Question: Qualifier or No Qualifier

MurphDawg

Guys, I'm about to send in 110+ cards from the '56 Topps Football set which will put me just a few cards short of the complete 120 card set graded. My question is, I'm going to sell the set (or near set) when I get them graded but I wanted to know everyone's preference or opinion on whether to specify for NO QUALIFIERS or not when I send to PSA. Do buyers generally prefer an 8OC or a 6 (considering the qualifier)? Which way might likely garner more money from an auction? Most of the cards probably wouldn't get the dreaded OC qualifier anyway, but there are about 15-20 that probably might. Any advice would be greatly appreciated. (The cards are generally in very good shape, I pulled two of the best looking ones and they both graded an 8 and I know there are many more that will grade in the 7-8 range)

Thanks,

Matt

storm888

"...but there are about 15-20 that probably might."

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I would let the chips fall where they fall.

But, Q cards are/can be quite difficult to sell.

MurphDawg

Actually, it's probably not 15-20 cards, maybe more like 10-12. I've attached scans of two which I know would get the OC if not specified. 90%+ of the cards have sharp corners, good pictures, and no creases, but my question is for re-sell value, which would be better, to have a hand full of 7OC or 8OC cards in the set or a hand full of 6's that have bad centering. Any REAL advice on what to do would be appreciated.

Volver

I would avoid the OC at all cost....get the 6 and move on...or upgrade

MurphDawg

And one more question, should I get the near set graded? It's gonna cost me roughly $800 with shipping to have the 111 cards out of 120 graded ($7 per card bulk vintage) but I know that most are in fairly good shape and I have a chance at a number of 7's and 8's, but will also probably have a number of 5's and 6's. Does anybody know if this set sells O.K.? I've done some research on ebay, but haven't seen any near complete or complete graded sets going. I've heard that there isn't a huge demand for the '56 Topps football as compared to the '56 baseball. Anybody who knows something about this set and could give advice on the demand, values graded cards are going for, etc. would be appreciated.

Thanks,

Matt

MurphDawg

Thanks Volver, I was thinking the same thing, and I've always asked for No Qualifiers on all my other submissions, but I didn't know if it would make a huge difference when your talking about a complete graded set (or near complete graded set). Thanks for the advice Volver.

MooseDog

OC is very common for that set so you might be surprised. Think that is taken into consideration when grading these. I sent in some really sharp cornered ones that were OC like the ones in your pics and got strait 7s on a couple of them. A couple of centered ones that would have been 5's if they were say 1957 Topps Baseball came back 6s.

storm888

"Any REAL advice on what to do would be appreciated."

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I prefer 9 OCs to shabby-cornered 7s.
The current market does not agree with me.
OC cards are HEAVILY penalized, in money terms.

I really do not know how the pictured cards
could escape the OC without specifying no Q.
If PSA cuts the series some slack, then maybe.

As to whether or not the $800 is well spent,
I would say "yes." Graded cards look nicer
and are easier to sell. The slab also removes
buyers' concerns about trimmed/altered.

The suggestion to upgrade a few b4 sale may not
be practical, but it is likely/maybe good advice.

kingraider75

Not sure you will make money if the cards fall in the 6-7 range. The 56 set isn't that popular, and demand for the commons is low. Might want to research this a bit more before sending in.

MurphDawg

MooseDog, thanks for the insight on your dealings with grading for that set. Good to know that they cut it some slack because the cards I have are in great shape but some have centering issues. Kingraider75, yeah I've heard there isn't a huge demand for this set, but I figured that I would take my chances and hopefully get enough 7's and 8's maybe even a 9 or two that would make it worth getting the whole set graded. I also have the difficult UNMARKED checklist which graded a 7MC and I have the 3 contest cards for the set which I'm going to send in for grading.

Ahmanfan

I prefer the 8 oc to the 6, it seems to be a more accurate representation of the card's grade. good luck
John

RipublicaninMass

I dont know the set too well, but judging by the consensus might be better to sell of raw and upgrade one already graded

wolfbear

PSA Card Grading Standards

EX-MT 6: Excellent-Mint.
Centering must be 80/20 or better on the front

EX 5: Excellent.
Centering must be 85/15 or better on the front



Not sure these would even qualify as straight 5's.
For way off-centered, nearly miscut cards like these, you're better off with the OC qualifier.

digicat

For my personal collection, I'll take a 9 oc over a 7 any day. Then again, I'm the kind of collector that weighs "lack of damage" a little higher than centering.

A761506

If all the OC cards look similar to that, then take the qualifiers. Those cards will both grade as PSA 5's without qualifiers, while they will likely be PSA 8 OC's based on how fresh the corners look. There is zero chance cards that are centered like that are getting PSA 6's if requesting no qualifiers.

nightcrawler

I'm with the guys that would rather see the qualifier for descriptive reasons.

CDsNuts

PSA doesn't always grant the "No qualifiers" request, especially on cards that clearly need a qualifier. I think yours fit into that category, if they aren't deemed miscut.

Kind of like you can request NQ on a card with a wax stain, but it will almost always come back with an ST qualifier.

Lee

digicat

<< <i>PSA doesn't always grant the "No qualifiers" request, especially on cards that clearly need a qualifier. >>



Heh, oddly enough, the Eck rookie I posted above was sent in with one of my first subs, and I had requested "no qualifiers". I'm glad I got the qualifier though.

MurphDawg

Thanks for all the advice guys. I think I might just let the chips fall how they may and hope for the best. Although I always ask for NO QUALIFIERS on my submissions, I think I might have to change that this time. The main reason would be that I know I'm going to get a good number of straight 7's and 8's that have good centering and I think that an 8OC grade is much more accurate a representation of the quality of the card in relation to the others than a 5 with poor centering would be. Thanks again guys!

bifff257

<< <i>and I think that an 8OC grade is much more accurate a representation of the quality of the card in relation to the others than a 5 with poor centering would be. >>

larryallen73

should I get the near set graded?

If you are looking to make a profit I think raw is probably better. Just a guess as I don't follow that particular set on Ebay. I just doubt there is enough interest to generate a huge price for the graded "almost" set. I would, in fact, probably sell individually and raw. Good luck!

envoy98

<< <i>For way off-centered, nearly miscut cards like these, you're better off with the OC qualifier. >>

TNTonPMS

<< <i>For my personal collection, I'll take a 9 oc over a 7 any day. Then again, I'm the kind of collector that weighs "lack of damage" a little higher than centering.

>>



Me too, it's not anyones fault the way they come out of the packs
It is your fault for the way they are treated after opening.
I'd much rather have an undameged card off center than damaged corners or bends or obviously mistreated cards .

MurphDawg

Hey Guys, for sheer profit reasons it seems like alot of you are saying that I should try and sell the set some graded and some raw. Would I be better off picking out the cards that I know will grade 7's or higher and get them graded and then sell them with the raw as a near complete set? I already got 3 of the cards graded - two PSA 8's (#77 Charley Conerly SMR $90 and #86 Y.A Tittle SMR $115) and the tough to find unmarked checklist graded 7MC (SMR for a straight 7 unmarked checklist is $340 but who knows what the MC will knock off of that). I'm not to hot on the idea of having to pay $7 per card for grading ($777 total for 111 cards) when I know that a decent number of them will probably get 5's and 6's which for sure won't even get the $7 grading fee back. So now I really don't know what to do........bite the bullet and get the whole bunch graded hoping for the best from PSA, or cherry pick the sure 7's and better for submission and then try and sell as a partial graded and raw set. HELP!

wolfbear

You're on the right track.

I would have the commons graded that you think will bring an 8 or better
and the stars graded that you think will bring a 7 or better.
Then I would sell those graded cards each one individually.

As for the remaining raw cards,
I would sell the ungraded star cards each one individually
and sell off the remaining ungraded commons as one lot.

Card selling 101 ...

earlycalguy

i agree with above post on what to grade and not to grade but I would do a buy it now for the entire set. let it runs 10 days. that would be the easiest way to sell it and get the price you want. if it doesn't go whole then chop it up in pieces and sell that way.

Boopotts

<< <i>Hey Guys, for sheer profit reasons it seems like alot of you are saying that I should try and sell the set some graded and some raw. Would I be better off picking out the cards that I know will grade 7's or higher and get them graded and then sell them with the raw as a near complete set? I already got 3 of the cards graded - two PSA 8's (#77 Charley Conerly SMR $90 and #86 Y.A Tittle SMR $115) and the tough to find unmarked checklist graded 7MC (SMR for a straight 7 unmarked checklist is $340 but who knows what the MC will knock off of that). I'm not to hot on the idea of having to pay $7 per card for grading ($777 total for 111 cards) when I know that a decent number of them will probably get 5's and 6's which for sure won't even get the $7 grading fee back. So now I really don't know what to do........bite the bullet and get the whole bunch graded hoping for the best from PSA, or cherry pick the sure 7's and better for submission and then try and sell as a partial graded and raw set. HELP!




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One of the great things about situations like this is that if you know what you're doing, and you think a decision is close, then that's probably because the decision IS close, which means it matters very little which route you choose (lots of poker decisions fall into this catagory, but it applies nicely here as well). Do what feels right; the odds are very good that it doesn't matter much either way.