radiant cut, good buys?

[pinkerton101]

Thanks to all that have helped in my search so far.....

I have received certificates on three diamonds and just wanted everyone''s opinion. The criteria i gave were: radiant cut, .75-1ct, "eye clean" (at least SI1, but if one of these looks like a good canidate I will revisit their definition of eye-clean and possibly have the diamond evaluated to see if it''s to my liking before purchase), as close to colorless as I can get (H/I would be fine with me), good-very good cut and symmetry. With that said I said I would like to find a diamond for around the $2000 mark (i think i may allocate some more of my budget for a nice setting). Now I am realistic and don''t expect to get the deal of the century for my price range, but i was wondering if any of the diamonds below seem to be a good prospect for a good solid purchase.
PS-these are all from Abazias.com and cost slightly less than $2000


Canidate 1 Canidate 2 Canidate 3

CT .87 .96 .81
dims 6.15x5.21x3.17 5.46x5.32x3.73 5.90x4.93x3.41
depth% 60.8 70.1 60.2
table width% 75 69 66
crown height% 8 13 13
pavillion depth % 51 54 54
girdle thickness medium polished medium poilished medium polished
polish g-vg g-vg g-vg
symm vg vg g-vg
cutlet none none none
clarity SI1 VS1 SI1
Graining Nil Nil Nil
Flouresence none slight blue none
color ?(can''t read from copy) H H


Opinions please.....I''d like to narrow it down to one choice that seems promising, then make sure that I feel good about the sale...then buy! (hopefully in the next day or two)

 

[Nicrez]

What sort of reports do they have? It looks to me a deal, but perhaps the color and clarities are not what they say they are. I would buy the stone BASED ONLY on having an appraiser look at it to confirm it is what they say it is and your visual confirmation, OR a GIA cert under 5 years old or so. Just my honest opinion.

Based on the specs the #2 stone seems the nicest based on numbers to me. I like a nice higher crown % and H color should be OK for your size and budget (although these stones are cut to show color, and radiants are known to be the most colored looking of the cuts past G) I would also rather a larger ct stone at VS1 anyday over a SI1. To get SI1 I would have to see it in person, especially the radiant! They are tough to determine online, I can''t imagine buying one without ever seeing it, but I am sure people have...Just my $.02 though.

Good luck!!!

 

[chrono]

I''m the opposite. Based on the numbers and if #3 checks out eye clean, that would be my choice. With a depth of 60%, this stone is 0.5mm larger in both width and length over stone #2 which has a 70% depth. It will look bigger than #2. Both have a nice 13% crown height, so on paper, they should look good.

 

[Nicrez]

Not sure if it matters to you but #2 is closer to a square at 1:1.02 ratio. I chose it, because personally am a fan of that look, as opposed to the #3 at a 1:1.19 ratio. it's a much longer look, and when things are that long, they look slender, as opposed to squat and fat. Sure it has a deeper depth, but I have to say that I have noticed that stones with more depth and a good crown can exhibit fire like no one's business... but again, it's all based on what I have seen personally and my OWN preferences, so a square stone with more fire is something I tend to favor. Had it been deeper that 74% I may not like it so much.

ALSO: That #2 has a 69% table, means the flash effect for the stone will be a tiny bit larger. When the stone is moved around, that table flash will be slightly larger, giving it a first hand appearance of larger stone. My friend hates that her tiny tables radiant is confused with a smaller size, so when we changed it, we noticed larger table stones give a better "flash". Then again her table % was like in the late 40's!

Either one you choose, I do suggest seeing them, to see which you like, and which one speaks to you. I can't say how many times the right proportions just seemed lifeless in radiants once I saw them live... they take a certain kind of patience, but in the end they are beautiful!!!

GOOD LUCK!!

 

[pinkerton101]

A little bit more info: I had requested a few certificates on stones, but also spoke with a sales rep and asked him to reccomend a diamond. Funny enough he ended up suggesting a diamond that happens to be choice #3. He has stated that he "spoke with the cutter" (no it''s not an in-house stone)....and the cutter said that the clairity is eye-clean (I''ve already asekd for his definition of eye clean), the color, H, appears white, and the ring has lots of fire. The cert however is EGL israel.....how worried should I be? There is a 10-day no questions asked policy for return so would it be worth it to take a look myself and return it if I don''t like it? I am realistic in the price range I am working in and don''t expect the hope diamond for $2000....so really I just want it to look nice. In regards to having it appraised by someone else.....how much should I expect this to cost and about how long do you think the whole process would take. I really don''t know if I want the headache of having the diamond sent from point a to b to c etc... etc... (Shopping for the first diamond is stressful enough so far).

 

[pinkerton101]

oh yes, I should have mentioned preference on shape.....more rectangular is actually preferred, but square would be OK.

 

[pinkerton101]

Ok guys....one more canidate at http://www.whiteflash.com/radiant/Radiant-cut-diamond-319737.htm# Honestly, from everthing I''ve read on this forum I really think I may feel more comfortable dealing with whiteflash....though e-rings direct seems very helpful as well (I may have to look at their options again). What does everyone think of this diamond? Besides the "good" symmetry and slight flouresence everything else looks good to me! Does it seem a bit on the cheap side to everyone? Not that I''m complaining, but I was wondering if the really rectangular shape of this diamond makes it less desireable and therefore cheaper. Really I want to order rectangular so this seems like a good fit for me, i just wonder if there will be any unforseen problems because of it''s dimensions.

 

[coda72]

I would have Whiteflash call in the one you posted. (They don''t have it in house.) Of the ones you were originally considering, #3 seemed the best to me. But I would be a bit wary of the EGL Israel report. They are known to be off on color and clarity sometimes. Your H could turn out to be a J, and in radiants color is somewhat noticeable. I would work with Whiteflash. They are good to work with, and they will try hard to help you find a stone according to your specs and budget.

 

[pinkerton101]

Thanks....really the egl reports were starting to worry me too! I already tried calling whiteflash, but they don''t open for another half hour......looks like I''ll be trying to get in touch with them again in a little bit.