Who will re-cut a stone?

[stepcutgirl]

I''m sorry if I am posting something that has been asked a lot but I searched and couldn''t find what I am looking for even though I know I have read about it before. I am considering buying a sapphire that I really love the color, but the cut is yucky. The underside (I think pavilion) is very chubby and does not come to a point. Since I will be setting this ring in a James Meyer you will see the cutlet and I would like the underside re cut. Can one of the cutters do just that part and leave the top? I know I would lose weight to the stone and that''s not a huge issue as what matters to me is seeing a pretty cutlet from the profile view and I''m happy with the L and W measurements. Can what I''m wanting be done and who would I go to for this?

Thanks and I''m sorry if I''m asking a repeat question.

 

[chrono]

I have seen some Dan Stair recuts on PS. I know Jeff White does some too but I don''t know if he will for a stone that he did not purchase.

 

[chrono]

How yucky is the cut? There are also risks with re-cuts. There colour considerations (might lighten up in saturation, show zoning, bring up the gray undertone, etc) and clarity issues (feathers might grow larger, cut around existing inclusions, etc). A belly isn’t always a bad thing and not all culets come to a point. You may be talking about a keel culet where it is a straight line and not a pointy tip. This is fairly common in coloured gemstones.

Yes, I have seen where only the pavilion is tweaked to keep the face up size the same while trying to improve the overall appearance.

 

[LostSapphire]

Date: 6/10/2009 12:11:54 PM
Author: Chrono
I have seen some Dan Stair recuts on PS. I know Jeff White does some too but I don''t know if he will for a stone that he did not purchase.

JW will only do recuts of stones he has sourced himself. ie: he won''t recut a stone someone purchased from elsewhere.

LS

 

[Michael_E]

Date: 6/10/2009 12:19:42 PM
Author: Chrono
There are also risks with re-cuts. There colour considerations (might lighten up in saturation, show zoning, bring up the gray undertone, etc) and clarity issues (feathers might grow larger, cut around existing inclusions, etc).

This is right on the mark and is a particular concern when discussing color changes. The reason for this is that sometimes the color in a sapphire may be concentrated near the culet which makes the entire stone appear to be that color. Cut that off and the color goes "bye, bye". What shape is the stone ? Can you get a look at it from a couple of sides ? If you get it for review, make a point of submerging it in a light colored oil and looking at it from the sides. This will give you a better idea of any color zones and where they are located. If the color is fairly even or in the crown, you''re in luck and the stone can most likely be re-cut with very little change to it''s depth. It will probably get brighter and lighter in tone however, often good, sometimes not so much.

 

[stepcutgirl]

Here is the belly up shot. I thought all stones should show a cutlet (this shows my lack of knowledge), how would this type of underside look in a ring where you can see that part?

ETA-Yes, this is a multi colored stone.

 

[Michael_E]

I think that it would look fine. One problem with that stone is that it looks a bit shallow to attempt a re-cut and not affect the face up dimensions. It also appears to have enough inclusions that a re-cut probably wouldn''t do much for it''s face up appeal. I would suggest not re-cutting this stone, since it''s about as good as it''s going to get and you wouldn''t find any substantial benefit for the money spent on a re-cut.

 

[stepcutgirl]

Thank you. Are you saying it has a lot of inclusions? It''s not treated in any way, so I know to expect some, but it''s listed as very slightly included. Also the depth is 5.1mm.

 

[PrecisionGem]

the last 3 facet tiers are cut too shallow, well below the critical angle, so those 3 tiers will form a very large window. As M.E. said, the stone is shallow, and you will loose considerable weight recutting it. To get the angles correct, the overall size of the stone will need to be reduced. I''d guess you will loose around 40% of the weight of the stone in a recut.

 

[chrono]

There are a couple concerns with that stone:
1. There are a ton of inclusions clearly visible in the pavilion. A cutter will have to be extremely careful cutting around it.
2. The bottom is completely rounded which means a huge weight loss.
3. The stone looks like it is currently too shallow, so to re-cut it for better light and colour return, I expect major weight loss.

In short, this is a stone that would a poor candidate for a re-cut.

Yes, this stone has a lot of inclusions. Both treated and untreated stones can be very clean, clean, slightly included or very included. Just because it is untreated does not mean it expected to have eye visible inclusions.