Hi all,
My sister-in-law has a ruby set in a ring that has a scratch on it.
She brought it to the local jewelry store that she bought it from to
have it buffed out. They told her it could not be buffed out but
needed to be surfaced and this would cost $150. Since she paid less
than this for the ring she did not have it done and asked if there was
anything I could do. I do very little lapidary work and I was
wondering if there is anyone in the Branford, CT area who would like
to take a look at it. I have not seen the ruby so I can’t really say
how bad of a scratch it is. If anyone is interested you can e-mail me
privately at jill@jjewelry.com.
Thanks,
Jill
http://www.jjewelry.com
Jill - Since, as I’m sure you’re aware, ruby is the second-hardest
gemstone in common usage, you’re sis-in-law must have worked some to
put enough of a scratch in it to be noticable enough to send her back
to the jeweler for a re-polish. I would bet the jeweler’s price
reflects either A: His retail -marked cost to remove the stone, have
it re-polished by an accomplished lapidary if the scratch is too
deep, the table may need to be taken down to a point where the crown
facets also have to be re-cut - a whole new can of worms)- then have
it re-mounted, with a fudge factor added in to cover his A-- if
anything else goes wrong. or B: The price of a replacement ruby of
similar size and color to dispose of the problems that can arise in
the re-cutting process (You didn’t mention how long sis-in-law has
had the ring - and rubies have been going through the roof price-wise
lately - especially in the finer grades) or C: a price high enough to
discourage her from having the repair done because he doesn’t want
the job - wisely choosing to leave these cans of worms unopened to
concentrate on what he really makes his living doing - selling NEW
jewelry. I would advise checking out the ring, the stone, and the
story before taking any further steps with this ring - even family
members can get really vicious when a repair job doesn’t turn out as
they envisioned it. Don’t commit yourself until you know the WHOLE
Truth. LOL
Mike