[Jewelry making - Article 00177] - [Orchid] A good reason to own a microscope

[Daniel R. Spirer]

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    On this past Saturday I had a customer come in with a diamond that he
    had purchased at a "diamond wholesaler" (I put this in quotes because
    if he was a wholesaler he wouldn't be selling to the public). It was
    a 1.23 ct., G color, SI2 clarity stone accompanied by a GIA cert.
    After discussing and deciding on the design for the stone, I decided
    prudence was the better course and not to depend on the cert as being
    the final word. I cleaned the stone up and stuck it under the
    microscope. You know what? It was an SI2 stone, and without an actual
    color grading being done, it looked like a G color, but it did not
    match the plot of the stone in the cert. In the plot on the cert
    there was a distinctive grouping of inclusions in the middle of the
    table. In the stone there was one tiny pinpoint and all the
    inclusions were around the sides and did not in any way resemble
    placement or shape of the plot. I then measured the stone carefully
    and found that there was also a slight (and I mean slight--although
    bigger than any difference in tool calibration would account for)
    difference in the dimensions. 

    Frankly, I think the guy got the same quality stone he thought he was
    getting. Also, I honestly don't believe that the seller (who he
    immediately contacted and talked to) was aware of the problem. I have
    a feeling someone, somewhere down the line had two stones the same
    size, color and clarity and they accidentally switched them. So
    what's the problem? If I hadn't checked and then the guy took it to
    another jeweler later to confirm it was his stone, I could have been
    accused of switching stones (regardless of the fact that they were
    the same quality) since the stone in the ring wouldn't be the one in
    the cert. That would be the end of my reputation and could
    conceivably cost me a small fortune in legal fees. 

    Now here's why, if you're going to be serious about dealing with
    diamonds, you need a microscope. With my microscope, I was able to
    blow the stone up to about 30X and show the guy that there was
    absolutely nothing like what was in the plot in the stone. A layman
    cannot discern that much using a hand held 10X loupe. Sure
    experienced jewelers can do that, but I have never met an untrained
    individual who could see a damn thing with the loupe (personally I
    refuse to use them as well). So if you're going to be in this
    business, and you're going to deal with the general public and their
    stones you'd better be well prepared, and in my book that includes a
    gem microscope. 

Daniel R. Spirer, G.G.
Daniel R. Spirer Jewelers, LLC
1780 Massachusetts Ave.
Cambridge, MA 02140
www.spirerjewelers.com
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