PSA cert warning.
 

Hi guys. I'm an avid vintage collector, and have had my share of disappointments dealing with PSA and their "trimmed/altered" grading.

I've actually cracked really nice PSA 6.5 1952 cards and had them come back trimmed over and over. They are certainly inconsistent in their grading.

This story will actually make you sick.

I recently purchased a PSA 6 early Mickey mantle card. I generally don't bother checking the cert verifications, as I have never had an issue. Naturally, I have an issue now on my first decent mantle card.

When I key in the cert #, it comes up as a 7oc. As we all know, this is a 5. I stepped up pretty good to get this card, and paid more than the vcp price for it. I did as PSA requested and sent front and back scans, and waited. 5 days after I sent the scans in I didn't hear a thing. I finally rattled some cages last night, and got someone from customer service on the phone.

PSA now wants me to send the card to them (I'm in Canada so that will be about $300 for the insurance). Then they want to take a look at it, and potentially regrade it to a 7oc. They said with the grade guarantee that they would reimburse me the value between the 2 grades. They calculate this from the SMR!

I told them I paid almost double what the SMR suggests it is worth, and he didn't have much to say.

I can't understand why they won't just change the registry?!

Has anyone had an experience like this? And how did it turn out.

I also have the option to return the card to the vendor.

I have one card in my collection that was improperly graded--it was listed as a variation that simply doesn't exist. PSA pulled it out of the set registry based on a scan alone. Not exactly the same thing as it is still listed in the pop report. I'd push the issue with them further to see if they will update it without seeing it. I can see why they may not though as you cannot be certain without seeing the card in hand whether the holder has been tampered with.

I'm confused. Wouldn't you rather have the card grade a 7 then a 5 or 6??? And wouldn't the card be worth more money as a 7 then a 5 or 6. So why would they reimburse the difference when the card should have gone up in value because people will buy based in the grades 99.9% of the time.

Psa
 

Brock,

If that card was listed in the PSA Registry as a PSA 7 O/C then PSA assigns it a grade of PSA 5 for GPA purposes. So in effect, to some people a PSA 7 O/C is a PSA 5 with no qualifiers.

It really comes down to what the owner of the card prefers. There are some who simply detest qualifiers as they bring the price down. This is well documented and understandable.

PSA does not always drop a card 2 grades but in most cases they do. I have had qualified cards in registry sets before and in every case they were figured at 2 grades lower.

Just my 2 cents.

Peace, Mike

Thanks for explaining Mike.

Exactly. I hate qualifiers, as a 7 OC will sell for less than a nice 5. I want them to either stand behind the grade they assigned, pay me off, or I'm going to return it.

I have a friend that had 3 from his 52 Topps set come out different from the label to the registry, but they were commons. He sent in the scans and PSA changed it over night.

Because this is a mantle, they won't and in the long run, I think I'm going to lose money on this if they try to be cute with how they handle it

If you are switching between a 7 (OC) and a 5, it doesn't sound like it's really that nice of a '5'. Sounds like it is off centered as hell, and will get bid down accordingly. This is one of those deals, six in one hand half a dozen in the other.

It's a pig, but in a 6 would be ok. As an awful 5 it would go closer to 4-4.5 money. I got a pretty interesting pm about this, and I suspect that this is what happened. I will not be sending it to PSA. I will be returning it.

I fear the flip may have been switched.