Thoughts on this brilliancescope report?

[nobly]

Hi All,

I am looking for opinions on this brillancescope report. What bothers me about it is that in the light views, each shot has 2 dark areas in the right-center of the diamond. It consistently shows up in each light view.

Here is the brillancescope images:

And here is the imagescope shot:

Should I worry about it?

Any opinions or thoughts would be greatly appreciated!! Thanks!

 

[diamondseeker2006]

I don''t think it gets much better than that!

 

[ecf8503]

It''s an AGS 0 (from Excel, right?) -

The IS looks FABULOUS - and symmetrical.

I''d bet the stone was slightly tilted in the BS machine, which is causing the discrepancy you are referring to - call Barry or Judah and ask them about it. They have a great return policy if you get it and don''t like it (I got my RB from them).

 

[nobly]

Thanks for the reassurances!
It seems odd that if it were a real bad problem, it wouldn''t show up on the idealscope.

Yes, its from Excel. Did you have good experiences with them? This is really my first time shopping for diamonds.

 

[ecf8503]

Excel was great - both Barry and (his son) Judah were very helpful, polite, and timely in their responses (we communicated mostly via e-mail). I had them reset my old stone into a Vatche setting for me and purchased my upgrade stone from them (which was set by a local jeweler). I''m pleased with the quality of the Vatche setting, and the upgrade stone is gorgeous (mine is round, though). Very fast shipping, cool little "accessory kit" (H&A viewer, handheld IS, tweezers, viewing tray, polishing cloth, "practice" CZ''s, and a loupe... ), and no hassle returns (The stone I ended up with was not the one I started with).

Barry loves princesses - he has carried his Superbcert branded princesses for a long while, but the AGS 0''s are new for them, and are marketed differently onviously, as the SC''s are usually GIA stones. Make sure you take a look at the SC branded stones too - many of them are right up there performance-wise with the AGS 0''s, but truthfully you really can''t go wrong with the AGS 0''s from what little I know of princesses.

I do know that BS results are favored by some and not by others. It''s a tool in the evaluation arsenal, but not a make or break thing either (there have been many a post here about people preferring stones with "not perfect" BS results). But the IS looks fantastic - good contrast, minimal light leakage, etc.

Are you shopping by budget? Just wondering - it looks like there are a lot of the AGS 0''s that they don''t have in stock, but I do know they can get them ASAP and will "work ''em up" for you at no charge (pics, IS, BS, etc) - so it may be worth asking Barry directly. Just remember that fancies will show a little more body color than rounds, so if you haven''t seen an I color princess in person before, you may want to go find one and make sure the color doesn''t bother you, although with a primo cut it really doesn''t matter as much since great cut can mask a lot. And the setting you choose will affect that as well.

But, FWIW, the one you have chosen looks great!

Good luck - keep us posted!

 

[nobly]

Yeah, I''ve had some contact w/ Barry (he''s called and emailed me). I''ve requested some more images, etc, from them and they promised that they''d get it all to me today. I have to say I''m impressed w/ the quick service so far.

Can you ever go wrong w/ AGS 0''s?? hehe
What I figure is that since AGS is the only real one that grades the cut, it should be good, plus the IS image confirms that for me.

I am on a budget, but the stone falls within the max w/ the platinum setting, so I''m not terribly worried about it. I might see if they have another one that''s a few hundred cheaper but slightly less carat.

I''ve seen an ''H'' color princess during my store shopping, but honestly, I couldn''t tell between the E and H colors, so I''m not worried about that since its an "I", I figure it can''t be super different than "H". I think if I stared at it long enough side-by-side I could probably tell, but really, who''s going to notice??

"And the setting you choose will affect that as well." - Could you elaborate on that?
I''m going to get a solitaire setting - I wouldn''t think it would mask the color that much, would it?

Thanks!

 

[ecf8503]

Glad to hear your experience with Excel has been positive so far!

I''m no princess expert, but from what I know you really are getting the cream of the crop with an AGS 0.

As far as setting, a basket type that has a horizontal support bar that essentially masks the side / pavillion view of the stone will "hide" more color, since you''ll notice the body color more from the side than from the top down. Same for rounds. What setting are you looking at?

 

[ecf8503]

I'll attach some pics below -

 

[ecf8503]

Here''s a side shot of a setting with a horizontal support bar (i.e. may hide more body color) (from Excel''s site)

 

[ecf8503]

And here''s one with an open pavillion view (i.e. MAY show more body color if you are sensitive to it...)

 

[nobly]

Oh I see what you mean.
Hmmm I was thinking of getting an ''open'' one like that last one there.

Does the crossbar do anything for the stability of the ring? I mean, does it secure the diamond better or something?

 

[ecf8503]

Sorry I didn''t get a chance to reply to your question.............

BUT! I see the stone is now no longer listed on Excel''s site - did you get it? What setting did you choose?

 

[nobly]

Hey ecf8503,
yes as a matter of fact, i did get it! I got the setting with the open pavilion picture you put above, in platinum.

i have to say it looks quite gorgeous and its pretty obvious that the cut is excellent. when i take it out into the sun its actually really dazzling. all in all i''m very very satisfied w/ exceldiamonds. i also got it appraised as well with better than i expected results.

now i just have to find insurance (ugh) and a proposal plan....

anyways, thanks for the help!! i really appreciate it (although i forgot to check the forums for a while - heh).

 

[JulieN]

awesome. can you see the black spots?

 

[ecf8503]

Date: 7/11/2006 6:45:26 PM
Author: nobly
Hey ecf8503,

yes as a matter of fact, i did get it! I got the setting with the open pavilion picture you put above, in platinum.

i have to say it looks quite gorgeous and its pretty obvious that the cut is excellent. when i take it out into the sun its actually really dazzling. all in all i''m very very satisfied w/ exceldiamonds. i also got it appraised as well with better than i expected results.

now i just have to find insurance (ugh) and a proposal plan....

anyways, thanks for the help!! i really appreciate it (although i forgot to check the forums for a while - heh).

Congratulations!!!!! Now where are the pics????????

Are you subscribed to this thread? That way anytime anyone posts anything here it will notify you via e-mail so you won''t forget to check in with us.......

 

[nobly]

@JulieN
Nope, can''t see the black spots that were present in the brillancescope reports. Barry explained that those were contrast spots. I''m still not really sure why it showed that glaringly in the report, but in real life I can''t tell.

@ecf8503
I''ll try to throw some pics here.. heh. The 1st and last shots are inside at night w/ a flash. The 2 middle shots are outside in the sun. Unfortunately I don''t have any on me right now that don''t ''flash'' the camera..

 

[ecf8503]

BEAUTIFUL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!