Screw top holders
 

Should they generally be avoided in buying a rare card? Can PSA or SGC break them out easily and regrade?

It has been awhile since I sent cards to PSA, but at the time, cards had to be shipped in a semi rigid card sleeve.

I feel like I am missing something here, why would a screw cause you to avoid buying a card?

Maybe he doesn't have a screw driver? :)

I generally avoid buying cards in screw down holders because of the disproportionately high number of fakes you see in them.

I don't think PSA accepts items for graded contained in screw down holders. The thing I've noticed that I don't like about them is that for large formats say 1952-1956 Topps they tend to compress the cards and force them to buckle a bit once you screw down the holder. For smaller formats say 48 Bowmans or T206's they tend not to do that and I've found them to be fine.

I really like them for non-graded cards as I think they display better and offer more protection than sleeves and less chance of a disaster if a card slides out. I prefer the uv protected ultra-pros with the magnets for regular sized cards and keep a selection of specific pro-mold one screws for the larger Topps issues, Bowmans, and t206's I buy raw and want to display. I agree, it is super important to have the correct size for the larger Topps or you can really mess one up. I have seen dealers make this mistake.

As for submitting in one, I would not simply for it seeming to be a waste of a reusable holder and they usually request submissions in a semi-rigid. However, it seems logical that they or anyone could take it out. If I worked at PSA and someone sent in a card in a one screw or a beckett slab in for a regrade I would happily dance a jig for that screw in comparison.

Screw down will damage your cards no doubt .
I once sent in a bunch of card in old penny sleeves and top loaders because I didn't want to waste the cash on buying the flimsy ridged holders .
They still graded my cards . If you ask me it's Easier to take cards out of
A top loader and penny sleeve then one of those other plastics anyway . But
From what I understand is they cut the cards out of the ridged holders .
I actually think they still did it that way with the top loadersi sent in .
I few cards 100% got dinged .

I also have had a few bad experiences with binders . I know a lot of collecters
Like it but I've had cards move around overtime and show slight damage . Also it's is very open so if get affected by the environment it's kept in .

Odd. . . some of the responses to my question were sort of mocking as to what a silly question it was, followed by an explanation as to why they personally actually do avoid them in some cases. . . .

It was only a question. . . . thanks for the helpful responses. Just trying to learn here.

I would not send them in within screwdowns. You should remove them and put them in Card Savers yourself.

The problem with storing cards in screwdowns (or purchasing cards in screwdowns) is that they could possibly crease or bend your cards, and the cards either come back with low grades (under 5 for a crease) or Ungraded: altered stock for being pressed down too hard.

Alters Card!
 

They make the card thinner than it should be. You can feel the difference in the thickness of the same card that has been in a screw down as compared to one that hasn't.

Screw Downs
 

Bought a 74 Topps Deckle in one off eBay once. Card was legit but I found it stuck to the lucite when trying to remove it to put with my ungraded sets. Resulted in minor damage. I now avoid them.

It is a reasonable question. Sorry if you took my response as mocking as it was just intended as a light hearted joke.

I think we are talking about different screw downs.

The single screws or magnet holders are the basic same thing as a slab. Now those 4 screw bricks are crap. I really thought those died in the nineties.

Never ever, ever use that junk. Great way to destroy a card and spend 5 bucks doing it.

I've had more damage done by cardsavers and pages than any screwdown, and I've used pretty much every style made since they came out.

Almost every card you see with a crease down the center was in a page or cardsaver at one time.

Steve B

Sorry if you felt that way, I honestly did not understand the question.

I still think there is two tracks of answers going here. To answer in either way -

A. You said "screw top" which I thought to be the single screw holders which have a gap inside to safely store the card much like a slab. As long as it is the right size holder and the card is not flying around in there dinging corners I would buy it all day. As I said previously, it prefer these as I feel they protect the card best. The ultra-pro's even have a nice space that protects corners like a SGC gasket. I have trashed so many corners with my shaky hands using top loaders, I really like the ease of the cases.

B. If you are talking about those old 4 screw lucite bricks, than no, I would avoid buying any cards in them. I have bought cards in that crap and had them so stuck to the lucite it peeled the face right off. Absolute junk.

My fault, I haven't even seen those bricks for sale in some time. If I see a card for sale in them still, I assume are only in them because the prior owner could not take them out without ruining the card.

I thought he was talking of the old 4 screw holders. I don't care for those as they can damage surfaces.

Yeah, I meant the four screw holders. Didn't describe it too well . . . . .

I would definitely remove any card in a screwdown before buying and before sending to PSA to check for creases, compressed paper stock, fakes, etc. Plus any bit of moisture inside a screwdown may have glued the card to one of the insides, as stated above.