WTB WA Engagment ring

[Haftard]

Anyone have an engagement ring they wanna get rid of .. It's time to pop the question .. She said she likes rose gold or white gold

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[jbett98]

Pawn shops are full of them and the prices are usually negotiable. Stay away from the Shane Company.
Get yourself a high powered jewelers loupe (Walmart has them for only $9.00) and watch a couple of YouTube video's on what makes a good diamond vs. a bad diamond with inclusions..
If you go the pawn shop route, have them clean the ring setting before you check it out even if it's slightly dirty it can hide structural flaws and a stones clarity.
They generally clean them before putting them in the display, but you really want to see if any of the stones mounting prongs are loose or cracked.
A women's shoe size is generally her ring finger size, so that's something to go by when you have a jeweler resize the ring.

 

[Haftard]

Huh would had never had thought about the shose size thing... Why sould i stay away from Shane company ? And in not going the walmart rout ... She would probably kill me

 

[Joe13]

Huh would had never had thought about the shose size thing... Why sould i stay away from Shane company ? And in not going the walmart rout ... She would probably kill me

Jeweler loop is a fancy magnifying glass. Not a ring.

I bought mine from a pawn shop. Guy at the shop pulled out a box with literally hundreds of rings.

I looked at all of them until one sparkled in a way that I liked.

$300 and I was out the door.

Granted I was 18 but I still wouldn't buy a ring from a brick store with a 600%+ markup.

And yea, we've been together for 24 years now and approaching our 23rd anniversary in Feb. I've never been happier and it gets better each day - so don't buy into the pawn shop rings are bad luck bs.


Or you could be like the brother I haven't talked to in 5 years and buy a $3500 wedding set and pay for it for the next 5 years or go on CL and find a dozen rings the exact same for sale at less then half the price.

 

[Joe13]

Oh, and shoe size is an average not the rule.

Grab a ring she already wears and see if it fits your pinky or something to get an idea of her size. Thin rings run smaller on size a bit and fat rings run a half size larger in my experience.

Good Luck

 

[jbett98]

I have a long time friend who is a high end jeweler in Lake Oswego and over the years has taught me a lot about about jewellery.
When I was shopping for an engagement ring, my friend loaned me a spare high powered loupe, I couldn't afford his Lake Oswego prices even with a discount.
I went to the Shane company to look at diamonds and settings and the high pressure salesman showed me some loose diamonds in my price bracket and after looking them over with his 4x loupe, I pulled out my friends high quality loupe and noticed a bunch of black specks (inclusions) and remarked to him about them.
He cheerfully told me that those inclusions were a good thing, as then I would always know that the diamond was easily recognized and unique.
I cheerfully responded by asking him which car was his in the parking lot and wouldn't he like me to go outside and take a ball peen hammer to the hood of his car and put a bunch of dents in it, as then he would always know that was his car, no matter what parking lot it was in.
He just gathered up the loose stones and walked away. I ended up at Weisfields as they had the best replacement and repair policy if the stone was lost. You had to take it in and have them look at it every year to make sure the prongs were tight.
If you buy an irregular shaped diamond, which are prone to snagging, have the setting prongs replaced with white gold as they're a lot tougher.

 

[JuglansRegia]

If your GF is okay with you getting a used ring from a Pawn Shop, I like that idea. Jewelry is such a scam so if you can save a bunch that is a win win win. Keep in mind that 14k gold is only 58.5% or 585 parts out of 1000, so any ring you look at that is 14k should have 585 stamped on the inside. So if you are buying a setting from a pawn shop offer them maybe 30% more than the spot price of 14K gold. The diamond is a little more subjective. There are the 4 C's cut, carat, clarity and color. What really matters when its in the setting and on her finger is the size and sparkle. Her friends aren't going to look at it with a loop. I had a coworker that went with his wife whom he was divorcing to sell her ring they just bought a year or two earlier. They got offered a pretty pathetic amount, like 20% of what they paid for it at the same place. So the moral of the story is, if your buying used, low ball the crap out of them because you can bet they didn't pay much for it.

 

[cigars]

Nothing wrong with a pawn shop ring. Odds are that the thing was bought in a high end, over priced shop initially. So why should it be any different? The stones and the settings will basically last forever, aside from physical damage.

 

[jbett98]

Take cash and show them that you're a serious buyer. Their business depends on product turnover everyday.
I just bought an arborist chainsaw for just $100.00 cash. They retail for $385.00 new and the one I bought had less then 1/2 a tank through it.

 

[DONOTBUGME]

Dont buy a complete ring, buy a diamond then choose the ring. Best prices are online, as they have the most competition. Join a diamond/jewelry forum and learn about them. Diamond prices are usually at their highest prices from Nov to Feb. If you can wait till spring, they come down in price. Rounds are most expensive, there are several other cuts, like princess cut where you can get a larger diamond for the same price. Do you know which cut she wants?

This is a great forum to learn from: PriceScope Forum

They helped me a lot and will steer you to honost vendors.

 

[308]

Stay away from the Shane Company.

Why stay away from the Shane Company?
I have had nothing but 100% positive experience with them, and quite frankly their diamonds and settings are better than anywhere else in my experience.

Shane...High volume, high pressure, high price, mediocre quality, unethical financing

Odd...I have never once felt pressured there. I have always paid cash so don't know anything about financing through them. Quality is mediocre? Hardly...

 

[DONOTBUGME]

Why stay away from the Shane Company?
I have had nothing but 100% positive experience with them, and quite frankly their diamonds and settings are better than anywhere else in my experience.

Because thier high marketing expenses which results in higher prices.

 

[Jonnyuma]

Interesting stuff about jewelry, diamonds, gold, markup, etc. All of which I'll completely forget when it comes time for a ring and I'll end up with a 58.5% bone in one of my inclusions.

 

[SigShooter]

What are you wanting to spend? I have something for under $1200. PM if interested.

 

[No_Regerts]

I figured I was going to give it one shot at marriage, so I looked into traditions and immediately knew there was no way I'd spend two months pay for a ring. In my mind, if my girlfriend was going to be a true life partner, being in debt or not having more money to buy a house should pizz her off.

I learned about GIA standards and what it all meant. I saved ONE MONTH of salary and bought at a place called Helzberg Diamonds in the mall. The stones were decent and the setting turned out to be what she liked. They included a band to make a bridal set and gave me lifetime cleanings and warranty.

We've been together for 12 years and she hasn't complained once.

 

[Aispuro]

Pawn shops are definitely they way to go just make sure to get them polished befor or after an it will look brand spanking new . Also Ask if they have any G.i.a mounted stones there definitely worth buyin in the long run.

 

[ACO]

I have a 1/2 carat princess cut id love to see tossed in a volcano, but I'd be happy to sell it too. No setting. Just the stone. (Long story) colorless, VS2, looks great. Just no need for it anymore.

 

[Joe13]

If you buy from a private party I know for sure that freddys jewlers will appraise it for you on the spot and clean it for you for free too.

It's also a fairly safe space to trade a wad of cash to a stranger with all of the camers around.

 

[Haftard]

Pawn shops are definitely they way to go just make sure to get them polished befor or after an it will look brand spanking new . Also Ask if they have any G.i.a mounted stones there definitely worth buyin in the long run.

what is a g.i.a ?

 

[Haftard]

Im only looking,to spend tops 600 bucks ... Like thats top of tops ... I would like to be spending 300 bucks