Has anyone submitted...

zef204

To the guys across the street?(GAI) I am sending in some 84/85 Star cards cause PSA doesn't grade them. Are they good with the turnaround time over ther?

Any info is appreciated before this thread goes POOF.

envoy98

I've submitted to them in person, never sent anything to them. (I don't pay a fee to PSA for nothing y'know.

I will say their turnaround time on getting my cards holdered and back to me after a show is miserable. I've waited 2 1/2-3 1/2 weeks all 3 times. I've heard some horror stories about them "losing" cards and "misplacing" things for extended periods of time...enough times in fact, to keep me from sending them anything. I still enjoy dealing with them at the shows (in-person) and have had consistent results from them, and have done well with the stuff I had them pre-grade that I later had PSA or BGS grade & holder. That being said, take a pic of what you're sending in, and hope for the best. Personally, I'd just wait for them to show up at a show near you.

zef204

They were just here! And I am not sure when they are coming back to Chicago. Oh well. They are the only ones who will slab 84/85 Star basketball. I guess I will hope for the best as they are already off to Irvine. Their site is ugly hopefully the service won't be.

Knuckles

I've never dealt with them but have heard good things as well as bad horror stories of them losing submisions or misplacing them.

eyebone

True story about my lone experience with GAI (at the '04 National in Cleveland).......

I left a group of about 10 cards with them to be pre-graded (I think this is the proper terminology; you know, GAI grade the card for about $10 but they don't slab it; just put it in a card saver. Then if you like the grade you can have the card slabbed for another $10, but if you don't like the grade you simply get the card back in the card saver).....

Well, I went to pick up my cards and they had been pre-graded, but the card savers were not sealed or anything (they generally seal the card saver with a sticker and write the grade, etc on the sticker to avoid tampering) the grades were simply written on the card savers in fine point sharpie and the card savers were not even sealed. I guess they were busy, but there was nothing to stop me from switching the cards about, thus, switching the grades about in the process. I asked some guy at the booth if this was how things were done and he was clueless. In fact, he asked two other people before somebody took my cards and holdered them properly. However, they didn't check any documentation to verify that I had not committed any hanky-panky--they simply put a sticker over the card saver and affixed the grade by reading the sharpie number that the grader had written on the card saver.

I lost all confidence.....

Eyebone

envoy98

eyebone-they don't allow you to leave the table with the cards. If you leave, you have to pay a grading fee again. They used to put a little white "GAI" sticker over the card saver's but they broke very easily right at the opening, so it was impossible to say if someone had done it intentionally or not. They also regrade the cards when they get them back at the shop before they are holdered. A friend of mine submitted a Roy Williams Topps chrome Black Refractor in KC, it had the sticker on it. He decided after he picked them up and looked them over, that he would have the Roy Williams holdered. He dropped it off, paid the ridiculous $16 shipping fee and the $5 additional fee to holder it. It came back a 9 when it showed up in his mail box. And trust me, he only had one version of this card, it wasn't swapped out. I don't know why they haven't done what beckett has done, that is, to use the big full size foil stickers that can't be peeled off. I do know that you have to review your cards at the table when you get the pre-grades and you can holder whatever you want and keep whatever you don't want holdered. But if you leave the table, you have to pay the grading fee again.

Hope that helps.

eyebone

Envoy:

Actually they did allow me to leave the table. I picked up my pre-graded cards (they had already been paid for) and left the booth..... wandered down to the food area, grabbed a seat, and then opened the package to check my grades. I was very surprised and so I went back to the booth. As mentioned, nobody there even checked any paper work to verify the grades; the cards were taken and the labels with the grades affixed (this all took place within 10 feet of me).

Eyebone

julen23

I wish I could see into the future, how about 2 years? PSA will (I assume) be grading unopened cardboard by then. How much biz will GAI b losing and how many other (reputable and non-reputable) grading companies will be following GAI and PSA into this area?

I believe unopened material will meet (if not exceed) demand for individually graded cards of today.

Julen