Professional Grading Question

[xdrx]

Originally Posted by U240robert

Yeah if you have higher value cards you may want to get them graded.
Also, if you run across any mid level cards in very nice shape then a graded version can make a huge difference. You can take a NM/Mt common of, say 1961, if it came back a PSA 9 thats a nice value as opposed to selling it just raw which may bring just a few dollars.
But definitely the high value cards. On ebay it seems graded cards bring alot more unless you are a reputable dealer then it may not make a huge difference.

The more I look on eBay the more I agree with this. Just sent 10 cards to SCG to get graded. Based on that I will make some decisions about other cards.

One thing that puzzles me is that I often see cards being sold for less than $10 @ that have SCG or PSA grades. Are lots of people getting crazy-low pricing on grading? If not, why would you spend maybe half the value of a card for a professional grade?

[Brendan]

Originally Posted by xdrx

The more I look on eBay the more I agree with this. Just sent 10 cards to SCG to get graded. Based on that I will make some decisions about other cards.

One thing that puzzles me is that I often see cards being sold for less than $10 @ that have SCG or PSA grades. Are lots of people getting crazy-low pricing on grading? If not, why would you spend maybe half the value of a card for a professional grade?

Either they didn't get the grade they were hoping for or the card sells for 50% more when graded.

[steve B]

I wondered the same thing for a long time.
I finally asked a guy at a show how he could sell graded commons for what seemed to be less than the grading fee. He submitted in bulk and got a great rate, and didn't do much of his own checking ahead of sending them in. The lower grade ones he sold pretty much at cost, and the "good" ones more than made up for it all.

These days many collectors don't get to handle large stacks of commons that aren't in some sort of plastic, so there sometimes isn't a good feel for what's "right" and what seems wrong (fake, trimmed, etc) So even for mid grade cards there's more comfort in buying graded for some people.

Steve B

[smtjoy]

Not all cards are good for grading and most mid to low grade 60-70's commons are a losing game. Also some dealers who submit in bulk can get down to $4 a card I have heard so they have much less cost than you and they also buy lots of their cards in bulk and I would guess at times for less than a dollar a card. So if they pay $1 for the card and $4 to grade, they can still turn a good profit for selling less than $10.

[xdrx]

Well, I just rec'd my initial 10 cards back from SGC. Somewhat disappointed and definitely confused by the grades. Most are lower than I expected, but some just don't make any sense when compared to the others. I really don't have much faith in SGC based on this submission. I think I'll give PSA a shot next.

One question: A bought quite a few cards from a dealer back in the day who used to write prices on back in pencil. Small (as small or smaller than card number digits) and light, but still visible. I haven't tried to erase those markings, thinking I may cause more damage than harm and because I don't want it to seem like I am altering the card. What are your thoughts? How much do the pencil markings take away from grading? Should I try to erase?

Here's an example:



Thanks.

[ThoseBackPages]

cards with writing on them will kill its grade. Erasing will make it worse. Unfortunately there is nothing you can do.

as a collector, i like them as they have amazing eye appeal. the low grade means that they are extremely affordable.

Here is my Gibson rookie. its got someones initials on the back, kept the price nice and low



live and learn,
Eric