http://precisiongem.com/index.htmlPrecision Gem Newsengene@precisiongem.comCopyright 2010 Precision Gem2010-07-22T22:40:04-04:00 hourly 1 2000-01-01T12:00+00:00 Thu, 22 Jul 2010 22:46:15 -0400gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-07-22T22:40:04-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1dd41f2a6e10326f4ff1c4d3a45e631f-125.html#unique-entry-id-125http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1dd41f2a6e10326f4ff1c4d3a45e631f-125.html#unique-entry-id-125color change garnet from the Taita-Taveta area in Kenya. Many of the color change stones from this area have a poor color change, and go from a peachy purple to a brown color. This one was very special, and turns from a purple to a teal blue/green. In incandescent it's a purple with blue flashes, under daylight it goes to a teal blue, and in florescent a teal green color. It is a dark stone, it always seems the best color change is with the darker stones. This garnet does show it's best brilliance in daylight and florescent. This was really hard to try to photograph, as my normal lighting set up is Solux bulbs that are a warm daylight. So this first image does have a lot more blue in it, than you would see with pure incandescent. The next images is florescent light. It's one of the stones you really need to see in person, and is best geared for a collector of very rare stones. The cut is my Star 80 design.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-07-19T23:21:38-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2b979b07ee9d9679464db471a914af29-124.html#unique-entry-id-124http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2b979b07ee9d9679464db471a914af29-124.html#unique-entry-id-124Mali Garnet in about a year. Last year they were pretty popular, and I cut about 5 or 6, and they all went very fast. This one is a bit larger than those last year, as it's 2.10 ct with very nice crystal and loop clean. The image doesn't show the dispersion, in real life the stone displays very high dispersion. The dispersion on a Mali garnet is very strong (0.057) which is even higher than a diamond (0.044). Compare this to a spessartite garnet which is still high, but only 0.024 to 0.027

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-07-15T23:31:53-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ed40d28c2146677047a30f1fc241a453-123.html#unique-entry-id-123http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ed40d28c2146677047a30f1fc241a453-123.html#unique-entry-id-123Rubellite has been coming out of Nigeria again. These stones are all natural, no heat or other treatment, with a strong color that holds true in any light.
This round is 1.84 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comGem Cutting2010-07-08T21:01:05-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b6f998bbaff0dba12aa35fcf01ceec61-122.html#unique-entry-id-122http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b6f998bbaff0dba12aa35fcf01ceec61-122.html#unique-entry-id-122
LINK TO CUTTING

Don't want to spoil the results here, so this is a picture of the crown being cut.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comGem Cutting2010-07-01T23:17:54-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1c5c423b16df99391f2b26e8d6eecd4f-121.html#unique-entry-id-121http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1c5c423b16df99391f2b26e8d6eecd4f-121.html#unique-entry-id-121
Click on this LINK to go to the page showing the cutting process. The stone is a pink tourmaline, being cut into a square step. As many of you know, I really don't like cutting this design, so I thought maybe breaking up the cutting with the pictures would help get my mind of the fact that I'm not having that much fun cutting the stone. The finished stones always look terrific after being cut, and always sell well, I just don't find them fun to cut.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-06-29T21:58:31-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/fd30b82c2b7bbd04be989dc37c9ba1b7-120.html#unique-entry-id-120http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/fd30b82c2b7bbd04be989dc37c9ba1b7-120.html#unique-entry-id-120
I just got in a new parcel of Rubellite tourmaline, spessartite garnet, and few Nigerian Paraiba type tourmalines. So this little guy here looked like fun to cut, as I was in the mood for something quick to cut. Small stones normally cut pretty quickly.

This is just fantastic color, the stone looks like a deep ruby. Not real large, but very pretty.



Next was another Tourmaline from the parcel that stood out for it's rather odd color. So I figures that I might as well cut it now and get it out of the way.



Here's a Tanzanite from my trip last summer to Arusha. This one is cut in a round in a nice size for a ring. This was a natural blue stone.



This last stone is the last of the Asscher cut Aquamarines that I was able to cut all from one long pencil shaped crystal. The stone was from Mozambique Africa, and has very nice color. Wish I had more.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2010-06-20T21:58:56-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/374d57f592a8b0cf990fbc1fec92fff1-119.html#unique-entry-id-119http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/374d57f592a8b0cf990fbc1fec92fff1-119.html#unique-entry-id-119

COMMERCIAL STONES ON SALE LINK

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-06-20T13:44:47-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/bcc42d269a25ac22b1a52d114e897dcd-118.html#unique-entry-id-118http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/bcc42d269a25ac22b1a52d114e897dcd-118.html#unique-entry-id-118Montana Sapphire. Montana stones are always unique and interesting, especially these orange ones, as the color is in one ball inside the stone.



Next up is a very pretty Lilac Sapphire, all natural from Tanzania.



I bought a parcel of new rough from Nigeria, which was made up of Spessartite Garnet, Rubelite Tourmaline and a few nice Nigerian Pariaba type Tourmaline. This one is the first of the Spessartite garnets from the parcel.



The last stone is an oval cut from a piece of Green Grossular garnet from Kenya.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comSale2010-06-07T23:05:28-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/780749b4164ff370bdaaa1dbc29f60c5-117.html#unique-entry-id-117http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/780749b4164ff370bdaaa1dbc29f60c5-117.html#unique-entry-id-117I thought to end out spring, I'd put some stones on SALE. The stones on the Other Gem page, Pink Tourmaline and Spinel are on Sale.

The gem stones on sale have a pretty substantial mark down.

Here's how it works. The stone listing will not show a price for the stone. To see the regular price, click on the radio button for Regular Price, then the price will be displayed


.

To see the sale price, click on the Sale Price radio Button. If you then want to purchase the stone, click on the Add To Cart button, and the sale price will be used in your shopping cart.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-06-05T21:59:30-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/48c6854a0e79b34bc688d7cc05e0b460-116.html#unique-entry-id-116http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/48c6854a0e79b34bc688d7cc05e0b460-116.html#unique-entry-id-116
First up is a Yellow Zircon from Tanzania. These stones start out as kind of a honey root beer brown color, but after heating to a low temperature they do change color to a yellow. This one turned to a very nice canary type yellow. Below is a picture before heating and then one after heating. The color change is permanent.



Next up is a Garnet I bought on my last trip to Africa. This one is a mix of Pyrope and Almandine. The refractive index makes it too high to be considered Pyrope (1.76). Typically a garnet of this mix is considered Rhodolite, but to be called rhodolite the stone should have a distinct purple tone, which this one doesn't. The color is really more of a chrome red.



This next stone is an Emerald from Brazil, that is all natural, no oil or other fillers or treatments. Oiling would improve the look, and I may consider having it oiled, but thought I'd put it up on offer, as it's so very rare to find a natural emerald. The picture doesn't do the stone any justice; the color is much better in person, and the inclusion no where near as distracting as they show in the photo.



This next stone is a small Peridot I just finished up from Pakistan. There are 112 facets on this stone. Nice color, typical of Pakistan Peridot.



Last up is another of the Afghanistan Tourmaline I was able to pick up form the 2010 Tucson gem show. This is a nice size stone weighing 3.78 cts.



Well one last one! This one isn't really new, it was sitting in my tray of cut stones, and I realized it has never been up on the site. It's a Blue Sapphire from Nigeria, that is unheated. The stone is very dark, similar to what you see in your typical mall stores. But I have priced it very low.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-05-26T23:44:51-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/fda5e4e48c829f28f7557f682a2551c8-114.html#unique-entry-id-114http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/fda5e4e48c829f28f7557f682a2551c8-114.html#unique-entry-id-114Malaya garnet in one of my favorite cuts. This stone is from a new find in the Tunduru region of Tanzania. These stone are more orange than other Malaya garnets.



Next is a Spinel, from Tanzania again, but this time from the Morogoro area. The stone has a color shift going more toward a lilac color in daylight.



The last stone is an Aquamarine cut in an Asscher that is from Mozambique Africa. The Mozambique aqua's are the finest colored aqua's coming out of Africa.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-05-10T22:12:51-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c92ef8971bf5e155a1584c86b4b94451-113.html#unique-entry-id-113http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c92ef8971bf5e155a1584c86b4b94451-113.html#unique-entry-id-113Tourmaline from Afghanistan, which produces the nicest green tourmaline in the world.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-04-23T22:56:57-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/5fe6052f63cc9e2c8a6ca2342b8af932-112.html#unique-entry-id-112http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/5fe6052f63cc9e2c8a6ca2342b8af932-112.html#unique-entry-id-112spessartite garnet from Lolatema Tanzania with a bright orange color. These stones look cleaner in person than in the picture.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-04-06T22:14:52-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1e5608489516e1a7747f919d00911193-111.html#unique-entry-id-111http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1e5608489516e1a7747f919d00911193-111.html#unique-entry-id-111
First up is a Peridot from Kenya. This is from a new find, and is some really nice material. The stones are much richer than what has been coming out of China, but the color not quite as saturated as the Pakistani stones.



This next one is another of the Tanga Garnets I picked up 2 months ago. Very nice color, a bit more purple than most rhodolite's.



This last one is a green/blue tourmaline from Afghanistan, cut in a Royal Asscher, 2.06 cts. This one is sold.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-03-23T19:36:26-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/424da1d99abf2fbcd3dda3a5d8809042-110.html#unique-entry-id-110http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/424da1d99abf2fbcd3dda3a5d8809042-110.html#unique-entry-id-110spinels left, and this is one of the nicest. The stone is loop clean, fantastic color, strong florence and a perfect cut. This long oval design produces a very bright stone with no bow tie or extinction that is so common in most commercial ovals.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-03-22T21:39:39-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6798857addeb0045d4e8c32950c25f3d-109.html#unique-entry-id-109http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6798857addeb0045d4e8c32950c25f3d-109.html#unique-entry-id-109tsavorite garnet over the summer in Tanzania, it was a crazy shape, that would need to be cut into two stones, but the finest color tsavorite I had seen. The stones don't look it in the picture, but they are exactly matched color wise and size, and are a beautiful chrome green with blue, more intense than the picture and a bit richer deeper color. These would make an absolutely stunning pair of earrings.



This was my first gemstone picture with the new camera, while it does photograph green better, the image can't capture the intense color of these.]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-03-20T22:07:15-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0ec907dc12b840b69a180c14f32dbc4d-108.html#unique-entry-id-108http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0ec907dc12b840b69a180c14f32dbc4d-108.html#unique-entry-id-108Citrine that I noticed were not up on the site. So here they are, and marked pretty low.



Also I do have one new cut stone tonight, this one is a 1.56 blue Montana Sapphire.



You may or may not have noticed that my Blog service got switched, and now it works a bit better. You can leave comments on each page and can also subscribe to the RSS feed, which will automatically send you notifications of any new additions to the blog page. All new stones are introduced here on the blog along with a link to the page where the details are shown.]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-03-14T15:57:06-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/86b335448860b14d0711ae757c60258f-107.html#unique-entry-id-107http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/86b335448860b14d0711ae757c60258f-107.html#unique-entry-id-107Rubellite Tourmaline cut in a cushion just over 2 cts. Very nice color, better saturation than you see in the picture.




This next stone is a Spinel from the Morogoro region of Tanzania, cut in a SRB design.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comPuppy Mill2010-03-13T16:18:49-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0bb5643efcbbec409bfa36437351d74f-106.html#unique-entry-id-106http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0bb5643efcbbec409bfa36437351d74f-106.html#unique-entry-id-106So welcome Cali. Cali has just been rescued 2 weeks ago from a Lancaster Co. puppy mill. She is very frightened and not used to people or living in a house at all. She has spent 2 years in a chicken wire cage outside, freezing in the winter. Below is a picture of her right after being saved from the mill. Here hair was all matted and knotted, so bad it was hard for her to walk or see.



My plan is to create a new site documenting Cali's journey from the awful life in a puppy mill, to her new pampered life, and to remind people not to support puppy mills. 99% of all puppies in pet stores come from puppy mills. Every time you buy a pet store dog you are perpetuating the mills.

Check back for more on Cali, and new stones to come.

Cali having her first snack night watching TV. All her mats have been trimmed off, and she is cleaned up.

.]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-02-28T21:21:34-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/be1d247299a6192f5ba3183328000c87-105.html#unique-entry-id-105http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/be1d247299a6192f5ba3183328000c87-105.html#unique-entry-id-105Apatite stones I bought in Tucson a few weeks ago. This one is just over 10 mm, and 4.03 cts. The color looks like a very fine Pariaba Tourmaline, but at a fraction of the price.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-02-23T19:15:21-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f9aa754dba8652816ce7da85233c236a-104.html#unique-entry-id-104http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f9aa754dba8652816ce7da85233c236a-104.html#unique-entry-id-104Montana Sapphire cut in a step cut round design.



This next stone is a Winza Sapphire/Ruby in a 5 mm cushion. The color is a more intense red, similar to the Mahenge spinels, than the photo shows. HERE is an intersting article about the Winza location and the stones by Vincent Pardieu and Jean Baptiste Senoble. These are interesting stones, as many of them have both distinct red and blue areas on the same stone. Almost all the blue on this one cut out, you can see in the photo at 9:00 just a tiny spot of blue sapphire.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-02-17T22:14:39-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1ca9be0a7fa116047d1f56b9053b8204-103.html#unique-entry-id-103http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1ca9be0a7fa116047d1f56b9053b8204-103.html#unique-entry-id-103
8 mm Spinel from Tanzania



A Rhodolite garnet from Tanga




and an Aquamarine from Pakistan with interesting tourmaline wisps inside it that I just cleaned up the natural crystal a bit. I thought this would make an nice pendant stone with a mounting attached to the top.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2010-02-14T21:02:17-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1fcf4048bc83467b954aa0e4a78123ea-102.html#unique-entry-id-102http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1fcf4048bc83467b954aa0e4a78123ea-102.html#unique-entry-id-102
Once I got to Tucson, I realized I had left my dichroscope at home. It's a very handy tool for gem identification and also for buying rough. This tool is very easy to use. Most gems are double refracting and will show two colors through the dichroscope. When you look at the gem through the scope you will see two squares, with both different colors shown. These are dichroic stones. Some stones will show 3 colors, and these are trichroic. I paid $69 from Kassoy for this, and am selling it for $34. It's listed on the Other Gems page. CLICK HERE



Next are a few pictures of some of the new rough I picked up and will be cutting. First are some green tourmalines from Afghanistan.



Some large Apatite from Madagascar. These are a neon blue color.


A few more Afghan Tourmalines.



These stones were so pretty in the rough I had to buy them. They are Opal from Ethiopia. Some of these are very clear crystal and I will facet them, others maybe cabs, or maybe just pretty the way they are. The photo doesn't show the play of color well, these are very pretty stones.



A parcel of Tanga garnets.



Blue Zircon from Cambodia.



Some Montana Sapphire from the Missouri River



A large blue Topaz, just under 100 cts. I bought this from Lisa at the Gemology Online dinner get together. I'm thinking of sawing this one in half and cutting two Asschers from it.



A few more Malaya garnets from Tanzania. I really like malaya garnet, and every year pick out a few of the best colors.



There are lots more, I'll post more pictures soon.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-02-10T20:01:44-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d495ff8984bdf49c609593f2258b612d-101.html#unique-entry-id-101http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d495ff8984bdf49c609593f2258b612d-101.html#unique-entry-id-101
First up is an all American stone. This one is a Montana Sapphire, found in the Missouri River over 20 years ago. This one was there when Louis and Clark passed by. Made in America - cut in America!



Next up is a blue zircon that I cut a few years ago, and was never added to the site. Just an oversight as it's a very pretty stone.



Another zircon, this time a large red zircon from Tanzania.



This stone needs to be seen in person to be appreciated. It's a sphene from Madagascar, and the dispersion just cannot be captured on the camera. The stone in the right light looks like Christmas going on. Sphene has more dispersion then a diamond, and this one has a very nice base color of yellow.



A couple other new stones... A spinel, and Aquamarine.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-02-04T21:41:10-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/41e82d5636f0d2aecda5eb1e8f80c640-100.html#unique-entry-id-100http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/41e82d5636f0d2aecda5eb1e8f80c640-100.html#unique-entry-id-100
A couple new stones to start out the month, the first one is one of the new Afghan tourmalines I found in Tucson. This stone is just over 3 cts, and a very pretty minty green color.



Next up is a Tsavorite Garnet from Tanzania. This one is from my summer trip to Africa.



This last one is a Spinel from Tajikistan

]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2010-02-03T21:52:23-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e312955abfbcff806868be81acdba89a-99.html#unique-entry-id-99http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e312955abfbcff806868be81acdba89a-99.html#unique-entry-id-99
I'll post some pictures of the new rough I purchased in a few days. The highlights are certainly some very nice aquamarine from Mozambique. This was the first time in years I have seen some better blue stones. I bought quite a few pieces and a few larger stones with excellent color. I was able to find some very nice tourmaline from Afghanistan, and some blue sapphire from the Missouri River in Montana that was mined over 20 years ago. I'll have a complete listing up soon.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-01-18T22:02:24-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/479bfafef138e63d4aadccf53859b6f2-98.html#unique-entry-id-98http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/479bfafef138e63d4aadccf53859b6f2-98.html#unique-entry-id-98
First up are 2 Rhodolite garnets from Tanzania, each from a different mine with a different look.



This next stone is a Spinel from Tajikistan cut in my Star 80 Design. A very pretty pink.



The last stone is one of my favorite stones to cut, a Lake Baringo Ruby. These stones have to be seen in person, they almost glow, and the wonderful thing about them is they are all natural, no heat or other treatments. They seldom come large, and this is a smaller stone, but the color is a neon hot red.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-01-10T18:20:49-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f01397f739328bc65fcbb4e3da8f5d49-97.html#unique-entry-id-97http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f01397f739328bc65fcbb4e3da8f5d49-97.html#unique-entry-id-97Chrome Green Tourmaline from Tanzania. This one is a bit lighter tone than most I buy, making for a very bright stone, but still with an intense green color. Weighs 1.42 cts.



This next one is one of the Mahenge Spinels. Now I have a list of people who have written in asking for one of these, so this stone has been offered to those on the list first. If there are no takers, then it will go up on the website for sale. Check back in a day or two. The stone weighs 1.52 cts and measures 8.39 x 5.61 mm.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2010-01-03T23:12:15-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/9ec3ff367b85ae25d59c808daf4abbc5-96.html#unique-entry-id-96http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/9ec3ff367b85ae25d59c808daf4abbc5-96.html#unique-entry-id-96Here's the first posting for the New Year. Three stones from Tanzania, and one from the Congo.

First up is a natural blue Tanzanite that has not been heated.


Next is a steel blue Sapphire from Songea.


This next stone is a Tourmaline from the Congo, cut in an opposed bar design.


This last one is a large Grossular Garnet.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-12-20T20:56:05-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/95eba85151d6e7b06539d31908524d55-95.html#unique-entry-id-95http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/95eba85151d6e7b06539d31908524d55-95.html#unique-entry-id-95Malaya Garnet from Tanzania. The color range of Malaya Garnets is pretty broad, and this one is one on the more orange side. Just under 2 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comFree Download2009-12-07T22:48:48-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/66dd429ff9ac3cc9b06eb675f33f3aaf-94.html#unique-entry-id-94http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/66dd429ff9ac3cc9b06eb675f33f3aaf-94.html#unique-entry-id-94Here's a little free Christmas gift to go along with the Christmas Sale

I have been working on this program in my spare time, to do some geological calculations. The program has two simple screens to help with some measurements and calculations. The first screen helps with a Specific Gravity calculation, and shows you the accuracy you can expect from your calculation based on the accuracy of your scale.

The next calculation is used with a refractometer to determine the optical character and sign of your stone. This information is very critical in gemstone identification, but is often overlooked since it's a bit complicated to work out. This program makes it simple. Below are a few screen shots form the Apple version. The program is available to run on both Apple Mac's and Windows machines.

Click HERE to go to the download page.



For my fellow cutter who are running a Mac and using Numbers instead of Excel, there is also a spreadsheet download to do Tangent Ratio Calculations for Numbers on the download page.]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-12-07T20:31:17-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e7f8caa59097217ccc8e8000940cc063-93.html#unique-entry-id-93http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e7f8caa59097217ccc8e8000940cc063-93.html#unique-entry-id-93spinel from Tunduru area of Tanzania. Just under 2 cts.



Christmas Sale!! This year I have marked EVERY stone down, and some by 50% or more! The prices above the "Add to Cart" button are the sale prices. The detailed descriptions will show the regular price. After Christmas all the prices will go back to the regular price.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-12-01T21:57:22-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/53024ae20b978ac31ac1e56d6b899046-92.html#unique-entry-id-92http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/53024ae20b978ac31ac1e56d6b899046-92.html#unique-entry-id-92



Every stone marked down until Christmas Eve

One new stone tonight, in a very Christmassy color. This one is a Tsavorite Garnet from Tanzania, and just perfect color and tone. The picture isn't close to the intense chrome green color of this stone. Green never photographs well with my camera. The stone is 2.56 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-11-30T20:09:11-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/26f6017393962ff95c580988e5a6e264-91.html#unique-entry-id-91http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/26f6017393962ff95c580988e5a6e264-91.html#unique-entry-id-91Zircon. This was one of the very very dark red stones, these are always heated. The temperature ranges from about 500 F to 850 F. The heating lightens the stone and alters the color somewhat.



This next stone is a Chrome Green Tourmaline. The intense chrome color doesn't photograph well at all.... this one is a very intense green with a touch of blue.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-11-15T20:16:32-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a5e27d02af13ceb935552d8cb014df81-89.html#unique-entry-id-89http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a5e27d02af13ceb935552d8cb014df81-89.html#unique-entry-id-89tourmaline from the Congo. I bought this stone about 3 years ago, and have been waiting to cut it. The stone measures almost 15 mm and weighs over 15 cts. Very nice color, with a lot of life that doesn't show in the photo - much nicer in person.



Next is a Tanzanite from my trip to Tanzania this past summer.



The last stone is an Aquamarine from East Africa, that has not been heated.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-11-09T20:46:24-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/5dc960a9562a9a53574bf28ed0505b15-88.html#unique-entry-id-88http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/5dc960a9562a9a53574bf28ed0505b15-88.html#unique-entry-id-88
This first one is a mint green tourmaline from Nigeria. This one is not offered for sale yet, as there are a few people who have asked for one, so if it isn't taken, then it will be posted on the site for sale in the next few days. The stone weighs 1.82 ct.



Next up is a Sunset Tourmaline from Kenya. This one is actually a proof cut for a new design I have been working out for a large blue/green tourmaline. So I cut it first in the stone to see how it performed in real life.



This next one I cut a few years ago, and kind of misplaced it. It's a Songea Sapphire that has been Be-heat treated, and concave cut.



Lastly, this Color Change Garnet is available.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comSpinel2009-10-26T21:37:13-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/3af50d4e160a06e81e67117614abeb79-86.html#unique-entry-id-86http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/3af50d4e160a06e81e67117614abeb79-86.html#unique-entry-id-86Help Break the Chain of Cruelty
. . . and get a fantastic doing it

As many of you know who have purchased stones from me there is a return address sticker creating awareness to the Puppy Mill problem. I moved to PA last year, and found out that it's the Puppy Mill Capital of the US, and maybe the world! I have volunteered with United Against Puppy Mills to help bring a stop to this cruel "business".

There are 1667 puppy mills in Lancaster Co. PA alone, some with over 200 dogs as full time breading prisoners. These dogs spend their entire life in rabbet hutch type cages breeding puppies that are then sold to pet stores on online. The conditions are horrendous that these dogs live in, the dogs are often sick, injured and diseased with no medical attention. When they can no longer breed they are often either starved to death or drown, then thrown in the corn field for fertilizer.

You can help

• Don't buy a dog from a pet stone (99% come from Puppy Mills)
• Don't buy dog's Online
• Do buy a rescue dog
• Go to the website www.unitedagainstpuppymills.org and tell everyone you know
• Google Puppy Mills - you will be shocked at what you see!

There has been a great demand for the Spinel from Mahenge Morogoro, and I have a rather long list of people wanting one. So here your chance to own one, and help out the dogs. The stone will be offered to everyone on the list, and anyone else who visits the website. It's going to be like a sim-silent auction. The stone will be on sale until Friday October 30th at 6:00 pm EST. Each night until then I'll post the high bid here. You will be able to bid again up until Friday night.
The starting bid will be $679 - proceeds will be donated to United Against Puppy Mills to help stop this terrible cruelty.

CLICK HERE TO SEE THE CURRENT HIGH BID

Here's the details of the stone:

• 1.43 ct.
• 6.42 mm. cushon cut
• Color: 10, Clarity: 9, Brilliance: 5, Total Quality Rating: 9.7

The United Against Puppy Mill bracelet is included with the stone.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-10-25T23:25:55-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1ac7a7330ee364e355b102a6b1a6bce4-85.html#unique-entry-id-85http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1ac7a7330ee364e355b102a6b1a6bce4-85.html#unique-entry-id-85Two new stones tonight, and a new surface to photograph the stones on. I was in the Dollar Store the other day, and picked up this small mirror. Let me know if you like this surface better for the pictures than what I was using before. This will let you see the girdle thickness, and a bit of the pavilion all in the same photo.

First up is a new Tsavorite Garnet. A very intense chrome green colored stone from Lemshuko Tsavorite Mine in Tanzania.



Next is a "Change Color Garnet". The stone is 3.14 cts. This color is about the half way point of the color change, with the stone going more red in incandescent light, and more purple/blue in daylight.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-10-19T20:37:21-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a60446fcbe31a64c670a47a685a471c2-83.html#unique-entry-id-83http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a60446fcbe31a64c670a47a685a471c2-83.html#unique-entry-id-834 New Stones Tonight

A mixed bag of stones for today. The first one is a Zircon from Tanzania. When these stones are found, they are a rootbeer brown color. They are often heated right at the mining area as all that is needed is a candle. I heat mine after cutting, and do it in an oven so I can control the temperature better. The color on this one is a very nice yellow, and in person has a lot of dispersion... looks like a yellow diamond. (No you are not crosseyed! Zircon is double refractive, so each facet shows up 2 times. This effect is more pronounced in photo's than in real life however)



This next stone is a Lake Baringo Ruby from Kenya. These are fantastic stones, but are always very small. Any thing over 1 ct is very very rare. I had made friends over the internet with a fellow in Kenya, and had told him I was going to visit Arusha Tanzania. I get a knock on my door one night, and there he is with 3 friends. They had a small bag of these rubies and one very large tsavorite. The tsavorite was too dark, and included, and the rubies were too small for me to work with. I felt bad since they had traveled so far, so I picked out the 3 largest stones, and then gave them money for a room and a bus ride back home the next day. So here is the first of the 3 stones.
Call it a ruby or call it sapphire, the color is unique and you will never see this in a jewerly store around your house.



Next are 2 garnets, both from Tanzania, one Spessartite, and one Rhodolite. No boring story with these...

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-10-10T17:19:37-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/98870c37f615c19e07a175565ff8a834-82.html#unique-entry-id-82http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/98870c37f615c19e07a175565ff8a834-82.html#unique-entry-id-82I went on a short green binge, cutting my favorite stone; Tsavorite Garnet.

Both these stones are from Tanzania, and are from rought I bought while in Arusha this summer. The first one is a smaller stone thats very affordable, cut in a square step design.



This next one is from the Swala Gem Traders mine in Tanania. Excellenct color and crystal and size. It's rare to obtain fine tsavorite over 1 ct, well this one is 2.33 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-10-08T22:56:14-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a8f9bb1ce17ddbc28925556429b47cc7-80.html#unique-entry-id-80http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/a8f9bb1ce17ddbc28925556429b47cc7-80.html#unique-entry-id-80information page, but I think a lot of people never "read the fine print", so I'm expaining the grading system here again.

Color is the most important and complex to grade. Color is made up of three components, hue, saturation and tone. Color will be graded on a scale of 1 to 10 taking these three factors into consideration.
Clarity is graded on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being loop clean under a 10X loop.
10 = Loop Clean
8 = Eye Clean
6 = Slightly Included
4 = Moderately Included
2 = Heavily Included
Values between are used when the stone is either a bit cleaner or less clean. It's very rare to find any stone score a 10 for clarity. 7 and higher makes for a very nice stone.
Brilliance - will be a combination of Cut, Sparkle, light return, Proportion and Crystal.
Graded on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best.
Total Quality Rating - Is the combined score of these 3 with a possible best score of 10
1-5: Low end commercial
6-7: Better quality commercial
8-8.5: Fine quality
8.5-9.5: Very fine quality
9.5-10: What the trade calls "gem"

One new stone tonight, this is a mint green tourmaline for a new find in Nigeria. Nigeria is pretty famous for producing a variety of colors of tourmaline, but this is first I have seen this color. Hopefully this is just the start of these stones.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-10-05T22:09:01-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6c53162604817c95bb7a881217c309f8-79.html#unique-entry-id-79http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6c53162604817c95bb7a881217c309f8-79.html#unique-entry-id-79I'm not sure how to classify the stone, the Refractive index is 1.738, which would indicate pyrope, but the color is too light and pink. The spectra is similar to Almandine, but then the RI is too low. Tanzania is know for many type of garnets, and mixes of them, and this is another odd one.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-09-30T21:16:50-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7b3d16f41ddb20083deff23acfc8fd73-78.html#unique-entry-id-78http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7b3d16f41ddb20083deff23acfc8fd73-78.html#unique-entry-id-78Peridot motivated me to cut another one. For some reason I don't cut much peridot, as it never seemed to sell well, but lately I've had a few people ask about it. This one is another stone from Pakistan that produces really nice peridot in a clean Apple Green Color.



This next one is a Pink Tourmaline from Africa, cut in a classic cushion cut. This one is over 5 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-09-20T20:59:09-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/493ab2637bb33ba6bca74b0cc621fd22-77.html#unique-entry-id-77http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/493ab2637bb33ba6bca74b0cc621fd22-77.html#unique-entry-id-77
The first is a Peridot from Pakistan, 3.46 ct.



This second one is another of the yellow Grossular garnets I bought in Tanzania this summer. This one is just shy of 2 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-09-18T21:13:04-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ffb62b21201ebd4061c663100f388217-76.html#unique-entry-id-76http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ffb62b21201ebd4061c663100f388217-76.html#unique-entry-id-76Spessartite garnets, with a very bright fanta orange color. Nice sized stone.



Next is a Rhodolite Garnet, cut in a simple step type emerald cut.



This last one is an Umba Sapphire - all natural, no heat, cut in my Star 80 design.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comWebsite2009-09-12T12:34:26-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e97fef91bf9e61ccdf7248d08417ee3c-75.html#unique-entry-id-75http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e97fef91bf9e61ccdf7248d08417ee3c-75.html#unique-entry-id-75
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-09-01T22:31:45-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6494330e661c0047a35a46be4f077ae6-74.html#unique-entry-id-74http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6494330e661c0047a35a46be4f077ae6-74.html#unique-entry-id-74Red Zircon. You don't see many of these, nor many nice large ones. This stone is 13.62 cts with a lot more life than shows in the picture.



Next is another of the Mahenge Spinels. If you are on my list, you will be getting an email with this stone on offer.



Another Tanzanian Spessartite Garnet. These look much cleaner in person than the pictures. A very bright stone.



This last one is a 2.56 ct Chrome Green Tourmaline.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-08-18T12:57:47-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2d5a35f2d9fd689e7f77e478588dc98f-73.html#unique-entry-id-73http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2d5a35f2d9fd689e7f77e478588dc98f-73.html#unique-entry-id-73www.kingerrisson.com.

Watch King in action with Neil Diamond, filmed in Madison Square Gardens August 2008



This next stone is an Umba Sapphire, that I picked up last month in Tanzania. It's a pretty lavender color, and is unheated.



These next stones are not posted for sale yet, as they were cut by request. A malaya garnet, and pink tourmaline. If they are not taken, then they will go up for sale.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-08-15T15:27:16-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6d38c54c1f97abc6ca81c43f77e29976-71.html#unique-entry-id-71http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6d38c54c1f97abc6ca81c43f77e29976-71.html#unique-entry-id-71
This first Merelani Mint Garnet is not to be missed, this stone has everything going for it. The picture doesn't do it justice, in person it shows quite a bit of dispersion.



Spinel from Mahenge



Tanzanite



Chrome Green Tourmaline. The color on this in person is much more intense. The digital camera can not reproduce chrome green well.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-08-08T21:54:34-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e7aed26549b64eeb247082bf9024c642-70.html#unique-entry-id-70http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e7aed26549b64eeb247082bf9024c642-70.html#unique-entry-id-70yellow Grossularite garnet that I picked up on my recent trip to Tanzania. These stones are mined along the Lalatema Mountain ranges. We had heard of this area where the "water flows out of the granite and into the village", so we did take a trip out there to try to find the mine location. Well, we found the village, and some stones, and also a dried up stream that was full of very very small garnet. The locals were very quite about the actual mine location. This is the first of a few stones that I did get from this location.



This picture is of Roger who I traveled with having a look at the dried up stream bed. He is standing in the middle of the "road". The garnet mine is somewhere in this general area.



]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-08-05T21:45:56-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/558b5adffbff5febef5bfae808605e7a-69.html#unique-entry-id-69http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/558b5adffbff5febef5bfae808605e7a-69.html#unique-entry-id-69spessartite. These stones from Tanzania are never totally clean, they all have some small "sugar" type inclusions that really show up much more in photos that in person. This one has a few larger inclusions too that are eye visible, and it's priced accordingly. I think you will be shocked when you see how low the price is for a stone that is over 6 cts.



This next garnet was kind of an odd find. One of the miners brought in a very small parcel of these, none of them very large, but the color was quite odd. They are a much lighter pink, with a color shift going to a light purple color. This is the first of them that I have cut. It's 1.82 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-08-01T22:07:45-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b08ad34dd5876a09ad252803783816c3-68.html#unique-entry-id-68http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b08ad34dd5876a09ad252803783816c3-68.html#unique-entry-id-68
Tsavorite



Color Change



Rhodolite


]]>gene@precisiongem.comIsland - Jazz Reggie2009-08-01T14:48:41-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2a564e74dbf19a4c27852c1e5b078939-67.html#unique-entry-id-67http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2a564e74dbf19a4c27852c1e5b078939-67.html#unique-entry-id-67I'd like to introduce you to King Errisson

King Errisson has been the percussionist for Neil Diamond for the past 35 years, and is a good friend of mine. I recently built him a new website that we are pretty proud of. Have a look at it, and listen to some of his music. You can download MP3, of his CD's, or have them shipped to you. King just released his latest CD called Conga Serenade. King is from the Bahamas' and as the top conga player in the world his music features a island reggie jazz feel.

Anyone who buys one of his CD's from the site I just built, I'll give free shipping on any stone from my site.

This should just about the cover the cost of a CD. Just tell me that you purchased either a CD when you buy one of my stones, and make sure to let me know what you think of his music. You'll see a lot of King in August on the upcoming Neil Diamond TV special Hot August Night NYC.

Here's a link to the site. www.kingerrisson.com

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-07-28T19:09:08-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1928925fb46347ed3bbe8730423c3b1f-66.html#unique-entry-id-66http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/1928925fb46347ed3bbe8730423c3b1f-66.html#unique-entry-id-66spinel from the famous Mahenge mine in Morogoro Tanzania. The color on these stones is just fantastic, they actually glow. This is cut in a fancy oval shape that measures 5.37 x 6.99. There was a bubble type inclusion that opened up on one of the crown facets. You can see this with the small black spot in the bottom of the photo. The black stuff is actually polish gunk, that should wash out in an ultrasonic cleaner. I think if put into a prong setting, the prong would cover this spot, but I have priced the stone accordingly. A great opportunity to own one of these spinels at a low price. Very nice crystal.



This one of the Spessartite garnets from the now depleted Loliondo discovery in Tanzania. I was able to buy a nice parcel of some of the cleanest of these stones I have seen in my recent trip to Tanzania. I cut this one in a classic square cushion shape, measuring 7.5 mm. Faces up very clean to the naked eye.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2009-07-25T14:38:46-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/3b1a0a4aacaaebaae355036a5e82325e-65.html#unique-entry-id-65http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/3b1a0a4aacaaebaae355036a5e82325e-65.html#unique-entry-id-65
This first one is a scapolite for Tanzania. This one is cut in a pretty standard pear design. The stone is a nice yellow color with good brilliance. Weighs 6.32 ct.



This next one is one of the spessartite garnets from the new find in Nigeria. These stones are very clean, have good crystal, and are a burnt orange color. This on is 3.07 ct.



The last stone is one of the Spinels I picked up in Tanzania from the Mahenge mine in Morogoro Tanzania. The color on this stone is fantastic, you would think it wasn't real. It's a hot hot red/pink, and weighs 1.64 ct. with a lot more life than can be seen in the picture. I have a waiting list for these, so it's being offered to those people who have written in first. If you are interested you can inquire incase it gets passed on by those on the list, or ask to be added to the spinel list. I have a small parcel of these stones, and will be cutting them in designs of my choice, then offering them to people on the list before posted them on the spinel page for sale.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comTanzania Gem Trip2009-07-10T23:50:46-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/452724cb82e89028d364e7ff7685dd72-64.html#unique-entry-id-64http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/452724cb82e89028d364e7ff7685dd72-64.html#unique-entry-id-64Trip page for pictures and a trip log from my recent trip to Arusha Tanzania to buy rough gems.
This page will be a work in progress, with new pictures and information added over the next week or so.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-06-21T21:43:32-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c8ea1bbaa43683b242c5d21bb022bd6d-63.html#unique-entry-id-63http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c8ea1bbaa43683b242c5d21bb022bd6d-63.html#unique-entry-id-63This first one is something you don't see too often. These are called Umba Garnets, since they are found in the Umba region of Tanzania. Kind of an odd garnet, when they are rough they look quite different than cut. Cut they are very red with a slight orange tint. The refractive index on this one is 1.745 which would suggest a pyrope almandine mix or a pyrope spessartine mix since the spectra looks quit similar to a spessartine garnet. This one is a large stone weighing over 8 cts.


Next up is a purple spinel from Tanzania



and a concave cut light pink tourmaline from Nigeria.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-06-18T22:02:50-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d0334762f760939c76690b22e29c5aab-62.html#unique-entry-id-62http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d0334762f760939c76690b22e29c5aab-62.html#unique-entry-id-62
This sapphire has a color change from blue to purple, with it more blue in daylight, and purple in incandescent light. Much nicer stone in person, the picture just doesn't do this on justice.





I'm shutting down the Members Only page. Too many people are forgetting their login names or passwords, and I'm spending too much time resending this information out, and not cutting stones. From now on, all new stones will be posted here, and also on the proper pages.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2009-05-30T13:58:42-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f40389566571f58d9bdbe5bd83be3f10-60.html#unique-entry-id-60http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f40389566571f58d9bdbe5bd83be3f10-60.html#unique-entry-id-60


A few new Nigerian Spessartite garnets. Very clean stones with a slight burn orange with a touch of red.



This is a Nigerian stone from a different parcel, cut and before heating. I wanted to post this before picture, since today I'll put it into the oven and we shall see what we get. The stone should burn off the grey mask and produce a brighter light blue color.



And here is the after heating picture. It doesn't show that well in the photo's, but the before heating had a grey mask that is burned off, and the stone is much brighter now, with a slight neon glow.



This cut spessartite is the middle stone from the above rough picture.



This stone is from the new Nigerian Paraiba parcel, but not one of the stones in the above picture. About half the parcel was made up of stones with a very deep blue, but closed C axis. Here's one of them. The heating caused some stress inclusions, but the color a a very deep intense windex blue. The inclusions are less noticeable in person, the pictures always bring them out more.



]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-05-26T20:14:19-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7aa368a9b2edad7e7a908de2059cfda1-59.html#unique-entry-id-59http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7aa368a9b2edad7e7a908de2059cfda1-59.html#unique-entry-id-59Zircon from Tanzania. What's really nice about this one is that it's all natural and not heated. About 90% of the honey zircons from Tanzania need to be heated but not this one. The stone weighs 5.24 cts and is cut in my "Pineapple cut".

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-05-21T19:33:21-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ccd23bdc97cb14207170698d316dfbc2-58.html#unique-entry-id-58http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ccd23bdc97cb14207170698d316dfbc2-58.html#unique-entry-id-58sapphire from Lodwar Kenya Africa. This is an all natural, unheated stone. These Lodwar sapphires are a dark blue, but not that inky almost black you see in most mall jewelry stores. A nice size stone, weighing just under 2 cts.


Next is a spessartite garnet from Nigeria. This stone has terrific color which doesn't photograph well. Looks good in any light. The image greatly exagerates the small veils and inclusions, the stone faces up to the eye clean. 2.37 cts,



This last one is a minty green with a touch of blue tourmaline from Mozambique Africa. It's cut in unique pointed round with a diamond checker crown. This cut can be mounted in a standard 4 prong round mounting. The stone is 1.38 cts.



]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-05-10T12:08:02-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/39ec1e72cdbe5488abdbaad0b97894a4-57.html#unique-entry-id-57http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/39ec1e72cdbe5488abdbaad0b97894a4-57.html#unique-entry-id-57May Stimulus Sale

For the rest of the month of May, I am putting together a rather unorthodox sale. All stones with a Gem No between 1 and 600 are starting off at a minimum of 10% off. But it doesn't end here, this is just a starting point. The sale is a "make an offer sale". Sort of like Priceline when buying a travel ticket. Make an offer and I'll either accept it or reject it. If I accept it, I'll email you a Paypal invoice. You still have complete return privileges just like any other stone.

Latest Cut Stones

Two new tourmalines for today. This first one is a Nigerian Paraiba type tourmaline, often called "Pariaba-Africana". The stone has been heated to produce the neon blue color. A nice ring size at 6.62 mm.



The next stone, also from Nigeria is a pink tourmaline, unheated. This stone has a nicer color and look than the photo, especially in natural light. A larger stone (9+ mm) at a great price.



A new Malaya Garnet from Tanzania.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-05-02T20:43:50-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b5a48f70088edbf07685a6a38e82ec57-56.html#unique-entry-id-56http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b5a48f70088edbf07685a6a38e82ec57-56.html#unique-entry-id-56
This one is a pink tourmaline from Nigeria, cut in an octagon shape.


A Malaya garnet from Tanzania.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-04-15T21:27:08-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d5acb51626764a580252cb01749d453f-55.html#unique-entry-id-55http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/d5acb51626764a580252cb01749d453f-55.html#unique-entry-id-55Malaya garnets with excellent color, and a large round pink spinel from Tajikistan.





]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-04-09T21:12:15-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c9fe10cd27b858a5a2d875d791ed9c6d-54.html#unique-entry-id-54http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c9fe10cd27b858a5a2d875d791ed9c6d-54.html#unique-entry-id-54
First up is a hot neon Rubellite Tourmaline that is 2.23 cts.


This next stone is a Tsavorite Garnet, just over 2 cts.


A smaller green tourmaline


Blue zircon


Rhodolite Garnet cut in an antique cushion


And this last stone.... A very unique stone. This one is a tourmaline that is almost completely colorless except for some blue color right in the culet. Buy cutting it this way the color will reflect and fill the stone.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-04-04T16:53:48-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7d43071c93067f74ea561c00d04174f0-53.html#unique-entry-id-53http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7d43071c93067f74ea561c00d04174f0-53.html#unique-entry-id-53This first one is a sunset tourmaline from Tanzania, with a strong dichroism that shows up as a two tone effect. 8 mm.


Next is another of the Mahenge Spinels. These are just beautiful stones, with a neon hot pink. If only they were larger. This on is 0.59 ct.s


This next stone is an unheated sapphire from Songea Tanzania. It’s sized to fit in a 7 mm standard setting. Kind of a denim blue color.


This last one, a Tanzanite, was a real risk. While cutting it, I could see a veil that ran around in the stone, it wouldn’t be noticeable at all to the naked eye, but did pose a risk when heating the stone. It’s a bout a 50/50 chance heating this kind of stone, but it needed to be heated since in it’s natural state it was brown. So of course the inclusions grew and became quite noticeable, but the color came out a very nice blue. So here it is at $65 way below what I paid for the rough. It would make a great deal for someone who is looking for color, or a gem collector not concerned with the inclusions. I’m thinking a pendant would work well since these are usually viewed from a distance.



APRIL SALE
For the month of April, I’m marking all the Oregon Sunstones down by 30%. If you are interested in one, either buy it with the shopping cart and I will refund you the 30% or email me, and I’ll send you an invoice with the sale price.



]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-03-24T22:52:03-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b59f48441282a1d829f50c82211897ec-52.html#unique-entry-id-52http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b59f48441282a1d829f50c82211897ec-52.html#unique-entry-id-52One new stone for the day... something I don’t cut too often. This one is a Mint Green Grossularite Garnet 2.69 ct. These stones come from Tanzania, and are found in the same area as the Tanzanite.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-03-16T19:52:52-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ffdc7084224ac6f733225a31ee9396b6-51.html#unique-entry-id-51http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ffdc7084224ac6f733225a31ee9396b6-51.html#unique-entry-id-51spinel over the weekend. This one is from the Mahenge area in Morogoro Tanzania. A very hot pink color, that gets a bit more red in incandescent light, and more pink in florescent.
1.04 cts.




New Grading System

For all stones posted after March 16, 2009 this grading system will be used. Stones previously posted will still have the 1-5 grade system.

Color is the most important and complex to grade. Color is made up of three components, hue, saturation and tone. Color will be graded on a scale of 1 to 10 taking these three factors into consideration.

Clarity is graded on a scale of 1 to 10, with 10 being loop clean under a 10X loop.
10 = Loop Clean
8 = Eye Clean
6 = Slightly Included
4 = Moderately Included
2 = Heavily Included
Values between are used when the stone is either a bit cleaner or less clean. It's very rare to find any stone score a 10 for clarity. 7 and higher makes for a very nice stone.

Brilliance - will be a combination of Cut, Sparkle, light return, Proportion and Crystal.
Graded on a scale of 1 to 5, with 5 being the best.

Total Quality Rating - Is the combined score of these 3 with a possible best score of 10

1-5: Low end commercial
6-7: Better quality commercial
8-8.5: Fine quality
8.5-9.5: Very fine quality
9.5-10: What the trade calls "gem"
]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2009-02-22T15:08:41-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c995ea792f2edfd5ea01c19574fadd74-48.html#unique-entry-id-48http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/c995ea792f2edfd5ea01c19574fadd74-48.html#unique-entry-id-48
The picture below shows some of my collection of these stones in the rough, and the various colors. Depending on your taste, you may prefer the more orange stones, or the more pink ones. They cut very brilliant gems, and are a rare stone almost never found in a commercial jewelry store, unless the jeweler really specializes in colored stones.



I buy only the finest Malaya available, nothing too dark or off color, these stones will all cut exquisite collector gems.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-02-16T22:11:42-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6e11a551c7e02ac4f879f8246b14e383-47.html#unique-entry-id-47http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6e11a551c7e02ac4f879f8246b14e383-47.html#unique-entry-id-47
I don’t cut too many Tanzanite, since they are very expensive to buy in the rough, and you never know how they will turn out after heating, but I did buy a few piece this year, and here’s the first one. It’s a 1.52 ct stone.



This next stone is one of the Spinels from the famed Mahenge area in Morogoro Tanzania. The color is just fantastic on this stone. The picture can’t capture it. 0.8 ct.s



A new Zircon for Tanzania. These are very very dark red stones that are gently heated to lighten them up. In incandescent light, the stone gets a bit more pink. 4.46 ct.s



This last one is an Umbalite garnet, cut in my Star 80 design. It measures 8.24 mm and weights 2.59 cts





]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-31T15:13:04-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b5651b586f70cb2478f332fc4d0f294e-45.html#unique-entry-id-45http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/b5651b586f70cb2478f332fc4d0f294e-45.html#unique-entry-id-45Malaya garnets I picked up 2 weeks ago from Tanzania. This one is cut in my “Precision Gem 80 Star” round shape. Perfect color and cut. (That little orange spot on the top is just a reflection.)



This next one is one of the Nigerian Paraiba type Tourmalines. Right now it’s in the oven being heated. All of these Paraiba type stones will be shipped to R.W. Wise Goldsmiths, so if you are interested in one you can contact Richard. This way you will get Richard’s expert evaluation and grading on the stone. The stone is over 4 cts. and is cut in an opposed bar design. Look for it on Richard’s site in the next few weeks.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-28T21:41:18-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/4d7a70a40f6850d0fdd2cc01355efe61-44.html#unique-entry-id-44http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/4d7a70a40f6850d0fdd2cc01355efe61-44.html#unique-entry-id-44Umbalite Garnet was the perfect shaped stone for it. This one weighs 3.39 cts. and measures 8.82 mm. It’s a real bugger to photograph, it looks much nicer in person, and does have a lot of flash. All the white specs are dust, the stone is loop clean.



A small parcel of Mali Garnets arrived yesterday, and I just had to cut one. If you have never seen one of these in person, they look like yellow/green diamonds. The Mali Garnet has a tremendous amount of dispersion. This first one is 1.59 ct. and measures 7.09 mm.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-25T19:27:35-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/df130e98447c58b4320d22fb7864fbc1-43.html#unique-entry-id-43http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/df130e98447c58b4320d22fb7864fbc1-43.html#unique-entry-id-43Umbalite Garnet from Tanzania, the first stone to be cut from the parcel I just got last week.



This next stone is a new Malaya Garnet from Tanzania with excellent color, cut in a SRB. Photographed straight on, and then with a slight tilt.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-21T21:56:22-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2ffd85f54dd70cdb1b7a01912b3727bd-42.html#unique-entry-id-42http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2ffd85f54dd70cdb1b7a01912b3727bd-42.html#unique-entry-id-42
Here’s the new Red zircon



And a Asscher cut Purple Scapolite from Tanzania.



This is one of the Copper bearing Cuprian tourmalines from Nigeria. These are sometimes called Pariaba-Africana. This one is in the oven right now being heated, but I wanted to show the color right after cutting and before heating. We’ll keep our fingers crossed on how it will come out.



Below is a photo of the stone after heating. The color came out fantastic! Most of the stones don’t heat this well, and it’s always a big gamble... to heat or not to heat!

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-12T22:10:04-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/54f6d68fd3fbbba28be740d90878e9c5-41.html#unique-entry-id-41http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/54f6d68fd3fbbba28be740d90878e9c5-41.html#unique-entry-id-41


This next stone is cut on request, so it’s not posted for sale, unless the customer decides not to take it. It’s an Umbalite Garnet cut in a cushion shape. The weight on this one is 3.10 ct.



I have some new rough coming in from Nigeria. It should be here on Wednesday this week, including some of the Nigerian Paraiba type tourmaline. I have no idea of the quality as this is a new source for me, but we shall see....]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-08T17:57:13-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7048aaf064c966619e1f681df7c3b450-40.html#unique-entry-id-40http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/7048aaf064c966619e1f681df7c3b450-40.html#unique-entry-id-40Malaya Garnet from Madagascar, with very nice color. 6.9 mm so it will fit well into a standard 7 mm finding.



The next stone is an all natural unheated Sapphire from the Umba Valley in Tanzania.



This on is 6.77 mm and 1.63 cts.
]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2009-01-04T13:29:03-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ebfd7c97159b70e32f40e265dc5b4f8b-39.html#unique-entry-id-39http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/ebfd7c97159b70e32f40e265dc5b4f8b-39.html#unique-entry-id-39zircon from Tanzania Africa. These stones are a honey brown color, but can be heated with very low temperature over a candle flame to change them to yellow. Below are the before and after heating colors.



I’m not posting this one for sale yet, as sometimes the color drifts back a bit after a day, and I need to heat it again.


This is a new Spessartite Garnet from East Africa. 6.6 mm, 1.36 ct., and a Tsavorite from Kenya that is .64 cts. Green is the hardest stone to photograph, especially the intense ones like tsavorite and chrome tourmaline. In person this stone is just outstanding.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-12-04T21:07:28-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/652189151aa833a87b16d34afe275fa4-34.html#unique-entry-id-34http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/652189151aa833a87b16d34afe275fa4-34.html#unique-entry-id-34rhodolite. This is one of the stones from a small find in Tanzania a few years ago that produced excellent color, but not really large stones. I bought about 20 of these, and they are just about gone now.
This one is 2.09 cts. and measures 7.82 mm. Should fit nicely in a 8mm stock mounting.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-12-02T21:05:26-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6ffc4f829993c6e01e72a1b99ae6bcd9-33.html#unique-entry-id-33http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/6ffc4f829993c6e01e72a1b99ae6bcd9-33.html#unique-entry-id-33
This stone is 8.07 mm and weighs 2.88 ct. Again, loop clean.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-11-30T17:09:52-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/85ece94997b9e069ec73b6f35f0a865b-32.html#unique-entry-id-32http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/85ece94997b9e069ec73b6f35f0a865b-32.html#unique-entry-id-32Pink Tourmaline from Africa, loop clean. The stone measures 10.75 mm, and is cut in a Royal Asscher.
Available for sale.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-11-23T20:43:08-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/327f0105408cc4b3639a19f7a5d84b72-31.html#unique-entry-id-31http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/327f0105408cc4b3639a19f7a5d84b72-31.html#unique-entry-id-31
A blue sapphire (3.11 ct.), Green tourmaline (.98 ct.), and Purple Scapolite (1.22 ct,), Peridot (2.39 ct.)
Some of these may be going to customers if not then they will be posted on the individual pages for sale in a day or two.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comBlog2008-11-10T20:43:14-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/8d3cd4e3997e4f033c8188dec55fb24a-28.html#unique-entry-id-28http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/8d3cd4e3997e4f033c8188dec55fb24a-28.html#unique-entry-id-28
Let me know what you think of this new light set up. I’m laying the stone on its side, and reflecting the Solux light off a white panel to soften it. This is my first attempt, and I hope to get better results as I go along.

The stone is a green tourmaline from Mozambique. 1.31 cts. 6.8 mm.



Here’s another new photo. This stone has been sitting on my desk for over a year. It’s a new design I created last year for a trillion with almost flat sides. This stone is a citrine from Uruguay that weighs 6.75 ct. and measures 13.76 mm

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-11-02T20:23:38-05:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/53ceae24f069164109e3a75e99475bb1-26.html#unique-entry-id-26http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/53ceae24f069164109e3a75e99475bb1-26.html#unique-entry-id-26


This next stone is an Aquamarine from Kenya, that again has not been heated and is cut in a Royal Asscher cut.


The last stone here is a Rhodolite Garnet from Tanzania. I bought about 10 of these stones a few years ago, and is is the third to last one I have left. The color was very nice on these, a bit more grape like than most rhodolite. These stones didn’t come too large, and the find was worked out very quickly.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-10-04T16:28:33-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f44379a3be62db1f4f476e759753111a-25.html#unique-entry-id-25http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/f44379a3be62db1f4f476e759753111a-25.html#unique-entry-id-25Oregon Sunstone. This one is really nice color, with a very glassy clean crystal.


This next one is a Grossularite garnet from Tanzania, in a nice deeper yellow orange color. This is kind of a modified Asscher cut.


This last stone is cut for a client, it’s one of the new pink spinels from the rough parcel shown a few entries back on the blog. I’m cutting a matching yellow sapphire to go with this stone as a set for a special ring.


]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-09-02T22:08:11-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/321a8cdec908b036c069edae5c0e8fd9-23.html#unique-entry-id-23http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/321a8cdec908b036c069edae5c0e8fd9-23.html#unique-entry-id-23spinel from Morogoro Tanzania, and weighs 1.72 cts.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-08-29T21:01:50-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2d5fca915cef4880e2399c8819c818e4-22.html#unique-entry-id-22http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/2d5fca915cef4880e2399c8819c818e4-22.html#unique-entry-id-22
A few people have asked, so here’s the answer. The cut sapphire here, is not one that was pictured in the rough on my last blog posting. It’s from the same parcel, but not in the picture.

]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2008-08-20T22:02:57-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/cfa34550bab97537891ab392f2f93f40-21.html#unique-entry-id-21http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/cfa34550bab97537891ab392f2f93f40-21.html#unique-entry-id-21The first are some natural unheated Umba Sapphires in blues and violet colors. These should all cut stones from 1 to 1.5 or so.



This next parcel I couldn't pass on, even though the price was more than I liked. These are Spinels from the Morogoro area of Tanzania.



These bright orange stones are the new Spessartite Garnets that were just found this past year in Tanzania. The color on these is a bright fanta orange. This parcel are all pretty good size stones that will cut 2 to maybe 4 ct stones.



This last one is just a killer color pink sapphire. In Africa they call this ruby, but it's really a very intense magenta pink sapphire.



And last of all, the latest cut stone. Another one of the Tanzanian Spessartite. This one is 1.95 cts, very good crystal and color

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-07-08T20:21:11-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e46ec1f0ec0b904c21020d814c2f216f-15.html#unique-entry-id-15http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/e46ec1f0ec0b904c21020d814c2f216f-15.html#unique-entry-id-15spinels from Tajikistan.




I haven't been slacking the past week, I was actually working on some stones for one of them members of the GemBusters forum. Here they are..
Try to guess what they are!

]]>gene@precisiongem.comLatest Cut Gems2008-05-19T20:02:53-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0cd4b3065e20c1aa89d957d22c2d8a0e-7.html#unique-entry-id-7http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/0cd4b3065e20c1aa89d957d22c2d8a0e-7.html#unique-entry-id-7For the recut I did a concave cut to bring out some more color from a light stone.



The finished stone is 3.12 ct.]]>gene@precisiongem.comNew Rough gems2008-05-05T21:06:08-04:00http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/32dcf89e43505b17235ddf5f56824bfc-4.html#unique-entry-id-4http://precisiongem.com/Blog/files/32dcf89e43505b17235ddf5f56824bfc-4.html#unique-entry-id-4
These first two pieces are from the Dust Devil Mine in Oregon. The stone on the left should have a really nice color once cut. The right could be interesting, or a mess. Sometimes when a stone show 2 distinct colors they mix and turn to a muddy color, or they can remain isolated and the stone could be a real winner. That half the fun of cutting.

These two stones have excellent color and very good crystal. They should cut will no schiller, and a deep saturated color. I'll grind all the outer clear material away first.

These are pretty typical for how the stone look in the rough, with all the color in the center. The top left looks to be the best of these 3.

These two stones are examples of the sunstone from Tanzania. Much different than the Oregon material. The specs are larger hematite flakes. The left stone could be faceted, the right one has so much hematite it will need to be cabbed.]]>