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#1
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Al C.risafulli
Some recent threads here have gotten me thinking about the issue of grading in general. |
#2
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Paul
The main thing I dislike about grading is the poor customer service when dealing with them on the phone or email. There is one company that seems to be a little better than the others in that department, but it should be a smoother experience for sure. |
#3
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: T206Collector
...but the positives far outweight them. |
#4
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Josh K.
I like graded cards and I pretty much use one company exclusively (those of you who know me will also know its no secret which one I use). That being said, it drives me nuts when I get inconsistently graded cards - Ive got some e93s that look like 5s and got 3s, while others look like 3s and got 4s or 5s. |
#5
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Mike Campbell
For some reason, I seem to be an exception. I have had hundreds of cards graded over the years. All have come back timely, and all have been graded fairly. If I submitted an honest 3 or 4, and it came back graded a 7 or 8, would it please me? Of course not. The whole system would be rotten if that were the case. I can honestly say I have never been disappointed with a grade. Do they make mistakes, and do they make some silly ones? Yes. We have all seen many examples on here. I submitted three "very" rare cards, which they had never graded before. Or handled. Should they have gotten the year right? Of course. They put the wrong year on top. I resubmitted them, and had them back within a very reasonable time period. Ten days or so. And had the correct year on top. And they corrected their population report, to reflect the change. Immediately. |
#6
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Bill K
I can't justify grading all my pre-war cards because the cost per card isn't worthwhile. The sets I collect or other key type cards get sent in no matter the condition. That's about the only thing I have against it (that's my issue, not the grading companies though). |
#7
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Jeff P
Good question! |
#8
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: leon
I do like raw cards and I like graded ones. Most of the relatively expensive ones I have I get graded for various reasons. Making sure (as sure as SGC is) that they are untainted is the biggest concern. Keeping them protected is #2. I have handled a few cards in the last 10 years but I still like to have a 3rd party opinion. It's saved me numerous times. I don't care if you have been doing this for 75 years a 3rd party opinion still isn't bad. So in a nutshell....I like raw cards and graded ones. The one thing I don't like about grading is that the cards are in fact "entombed". I don't think I am too weird but do like to get the "feel" of the old cardboard sometimes. I think I was the very first one that admitted, on this board, that I like to smell them too. Now that's sort of creepy.....Nothing like the smell of old cardboard in the morning !! Or was that the smell of "napuam in the morning?".......good question... |
#9
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: John S
From an "old school" collector...99.5% of my collection is raw and will remain so. It has nothing to do with wanting to fondle my cards. After 30 years of collecting cards I guess that I am a little arrogant; why would I believe that someone else, most likely with less experience than myself, would be more proficient at evaluating my collection? With that said I do use SGC occasionally to grade cards to sell. I may have some objections to the third party system, but don't blame it for the ruination of the hobby. Before pointing fingers at others who do not prefer to slab most of their collections, answer the question posed originally. Why do you feel the need to spend money (that could be used to add cards to your collection) to have someone else assign a numerical grade and place your card in a slab? |
#10
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: leon
It's not the numerical grade that I look for...it's the other sets of eyes and experience that I like. I understand you have been doing this for 30 years or so. Even in that amount of time do you think you have handled more cards than the senior graders at SGC? Also, even though most folks that are true collectors don't plan on selling their collections, at some point almost all collections change hands. At that time there is no doubt as to which cards, slabbed or unslabbed, will bring more money, given the exact same card. A lot of the old guard feel exactly as you do though, and it's certainly a valid argument....best regards |
#11
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: T206Collector
<<Why do you feel the need to spend money (that could be used to add cards to your collection) to have someone else assign a numerical grade and place your card in a slab?>> |
#12
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Al C.risafulli
"Before pointing fingers at others who do not prefer to slab most of their collections, answer the question posed originally." |
#13
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Seth B.
Aesthetic value is a big plus: if it's going to be in some sort of holder, it might as well be in a consistent, high-quality holder with a label on the top (usually accurate, ahem). Those companies that use a holder with the black insert I find really distinguishes a card. Also, this makes for easy storage for me. They stack and are of a consistent size (I know toploaders are also of a consistent size, but they slide around a little more in my shoebox than stackable graded cards). But for a $100+ card, the $8-10 is worth it to me just for the aesthetics. |
#14
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: steve f
I got all my stuff graded because I deathly fear passing down a fake or otherwise reject card as part of the Estate (or pawning off a reprint to an unsuspecting buyer). |
#15
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: John S
Leon, |
#16
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Dean H
I too like graded examples for the same reasons already pointed out. I'm not sure I could detect a fake on some issues. The protection and overall presentation of the card is what I like most. I try to not pay too much attention to the grade and focus on eye appeal. We all have many technically low grade examples that are stellar in the eye candy department. |
#17
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: leon
Fair enough. I think I have handled thousands of pre-war cards at this point. My guess is maybe about 20,000. Maybe a few more maybe a few less. Even with that many I still can not always see the minute details the graders find (or overlook them). Very recently I sent in an E card that looked good to me..I looked at it under a 6x too. I sent it to SGC and it came back colored. I just missed it. So the extra sets of eyes are good for me. Also, as many Fro-Joys and '28 Ruth Candy company cards as I have handled, and it is still sometimes difficult to tell a fake. I get better at it everyday though. Maybe when I catch up with you (about 20 more years) I will feel the same way. Actually, I am pretty sure I will. Already I see some stupid mistakes being made and it bums me out.....but collecting is still a lot of fun. Another thing I don't like about grading is when one of the top companies grades an obvious fake.....kind regards |
#18
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: John J. Grillo
I do think grading costs and resale value do cancel each other out in the long run, so a cost factor isn't a concern to me. Without going into some detailed, philosophical answer, I like card grading simply because I do. |
#19
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Joann
Reasons I like grading: |
#20
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: RayB
As a middle age collector; I have kind of worked myself backward from the 60's and 50's to the prewar collector that I am now. |
#21
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Gilbert Maines
Slabbed cards serve many functions, as stated above, and others unstated. In applications such as high grade, costly cards, slabbing and leaving them slabbed, seems to me to be the obvious best choice. |
#22
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Frank Wakefield
What I dislike about grading... |
#23
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: steve yawitz
I don't know that I'm necessarily anti-grading, but I generally no longer find it worth it for my collecting style. To try to keep a long, convoluted story short, I guess I've made a few realizations over the last year. |
#24
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Frank Wakefield
Amen, JohnS... Amen. |
#25
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: ralph
Stevie Y.. |
#26
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Al C.risafulli
There are some great responses in this thread so far, and I love the fact that, for the most part, it's stayed respectful and on-point. |
#27
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: jay behrens
A big reason that many of us like to handle our cards and not have them put into an expensive plastic case is that we like to handle cards and know what a reall one should like and feel. Yo can't get this from a slabbed card. Learning what a real card looks and feels like allows you to know what to look for if someone contacts you about a collection they have. If all you have ever owned is slabbed cards, you will be a huge disadvantage as to knowing for sure whether or not those cards are real. |
#28
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Rick
I prefer Leon's attitute about graded vs raw... |
#29
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Frank Wakefield
I, an avowed raw-head, appologize to any offended slab-heads. And by slab-head I speak of those that only collect slab of a certain number or higher, folks who have never felt a real card, and by touch couldn't distinguish a reprint from a genuine card. Some folks with slabbed cards wouldn't be slab-heads. |
#30
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Rick
It has been a really nice, mild thread...I think the board is losing it!! |
#31
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: jay behrens
How about if I just crackle? Popping someone wouldn't be good. |
#32
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Gilbert Maines
All of this "Collect What You Wanna Collect" talk makes me sick. |
#33
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: barrysloate
The authenticating that grading services provide is a tremendous help for collectors and whether or not you like slabs I think we all agree that nobody wants to get stuck with a counterfeit or altered card. However, I think the grading component really isn't as useful as some may think. It's too subjective, there are undeniable differences in how each service grades, cards can be submitted again and again until a higher grade is attained; and there are many other tricks that submitters have learned that circumvent the system. I think that collectors should learn to grade their own cards, something that we all used to do and is really a part of the learning curve. It's not that hard and with a little experience any collector can learn to grade pretty accurately. I'm all for having a third party cull out a trimmed card, less enthusiastic about the assigned grades. |
#34
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: B Kasel
It's somewhat ignorant to assume that just becuase someone prefers graded cards means that they have never handled them. At least half of my purchases are raw, typically from trusted collectors on BST. Buying raw initially gave me the ability to learn how to spot a fake, trim, colored, etc. It also gave me a sense of the variations in color, texture, thickness etc across the different series. Later on after I've accumulated 10 - 15 cards I send them in for grading. The numerical grade while somewhat important doesn't have any influence on my decision to send something in. |
#35
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: Al C.risafulli
That's another good point, Bill. I would say that more than half the cards I buy are raw; I submit them myself. While there are a handful card types in my collection that I've never held raw in my hand, I don't get as fired up as some of you guys about holding the card raw in my hand. For me, it's the artwork, the story the card tells, the info/stats/ad on the back and that sort of thing that's important to me. |
#36
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What is it, exactly, about grading?
Posted By: John Harrell
I don't collect slabbed cards because the standards used don't, in my opinion, fit with grading standards used by all collectors prior to the slabbing business. A VG card is allowed to have a minor crease or wrinkle. I don't see why I should pay more for a VG card just because somebody in a grading company arbitrarily decides that VG cards are no longer allowed to have a crease or that an EX card can't have an imperceptible wrinkle. The slabbing artificially increases prices which makes it harder for a "collector grade" person like me to finish sets. I have no special preference for raw cards, based on nostalgia. I'd like to collect NM sets but can't afford them and with slabbing, raw cards become harder to find. I just don't like paying artificial prices for cards whose value is inflated by someone else's arbitrary standards. |
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