PSA - Guess the Grades

Traut

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Grading is just another form of gambling.

I have some cards that are graded 8s that look perfect and I have the same card in a 10 with what appears to be a noticeable issue.

I have one that is graded an 8 that my LCS on inspection with a microscope and something that measured centering said was a 10 because they couldn’t find anything.

There are examples on reddit of people cracking slabs, resubmitting, and getting a higher grade.

I basically buy slabbed cards on ebay to ensure some level of quality as you can’t always tell from the images or in the case of vintage to verify the authenticity. And with vintage I always buy the card and not the grade as the spread of what is a 5 and what is a 3 is negligible. The cards are all imperfect in different ways. So I pick the one that looks best to me.
 

djbayko

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Jul 18, 2005
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How is the Rivera auto an 8? I don’t get it

either it’s authentic or it’s not
After seeing that 8 and reinspecting the picture, it looks like the ink might be weak, as if someone's hand rested on it for a second while it was still drying. Could just be an artifact of the image. Not sure.
 

Fishercat

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Honestly, especially for modern, I'll often look specifically for PSA8s and 9s - for many cards they cost the same or less than raw and the differences are negligible at best. I bought a Vladimir Guerrero RC from 1995 Bowman's Best. It is a very difficult card to gem with the chromium finish - 1500+ PSA8s, 3000+ PSA9s, and 400 or so PSA10s. But the premium between Grade 8 (last one sold for about $30 shipped) / raw (30-50), and PSA9 (50-90) and PSA10 (600+) is so hard to comprehend. Even the gap between 8 and 9 is a lot.
 

Oil Can Dan

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Similar story with vintage. Example - a 1959 Topps #330 Gus Triandos is one of the tougher cards in the set to find centered. There are 133 PSA 7's and 65 PSA 8's. Recently on eBay a 7 sold for $31 and an 8 sold for $809.

I'm sure that 8 is *somewhat* nicer than that 7, but is it really 26x nicer?
 

NJ_Sox_Fan

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Yes. There have been a few times where I’ve bought a modern card in an 8, and just cracked it out and added to my collection because the 8 was cheaper than a raw copy.
 

Deathofthebambino

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Apr 12, 2005
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How is the Rivera auto an 8? I don’t get it

either it’s authentic or it’s not

Grading and authenticity are two different things. If you have an autographed card from say Panini or Topps or Upper Deck, they are already authenticated by Topps/Panini/Upper Deck (putting aside the issues with Dak Prescott, etc), so you don't have to get those cards authenticated. The back of the card indicates on them that the autographs are "guaranteed" by the respective companies.

You only get an autograph authenticated when it didn't come on the card in the first place. Like if you have Wade Boggs sign a 1983 Topps rookie card. You don't want to buy one of those unless it's been "authenticated." Here is an example of a Devers card that was not signed originally, but then someone had it signed. PSA then authenticates the signature, which is what the line that says "PSA/DNA Certified" means:

https://www.ebay.com/itm/374557192555?hash=item573559316b:g:kDMAAOSwfbFkC~7K&amdata=enc:AQAHAAAA0OTH0BGKBTISsQ+MW4bL0CN12TmqpuTmhYL+RYs4uRr3/KGrZuEm1751lTcQxIc8IUafa94pV3C6l3GscU4j0Q5r06Ulm5Z6iX8boRZnQEMrWuKCwvW9jbllN+KPhcPr0WXmWf+71MiNm4SckTgJoKfrX+hsppwHlXRl9L26FIPJrSZnt81WbdWbytXhnUHLwTaMbC2m8R8HyuKSQHgNOVVUED4KQ3vwggXpZzgTsLf4jvP/JPANE+NtlaYQgB+KXx0lpTjt9u1ppClqy1DYp88=|tkp:Bk9SR-T7ne_cYQ

These autographs that already come on the card that Joe is submitting are being graded for the quality of the autograph, not for their authenticity as the card manufacturer already guaranteed that. Generally, autograph grades are always going to be an 8-10. You only lose points if the autograph is smudged, the autograph falls off the edge of the card. On the above example, you'll see a separate line for that on the Devers, which says "Gem MT 10."
 

JoePoulson

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My first batch of cards have arrived safely home:

62277

Fun as shit, opening a box of freshly-graded and slabbed cards. But again, no way is it worth it unless you hit that lottery...like most everything else in this hobby. My other cards are in various stages and should be getting their grades soon!
 

Traut

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My first batch of cards have arrived safely home:


Fun as shit, opening a box of freshly-graded and slabbed cards. But again, no way is it worth it unless you hit that lottery...like most everything else in this hobby. My other cards are in various stages and should be getting their grades soon!
What did the papi grade?
 

JoePoulson

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ALL CARDS ARE GRADED! Only the restaurant checks remain in limbo. I keep learning a hard lesson that sending cards to PSA sucks a fat one:

62575
 

Traut

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ALL CARDS ARE GRADED! Only the restaurant checks remain in limbo. I keep learning a hard lesson that sending cards to PSA sucks a fat one:

View attachment 62575
Those are good grades for vintage cards. At least now they are authenticated which is where the real value is. Most vintage collectors care more about authentication and appearance of the card than actual grade. And you have some nice looking cards there.
 

JoePoulson

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Oh yea I love all my cards, and am mostly complaining to complain. Super-thankful to have them all authenticated and slabbed now for sure.
 

JoePoulson

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I will say the PSA label is such a perfect color match for Red Sox cards. Even the official sleeves are color matched as the PSA is blue and red. It's awesome.
 

JoePoulson

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My last submission FINALLY came back!!!! Took almost two full months but it was worth it (and it's HUGE):

63991


My buddy who has the other one is stoked, gonna drop his off later this week!

And that concludes this fun adventure, my first PSA submissions! While I of course didn't get all the grades I had hoped for, I did indeed get a bunch of fun cards graded, protected, and officially registered. I have been contacted by someone wanting to put another order together, and I have a friend locally who may want to get in, so I'll keep everyone updated as to if/when I get that going to see if anyone else would be interested.