All, There are two hobbyist concave faceters. One made by Jarvi Tool
and one made by OMF. Both machines work, but neither has the
flexibility or speed necessary to be a commercial machine. We built
our own machine after trying to use both the above machines. Our
machine has cost us out of pocket over $30,000 in development and
this is just the machine. We are still in the process of developing
the equipment.
Designing the concave facetted stone is another whole area. First
and foremost the concave facet does not change the physics of how
light refracts, reflects, or disperses. Concave facets change the
way your eye perceives the refraction, reflection, and dispersion.
This makes the process of cutting more of an adventure than regular
facetting. I have concaved over 1,000 stones of everything from
diopside to rubies and can tell you that when the cut is done right
it is unlike anything you have ever seen, When the cut is not right
for the stone it actually detracts from the stone.
Concave facetting is done with cylindrical mandrels of different
diameters. Some of these mandrels are plated and some are charged.
What I use to charge my mandrels and the sizes of mandrels I use is
my production advantage over the other producers of concave stones.
In this business I will not give away my advantage. I will form
alliances with others that have something of equal value to bring to
the table. I have knowledge, experience, equipment development, and
marketing to bring to the table. What do you have to offer?
Gerry Galarneau
@Gerry
www.galarneausgems.com