Home PSA Set Registry Forum
Options

PRO Grading - How long can this company last?

I have seen several comments about PRO grading and I hope I'm not beating a dead horse, but check out this auction:

Gem-MT 10

Are their graders blind? I can tell from the scan alone that this card is not Gem-MT.

I believe from what I've heard on these boards that the general consensus is that PRO Grading is a joke. I don't know anything about the company, but how can they continue to operate. Are some people willing to go anywhere for a meaningless high number in the upper right corner of a holder? I wouldn't submit cards to this company if they provided a free grading service.

Just wondered what others thought.

JEB.

Comments

  • Options
    The person bidding on this card is the one who moved me from buying 1975 minis on EBAY to buying the product unopened even if it is expensive. He was paying over $100 for non 1/1 commons, whereas if you buy a box it is pretty tough not to get at least 20 9's, plus the 8's. PRO is not a public company and they have survived a few years so it seems that they will continue to survive as there is always an audience, even those with high EBAY ratings like "shasz". My Yount PSA 8's look much better than this "10."
    Collector of baseball PSA sets from the 1970's & hockey rookie cards; big New York Rangers fan (particularly now that they are sleeping with the enemy with Holik and Kaspiritus). Also starting to collect 53 Bowman Color as I think they are the most beautiful cards I have seen.
  • Options
    sixdartsixdart Posts: 821 ✭✭
    They will last as long as people submitting cards to PRO continue to make a profit on them.
  • Options
    qualitycardsqualitycards Posts: 2,811 ✭✭✭
    The only way this warrants a "10" grade is if the grading scale goes to "25"
    I like the PSA spam in the title and the reference to Mr. Clean too! Quite the huckster...jay

    << <i>This card is so clean that it makes Mr. Clean look bad. MUST OWN THIS CARD!! This card will prove to be a good investment, it will certainly go up in value. Includes a PSA card of my choice >>

  • Options
    MantlefanMantlefan Posts: 1,079 ✭✭
    I've known someone involved in PRO for awhile. He has had many trimmed and altered cards graded by PRO, no questions asked. Slabbing provides an air of legitimacy to a card and it can turn a worthless item into a profit. True, the prices are lower than for PSA cards, but there are scores of un-informed buyers who continue to buy junk. As long as they do, PRO will prosper!image
    Frank

    Always looking for 1957 Topps BB in PSA 9!
  • Options
    I sold a 1981 Topps FB Joe Montana Rookie PSA 7 to this seller several weeks ago. I don't have anything against this seller and the transaction was great, but I wonder if he intends to break it out and get it PRO graded. It will probably come back graded 9 or 10, looking at the evidence, and he will probably sell it on ebay for double what he paid me for it. Has anyone else experienced this?

    JEB.
  • Options
    It looks like the snipes stay away from PRO cards as well. Check out the bidding at the end of the auction:


    Bid History


    I feel sorry for the guy that won. He probably thought that he was getting quite a deal.


    JEB.
  • Options
    qualitycardsqualitycards Posts: 2,811 ✭✭✭
    Still...The Lure of a "10" netted the seller $90.00, while if this was in a PSA holder it would be a "7" which usually commands less then $50.00...jay
  • Options
    As long as there is greed and ignorance Pro will continue to exist... as Phineas Taylor Barnum once said " There's a sucker born every minute"
    Life isn't about waiting for the storm to pass... it's about learning to dance in the rain.
  • Options
    Education; Education; Education. If people on E-Bay actually knew what they were buying the company would crater in months. Most of us have, obviously, found out that PRO cards are graded-inlfated at a minimum, if not actually altered, so we stay away. Not everyone on E-Bay is as well informed.
    I need that 69 Bench ASimage

    image
  • Options
    Hi Everyone,

    It's real bad business. There are many auctions, which go on by Mastro and others which sell vintage card lots (post and pre war) which are all trimmed/altered. Dishonest sellers prey on these lots and then send them to companies like Pro. If you saw a really nice Shoeless Joe Jackson card in a Pro holder, you would probably bid on it if you had no idea. All of the newer people who get into graded cards make that mistake a couple of times. It happens alot on Yahoo, which is a joke. I have bought Pro cards when I first started too. You figure a grade is a grade. That is why they stay in business. I had a dealer (I am not saying any names), tell me he buys mainly PSA 6's and 7's on Ebay under one account and sends them to Pro and relists them as 8's and 9's with another account. He says, he makes alot of money. I agree with Jeff, there is a sucker born every minute.

    Mike
    Always looking for 1952 Bowmans and 1953 Johnston Cookies PSA 8's and higher.
Sign In or Register to comment.