Find your diamond
Find your jewelry
shape
carat
color
clarity

Worried About the Brilliance

S

StoneColdGuy

Rough_Rock
Joined
Mar 6, 2019
Messages
5
I received my stone (in a setting) today and I am a little concerned about the brilliance - wanted to get your thoughts based on the numbers. 1.6carat, G, VVS2

When I did the HCA it gave it a 2.5 grade...I just found the HCA tool today...

Depth 61.8%
Table Percent 58%
Crown Angle: 35.0
Crown Height
Pavilion Angle: 41
Pavilion Depth
Girdle Min Thin
Girdle Max Medium
Girdle Condition
Measurements 7.49 - 7.52 x 4.64

All thoughts are welcome - is it likely that this is less than great? I am newer to the diamond game so I'm just not sure if the stone is actually not that brilliant or I'm just being hard on it (I dont have anything to compare it to).
 
What lab graded it and what cut grade did they give? It's probably not cut all that well if it seems to lack some life. If you post the actual lab report or the report number, perhaps people can give you more concrete reasons for the lower HCA score. GIA uses a lot of rounding, so it's possible that the HCA score is even a bit inflated. Generally, you want a HCA 2 or less. It's just a rejection tool. There are all kinds of things with minor facets and leakage and whatnot that are impossible to evaluate without more data.
 
AdaBeta27 said:
What lab graded it and what cut grade did they give? It's probably not cut all that well if it seems to lack some life. If you post the actual lab report or the report number, perhaps people can give you more concrete reasons for the lower HCA score. GIA uses a lot of rounding, so it's possible that the HCA score is even a bit inflated. Generally, you want a HCA 2 or less. It's just a rejection tool. There are all kinds of things with minor facets and leakage and whatnot that are impossible to evaluate without more data.
Click to expand...

I wouldn't say it lacks life really - I almost think im just being really picky but wanted to see what you all thought. It was graded by GIA - excellent accross the board. Are there other dimensions you'd like to see?
 
What is often suggested is to clean the ring thoroughly and then see what you think. A soak in hot water and Dawn dish soap, then brush with a soft toothbrush and rinsh well. See if that makes a difference. Diamonds pick up oils like magnets and even a brief bit of handling will film the surface just enough to make them lose some “oomph”.
 
In general we recommend rejecting stones which score over 2 on the HCA, unless there are really great Asset/is images.

That said, you already bought the stone, so you need to decide if returning is feasible vs being a huge pain. And look at it in multiple lighting situations to see what your eyes say.
 
Any photos?
 
Hi StoneCold,
Rest easy. There’s nothing whatsoever wrong with your diamond based on the evidence at hand. HCA is great for people shopping - not so great for those who already own a diamond. There are so many gorgeous stones that score above 2.
If you’re looking at the stone in direct sunlight that may explain why it’s not as lively as you expected
 
Diamond looks beautiful!

Out of curiousity, .. if you just found the HCA calculator and Pricescope, what were you looking for when shopping and how did you end up choosing that diamond?
 
If you have ASET or Idealscope images, people here could look at those and may or may not see leakage or symmetry issues or something about the faceting. Not all "superideal" diamonds are equal. Not all of them have exactly the same look. Is returning it an option? I have found that even the best of my local jewelers was selling lesser diamonds than what I had already seen on Pricescope. By lesser, I specifically mean cut, because you can go lower in color and/or clarity and still have a peak performing diamond. If you have a Hearts On Fire dealer available, go look at some of their RB diamonds and see how those compare with yours. If yours doesn't thrill you, try to get out from under it and buy something else. An AGS000, for example, would be guaranteed to be a peak performer because AGS000 is a tighter spec than GIA 3X. I owned a GIA 3X superideal that looked "meh" to me. Someone else may have really liked it, but it was meh to me. I traded it in for a slightly arger AGS000 with fatter arrows, and more precise cutting, and the AGS000 is "ooo-la-la!"
 
You wont know if your stone is a live wire, or a dud, until you look at it next to different stones. I recommend finding a store or two in your area where you can look while still within your return period. It would be great if you can find a store with some AGS 0 cut grade diamonds to compare with your diamond, then you can see what YOU like with YOUR eyes.

Wink
 
Without a doubt- people give advice with the best intentions.
From my perspective, it seems very easy to needlessly unseat someone’s confidence in a purchase- even with the best of intentions.
By all means, comparing to other diamonds sounds like a good idea. But it’s not all that easy to find a dealer who will show stones without trying to make a sale.
There’s a lot of personal preference involved with a diamond purchase- so what pleases someone else may not necessarily please you.
But if you can find local dealers who have stones in stock for you to compare, it might help- even from a price perspective.
If not- as I said earlier, there’s absolutely nothing in evidence to make me believe there’s an issue with the diamond you’re holding.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
GET 3 FREE HCA RESULTS JOIN THE FORUM. ASK FOR HELP
Jewelry Blog
PriceScope-Concierge-Ad
Find prime cuts.
Top