What is ABI GEMOLOGICAL LABORATORY

[hoppyflower]

Hey! I am looking into buying an OEC diamond for my engagement ring but I am unfamiliar with diamond in overall and would like to ask for your help! I came by two diamonds so far and here are the diamonds specs:



GIA certified (as round brilliant)
Measurement: 6.18 x 6.41 x 4.05 mm
Carat Weight: 1.02
Color Grade: J
Clarity Grade: VSI
Cut Grade: Good
Polish: good
Symmetry: Fair
Flourescence: None
Asking Price: 5600





ABI certified (as OEC)
Measurement: 6.41 x 6.51
Weight: 0.97ct
Color: I
Clarity: VS2
Crown angle: 32.6
Crown height: 14.6
Pavil angle: 39.7
Pavil Depth: 40.1
Table size: 55.3
Total depth: 57.3
Flourescent: Faint
Asking Price: 7300


Questions:
1) Have anyone heard of ABI Gemological laboratory before?
2) Is it safe to buy diamond that is only certified by ABI?
3) I am concern with the loose diamond as the shape is stated as Mi (please refer to the picture above). What does Mi stands for?
4) Considering both diamonds overall specs, is the asking price fair?

 

[MollyMalone]

So far as I can tell, based on my Google searches, ABI was a Texas corporation that was in brief existence from July 1998 until August 2000 -- when it appears the Texas Secretary of State pulled the plug on the corporate entity because of its failure to file tax returns.

 

[denverappraiser]

With ANY lab, the burden is on them to convince you that their opinions have merit. The default answer is no. Anyone who wants to can hang up a sign calling themselves a gemological laboratory and they can grade things however they want. The secret is that you don't have to care. If you can't find footprints for ABI and they don't successfully convince you of the lab's merits, ignore them.

Out of business since 2000 because they didn't pay their taxes wouldn't make them necessarily wrong, but I wouldn't exactly call this a good sign (assuming it's the same ABI of course. There are many companies with that same three letter acronym and some of them actually do pay their bills).

 

[tyty333]

I would say that at $7300 that ABI stone is overpriced. It's also got a very low crown.

Have you looked at Jewels by Grace or Love Affair Diamonds?

The first ring/stone looks nice though!

Edit - you can also try Old World Diamonds. You would probably have to contact them and see what they have.

 

[MollyMalone]

Out of business since 2000 because they didn't pay their taxes wouldn't make them necessarily wrong, but I wouldn't exactly call this a good sign (assuming it's the same ABI of course. There are many companies with that same three letter acronym and some of them actually do pay their bills).

Just fyi: That defunct Texas corporation is the only ABI Gemological Laboratory I was able to unearth & I found a South Dakota Craigslist ad for a diamond with a May 2000 ABI Gemological Laboratory "certificate", which has a Texas address on it. The fact that even on eBay there don"t seem to be offerings with ABI Gemological Lab reports suggests to me that it wasn't in operation for very long.

 

[hoppyflower]

Thanks everyone!!!!!!!!!

 

[AbsoluteBrilliance]

Hello HoppyFlower;

First and foremost thank you for your question in regards to our services and we apologize for our late response. We hope these answers are to your satisfaction.

*Who we are;
Absolute Brilliance Inc. (ABI), is a retail jeweler’s premier choice for specially ordered loose diamonds. Our goal is to assist retailers in fulfilling their customer’s special request. We are a third generation, family owned loose diamond company headquartered in midtown Manhattan.

Memberships & Accreditations include but not limited to;
Responsible Jewelry Council- Membership #0000 0638
Gemological Institute of America (GIA)-Graduate Gemologists and Accredited Jewelry Professionals on staff
American Gem Society-Membership Firm- Certified Gemologist & Register Jewelers on staff
Diamond Council of America- Authorized member & Active on Board of Directors

*Is it safe to purchase diamonds that are only certified by Absolute Brilliance Inc.?
By maintaining a state of the art diamond facility, along with our professionally trained team of gemologists, and the latest diamond equipment, we have earned the trust and respect of the country’s finest retail jewelry companies.

*Concerns about the loose diamond shapes as Mi. What does Mi stand for?
Mi- refers to a miscellaneous group of diamond we house in our inventory. Only the rarest shapes will be labeled “Mi” such as; Circular Brilliant (Old miner’s cut), Trapezoids, Kites, Half-moons, Shields, and Briolette, just to name a few shapes.

Just for your question HoppyFlower, we decided to take one of the diamonds that you questioned and submit it to GIA for grading. Here were the results (pictures below);

ABI Lab Grading
Color I
Clarity VS2
Cut Good/Good

GIA Grading
Color H
Clarity VS1
Cut: Very Good/Good
GIA Cert#5172307299
We take pride in our business, and our name in the industry is unblemished.
We appreciate your question and the opportunity to clarify what’s behind an ABI report

Sammy
Absolute Brilliance, Inc.
800-309-0040
212-869-9078 Fax


http://www.absolutebrilliance.com/

 

[John P]

Sammy and Absolute Brilliance - Welcome to Pricescope.