Posted By:
barrysloateI realize the set registry is important for a certain segment of the hobby, and that people like to compete. And I don't begrudge it. I'm simply saying the authenticating service that is available far outweighs the importance of the grading service.
Let me offer an example. Suppose you went to a show and bought a raw card that the dealer called Excellent, and you sent it to be graded and it came back Very Good. No question you would take somewhat of a financial hit, but you might be able to examine the card at the dealer's table and determine for yourself that it's not properly graded and isn't worth buying.
Now suppose you bought a NR MT card raw for big bucks and you sent it in to be graded and it turned out to be trimmed, altered, recolored, or whatever. It would be virtually worthless and you would take a huge loss. And even if you examined it yourself you might not be able to see any evidence of tampering.
That's why having third party grading is a good thing, but having third party authenticating is so much more important.
I admit my ability to detect alterations on a card approaches zero. I don't know what I would do without third party assistance. But I graded my own cards for twenty years and I bet I could still do it with pretty accurate (though not perfect) results. But that skill has been taken away from me. Nobody would care how I graded a card when they can just read what it says on the label. I accept this but if the time ever came where anybody would listen to my assessment, I would be happy to offer it.