Quote:
Originally Posted by freakhappy
When I started collecting 206's I never even really looked at the card, I just went for anything that was in the 1.5-3 range. This was definitely a rude awakening for me b/c I realized paper loss and pen/pencil markings were present on a decent amount of them, not to mention the appeal of the card (which is the primary thing I look at now) was usually gone.
Now that I look at the card as a whole, my collection has much better appeal...had to learn the hard way tho 
As of right now, I collect only graded cards...mainly so I don't get burned by trim jobs or have to completely trust Ebay sellers (we know how that goes). Plus by the grade, I know what defects the card may have. |
Or you could just purchase/trade from people who you trust, or strangers who give refunds for raw cards. You look at it, you be the judge. The problem would only be if you needed to trade/sell it, but that's not really a problem either because you can also give the same deal. That's the old school way of dealing with other hobbyists - trust and fairness.
I recently traded for a T206 that looked like it might have been Tinker'd with on the right side (or did I take a 'Chance'? - I always get these two cards mixed up). I simply asked the trader and he said it was good. I received it, looked at it and was happy. Is it trimmed? I don't think so, and if I ever get rid of it, that's still my opinion. If the next guy who ends up with it thinks it is trimmed, he can give it back to me. It shouldn't ever be any big deal, as long as you are working with good people.
(The more we talk about this, the more I'm considering freeing all my guys)