Newbie Advice: Grading expectations...

[53toppscollector]

If you get into grading and submit multiple orders, you will realize that there is no real uniformity in grading, at least at the main graders. PSA and SGC are using AI in some ways (though they are vague about how they are doing it), but they still have humans grading the cards, and when humans grade cards, you will get subjective grades back. What looks like a 5 to one person might be a 6 to another grader.

Generally speaking, if you are buying raw cards and the seller has "graded" them, you need to take their grade with a grain of salt. There are a few that do a really nice job grading raw vintage, but their grade is just an estimation and your actual grade from the TPG could have a 3 grade swing to it.

You also need to invest in a few tools if you really want to have an idea where your cards stand before you get them graded, such as a small jeweler's loupe and a good lamp. You have to closely examine the surface of cards, because even the faintest surface wrinkle that can't be seen without magnification/supplemental light will torpedo your card's grade, even if the rest of the card is super clean.

If I see a card listed raw as "EX" and its not from one of the handful of raw vintage dealers I trust, I always dock the card at least one grade down when thinking about how much I want to pay for it. If you are buying in person, you can inspect the cards and tilt them in the light before you buy. If you buy online, generally speaking, you should probably never buy a raw card unless you see a good, high quality scan of both the front and the back of the card, and again, even that will only tell you so much.

Best of luck.