Stone Advice

[shibbel]

I''m having a very, very tough time finding a stone that I like. I was hoping to find a stone that''s an eye clean 1.00-1.02ct, H, SI2...that scores very well on the HCA (lower than a 1). I found one (1.01, H, SI2, MB florescent) that was a .7 on the HCA for $3,200; but it turned out that it had been sold.

In any case, my main question is; how much should I factor in the HCA? Can a stone that scores above a 2 be just as firey good as a stone scoring below a 1? Here''s a stone that cost around $3,700...but it only scores a 2.3. I have 2 months to get the ring...should I hold off for what I really want?

stones stats:
1.0ct, H, SI2, eye clean
60.9% depth
58% table,
35.1° crown angle
40.9° pavilion angle

 

[Magnum]

The HCA is meant to be used as an elimination tool to help sort through the multitude of diamonds that are out there, specificlly on the internet. While there may be beautiful diamonds that score >2, you're more likely to find less attractive diamonds in that range as well. So, your odds of finding a beautiful diamond are less than if you limit your search to diamonds that score below 2. By narrowing your search to diamonds that score less than 2, the chances that you'll find a less attractive diamond are much less, and the chances that you'll find a beautiful diamond are much greater (over 95% according to Mr. Holloway). Saying that, it doesn't mean that a diamond that scores 1.4 is better than one that scores 1.5, or even that a diamond that scores 0.7 is better than one that scores 1.5. There are things that affect a diamond's appearance (i.e. minor faceting, variance, symmetry, etc.) that are not measured by the HCA, so the 1.5 diamond may actually be prettier than the 0.7 diamond. Or the 1.5 diamond may be just as beautiful, just in a different way than the 0.7, a way that you may prefer (i.e. it may have more fire but less brilliance). Sorry this has been so long-winded, but there is often much debate over the usage of the HCA, and this is what I've been able to gather about it's usefullness. It's a great tool to narrow down you search, and if you limit your search to diamonds that score less than 2, you're chances are very very good that you'll find a beautiful diamond. once you've found a couple that meet your criteria, it's best to have them analyzed by an independent appraiser to verify the optical properties of the diamond, or at a minimum, you can ask for idealscope, H&A, Brilliancescope pictures, etc. from the vendor. Hope this helps. Good luck in your search.