Collectors, does it matter who grades your cards?

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Posted By: Cap

I would like feedback. When you see a collection of T206's or T205's in a catalog, they're usually categorized in lots/near-sets/sets depending on who did the grading.

I.E (100) SCG Graded T206's or (75) PSA Graded T205's.

You never see (175) PSA and SCG Graded Cards. A Mish-Mash.

Does it matter to the collecting forum here who does the grading? Do you prefer all your cards to be PSA or all your cards to be SCG? Why do you prefer one over the other?

With T206's, I'm at roughly 65% PSA, 15% SGC and 20% Ungraded and I'm a self-confessed 'slab-head' because it protects the cards and makes me feel at ease when dealing with trim issues.

Thank You

Cap

Well, I quit my job so I could work alone, Then I changed my name to Sherlock Holmes- Bob Dylan.

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Posted By: jay behrens

I prefer SGC, but will buy other slabs if it's a card I really need. GAI slabs I don't mind. I love the label on the top edge of the slab. The lone PSA I ever bought, I crossed over to SGC right away. No way I was gonna let a PSA 6 slide around become a 5 or lower because they are too cheap to properly holder a card. Then there are all the issues that come with PSA and I have no desire to keep a card in a PSA slab for the long term. If I was looking for a quick flip, I'd prefer PSA only because I know there are people out there that still blindly follow PSA and hope all their problems will go away (For those that don't know what they are, doa search. They are all well documented here)

In general though, I prefer raw cards. Helps keep costs down. But when I'm buying a 33 Goudey Ruth Gehrig or similar big ticket card what you see lots of reprints of, I want the card slabbed.

Jay

I've just reached Upper Lower Class. I am now officially a babe magnet for poor chicks.

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Posted By: Cap

My big concern is that perhaps in like twenty years, I will show up at the Mastro door to auction off my 'complete set' (when it becomes complete, I'm way too picky) and how will a company like that view 'a mixed company grade' set of T206's?

Thank,

Cap

Well, I quit my job so I could work alone, Then I changed my name to Sherlock Holmes- Bob Dylan.

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Posted By: dennis

i'm w/you cap if they are pre war i keep them in whatever slab they came in.if they are raw i put them in a lucite holder which is just as nice to me as a slab.if they are post war i put them in pages in binders.if i buy a post war card i crack them out of whatever holder they came in.

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Posted By: wesley

Admittedly, I was very much a slabhead the last few years. Recently Mark Macrae and Julie introduced me to mylar holders. They're similar to Cardsavers in that they are semirigid, but they were originally intended for preservation of stamps and paper documents. The mylars are clearer and apparently safer for paper than traditional Cardsavers. So from now on, my cards will be in the mylars.

As far as grading companies, I would trust SGC, PSA, and GAI equally and I would purchase cards encased in any of those holders. So to answer your original question, no it does not matter so long as the cards are graded by one of the three reputable companies. If grading is still in vogue when I need to sell the cards, I will go ahead and slab them at that time.

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Posted By: jay behrens

My guess would be that if you gave them a complete set of e95s that were in PSA, SGC and GAI holders, that they would most likely get the all crossed over to one company. Probably wouldn't cost you a cent.

Jay

I've just reached Upper Lower Class. I am now officially a babe magnet for poor chicks.

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Posted By: Scottopotamus

I have probably crossed over about 25 PSA cards and 10 GAI cards to SGC for my T206 collection. (all others were bought "raw" and submitted to SGC or already in SGC slabs)



Scottoptamus
My T206 Web Site

http://www.freewebs.com/scottopotamus

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Posted By: Bill

I prefer SGC because of the look and their consistancy. They may be a little tougher on their grading, but as they say "buy the card, not the grade." I only collect T206's and currently have all but 5 cards graded by SGC. Bill

http://www.freewebs.com/bb5714/index.htm

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Posted By: Anonymous

Where does anyone get the impression SGC is a tough grader? I have seen many of overgraded T201's in SGC 84 and up holders. Are the just easy on T201's?

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Posted By: jay behrens

I've noticed that with t201s too. They seem to be very lenient with that set for whatever reason. Then you give them a non-sport issue or caramel cards and it's as if someone else looks at the cards and just hammers them for the minutest flaw.

Jay

I've just reached Upper Lower Class. I am now officially a babe magnet for poor chicks.

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Posted By: David Vargha

My 50's and newer cards are all PSA. SGC and PSA are equal for me in pre-war. SGC also grades some pre-war stuff that PSA doesn't touch. I don't currently own any GAI cards, but am not averse to doing so.

DavidVargha@hotmail.com

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Posted By: Julie Vognar

I'd get them graded by SGC. (many collectors of really early stuff prefer SGC for those cards).

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Posted By: Judge Dred

It used to be that PSA graded cards would get higher bids (on ebay) if you were selling cards.

I prefer SGC if I feel I'm going to keep the cards for a while. Each company has it's issues. Neither seems to be really consistent.

GAI - I'm still not comfortable with them although I do like the little tab they put at the top of the card. Consistency in GAI? They've had their issues too and they went from labeling "authentic" to not labeling "authentic" cards - but that was last month so I don't know if that is an accurate statement at this time.

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Posted By: Kenny Cole

Maybe I'm the lone voice, lost in the woods, but I still remember when people were able to determine the grades of their cards without the assistance of those 20-year-old pimple-faced kids employed by PSA who would do it for you. In a lot of ways, I liked it better then. I didn't have to worry if a PSA 5 would really cross over to a SGC 60, or if I might lose money by doing that. I didn't care (and still don't) whether the GAI slab could cause "rattlers," because GAI didn't exist. When we bought a card, it was normally based upon our own personal assessment of what the card's condition was -- not the assessment of someone you have probably never met, and, who, frankly doesn't care nearly as much as you do, if he/she makes a mistake.

I'm a collector, not a dealer. I fully understand that in today's world, getting a card slabbed as VG by the "card gods" may well make you more money than selling a raw card that is truly in Ex condition. That is the reality. However, I don't have to like it. I think that, by and large, slabbing is a cancer. To those who argue that it brings some degree of objectivity to an otherwise subjective endeavor, I suggest that you look at the number of threads, both here and on ebay, telling the folks they want to sell a card to, that it is really better than the grade it got. At least in the classical sense, an objective finding is one that is based upon a set of criteria that you can replicate. I don't think that is very often true with card grading.

I don't sell cards, so I'm not shooting at anyone who gets their cards graded in order to do so. In this climate, that simply makes sense. However, I really have to wonder about the folks who rely upon the grade to decide whether or not to buy the card. The fact that PSA has only graded one card a 6 doesn't necesarily mean that there aren't several ungraded cards of that same player who are better. Maybe at some point it will, although I truly hope not.

In any event, I have no current plans to have any card I own graded. If and when I decide to sell them, I may decide differently. If I do, I guess I ought to make a boat load of money, much more than if I just sold them as the cards they were before they got graded. Hopefully, that day is a long way away.

Kenny Cole

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Posted By: Billy

Too tough to identify wrinkles and minor creases in scans, so that is why I feel grading companies are a good idea to stick to for online purchases (also solid authentication).

However in person I would agree with the last post, that your personal opinion means more than any grading company. I buy all my cards on ebay so I rely on the big three.

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Posted By: Billy

Jay,
I have an SGC 50 Baker/Collins T201 that look better in all aspects (especially centering)than my SGC 80 Gaspar/Clarke, the only difference being the SGC 50 had only slight corner rounding.

Did you see that SGC 86 Leach about a month ago where the edges looked like a saltine cracker?????

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Posted By: Darren J. Duet

I generally don't send cards in to be graded by anyone. But when buying not in person I prefer to stick to graded cards. My opinion is that SGC is the best by far for pre-1948 cards followed by PSA and then GAI. post-1948 cards are best graded by PSA & Beckett. I find that Beckett is very consistent and strict for the post war stuff.

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Posted By: Mark Holt

While I think SGC has the best holder and grade the most conservatively I am putting my t206s in PSA holders at a rate of about 10 a month.

Why?
1. There are way more PSA available on eBay where I get my monthly t206 fix. I just sent in some raw cards I bought a year ago on eBay and as I have become more knowledgeable my intent to buy only graded online has increased. I'm expecting at least three of my latest ten to get bounced back as ungradeable although the local card shop owner said they looked real and unaltered to him.
2. The Registry - my cards are registered and since my job requires travel a lot I can see them on the road. Plus its kind of fun to move up the list a little each month (with mostly 3s and 4s that will end soon).
3. I believe PSA will get the best resale for reasons 1 and 2 above. I don't intend to sell but I'm guessing my wife calls Mr. Mint before my toe is tagged someday.

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Posted By: Harry

Right now, I have the highest level of comfort with PSA and SGC. I exclusively submit to PSA but have purchased SGC and GAI cards. I've gotten some ugly overgraded cards from lower tier companies in full collections that I have purchased.

I like slabbed cards because of the authentication part of it. In the most part, I don't have to worry about fakes and altered cards. I'm not big on high grade cards. I am currently working on my PSA graded 1933-34 Goudey Sport Kings in mostly PSA 1 ... I know they are real and that makes me happy. When I sell any higher priced cards, I want those people that buy them to feel the same as I do.

Harry

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Posted By: Anonymous

Why does PSA have different recess sizes when they slab tobacco cards?