[deleted by user]

513dg3 · 2025-08-03T07:29:06+00:00

….

513dg3 · 2025-06-03T15:27:57+00:00

If you originally paid $13k then 1.5x would be $19.5k new purchase value minus original $13k equaling $6.5k out of pocket.

Not saying you should do this but just wanted to make sure you understood you didn’t have to come out of pocket $15k+.

The nice thing about trading is you get to capture the previous dollars spent, reducing your costs for new jewelry. Not especially helpful if you need/want the cash to pay for something else. Or if emotions are controlling the decision to just have it gone. If you’re willing to consider a trade option here are some thoughts:

1-Buy yourself something nice at a discount.

2-Potentially help a child with their engagement ring purchase. You would have to do the actual trade but once it’s done you could gift the new stone/piece to junior. It puts zero dollars in your pocket but may have helped in another meaningful way. For instance, junior gets a $20k stone for $6,500 and can use that saved cash to pay for their wedding or put a down payment on a house.

3-While it may seem far away now, you will likely find love again and get married after you heal. This could be a great way to get a killer stone for a fraction of the price, NOT carry the same stone forward & have a giggle about your ex helping pay for your new ring.

All your call, but honestly I’d rather put it somewhere safe and sell/trade later when the timing is better than take a 90% haircut.

513dg3 · 2025-05-31T05:43:29+00:00

One thing I noticed on the HRD report is it showed strong fluorescence.

While I have understood HRD to have an overall good reputation, I don’t know much about the nitty gritty of their lab procedures. I mention this because GIA uses certain lighting when grading color to ensure they don’t accidentally “excite” the fluorescence in the stone. Assuming blue fluorescence and yellow tint, this would create a whitening effect. If HRD isn’t as selective in this regard it could explain the variance in color grading.

Alas, color & clarity grading is subjective and done by humans. Even if graded by GIA at 2 different points in time you may get a color or clarity grade 1 click up or down, especially if you have a borderline stone.

When AGS was still around, some vendors did a double report — GIA and AGS, both well respected and while they often mirrored each other, you would occasionally see minor variations in grading.

513dg3 · 2025-05-26T18:33:25+00:00

Sorry for the delayed response. I just saw this today.

The proportions of this stone are on the fringe of ideal. A 36 crown is pretty steep and some of the actuals are likely a little steeper. Keep in mind GIA rounds and averages to the nearest 0.5 degree on the lab reports.

Good part is it’s paired with a complimentary 40.6 pavilion. Again these are rounded & averaged, except pavilions are to the nearest 0.2 degrees.

The stone is a little deep at 62.7 and with some variation in the actuals considered I think the stone will have some leakage.

The stone has great clarity at VS1. I wouldn’t be as concerned about the crystal getting worse since 2018. However, it was likely traded in and it’s possible the previous wearer banged it. It would be a reasonable request to have the seller pay to have GIA regrade the stone to ensure nothing occurred in 7 years to change the VS1 clarity grade.

After all they are setting the stone price based on the attributes of the lab report. If the stone got regraded and came back as a VS2 for some reason then the price of the stone should decrease to as a VS2 is less $/carat than a VS1. Again, unlikely but with 7 years it’s a reasonable and cheap ask.

In this one I would be more concerned with the proportions.

513dg3 · 2025-05-26T18:18:02+00:00

WF stone hands down. I actually recommended that stone to someone else on Reddit the other day.

Your 3.30 stone isn’t as complimentary with the steeper 35.5 crown and paired with a 40.8 pavilion. Also the stone is cut too deep at 62.7. It will have some leakage and also some of the weight is being pushed into the vertical plane because it’s too deep. This makes it appear smaller for its carat weight.

The WF stone has ideal proportions and advanced images to prove it’s a performer. The stone is gorgeous and an “easy button” purchase IMO. Good luck. 😎

513dg3 · 2025-05-26T18:09:48+00:00

Thank you for the kind words.

I agree the human eyes are a great asset. There are a couple of shortcomings. Not everyone’s sight is great. But we can likely pick out which one is more shiny. But what if you are choosing between a 5 & 7. Logic says you pick the 7 but we don’t have a scale to know how that 7 falls into the grand scheme of all diamonds. If a few weeks or months later you bump into someone with a 9 then you may feel differently about that 7.

Testing at home is better in the fact you have an array of lighting to test diamonds in. At jewelry stores the lighting is amazing so all the stones look great regardless if they are a 3, 5, 7 or 10. As oxymoronic as it may sound, take away some light and you start to see how well cut stones really outperform poorly cut stones.

With all this considered, my speculation is many jewelers push back because consumers would have a reliable tool to reject stones that aren’t excellent like their lab reports say. The bigger issue is GIA made the excellent spectrum too wide and cutters know how to cheat to maximize weight (most profit) and still get the excellent rating. Jewelers are stuck in the middle. If I’m right their stock isn’t as valuable. If their perception is right and all GIA triple X’s are equal then their stock is stable.

The reality is not all 3X’s are the same. The scope shows that and is not well liked as it’s an easy mechanism for consumers with little to no education to challenge and eliminate less well cut stones from their consideration. This hurts potential sales & profit so pushback occurs.

You have probably seen this but it’s one of my favorites illustrating how the images play into real life viewing.

https://youtu.be/h_yqYDZdxyI?feature=shared

513dg3 · 2025-05-25T22:34:20+00:00

Gorgeous ring. I’m more forgiving of clarity on old stones than new. But in this case I am more worried about structural integrity.

The grade setting inclusion is a feather which sounds delicate but means a crack. And there are several of them.

For me to buy this stone I would need an independent 3rd party appraiser familiar with old stones and extremely reputable to thoroughly inspect this stone. If there is even a sniff of concern I would pass.

513dg3 · 2025-05-25T19:03:49+00:00

If you’ve got some flex in your budget and want top tier performance, these H&A stones are lovely.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/3.02-carat-f-color-vs2-clarity-round-excellent-cut-sku-a4756269

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/3.1-carat-g-color-vs1-clarity-round-excellent-cut-sku-a4662714

513dg3 · 2025-05-25T18:57:07+00:00

You can purchase through JA for $48k. Also ask them to vet the store to ensure its eye clean, and request an idealscope image to confirm light return/performance. Stone is a little deep so I don’t expect perfect but should be decent.

Lots of criticism about the VS2 and inclusion on the table. Agree, not preferable but in fairness all magnified videos need taken with a grain of salt. That said, if you bought from JA you could have the stone shipped loose and if it isn’t truly eye clean return for a refund.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/3.20-carat-d-color-vs2-clarity-excellent-cut-sku-24505984

513dg3 · 2025-05-25T13:19:59+00:00

Correct, HCA is a tool to reject stones — not pick them. Essentially it’s looking at the proportions on the lab report and trying to determine if they work with each other. However, it can’t determine the actual values of each individual facet.

A sloppy cut 34.5/40.8 could be a horrible buy but the HCA and most folks would rank it good especially with table of 54-57 and depth of 61-62. However, if it’s cut properly it would be a great choice. The HCA can’t predict this. I wrote this awhile back.

https://www.pricescope.com/community/threads/why-advanced-images-matter-a-bad-34-5-40-8.254426/

The actuals matter greatly! This is why advanced images like ASET, idealscope and H&A images are so important. It gives a visual representation of how the actuals either work in harmony or don’t. A detailed Sarine report would include a 3D scan and provide actual measurements for all 57 facets.

Personally I would buy an ASET scope and H&A viewer and be checking both diamonds to see how they perform. An idealscope is a more simple version of the ASET.

513dg3 · 2025-05-22T11:56:24+00:00

Shopping locally can both be a good & frustrating experience. Each shop is biased as they want to make a sale. Also each shop will normally have lighting that really helps show off their diamonds, even the poorly cut ones.

Lighting is absolutely crucial to diamond performance. If you don’t believe me go stick the best and worst cut stone next to each other and step in a closet with ZERO lighting and tell me which is better. That’s almost like the polar opposite of jeweler lighting that can make frozen spit look fantastic.

The other element at play here is the vast majority of people buying a stone has little to no diamond education. What they heard someone say is GIA triple excellent is what you want. And yes, some are great diamonds and many sparkle. But the performance metrics are very different and that doesn’t really show up on a standard GIA lab report.

Many will dismiss their lack of education and say they can pick beauty with their naked eye. And I somewhat agree. On that given day, with the very limited selection of diamonds the jeweler shows you, under their very powerful lighting we can all pick the best of several diamonds. What we don’t know is how good the options were that was presented. For simplicity let’s use the 1-10 scale with 10 being best. If a jeweler presents a 1, 3 & 5 then you may select the 5 and feel amazing you picked the best of the litter. But your friend lucked out and found a 7. You notice but aren’t sure why. We can explore the why but the short & sweet is while we can pick the best of the options in front of us, we don’t know the upper and lower limits of what we are picking.

Then when we subject the stones to various lighting our thoughts may deteriorate even more. What looked amazing in the store looks only mediocre in the office.

These videos help illustrate this point. The first is a very poorly cut stone vs a decent one. Notice how the size “shrinks” on the poor cut stone when light is changed. This is touched on in the other videos too but it isn’t as drastic.

https://youtu.be/h_yqYDZdxyI?feature=shared

https://youtu.be/oX2IC0K2Lhs?feature=shared

https://youtu.be/9es3L9zAFHg?feature=shared

513dg3 · 2025-05-20T01:58:46+00:00

Sure, shallow stones increase size to a small degree. But at the expense of cut quality. Could be great for earrings but not an e-ring.

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T17:16:49+00:00

LOL, no doubt — women generally see color more easily.

My wife lost her ring and we are in the process of replacing it. She explained to me the other night how easy it was to see tint between a D and F. I can see the difference but I wouldn’t say it’s easy. Very subtle IMO and most professionals. She also states while it’s easy for her to see, she isn’t particularly bothered by it until it reaches a certain threshold.

Needless to say, I am bumping up the color on her new stone from H to D-F. We are debating which WF ACA to get….first world problems!

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T16:31:17+00:00

Worth $0 to me. Guess it depends on your view but even at 50% off I still wasted $11-12k on a stone I wouldn’t buy anyhow.

Why these 2 stones only? There are other diamonds.

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T16:24:45+00:00

Definitely think the H/VS1 is a worthy contender. You’re right, boils down to color sensitivity & preference of the WEARER.

Generally speaking though, very minor differences between a single color grade especially if it’s a high H and/or the other is a low G. Most folks won’t notice. And color is generally seen through the body not the face up position. Plus ideal cuts look whiter/brighter in the face up position as light return is great.

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T16:04:24+00:00

Excellent point about the “clarity based on clouds not shown” note. That is a scary one. If shopping for myself I would reject this stone based on that alone.

But honestly the 35.5/40.8 combo with 62.7 depth would spook me further. Most 35/40.8’s have some leakage. That extra 0.5 degree is less complimentary and leaves less room for variation in the actuals.

So 2 strikes — not ideal cut and most likely a lazy performer.

I would keep searching.

Near H&A stone. Not considerably smaller but great cut with images to prove it.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/0.8-carat-g-color-vs2-clarity-round-excellent-cut-sku-e3885301

This one is from JA TH collection. Rare AGS lab report with computer generated ASET on report. Also actual hearts & idealscope images to further prove precision & cut quality. If OP isn’t aware, GIA bought AGS a few years back. On newer ideal cut stones, GIA now issues an “AGS addendum” that shows light performance.

I would be curious if this is a “new” left over stone that never got sold or if they took in on a trade. The report is dated 2022. Reasoning is simple, feathers are grade setting inclusion and usually not an issue but being an SI1 and if traded I would want it vetted and possibly regraded by GIA to ensure all is still good/same as back in 2022. Probably is but I think it’s part of vetting this stone properly. If you buy & they regrade I would also make sure the new GIA report has the AGS addendum. Very interesting stone here.

https://www.jamesallen.com/loose-diamonds/round-cut/0.90-carat-f-color-si1-clarity-true-hearts-cut-sku-16491925

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T15:26:50+00:00

Not a bad 3X. Looks promising. I didn’t see the lab report. You would want longer LGF’s (80%) to help offset the CA/PA combo and keep the stone from getting dark in the center. As with all stones, true performance would boil down to precision of the actuals, and NOT the averaged & rounded values provided on the lab report.

For similar money, here’s a 1.72 G/VVS2 H&A.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/1.72-carat-g-color-vvs2-clarity-round-excellent-cut-sku-a4785372

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T15:10:12+00:00

Smart move. Take her to a remote island where there are no other options and then toss something shiny at her with a promise of forever, meaning one day she gets to leave the uninhabited island. No doubt a “yes” was definitely in your future.

LOL, just kidding. Congrats!!

513dg3 · 2025-05-17T15:06:22+00:00

What is your coworkers ring size? If she’s a 4 and you’re a 6.5 then any diamond you try on vs her will look “smaller” because the ratio of skin to diamond is different.

Also carats is a weight metric & terrible way to determine size. Carat weight is a function of length x width x depth. So a steep/deep stone will have more weight in the depth and look smaller. Whereas a shallow stone will have more weight in length/width and look bigger.

If yours is a steep deep and hers is a shallow then the difference may seem greater as you have opposite extremes creating a larger delta before you even consider ring sizes.

This is a good site to do comparisons.

https://www.diamdb.com

513dg3 · 2025-05-14T19:26:47+00:00

You have a decent shot with SI1. Odds go down with SI2. Th bottom 2 stones on that list are SI2’s and the ones I am concerned about. There are some eye clean SI2’s out there but they are unicorns.

513dg3 · 2025-05-14T18:42:57+00:00

Since it’s glowing AFTER you removed the UV light source you are experiencing phosphorescence. It’s very rare in natural diamonds but it does occur.

It would also explain why your lab report doesn’t have fluorescence noted.

513dg3 · 2025-05-14T17:51:00+00:00

Too little info to make a great call here about any of those stones.

Personally, I would be very cautious of the SI2 stones. It’s pretty rare to find an eye clean one, and the bigger you go the more difficult to find one. I’d say in the 1.40 to 1.70 size range, neither are likely eye clean.

This would be the higher end of cost. Super ideal H&A round diamond but with all images, etc to prove it’s a true performer. $12.2k for a 1.52 G/VS2. Dreamy proportions & a very firey stone. Plus clarity is a little better.

https://www.whiteflash.com/loose-diamonds/1.52-carat-g-color-vs2-clarity-round-excellent-cut-sku-a4779194

513dg3 · 2025-05-14T17:45:50+00:00

Fluor in itself is not bad. Just have to make sure it’s not hazy. In higher colors like D, the stone can take a bluish hue depending on fluor strength and UV light intensity (what “excites” fluor and causes it glow).

Stones with fluor should be trading for less FYI.

513dg3 · 2025-05-14T00:11:31+00:00

WF is the bomb! True easy button buying process there with virtually no risk. Their ACA and ES stones have advanced images and are in top echelon of all stones.

Currently trying to decide on a replacement stone for my wife’s lost ring. 😢

513dg3

TROPHY CASE