Ken, there are hundreds of dealers in the US. The more knowledgable you are, the better chance of finiding what you want. Any jeweler who leaves the grading up to the diamond dealer should *not* be selling diamonds. Just my .02
I definitely agree with the part about who does the grading. My
boss, who also happens to be the staff gemologist, rechecks
EVERY stone under the microscope, regardless of the source.
Just standard procedure.
A couple of times, I’ve posted to this list the address & phone
of Maxon’s main source of loose stones, the American Diamond
Syndicate. ADS has been providing Maxon’s with diamonds for a
number of years with no serious problems; our founder, Joe Maxon,
describes them as “like family.” I don’t have their contact info
in front of me right now, but any interested parties should be
able to find my messages in the Orchid archives. I can dig the
data up again if I get a lot of requests.
Joel Kahn <@Joel_Kahn>
Comptroller for Maxon’s Jewelers
Diamond Merchants & Estate Jewelers
2622 S Glenstone, Springfield Missouri 65804 USA
Voice: 417-887-1800 or 417-887-1809
Fax: 417-887-3422