Sgc vs psa for card grading

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by jimmer77

Hi everyone, I am new here and was wondering if you guys could give me some advice as to whether I should use SGC or PSA for my card grading. I do realize that for resale PSA tends to generate a higher return but I am looking for accuracy in the grading. Any advice would be great. Thanks Jim

Try the search function this has been discussed countless times.

[swarmee]

If accuracy is your wish, I agree SGC would probably be the most consistent. PSA can be very tough on certain cards, and lax on others.

[Johnny630]

SGC All the Way

[Oscar_Stanage]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Try the search function this has been discussed countless times.

with all due respect, the search engine is not great. it's really hard to find threads that match what I want. i usually find out after the fact that one existed.

[swarmee]

Neither Net54 or Blowout's message boards have good search engines. In order to take advantage of google, use the following:

"site:net54baseball.com Which Grading Company" or
"site:blowoutforums.com SGC PSA BGS"

That will give you a much better result than the search engines on each board.

[Oscar_Stanage]

I now have about 25 T-206 cards. I would like to have them graded, mainly for peace of mind. I am concerned about altered cards, and I do not want to keep buying at this pace if my cache already has a bunch of trimmed cards. So this will be a scorecard on how well I have done buying raw, and allow me to narrow my sellers...

my question:
I understand that PSA graded cards generally sell at a premium. However, is this true for T-206 as well? I thought SGC might be better for pre-war and specifically tobacco.... I only want to use 1 grading company, and I prefer SGC, but do not want my cards to be worth 50% less just because of the slab.

i am not planning on selling, but I do record my cards at their market value, and so do not want to mark them down by grading with the wrong company.

[swarmee]

If you're using grading to determine whether or not you're accidentally buying trimmed cards, good luck to you. PSA would owe half their stock valuation in refunds if all their trimmed cards were sent back to them under the grade guarantee. But at least they still have that guarantee... ;-) SGC got rid of theirs because they do not trust their graders to determine if a card has been altered either.

Because of the set registry, PSA cards currently sell higher than SGC. If the FBI investigation really hampers their trust level in the collecting community, that might change in the future. But as of now, PSA is still king of valuation. Even in pre-war. Sure there are some outliers where a nicely presenting SGC card outsells a PSA, but it is the minority. If you really want to check, buy a subscription to VCP and do your own research. SGC's terrible website and disdain for providing a searchable Pop Report and Set Registry for the past 3-4 years is really hurting them.

[Oscar_Stanage]

Originally Posted by swarmee

If you're using grading to determine whether or not you're accidentally buying trimmed cards, good luck to you. PSA would owe half their stock valuation in refunds if all their trimmed cards were sent back to them under the grade guarantee. But at least they still have that guarantee... ;-) SGC got rid of theirs because they do not trust their graders to determine if a card has been altered either.

thank you for the comment..., then this is a conundrum. It makes buying graded cards pointless, and also getting my cards graded is pointless! The amount of trimmed cards given a numerical grade must be overstated. Most seasoned collectors can spot a trimmed card, I'd imagine TPGs catch a good 80% of them. I would settle for showing my cards to a knowledgable collector, but unfortunately that is not really possible now*

[swarmee]

Not overstated. There are a ton of threads on blowout with before and after pictures showing exactly how cards were cut down. Well worth a read if you're thinking about spending any money with grading companies.

[Empty77]

Originally Posted by Wid_Conroy

....Most seasoned collectors can spot a trimmed card, ....

Not so. Anymore. Except maybe the worst of them.

Also seems to be at odds with your earlier post that you yourself aren't sure and that at least part of the reason to consider grading was to double check yourself, unless I mistake your meaning.

Originally Posted by Wid_Conroy

....I'd imagine TPGs catch a good 80% of them ....

Not sure how you figure the imagined number, but even if so, you might consider all the more reason that all your raw cards might be even more likely already altered, and possibly the worst of the bunch, if they've remained raw from already being rejected by a TPG, unless you got them straight from the attic of an estate sale or something.

[bb66]

Originally Posted by swarmee

Neither Net54 or Blowout's message boards have good search engines. In order to take advantage of google, use the following:

"site:net54baseball.com Which Grading Company" or
"site:blowoutforums.com SGC PSA BGS"

That will give you a much better result than the search engines on each board.

Thanks for the info !