[Mara]

Okay...
Above and beyond what was already suggested to you in other posts (did you follow up on those?!)...here are some others I found--don't think any of these were posted the first round. I really had to surf around to find all of these!!

http://www.niceice.com/certcopies/ags0002158904/index.htm
1.23 F VVS2 AGS 0 HCA: 1.5 $9665

http://www.superbcert.com/products/index.cfm/Product_ID/62/Product_Subcategory_ID/3/Product_Category_ID/3/Product_Group_ID/1
1.23 G VVS1 SuperbCert AGS 0 H&A $9400


http://www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1343687
1.36 G VS1 $9117 (Very Best Cut according to DCD--get more info!)

www.dbof.com has alot of stones as well under $10k that are around 1.30-1.40c F VS or similar that appear to have some promising cut information. They don't have specific pages for their stones though, so you'd need to surf around the site and submit for more info. They are pretty highly reputed from those who have purchased from them.


Same with www.diamondwholesale.cc (a separate arm of WhiteFlash!)..but here are a few I copied:

1.36 D VS1 58.8% depth, 59% Table GIA graded, slt fluor, no culet, VG, GD 7.26*7.31*4.28 $9100

1.31 F VS1 60.5% depth, 59% table, GIA graded, no culet, VG, EX, no fluor, 7.10x7.14x4.31 $9500

1.33 E VS2 60.5% depth, 57% table, GIA graded, no culet, EX, EX, no fluor 7.13-7.15-4.32 $9800

1.36 D VS2 59.1% depth, 59% table GIA graded, no culet, VG, EX, no fluor 7.26*7.30*4.30 $10000

1.27 F VVS2 61% depth, 56% table, GIA graded, no culet, EX EX, faint fluor $10000

1.3 D VS2 60.8% dpeth, 55% table, GIA graded, no culet, EX EX, no fluor 7.07*7.11*4.31 $10130

Some of those may not be considered the typical 'ideal' specs (e.g. 59% table, 58% depth) but then again, some of those types of stones can be very amazing in person, like mine! So you can consider that as well.


Also these from WF's Ideal Section (NOT ACA)

http://www.whiteflash.com/acut/diamond_details.asp?refine=1&Page=1&ItemCode=475729
1.50 D SI1 $10100 (wow look at what a ctw jump the SI1 gets you!!!!!!!)

http://www.whiteflash.com/acut/diamond_details.asp?refine=1&Page=1&ItemCode=448858
1.51 F SI1 $9259 (and another huge SI1)

http://www.whiteflash.com/acut/diamond_details.asp?refine=1&Page=1&ItemCode=459897
1.29 E VS1 $8100

Get more info on the ones that don't have Sarins or AGS angles....get crown and pavilion angles on any contenders and run them through the HCA to narrow your search. Also I would STRONGLY consider those SI1's I pulled...the cut may be great and the color is excellent on both of them, if they are eye clean, you get a HUGE carat jump and no one is the wiser on the clarity!!

Good luck!!

 

[TheDiamondangel]

You know, just by dropping your color down to a G (which is still really white) you could stretch that budget even further.

 

[Mara]

I second that....but James has proven a tough nut to crack on the G SI1 issue!

 

[caratgirl]

You know, if I had Mara doing my searching for me it might not have taken me a year to find that perfect stone! Way to go!

 

[Mara]

CG...thats okay...most of the fun is looking for yourself!!!

James has alot of work to do on the search still...I am just pointing him in a few different directions..hee hee.

 

[Heyjud]

Hi James.....

$9 to 10 K....
What a rock it will be
Lucky her, lucky you
Wish it could be me!!!

Good luck and ENJOY the search!
(PS....3-stone truffles are really IN these days!)

 

[pqcollectibles]

I coulda used Mara myself, but then I wouldn't have learned a thing. Tough call. Shop for one's self and learn???? Or, let Mara's fingers do the walking????

Definitely LEARN!

Way more fun that way!

I got out and looked. Got to see what all the HoooHah was about with H&A's.

Learned that, Hey, SI1 is really OK if the inclusions are the right type and color in the right place.

And, you don't have to have F color if you've got CUT.

Made lots of Net friends and became a member of a very neat on-line community.

 

[james100]

Thanks for all the leads....

Still looking

and searching!

Have gone to many sites.....
When I find something interesting and affordable,I will share with you guys. Well, although it was tempting but I'm keeping to an F and at least a VS2 for the time being.

J

 

[baloo]

I'm closely tracking your progress James. I'm in a similar boat with a similar budget but I'm looking for a more square cut. Lucere or Regent are my chosen stones right now. I'm also looking at purchasing over the net because I'm based in Singapore.

 

[diamondsman]

My suggestion is that you should drop in color to an H and go for a bigger stone!!
What you have to do is really simple, all you have to do is go into websites and put in the criterias such as size,shape, and the total price you want to spend, and it will bring up all the stones that are within your budget, you can also search for larger sizes and see which one is to your likings.and if they are within you specs.


good luck !

 

[james100]

Yes Baloo, Post a new thread on what you want and lots of assistance will come your way! You will always be able to count on Mara, 'right Mara?', to start you off.
I just started looking recently but if there's anything you need, you're most welcomed to PM me!

Diamondsman! thanks for your suggestion I am sticking to my criteria!!! NO H for me! Thanks again. I have managed to send off several requests to several sites, so they should be having their hands full with my requests!

Heyjud- its definitely lucky her as I have to do all the hard work going through all the sites ....but ....I'm actually enjoying it!

J

 

[Mara]

----------------
On 6/12/2003 9:16

6 AM james100 wrote:
Yes Baloo, Post a new thread on what you want and lots of assistance will come your way! You will always be able to count on Mara, 'right Mara?', to start you off.
----------------

I don't know about 'always'! It's really all about my general mood at the time. If I feel lazy..I may pass it right up!

BUT whether or not I throw a post or two in, there are always tons of people more than willing to point you in the right direction as well!!

 

[Giangi]

Sorry Mara, I don't mean to steal your shine

, but here we have a few more possibilities:

1.27 G VS 1
http://www.niceice.com/certcopies/1272gvs1_ags2120304/index.htm

1.29 E VS 2 h+a
http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_29ct_e_vs2_h&a.htm

1.32 E VS 2 H+A
http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_32ct_e_vs2_h&a.htm


From dirtcheapdiamonds.com:
1709069 1.59 F VS2 GIA $11,367 61.5 56 EX VG None 7.54x7.51x4.63

1683155 1.37 D VS2 GIA $10,028 59.8 58 VG VG None 7.23x7.26x4.33

1663507 1.22 F VS2 GIA $7,286 61.7 58 VG VG None 6.87x6.82x4.22

1697815 1.21 F VS2 GIA $7,407 61.8 58 EX VG None 6.78x6.84x4.21

1693551 1.24 F VS2 GIA $7,591 60.2 58 EX VG None 6.94x7.01x4.20

1697814 1.21 E VS2 GIA $7,716 60.5 57 VG VG None 6.93x6.99x4.21

1665456 1.24 F VS1 GIA $7,802 61.7 58 VG VG None 6.83x6.88x4.23

1695413 1.20 F VS1 GIA $8,162 60.1 57 EX EX None 6.90x6.94x4.16

1189805 1.21 E VS2 GIA $8,211 59.2 58 EX VG None 7.11x6.98x4.17

1678729 1.21 E VS1 HRD $8,436 62 57 VG VG None

1566050 1.32 F VS1 AGS $9,640 61.5 57 ID ID None 7.05x 7.01x 4.33

1512106 1.34 F VS1 GIA $9,798 60.3 60 EX EX None 7.15x7.17x4.32

1204792 1.35 E VS1 GIA $10,136 61.2 57 VG GD Faint 7.08x7.16x4.36

1694270 1.31 D VS1 GIA $10,187 61.3 59 VG VG None 7.06x7.11x4.34

1670128 1.50 F VS2 GIA $10,383 62.7 58 GD GD None 7.22x7.30x4.55

1607830 1.41 F VS1 GIA $10,430 61 58 GD GD None

1642855 1.40 E VS1 GIA $10,512 62.8 58 GD VG None 7.10x7.14x4.47


What do you think? Are these enough to start??!!

 

[Mara]

Nate has MORE Than enough to start!! I think he already posted about the GOG E VS's in a previous post (or was that someone else??) and we gave our opinions on those already to SOMEONE on the boards. They have alot of FIRE but not white brilliance, a preference thing.

DCD and DiamondWholesale as well as other sites have TONS of stones for Nate. He just needs to narrow them down himself...we can't do that for him!

Giangi you are such the researcher. You can outdo me ANYDAY!!

 

[james100]

well guys!

it was me who discussed about the brilliance with mara about the GOG diamonds.
Giangi, do keep thos lists coming!
No luck today, those that I selected have been sold off including one on your list ,number 1683155 1.37 D VS2 GIA $10,028 59.8 58 VG VG None 7.23x7.26x4.33.

Cheers.
J

 

[phoenixgirl]

http://www.niceice.com/certcopies/gia12480752/index.htm

http://www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1683155

 

[james100]

Phoenixgirl, thanks!
The ones from dirtcheapdiamonds and niceice seems interesting!

Hibbard- I went to your site but didn't find anything that matches my requirements, thanks!

J

 

[Rhino]

Just curious as to your thoughts on something James & Mara. Do you think having the B'scope knowledge is a hindrance to you making a purchase with us? (I didn't read the thread on your comments on certain stones on our site.) For example would you choose to reject stones based on B'scope results but purchase a diamond elsewhere not having that information? The reason I ask is because 2 diamonds can have identical Sarin results yet very different B'scope results.

Curious to hear your response.

Rhino

 

[Mara]

----------------
On 6/13/2003 1:18

3 AM Rhino wrote:

Just curious as to your thoughts on something James & Mara. Do you think having the B'scope knowledge is a hindrance to you making a purchase with us? (I didn't read the thread on your comments on certain stones on our site.) For example would you choose to reject stones based on B'scope results but purchase a diamond elsewhere not having that information? The reason I ask is because 2 diamonds can have identical Sarin results yet very different B'scope results.

Curious to hear your response.

Rhino----------------

Hey Rhino

From my perspective, if given the information, you can use it as best you see fit. But if there is not information to be given, it's hard to judge on non-information if you are keeping an open mind and/or have a broad feel for what you desire. That said...if your stones have Bscope reports (which btw are awesome), then you can compare apples to apples against other stones with Bscope reports.. this is not just on your site, but sites like SC and/or NI if they had them, etc. But if a stone doesn't have a Bscope report (e.g. WhiteFlash or many of the other diamond vendors) for whatever reason, you can't really compare the Bscoped stone to the non-Bscoped diamond, because you have *no idea* what the Bscope would really appear to look like. Well maybe you experts would, but us general consumer folk wouldn't know what to look for. Something like apples to oranges. Still fruit but they look different?

I would definitely reject a stone based on a Bscope report, BUT if another stone didn't have one and I was alright with that, how could I reject it for what I didn't know? I wish ALL stones would have Bscopes and IdealScopes...but they don't.

From James previous posts..it appears as though he is focusing on cut heavily, but he is still considering other vendors who don't offer that much info on their sites. If he is fine with this..then I would like to give him ALL the options. Esp since in his last post, he was given mostly HCA well performers from the cut quality tool, and he still appears to be on the hunt--leading me to broaden the search this post into the arena of vendors with not-much-information on their sites. My personal choice? No...but he still seems to have not found the right stone in the initial go-round.

If you are talking about the specific stones he posted from your site...they both scored extremely high on the Fire side of the Bscope tool. If you compare those against a diamond that had VH or almost off the scales in ALL three categories (or more than just Fire), the animation looks VERY different. Leading me to believe that the stones themselves could look pretty different in person...right? Therefore, you now have information that could make or break your love of that stone. Do you like fire? Maybe not. Maybe you want more brilliance. Then you keep looking.

Anyhow--this may be a very long and convoluted answer to your question...it's late...I'm tired!!!

I hope I got the jist of what I am thinking across. I love the Bscope reports...I think they tell alot--but we all know the conversations surrounding their accuracy. I personally still think that they tell alot more than having nothing. They would assist me greatly in a future search. But, if a consumer decides to broaden the search outside of the small ring of vendors who offer that to them....we can only be here to help them.

 

[Rhino]

Thank you for that sweety.

The reason I ask Mara is because I've had people who have rejected certain stones of ours for their B'scope results (that were indeed OUTSTANDING stones) yet would purchase elsewhere with NO optical results at all except an HCA score. Ie. we were just helping a client who would not purchase a certain princess cut of ours that scores 2/3 VH's and a solid LightScope/IdealScope image (because they were insistent about getting 3 VH's) yet wound up purchasing elsewhere with NO optical results whatsoever because it "looked good" to them. When they finally got the Sarin numbers on the stone it turned out to be an 80 table, 74% depth, 6% crown height, shalllow pavilion which I know even before I call it in wouldn't even get 1 High on the B'scope!!! I think I need to revise and expound our tutorial on the subject. What most people do not understand is that if a diamond has some outstanding optical ability to reflect light back to the observers eye something about it will score very high. Most diamonds on the market score nothing in the very high zone especially when you consider the fancies.

Thanks again Mara.

Regards,
Rhino

 

[Mara]

Yes fancies are a whole different subject!! IS and Bscope are EXCELLENT for something like a fancy purchase. I don't think I would purchase a fancy without that information....but a round? Sometimes you feel comfortable with the #'s...like the HCA...and I could see how purchases can be made using only one or two bits of info that are available.

Also I think it bears noting that I think most people tend to look for VH across the board because they have seen other stones online that have that! There are many on your site as well as SC who have very excellent VH3's and so it's easy to discount a stone that is only VH1 or even a High that barely missed VH as 'okay' and keep looking for a better Bscope result. Then you may get distracted by a stone on another site..and the rest is history. I also think sometimes for people, they just feel as though they have to 'go with their gut' and then all the #s in the world won't faze them.

Further education on the nuances of something like the Bscope would definitely be great. Say as an example (just making this up), If a H VH H score is still in the top 90% of all stones out there....let it be known!

 

[james100]

Hi Rhino,
I am keeping my options open and trying to understand more about diamonds eversince I stumbled onto this site- which is just superb!!

If I had wanted it easy I would have bought it from a B&M store here in sunny singapore.

Anyway,the information you provide is simply marvellous which I do hope that all other vendors do provide for as much information for consumers and beginners like me.But Rhino, I might just come knocking at your door soon!

I have been spending a many of my midnight hours the past week hunting for that single STONE !

ChEeRs!!

 

[james100]

If I should consider a very WHITE G with all other requirements still being the same. What are my options?!

J

 

[aljdewey]

Rhino, I completely understand the problem in this. The thing that makes so many of us recommend your site....the wealth of information available on each diamond....cert, b/scope, etc.......is the very thing that may cost you business needlessly.

I'm sensing that you feel you're getting penalized in the mind of some consumers by giving b/scope results. They'll turn down a stone that's h/vh/vh because they want vhs across the board, but they'll buy another stone without knowing ANY of the b/scope results and feel OK about doing so.

Being honest, I'd have to say that a b/scope result that bordered on med/high would likely cause me to pass on a particular stone.

Like Mara, I think you could alleviate this problem with a bit of education. It's hard for someone to understand why a stone doesn't score all VHs when they can go to SC's site and nearly all the stones represented there score all VHs. They may come to think that all well-cut stones should produce these results. That's where a bit of education would come in handy.

Given all the dubious information regarding the integrity of b/scope reports, I don't tend to put as much emphasis on the b/scope as I do the cut proportions (HCA) and the lightscope/firescope, etc, images.

Tough call....I can see where you may be tempted to stop providing b/scope results to avoid unfair penalty. I hope it doesn't come to that....I, for one, really appreciate having that information and wish more sites did.

 

[msmithmomx2]

To give others a different perspective, I bought an unbranded H&A Ideal cut diamond that scored H, VH, VH on the bscope. I absolutely adore my diamond and I don't think that there was a noticable difference in the way the stone performs vs one that had 3 VH's. I have very good eyesight and can usually see imperfections that others cannot. I have compared my diamond to many H&A branded stones in my area and mine outperforms them everytime! Of course, the local stores don't use bscopes but I would much rather have the scope than not have it. I would recommend viewing the stones in person and don't just discount it because a stone's bscope doesn't show 3 VH's.

 

[phoenixgirl]

Some more ideas, sorry if they are repeats -- All AGS and GIA certs.

http://search.virtcert.com/cgi/u/1001/v.cgi?stock=1548124&_s=1001&_p=thepasswd&_c=&_fs=1&prestock= 1.33 E VS2 $9456

http://search.virtcert.com/cgi/u/1001/v.cgi?stock=1480750&_s=1001&_p=thepasswd&_c=&_fs=1&prestock= 1.39 E VS2 $9896

http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_27ct_d_vs2_h&a.htm 1.27 D VS2 H&A $10562

http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_27ct_e_vs2_h&a.htm 1.27 E VS2 H&A $9770

http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_29ct_e_vs2_h&a.htm 1.29 E VS2 H&A $9977

http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_32ct_e_vs2_h&a.htm 1.32 E VS2 H&A $9450

http://www.goodoldgold.com/1_21ct_e_vs1.htm 1.21 E VS1 $9509

http://www.superbcert.com/products/index.cfm?Product_ID=45&Product_Subcategory_ID=3&Product_Category_ID=3&Product_Group_ID=1 1.15 E VS1 H&A $8958

http://www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1481825 1.27 F VS1 $9178

http://www.dirtcheapdiamonds.com/diamond_detail.cfm?did=1566050 1.31 F VS1 $9640

 

[james100]

Hi Phoenixgirl,

thanks, will look at those that you have posted!

J