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Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analysis.

Tourmaline

Tourmaline

Ideal_Rock
Trade
Joined
Nov 17, 2013
Messages
2,560
I had a steep deep ~1ct diamond that my grandmother had bought from a neighbor or something, and it just wasn't attractive. Very splintery, way too deep. Excellent color and pretty good clarity (uncerted), but it never grabbed me. I sent it to Brian Gavin for recut analysis and I laughed out loud when I saw the images of the diamond! Of COURSE, I am going through with the recut, and it will be sent to AGS of certification. Enjoy these images, haha!

uglydiamond.jpg

Sarin:

uglydiamond-sarin.jpg

Idealscope:

uglydiamond-idealscope.jpg
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

ASET:

uglydiamond-aset.jpg

Arrows, hahahaha:

uglydiamond-arrows.jpg

Hearts, haha:

uglydiamond-hearts.jpg
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

And the projected recut:

uglydiamond-estimate.jpg

I'm looking forward to it!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

That's very cool.
I'm looking forward to the results. :appl:
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

That looks awesome! Not too much weight loss. I like seeing the outline within the existing specs, that's pretty neat.
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

That's gonna look great!! (kinda makes me wanna send mine off to him... hmmmm)

I looked on his site, but didn't see any prices for recuts... does he charge by the carat, or is it on a purely "case by case" scenario?
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

msop04|1403822668|3701709 said:
That's gonna look great!! (kinda makes me wanna send mine off to him... hmmmm)

I looked on his site, but didn't see any prices for recuts... does he charge by the carat, or is it on a purely "case by case" scenario?
Click to expand...

It's $350 per carat, with a minimum charge of $350. The analysis is free (except for shipping both ways). AGS certification is $125 plus shipping.

Thanks, Kenny and pandabee! :)
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Tourmaline,
If you get a AGS0 out of it at that size, it will be an excellent $475 investment. Not to mention a huge transformation in beauty!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

This will be a fun project!... :appl:
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Very cool! Looking forward to seeing how this project goes. Agreed, it's neat to see the diagram of the diamond-within-the-diamond. :)
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

I did the exact same thing with a one carat diamond from my family. It came out at .80 because it was a worse cut than yours, but it was worth it! I didn't send mine to AGS because I wasn't planning on selling the stone and didn't care to spend the money. It is amazing to see the make-over pictures, though!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

diamondseeker2006|1403829060|3701778 said:
I did the exact same thing with a one carat diamond from my family. It came out at .80 because it was a worse cut than yours, but it was worth it! I didn't send mine to AGS because I wasn't planning on selling the stone and didn't care to spend the money. It is amazing to see the make-over pictures, though!
Click to expand...

I'm not going to sell it, either. My grandma gave it to me when I was 15. I just love the idea of having an AGS certified stone. I'm not going to use the stone for me, I don't think, but one of my kids will enjoy it someday. :)
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Texas Leaguer|1403823633|3701719 said:
Tourmaline,
If you get a AGS0 out of it at that size, it will be an excellent $475 investment. Not to mention a huge transformation in beauty!
Click to expand...

With all the shipping costs (to them, to AGS, back to them, back to me), it adds another $110 to the cost, but still worth it, I think.
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Tourmaline|1403829248|3701780 said:
diamondseeker2006|1403829060|3701778 said:
I did the exact same thing with a one carat diamond from my family. It came out at .80 because it was a worse cut than yours, but it was worth it! I didn't send mine to AGS because I wasn't planning on selling the stone and didn't care to spend the money. It is amazing to see the make-over pictures, though!
Click to expand...

I'm not going to sell it, either. My grandma gave it to me when I was 15. I just love the idea of having an AGS certified stone. I'm not going to use the stone for me, I don't think, but one of my kids will enjoy it someday. :)
Click to expand...

That is great!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Tourmaline, I am very anxious to see your diamond after it is recut. :appl:
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Wow!! :shock: That is an amazing investment like what Texas Leaguer said.


What if Brian Gavin chipped, shattered, or damaged the stone while cutting it? Is the stone insured during the re-cutting process?

Do you or anyone else know if he re-cuts other shapes i.e. cushions into hearts and arrows cushions?


Man, wished I knew about the costs and benefits of re-cutting...could have possibly snagged a big ugly stone and shaped it into something beautiful for my gf's e-ring. Sorry OP I don't mean to steal your thread, I'm just so interested. :appl: Can't wait for those re-cut photos!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

couchpotato|1403832649|3701815 said:
Man, wished I knew about the costs and benefits of re-cutting...could have possibly snagged a big ugly stone and shaped it into something beautiful for my gf's e-ring.
Click to expand...

I think it's the risk of the owner. No insurance. I wonder why more people don't do just that...could be the next big trend. But it's probably because of the risk.
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

can't wait for the transformation pic :appl:
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Tourmaline|1403832842|3701817 said:
couchpotato|1403832649|3701815 said:
Man, wished I knew about the costs and benefits of re-cutting...could have possibly snagged a big ugly stone and shaped it into something beautiful for my gf's e-ring.
Click to expand...

I think it's the risk of the owner. No insurance. I wonder why more people don't do just that...could be the next big trend. But it's probably because of the risk.
Click to expand...


I believe you are right, the owner of the stone assumes the risk. This is an excellent project Tourm, can't wait to see the finished results!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

What a fun process! It will be a beautiful stone Tourmaline. I cannot wait to see the outcome.
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

I find it amazing that something so small can be cut with such accuracy nowadays :shock: but I guess that is the benefits of the technological innovations we now have!

I find more amazing still that it's possible to re-cut what can be a very mediocre diamond into a much better diamond - how do they work with what they have without losing loads of weight?! :shock:


I guess we must fully appreciate the age of technology we live in - 50 years ago I imagine all cutting was done by eye and no-one had even thought about ASET or IdealScopes!!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Those hearts remind me of that Dalí painting of melting clocks, or the face in The Scream. Can't wait to see after photos!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

I just got the recut diamond and AGS cert back from Brian Gavin today! I guess the ugly diamond had symmetry that was too bad to make perfect without substantial weight loss, because there is one bad heart, thus excellent symmetry and polish rather than ideal. It's disappointing, but the diamond did receive an ideal rating for cut proportions (light performance). It's a G/SI1, with lots of tiny crystals making the grade. It would be eye clean for most people (I have eagle eyes). I will probably give this diamond, which belonged to my grandmother, to one of my kids someday, but it is giving me a great opportunity now to compare it in all lighting conditions to my 5 carat L color diamond with a low crown angle (but complementary pavilion angle). I used to think certain light performance things were related to my diamond's cut and/or color, but it turns out that differences are negligible, and I am thrilled about that! I'll add some pictures of comparisons of the two diamonds in various lighting conditions after the recut before and after pictures. All-in-all, I'm glad I did this!

Final Sarin result:

recut-final-sarin.jpg

Idealscope before and after recut:

recut-idealscope-comparison.jpg

ASET before and after recut:

recut-aset-comparison.jpg
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Arrows before and after recut:

recut-arrows-comparison.jpg

The one disappointment, hearts before and after recut:

recut-hearts-comparison.jpg

Diamond image before and after recut:

recut-diamond-comparison.jpg
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Now this part is exciting to me...I compared my 5.01ct GIA L/VS1 that does not have Tolk angles to the new .85ct AGS G/SI1 that does, in various lighting conditions and they looked remarkably similar! These are not glamour shots. Some are not even focused properly, but you can see that the performance isn't so different in these two.

In my house under the wooden ceiling:

recut-twocompared-tan-ceiling.jpg

In my car (sorry for the blur):

recut-twocompared-car-blur.jpg

In a blue room:

recut-twocompared-blue.jpg

Under an overcast sky:

recut-twocompared-outside.jpg

Under trees on an overcast day:

recut-twocompared-additionaloutside.jpg

Interesting stuff!!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

It may not be perfect but it's still an amazing recut!
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

Turned out wonderfully and the diamond looks beautiful! They both do. :love:
Thanks for sharing. It really is a great option for some poorly cut stones.
 
Re: Sent an ugly 1ct diamond to Brian Gavin for recut analys

thanks for sharing! this is such a fun project. i'd love to do something similar in the future :D
 
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