Where is the small fish in all this?
antihero50
Posts: 18 ✭✭
I feel lost and left to die by PSA. $100 to grade a card? Are you serious? No wonder the cost of graded cards has skyrocketed. The big and rich dealers can afford the grading cost while the small guys die on the vine. And then the big guys set the price at 3-5 times the value of the card. Unfairly squeezed out.
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Comments
Get Becket to grade it?
welcome aboard the board!
There's always the 60's special.. or whatever follows it.
Bosox1976
Buy raw and enjoy as is?
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/987963/1951-wheaties-premium-photos-set-registry#latest
Isn't this a bit dramatic?
I remember reading in college, a John Updike short story - The A&P - where the checkout boy falls on his sword to protect the "honor" of two young girls only to find they didn't even know or care about his "heroic" act of quitting on their behalf.
So the hero is rendered to the antihero...
Welcome and best of luck in collecting and careful - that sword is sharp.
Why do you have to grade?
If you are just in it to flip cards and profit then sorry about your luck, scale always matter and the little guy never has it in any market.
If you are in the game as a collector, no better way to view a card then in a CS1 or a set in a nice binder
Would send the Messier in for sure, but as far as enjoying the cards, having no issues. Was fun having these out, in hand the other day:
Raw cards are kinda naughty.
i can empathize w how you feel on the price levels, even the feeling of being lost.
however, in regards to these "big guys" that set the price at 5x's the value of the card, are they getting that price? and since they are, isn't that the actual value of the card? that doesn't make them a big fish nor you a small fish. and since they're getting $500 for a card you feel is worth $100, isn't an additional $100 grading fee still worth doing?
$100 card + $100 grading fee + $25 shipping = $225 - $500 = $275.
if you're collecting, $225 total cost is better than buying it @ $500.
if you're flipping, $275 & still doubling your money seems like worth living for vs laying down & dying.
you're not a small fish. you're just thinking like one!
buck up!
Well I guess the other way to look at it is that the "small fish" abused the privilege of cheaper grading fees, sent in too much "carp", and now they get punished!
Also, the lowest cost to grade a card is $20 or $25, not $100...
I think part of the problem is how the standards seem to be much tougher. A much bigger gamble than it used to be.
The cost is 100 not 20. I tried to send two cards and on the submission page the cost was 200. Can anyone double check? Also, I have been collecting for over 40 years. I only have sent in a few cards for grading, maybe 12 through the years. I don’t do the flipping thing. The lowest PSA I have received is a “poor” for a 1911 T-206 Mordecai Brown. I wouldn’t call that “carp”...would you?
What cards are you submitting and at what level?
Economy...1989 UD Griffey. Placed value at 200 ea.
Ya something is wrong, thats a 25 dollar sub
I even entered on the $25 submission flag and once I got there it was $100. Not happy
Well for you the cheapest price is $100
1.) You need to be a Silver Level or higher member of the Collector's Club ($99 per year)
2.) You need to submit a minimum of 10 cards on the SAME submission to get the $20/$25 per card "Value" pricing
3.) Economy submission are suspended. The next cheapest level is Regular at $100 each.
And that 1989 Griffey would be a $20 value sub, not $25 if eligible for value pricing.
And didn't mean to imply that YOU were the one submitting "carp"!
That is totally ridiculous. Are the cards I submitted in August gonna get charged $100 each?
Man, go read the PSA website. It's all there.
Boy have they changed crap in the last several months.
This is what I made for my oldest son for Christmas.
As others have pointed out, the solution is pretty simple: Enjoy your cards and don't have them graded.
You won't be charged according to the new fee structure retroactively if you submitted under the old one in time . I would just be patient and wait until PSA is no longer "sold out" of the gold and platinum memberships. Still, you should have been able to submit those Griffeys at the $20 "value" pricing level as long as you submitted at least ten cards (as was mentioned). You can expect a good nine month wait at this time though.
Yeah, tell me about the wait. This Covid really pulled the plug on everything.
Ridiculous? Seems pretty reasonable and straightforward if you ask me. And your August submitted cards will be charged at August prices, unless you get uncharged, then all bets are off!
I can see your angst, it can be confusing.
BTW that's a nice setup you made for your Son!
Successful card BST transactions with cbcnow, brogurt, gstarling, Bravesfan 007, and rajah 424.
That shadowbox is aces man. Nice work.
Have you tried buying a car lately? Nothing is affordable for a middle income family or should I say "little guy"! Throw in maintinence, insurance, taxes and gas and you might as well forget anything halfway decent! And if you are like most of us you need two and sometimes three.......
ON ITS WAY TO NEWPORT BEACH, CA 92658
I am done with submitting cards for grading. I will purchase the ones I need already graded. Unfortunately, that isn't any cheaper nowadays but at least I don't have to wait 9 months to receive it.
shadowbox is super cool. the screwdowns super arent. may want to rethink those in there...
Any better options than the screwdowns? Suggestions appreciated....
PS: Thanks for the comments!
Screw downs can damage the card, in particular pinched corners that will result in a grade of Authentic Altered.
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/987963/1951-wheaties-premium-photos-set-registry#latest
PS - Can be a tough lesson...
Curious about the rare, mysterious and beautiful 1951 Wheaties Premium Photos?
https://forums.collectors.com/discussion/987963/1951-wheaties-premium-photos-set-registry#latest
Just finished a set of ‘64 Topps Giants! Really love this set. Cards of Koufax, Mantle, Aaron, Mays, Ford, and other great players!
considering the overall size, its wall mounted & a two man team to get the job done, id go w/ something a little more secure than a magnetic one touch. maybe a snap tight holder or something.
but yes, as testified above they call them screwdowns for a reason. they can hold ya down and scew ya.
ps: also, depending on where it's hung and the original glass used, you may want to see about some UV resistant glass if it wasnt done already. it's an amazing piece and considering it's a father to son thing, i imagine its condition remaining key is important. hate for that stuff to slowly fade out over time. and you'd guys never realize until you saw a pic from way back in the day and at that point, it's too late.
As a fellow Cubs fan, that piece is awesome! How did you mount the cards so they don't fall?
It is hung in the basement sports/workout room of my son's house. I thank you very much for the advice. I will say that when I used the recessed screwdowns I was very careful about it. However, I will look at other methods to use. Again, thanks
Swish54....I used 3/8 diameter Velcro dots