Advice on 81 Donruss

SoFLPhillyFan · May 11, 2004 3:06AM

Need to hear from those who have experience with 81 Donruss.
Opened two boxes last night and pulled many cards of HOFers. Thanks mudflap02!

I am concerned with the lack of quality control that Donruss had with these cards. Poor centering, nasty miscuts (some edges curve like a sickle), and rough cuts. For someone who spent 14 years in the printing business it's hard to imagine they let some of this stuff through. Despite the problems the packs produced some good examples of the better cards.

For those who have sent these cards for grading - what was your result? I can't find much in the registry, and only a few on Ebay. How do they view the rough and miscuts, since this must have been a big problem with this set?

Your help is appreciated.

Keith

67standup · May 11, 2004 3:12AM

On a slightly different note, how much is that 8 card uncut sheet with Yaz worth?

bengineno9 · May 11, 2004 3:57AM

Been looking for a PSA 9 Ozzie for a long time. Tough cards to find in mint condition.

SoFLPhillyFan · May 11, 2004 4:07AM

Know what you mean.

I think the two Ozzie's I found last night are both badly cut, with a noticeable curve on the left side. It got so bad that I was holding the cards against a straight edge to look for day light. That's one reason why I'm asking to hear from those who have sent these for grading.

Some of the PSA's on Ebay seem to be outside of the centering standards and getting 9s.

It was well worth it though, as many are OK, and still more may prove "grade worthy".

E mail me if you're interested in seeing the Ozzie's. Don't think they will make 9 though.

Keith

mikeschmidt · May 11, 2004 4:22AM

1981 Donruss is the hardest regular issue set by which to find Mike Schmidt cards in 9 quality. It's a monster....

Am happy to have two 10s and never have to worry about this set again. Given that it is only available by wax box just stacks the odds even worse.

royalbrett · May 11, 2004 6:00AM

I bought a PSA 9 Brett recently, and quite frankly, I believe it to be over-graded.
Including shipping, it was less than $10, so it's kinda hard to complain about it.

ctsoxfan · May 11, 2004 6:35AM

I have a bunch of these I collected back in 1981. Whenever I look at them, and think about grading some of them, I just shake my head. Possibly the worst QC of any card set I have ever seen (and the 1982 isn't much better).

ldferg · May 11, 2004 7:29AM

i had the same experience with 2 wax boxes i've opened in the last 3 months. i have an 81 ryan on ebay now (raw) due to miscut/skewing that i felt would receive a qualifier so i've decided to sell it raw.

81D Ryan

SoFLPhillyFan · May 11, 2004 7:51AM

Thanks. That's exactly what I am seeing, and sometimes worse.
Some cards have a deckle edge, the cut is so rough.

joker73 · May 11, 2004 8:06AM

For what it's worth, the handful Rose PSA 10s from the set usually sell for over $200 on eBay ... tough is indeed an understatement.

milbroco · May 17, 2004 5:40AM

I never gave this set much thought to submit cards from. Maybe I should look for my Ozzie Smith's, I know one of them is pratically dead centered without rough cuts and would grade at least a 9. Finding it will be the hardest part though.

larryallen73 · May 18, 2004 1:13AM

Funny I was about to start a thread on '81 Donruss myself. Will wait until I take the photos for that. Anyway, to your question I recently sent in about 20 '81 Donruss cards. All I thought had good chances of a 10. Off memory I got one 10 (Raines), maybe 5 or 6 PSA 8's and all the rest were 9's... other than one 5 which I think was a PSA mistake which will be the subject of my post. Though it is one of the worst sets of all time (in my opinion) I thought my grades were fair. HOWEVER, if you are looking to sell these on Ebay it's not even worth thinking about unless it's a 9. I have 1981 Donruss on Ebay a lot and they do not gather much attention as you likely know. Even if a 9 you are likely to barely pay your grading and listing fees for most of the cards from what I have seen. Good luck to you!
P.S. One thing I noted was that the fading on the backs of cards, which was common that year, did not seem to effect the grade. One card with a VERY light back still was graded a 9.

SoFLPhillyFan · May 18, 2004 2:30AM

Sent in two today - a Ryan and a Schmidt. Hopefully they will get 9s but this is more of a test than an expectation. Centering is good but the edges are the problem.

Don't think I'll take the chance on this series again.

Knlsportsandmore · May 18, 2004 3:33AM

What about the 81 Donruss Golf cards. I opened 2 packs a few days ago pulled a beautiful Hale Irwin, it is badly OC though probalyu get a 9(oc) out of it. Checked a few population reports and there are very few of these that get above an 8 without getting a qualifier several 9(OCs).

Advice on 81 Donruss

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