I am posting in regards to my experience with Cooper Jewelers Inc. in Warren, New Jersey 07059. Maybe some will have experience working with this business. However, I am also interested in general advice.
I bought a GIA certed stone (1.37 ct, H, SI1, round brilliance) from another company and decided to have Cooper design an engagement setting for my fiancee. The original engagement setting took about a week longer than they told me it would (not a big deal) but it also had a few flaws. I think they may have rushed (once they were past their original deadline) just to get it to me because I needed it for the engagement weekend that was coming up. The design was 3/4 pave on the top and sides going all the way up to the prong. It did look beautiful, however one of the pave stones on one of the prongs was clearly (visible without a loupe) set out of place. There should have been two stones set in the space but instead there was only one centered in the space. Also, one of the prongs was noticeably shorter than the others, and when you really examined the stone (again without a loupe), you could tell it wasn't perfectly centered. The woman in charge told me that it would not be a problem to fix. My fiancee and I were engaged in May of 2009 and she decided she wanted to wear her ring for a while before getting it fixed. So, in mid-December (2009) we took the engagement setting back to repaired and to have a matching band made. Both were supposed to be done the first week of February, but it is now March and they still haven't even started to fix the engagement ring despite our calling once a week since then. I think the wedding band is finished however they flip-flopped their story whether it was done. The head of the store made a bunch of excuses about it being the Chinese New Year and the shops were closed for so long and a bunch of "other silly excuses" (her words not mine). My fiancee is getting annoyed that she has to wait so long, however my only concern is that the repair gets done properly. Therefore I have tried to be as cordial as possible so that they still think I am very satisfied and there is still some incentive for them to keep me pleased and not to screw up further. They said it should be done by this weekend, however I am worried that they are going to rush and just screw it up worse. I can only imagine how difficult it is to repair these things. Also, what is the likelihood that they could damage the diamond in the resetting process? I heard that RB's are unlikely to be chipped but I do remember hearing that it is possible to burn them with the setting torch. I want to know what to check for so that I am prepared when I go up there and examine it. As you can tell I am very nervous that something will go wrong.
I am curious as to what people think of these events. Is this evidence of a very unprofessional jeweler or are these problems common in the business.
I bought a GIA certed stone (1.37 ct, H, SI1, round brilliance) from another company and decided to have Cooper design an engagement setting for my fiancee. The original engagement setting took about a week longer than they told me it would (not a big deal) but it also had a few flaws. I think they may have rushed (once they were past their original deadline) just to get it to me because I needed it for the engagement weekend that was coming up. The design was 3/4 pave on the top and sides going all the way up to the prong. It did look beautiful, however one of the pave stones on one of the prongs was clearly (visible without a loupe) set out of place. There should have been two stones set in the space but instead there was only one centered in the space. Also, one of the prongs was noticeably shorter than the others, and when you really examined the stone (again without a loupe), you could tell it wasn't perfectly centered. The woman in charge told me that it would not be a problem to fix. My fiancee and I were engaged in May of 2009 and she decided she wanted to wear her ring for a while before getting it fixed. So, in mid-December (2009) we took the engagement setting back to repaired and to have a matching band made. Both were supposed to be done the first week of February, but it is now March and they still haven't even started to fix the engagement ring despite our calling once a week since then. I think the wedding band is finished however they flip-flopped their story whether it was done. The head of the store made a bunch of excuses about it being the Chinese New Year and the shops were closed for so long and a bunch of "other silly excuses" (her words not mine). My fiancee is getting annoyed that she has to wait so long, however my only concern is that the repair gets done properly. Therefore I have tried to be as cordial as possible so that they still think I am very satisfied and there is still some incentive for them to keep me pleased and not to screw up further. They said it should be done by this weekend, however I am worried that they are going to rush and just screw it up worse. I can only imagine how difficult it is to repair these things. Also, what is the likelihood that they could damage the diamond in the resetting process? I heard that RB's are unlikely to be chipped but I do remember hearing that it is possible to burn them with the setting torch. I want to know what to check for so that I am prepared when I go up there and examine it. As you can tell I am very nervous that something will go wrong.
I am curious as to what people think of these events. Is this evidence of a very unprofessional jeweler or are these problems common in the business.