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Hold stones, gems, dies, or styluses against rotating plates, wheels, saws, or slitters to cut, shape, slit, grind, or polish them.
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Examine gem surfaces and internal structures, using polariscopes, refractometers, microscopes, and other optical instruments, to differentiate between stones, to identify rare specimens, or to detect flaws, defects, or peculiarities affecting gem values.
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Identify and document stones' clarity characteristics, using plot diagrams.
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Examine diamonds or gems to ascertain the shape, cut, and width of cut stones, or to select the cuts that will result in the biggest, best quality stones.
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Immerse stones in prescribed chemical solutions to determine specific gravities and key properties of gemstones or substitutes.
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Assign polish, symmetry, and clarity grades to stones, according to established grading systems.
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Sort rough diamonds into categories based on shape, size, color, and quality.
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Secure gems or diamonds in holders, chucks, dops, lapidary sticks, or blocks for cutting, polishing, grinding, drilling, or shaping.
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Select shaping wheels for tasks, and mix and apply abrasives, bort, or polishing compounds.
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Measure sizes of stones' bore holes and cuts to ensure adherence to specifications, using precision measuring instruments.
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Advise customers and others on the best use of gems to create attractive jewelry items.
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Estimate wholesale and retail value of gems, following pricing guides, market fluctuations, and other relevant economic factors.
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Dismantle lapping, boring, cutting, polishing, and shaping equipment and machinery to clean and lubricate it.
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Examine gems during processing to ensure accuracy of angles and positions of cuts or bores, using magnifying glasses, loupes, or shadowgraphs.