cuts for almandine

[gemminerinmaine]

I have small orange-red almandine faceting gem rough that will cut stones up to 5 mm. Thus far I have been experimenting with several cuts: Jeff Grahm’s “Tic Tac” and “Crazy Square” work fairly well. A standard round brilliant with culet angles at 34.5 degrees work well but only under 3 mm. Princess and emerald cuts show good color but I want more brilliance. The color of the rough is readily apparent on white paper in normal indoor or outdoor lighting so it is not a “black-red almandine” but it is on the darker spectrum. I am looking for the brightest possible, yet easy, cut for overseas cutting.

Would greatly appreciate recommendations from anyone with some experience with almandine garnets.

Dennis

[Author]

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