Quote:
Originally Posted by ALR-bishop
While I do not collect graded stuff I fully get the allure and draw of the Registry to many collectors. But if the market is big enough ( do not know if it really is ) then history would indicate some well financed major competitor at some point will give it a go.
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Biggest problem I see with this scenario is that there is already tens of millions of dollars invested in grading with PSA. Getting someone to crossover tons of cards, complete set collectors for example, is going to just be too expensive imo. Now, I could see it over a long period of time if said company was so much better and more cost effective and everyone started to gravitate there as sets are broken down and sold off.
As far as the love/hate with tpg, I believe it has been very educational. While we know that the pop reports are not accurate, for myself, it has still been eye opening over the years. My example, maybe 15 years ago I started on a quest to build a PSA 8 70-71 Topps basketball set as I couldn't afford the 69's in that grade and I really like the tallboys. Well, when you are putting together a raw set, you may know the short prints that are a little more difficult or certain common cards that might be a little more difficult to find but you will settle for something that is lower grade because it is not a superstar. But what hit me, and my wallet, was finding that some of these cards were virtually impossible to find in high grade, centered, no print dots, etc. This is something that the experienced collector might know that has been collecting a certain set for years but not someone new to either the hobby or a particular series. While it's not exact, it's still a pretty good reference, even if you only collect raw, to know what obstacles you might face collecting a particular card or set.
Anyhow, that's just my opinion. Good discussion and happy collecting to all!
Tim