Old Single Cut Cubic Zirconia: a cheap way to see the eight cut, with its costs

Brilliance 65 · Fire 83 · Scintillation 44 · in our census, where the T73 scores 98 · 87 · 80 in cubic zirconia

An eight cut in CZ shows you the plan for little money. In our census it shows little else to recommend it.

See it in the simulatorGet the files
The Old Single Cut in cubic zirconia, rendered at an angle in our 3D Gemstone Simulator under studio light
Rendered in our 3D Gemstone Simulator from the Old Single Cut model, 1.00 ct, studio light.

Old Single Cut Cubic Zirconia

Cubic zirconia is where many cutters first try a design, and where many buyers first see an old cut without paying for diamond. In CZ the Old Single keeps its 26 facets and broad flashes.

Against the T73 in CZ it falls a long way behind, further than it does in diamond. The T73 suits CZ unusually well, with Brilliance 98, which makes the gap wide.

Is CZ good in an Old Single cut? Pros and cons

Pros

None by our margins. Fire is level with the diamond version, 83 against 84.

Cons

Compared with the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia and with the Old Single Cut in diamond. A difference counts from 3 points (Brilliance, Fire, Tilt, Leakage), 5 (Scintillation, Symmetry), 2 (Spread) or 5% (weight); Tilt counts as a pro only for a stone within 5 points of the brilliance it is compared with. How we measure.

All eight scores against the T73

At a glance: the Old Single Cut in cubic zirconia (white) against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia (dashed): solid white where it reaches further, hatched where it falls short. Each pro and con is explained, with pictures, below.

Performance wheel: Old Single Cut in cubic zirconia, against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia as an outline. Solid white marks where it reaches further, hatching where it falls short. The scores are listed below.50100Global−17Brilliance−33Fire−4Scintillation−36Spread−3Symmetry0Shape-norm−36Tilt+8

Against the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: ahead on 1, level on 1, behind on 6.

  • Global76, the comparison 93, difference −17
  • Brilliance65, the comparison 98, difference −33
  • Fire83, the comparison 87, difference −4
  • Scintillation44, the comparison 80, difference −36
  • Spread97, the comparison 100, difference −3
  • Symmetry100, the comparison 100, difference 0
  • Shape-norm70, the comparison 106, difference −36
  • Tilt95, the comparison 87, difference +8
Face-up light census, a different measure from the Cut Grading Tool; Spread and Shape-norm above 100 sit on the ring.
Open it in the Cut Performance Wheel

What cubic zirconia gains in an Old Single cut

No score beats either baseline by our margins. Fire (83) is level with the same cut in diamond (84) and a few points under the T73 in CZ. Tilt reads 95, but a stone at 65 brilliance keeps its share of a small amount of light, so we do not count it. Its value is practical: an inexpensive Old Single to cut, set or study.

Where the Old Single falls short in CZ

Much heavier than diamond

1.73 ct at 6.5 mm, against 1.05 ct for the same cut in diamond (+65%)

Cubic zirconia's specific gravity is about 5.8 against diamond's 3.52: the same stone is about two-thirds heavier.

Cubic Zirconia1.73 ctDiamond1.05 ct
A Old Single Cut 6.5 mm across, weighed from the model's measured volume and each stone's specific gravity.

What helps: None in the cut: it is the material. Buy and set CZ by millimetres, not carats.

Try it yourself: Weights in all seven gemstones on the Old Single Cut page

Few, slow flashes

Scintillation 44 against 80 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 36 points lower

26 facets against the T73's 73: the eight cut's broad sparkle, not a modern glitter.

Old Single Cut · 26 facets · Scintillation 44

T73 Round Brilliant · 73 facets · Scintillation 80

Scintillation follows the number of facets: more facets, more and smaller flashes as the stone moves. Count the facets in each crown. Drawn from each cut's own model.

What helps: The facet plan sets this. The Old European Cut Cubic Zirconia keeps an antique round with 81.

Try it yourself: Compare the Scintillation spoke in the Cut Performance Wheel

A third less light than the T73 in CZ

Brilliance 65 against 98 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 33 points lower

The T73 returns almost everything in CZ. The Old Single loses a third of that, and its face-up map shows grey wedges round the rim between the colour.

Old single cut in cubic zirconia face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 65)

Old Single Cut in cubic zirconia · Brilliance 65

T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia face-up Light Return map: red, green and blue show where the light returns from, grey shows where it leaks (Brilliance 98)

T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia · Brilliance 98

Red, green and blue = light returning to the eye; grey = light leaving through the pavilion. This is the head-on view; the Brilliance score averages a wider cone of light, so the score can differ from what one picture shows.

What helps: In CZ the Old European Cut Cubic Zirconia returns 92, the T73 Round Brilliant 98.

Try it yourself: Open this Light Return map in the simulator

A quarter of the light leaks

Leakage 27 against 1 for the T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia: 26 points higher

27% of the light in our census leaves through the pavilion, against 1% for the T73 in CZ and 19% for the same cut in diamond.

Old Single Cut in cubic zirconia · Leakage 27

Old single cut in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 33% of the face leaking0° · 33% leak
Old single cut in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 31% of the face leaking10° · 31% leak
Old single cut in cubic zirconia tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 34% of the face leaking20° · 34% leak
Old single cut in cubic zirconia tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 33% of the face leaking30° · 33% leak

T73 Round Brilliant in cubic zirconia · Leakage 1

T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia tilted 0 degrees: Light Return map, 0% of the face leaking0° · 0% leak
T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia tilted 10 degrees: Light Return map, 1% of the face leaking10° · 1% leak
T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia tilted 20 degrees: Light Return map, 9% of the face leaking20° · 9% leak
T73 round brilliant in cubic zirconia tilted 30 degrees: Light Return map, 21% of the face leaking30° · 21% leak
Each frame is the Light Return map with the stone tilted away from you by the angle shown; grey is light leaving through the pavilion. The share under each frame is that picture's own.

What helps: The Old European Cut leaks 7% in CZ. Size does not change the share.

Try it yourself: Tilt it yourself in the simulator's light map

Who an Old Single CZ suits

Choose it to practise the eight cut or to try the look in a setting before cutting something more valuable. As a finished stone for brightness, it trails the T73 in CZ by a third.

For an antique round in CZ with nearly a modern round's light, the Old European Cut Cubic Zirconia.

Old Single Cut Cubic Zirconia: questions

Is Old Single cut CZ bright?

Less than a modern round: Brilliance 65 against 98 for the T73 in CZ, with 27% leakage against 1%.

Why does CZ weigh more than diamond?

It is denser: specific gravity about 5.8 against 3.52. A 6.5 mm Old Single weighs 1.73 ct in CZ.

Is CZ good for practising the Old Single cut?

CZ cuts and polishes easily, which is why it is a common practice material. Our cutting file is the same for any material.

Get the Old Single Cut files

6 formatsMillimetresWatertight

Old Single Cut 3D files

The Old Single Cut as exact geometry: 26 planar facets, real-world scale, ready for CAD, rendering, printing and casting.

  • STEPExact faceted solid for CAD
  • 3DMRhino, closed mesh on its own layer
  • STLWatertight mesh for printing and casting
  • OBJMesh for modelling and rendering
  • FBXBlender, 3ds Max, Maya, Cinema 4D, Unity, Unreal
  • GLBWeb, AR and quick previews
€9.99 · Personal useBuy the 3D files
GemCad96 index

Old Single Cut cutting files

The Old Single Cut as a faceting design: 18 + 8 girdles = 26 facets, 96 index, 8-fold mirror-image symmetry, ready for the machine.

  • .ascGemCad design file, 96 index gear
  • .csvTier table: angles, indices and cutting order
  • DiagramPrintable faceting diagram
€9.99 · Personal useBuy the cutting files

Questions before you buy? Email us.

More gemstones and cuts

Cubic Zirconia: optical properties and the top ten cuts · The Old Single Cut: specifications, model and files

Other cuts in cubic zirconia

The Old Single Cut in other gemstones