Seeking re-cutting advice

[VAgemguy]

Long time lurker, first time poster here.

I have a peridot that has been collecting dust in my gem box & I am trying to figure out what to do with it. It is about 5 carats, approx 9mm x 11mm x 6mm, and is a nice (I think) lime green color without too much yellow. Believed to be from Burma. Anyway, it is native cut with a slightly asymmetrical pavilion. Also, it has 2 small inclusions (or maybe chips/abrasions) that bug me.

So, I wanted to see what some of your experiences have been with having stones re-cut. Anyone had good success with a similar project? Recommendations for which cutter(s) to use? I'm not too worried about losing some carat weight since the stone is already rather big. If I could end up with a really beautiful stone, even if it weighed in the 3-4 carat range after being re-cut, that would be great. What kind of pricing ballpark should I expect? A couple hundred dollars?

I'm obviously not the greatest photographer, but here's a pic for reference. The flash and the angle (and, no doubt, the skills of the photographer) make the stone look dark at one end, but there is no zoning or anything like that.



Any thoughts or advice would be appreciated!

 

[cellentani]

Welcome! Your peridot looks lovely, and from the angle of your pic, the cut actually looks fairly decent - I can't really see the asymmetry you mentioned, but again, that's probably due to the angle and might be much more noticeable in person. You might be able to have just the pavilion recut, but at 6mm, I don't know if you have enough depth or if your pavilion is "full" enough.

Anyway, recuts are tricky, and you should keep a few things in mind. First of all, despite the best intentions of the most skilled lapidary, unexpected things can happen during a recut - stones can cleave, microscopic internal fractures can widen, etc. It's also quite possible to lose some depth of color - I remember a specific incident where a PSer had her peridot recut, and while the finished stone was indeed brighter, it also appeared much less saturated. Depending on the placement, it's not always going to be possible to cut inclusions out, and if that's your goal, it might result in significant loss of weight and spread. If you are keen on maintaining a minimum carat weight or mm size, I'd state that up front, and most lapidaries will do their best to assess that beforehand, but nothing can be guaranteed.

Well, if that doesn't take the wind out of your sails about a recut, I don't know what will, lol. Honestly, I'm not trying to discourage you from persuing this, but as recuts are permanent, I always hope people understand the risks. I need to stop being such a mother hen, I think.

Price will vary, depending on the lapidary and the amount of cutting necessary, but I would think that $200 is a reasonable ballpark estimate. I haven't used him before, but based on the work I've seen, Jerry Newman would be at the top of my list.

 

[VAgemguy]

All good points. Thanks for the insights. The cut isn't terrible as-is -- definitely above average as native cuts go. I will reach out to a few of the highly-regarded-by-PS lapidaries and see what they recommend. If it seems like the cost/benefit isn't favorable, maybe I'll sell it or trade it instead.

 

[0-0-0]

Frankly I wouldn't bother with a recut. For around $200 you can get a peridot from many vendors that's already well cut.

http://www.acstones.com/productcart/pc/viewPrd.asp?idcategory=139&idproduct=4001
http://www.mastercutgems.com/index.php?page=view&cat=266
http://www.gemartservices.com/for-sale.html

 

[Pandora II]

I also wouldn't bother.

By the time you've found a cutter, paid the shipping and paid for the recut, you could probably have bought a new stone - and you won't have any of the 'what if's' in terms of loss of colour, satuaration, the whole stone.

Just not worth it for a peridot I'm afraid.

 

[LD]

Another "don't bother" from me! The things that irk you are nature's way of telling you to baby your stone! See, they're charming flaws really!

Anytime a stone is cut/recut you run a risk of the stone breaking (by accident) and it can happen to even the best - so I would enjoy your lovely gemstone as it is.

 

[Michael_E]

Are you sure that's a peridot? I only ask because the colors are so different in different directions that it looks very much like a tourmaline to me. In any case, that stone is light enough that it would make a great candidate for concave cutting. Doing this would give you a very unique stone and make it well worth the cost of having it cut.

 

[VAgemguy]

Hi Michael, yes, I'm fairly sure that it is peridot. I put it on my refractometer and got a reading of 1.655. Thanks for the concave cut idea - I'll keep that in mind if I decide to re-cut.

 

[VapidLapid]

Jerry of http://www.gemartservices.com/ does recuts. You could discuss it with him to find what it would actually cost. If it is just a chip that needs polishing out and not a total recut it should cost less. If what you are seeing is the typical peridot type lily pad inclusions then recutting isn't much of an option; you might cut all the stone away and be left with only the inclusions!

 

[Michael_E]

Hi Michael, yes, I'm fairly sure that it is peridot. I put it on my refractometer and got a reading of 1.655. Thanks for the concave cut idea - I'll keep that in mind if I decide to re-cut.

Your RI reading is not conclusive, as it is within range of a tourmaline. Your picture makes the color across the middle of the stone look dramatically different than the color in the ends, (blue green with yellow green in the ends and peridot doesn't usually have that much color difference). I would check it with a dichroscope as well as get a really good density measurement and some good internal views with a microscope. The reason that I'm going on about this is that a tourmaline of that size and color is worth a lot more than a similar sized peridot and that could change your approach to a re-cut.