Tips For Using A Loupe

totallyradd

There's been a lot of talk about getting/using a loupe lately on the boards to us newer members. I got mine in the mail today, and I'm pretty excited to use it. It makes it pretty clear which cards have some issues. I've mostly been looking at 70's cards and am running into some common trends that I'm hoping someone more knowledgeable can help me to understand the grading. I'm not looking for 10's by any means, but want to sort them to make sure anything I submit comes up a 7 or better.


1) How much does "stubble" from the edges affect a grade? If a card has good corners but the cut leaves "stubble" (is there a better term for this?), how much of a difference will it make?

2) Minor print splotches, they don't pick up well on the naked eye, but they're there under the loupe.

3) "Cigarette Burns" or small circles that appear on the card from the print.

4) Will each corner ding degrade a full point? (I suppose it really depends on the serverity, just trying to get an idea)

Any other tips? I've tried to pay attention to wrinkles too, though I haven't had much issue with that yet with the exception of a few cards.

I'll try to post some scans later tonight or tomorrow of ones that I thought stood out for more advice.

Thanks all!
Corey

Hallco

Before even using your glass, look at the card and determine what the centering is(Top and Bottom/ Left to Right) Then look at the card under a good light source with your naked eyes and rotate it in such a way that you are looking at the cardboard itself and not the image that is on the card. This is sometimes difficult at first. You may have to train your eyes. Do the same with the back of the card. This is a way to show if there are any surface issues, wrinkles, creases, etc. Then with the loupe, check each corner. At this point, don't look at the edges by working your way over(or up or down)to another corner...just look at the corner, move the loupe and then check the next corner and so on. Do this to the back of the card as well. Use PSAs online resource Photograde online located here and get familiar with what the corners will typically look like for each grade...perfectly sharp to about as bad as it could get.(Gem 10- Poor 1). Edges can be the last thing you check. Notches, grooves and indentations will generally lower the grade....but "stubble" as long as it is due to the way the manufacturer cut the card may not cause a grade to lower(of course depending on the rest of the card). Practice does not make perfect when it comes to grading because it is an art more than a science...but knowing what to look for may help to avoid wasting money....at least sometimes!

totallyradd

Here are some of the ones that I thought stood out so far. I'll probably double check them tomorrow, but I think I'm on the right track.

Nikklos

If I was thinking just purely financial gain, I would hesitate submitting any of them. I don't know - maybe the 1978 Reggie.

But they are nice cards. Knowing me I'd probably submit the Ryan's and hope for the best. But they're 6s probably.

By the way, using a loupe is way overboard as far as I'm concerned - although, admittedly, I have missed the occasional wrinkle or scratch.

Hallco

Tell us your grade "expectations" for each card you have shown on this thread individually and we can try and give you suggestions.

jay0791

looks like you have psa 6's and 7's
nice grade and nice eye appeal.....but add cost of grading and you may not be happy with card worth.
Some mat be money losers such as the 79 molitor

graders use the naked eye.....so start with very nice eye appeal first.

I would get value on what a psa 7 sels for (not ebay asking price) but actuall auctions that have ended.

Now is it worth adding the cost?

Many people still like nice raw

totallyradd

Thanks. I was looking for 7's and up. I pretty much have 2 complete sets of 77, and sets of 79, and 80. Along with some singles. I thought of all of them the Niekro looked the best. I'd like to go through the commons and try to pull some real high grades, but I'm still learning at this. I honestly thought most those could be 8's. The Molitor I figured was a 7 at best. Can someone tell me what puts them closer to the 6-7 range vs the 7-8? I don't really wanna submit anything where I'd feel like I'm losing money.

I might send in the Nolan Ryans anyway because I loved him as a kid. I've got others that I was going through, and maybe I can pull some more.

I'm not really looking to grade any of these to be flipped, though if one came back with a strong grade and low pop, I probably wouldn't hesitate to put it on eBay.

Nikklos

What makes them 6-7 range are soft/touched/dinged/ rounded corners and centering. Nice cards but Psa is unforgiving. I have binders full of great cards it's a shame I can't submit.

Boopotts

I think the only thing you need to know about the loupe business is that PSA's graders don't use one (or so I have been told- I've never toured the facility, but those I know who have toured have told me this). Given this, I think it's counterproductive to worry about corner wear that the graders aren't going to detect.

Dodgerfanjohn

You might want to buy a cheapo 6, 7, and 8 from those years off eBay just so you have an idea what they are looking for.

Your cards look a lot like mine from when I was a kid with the touched and slightly worn corners.

That and/or the badly centered cards(like the molitor) will get cards pushed down into the 5, 6, and 7 range.

totallyradd

Again, thank you for the help and feedback! I have a week off starting Friday, and plan on going through the rest of my cards then. While I was hoping some of the stars I pulled looked better, at least now I know what I'm looking for. I have a good idea on centering and corners, but I'm sure, as many have overvalue their cards until they come to terms that 8's, 9's, and 10's are hard to come by. So I really do appreciate everyone's help. It's a learning curve, and as long as you guys are willing to help me, I'd rather post scans then beat myself up when the pop results appear.

On a side note, I have a few card that had tape on them (the tape dried and peeled off with no paper damage but there is still a stain). If I get these slabbed with no qualifiers, would they just come back as authentic or is a 1 or 2 possible?

Am I better off leaving them raw or getting them slabbed? They're 52 Bowman Campanella, Reese, Mantle/Bauer/Berra, and a 53 Topps Paige card. Again, I appreciate all your help. I wish I knew of this board a few years ago.

-Corey

hammered

<< <i>I think the only thing you need to know about the loupe business is that PSA's graders don't use one (or so I have been told- I've never toured the facility, but those I know who have toured have told me this). Given this, I think it's counterproductive to worry about corner wear that the graders aren't going to detect. >>



PSA's promotional video shows a grader using a loupe, but this might be more for PR than to show how they actually grade. A loupe is a little overboard in my opinion. I put aside my loupe long ago. High powered loupes tend to make nice cards look worse than they actually are. PSA 9s can have flaws and often do. Most 9s have a corner touch and under high magnification all corners will look touched. It took me a long time to send in cards with slight corner touches cuz I thought they'd all get 7s and 8s. I think the best evaluating tool is the naked eye under a good light source.

As for the cards you posted, I think '78 Schmidt, McCovey, Jackson, Rose, and Carew are probably 8s.
The rest 6 or 7

Boopotts

<< <i>

<< <i>I think the only thing you need to know about the loupe business is that PSA's graders don't use one (or so I have been told- I've never toured the facility, but those I know who have toured have told me this). Given this, I think it's counterproductive to worry about corner wear that the graders aren't going to detect. >>



PSA's promotional video shows a grader using a loupe, but this might be more for PR than to show how they actually grade. A loupe is a little overboard in my opinion. I put aside my loupe long ago. High powered loupes tend to make nice cards look worse than they actually are. PSA 9s can have flaws and often do. Most 9s have a corner touch and under high magnification all corners will look touched. It took me a long time to send in cards with slight corner touches cuz I thought they'd all get 7s and 8s. I think the best evaluating tool is the naked eye under a good light source.

As for the cards you posted, I think '78 Schmidt, McCovey, Jackson, Rose, and Carew are probably 8s.
The rest 6 or 7 >>



Agreed. Also, since so very few cards have zero corner wear AND a pristine surface it's tempting to gloss over surface issues and focus exclusively on corners (since if you scrutinize both you'll almost never find a card to submit). I've bought a ton of cards from board members who swore that the PSA 9 I was buying from the was 'an excellent candidate for a resub', only to discover snow on the surface when I got the card in hand. I don't think these guys were intentionally misleading me-- I just think they had spent so much time staring at the card's corners that they forgot to look at the rest of it.