To grade or not to grade? ('72 Clemente)

bassmnky413

So my first vintage card came in today! This is my personal favorite Clemente card. Picked it up off of eBay for around $12 including shipping.

I'm wondering if I should have it graded, if for nothing more than the experience of having a card graded by PSA. So two questions:

1. What motivates you all to get a card graded, if at all? And if not at all, why don't you bother? Is it just a personal preference for raw collections?
2. What score do you think this card would receive? I think its at least a 4. Its got some slight discoloration, frayed but not too rounded corners, a crease in the bottom right corner and the centering is....70/30 (that's the part I feel I have no knack for judging). Would it possibly get a 5 or higher?

I know that was actually more than two questions, but whatever. Thanks for reading.

Brick

It appears to be less than a 4 to me. Still a great card of a great player.

miwlvrn

That card looks like a 2.5 on a good day, but probably a 2 most of the time. Recently sold items show PSA 2 selling at $6.99 and that one had nicer eye appeal IMO. PSA 3 closed at $13.99.

I agree, I've always enjoyed the image on this particular card. However, objectively, the cost of acquisition seems to have been higher than market rate for the specific copy you've obtained, and nicer ones are available for less cost. I suggest you do not dump more money into grading fees for this "well-loved" one, and instead seek a replacement one.

I'm seeing a 2 to 2.5 due mostly to the surface creasing extending from the bottom and left edges, the chip in the upper left edge, and the staining of the upper right area. Bad corners and bad centering don't help its case either.

travis t

Um. It's trimmed.

travis t

Return it.

miwlvrn

PSA 5 closed recently at $13.20.

miwlvrn

@travis t said:
Um. It's trimmed.

You might be right. Couldn't tell if the bottom edge was hacked up by sloppy trimming or if it was just optical illusion based on the camera angle and plastic sleeve.

travis t

Might? LOL. Hack job. Obvious.

OddRodz

The right side is trimmed ? Man, I would have trimmed that lovely lad left side.

grote15

Travis is correct, badly trimmed, not worth submitting or owning raw, unfortunately.

Even if it weren't trimmed, that card is a 2-3 at best.

muffins

here's a graded one for comparison:

muffins

but if your ?s are serious, i:

would not submit that card to learn the psa process/grading scale.

rather pick a centered vintage card you felt was a sure-fire lock for a 9/10.

then see what it actually comes back as.

this might hone your skills quicker and make your expectations just a lil clearer.

best of luck and not a bad way to start a vintage collection!

bassmnky413

@travis t said:
Um. It's trimmed.

I've seen this phrase a few places and don't know what it means exactly.

Is it what I think it means and that someone literally cut the card to make it look cleaner?

bigphilly

Yep.

travis t

@bassmnky413 said:

@travis t said:
Um. It's trimmed.

I've seen this phrase a few places and don't know what it means exactly.

Is it what I think it means and that someone literally cut the card to make it look cleaner?

I think it was cut to make it look worse. LOL.

Ok, at the risk of inviting more hilarity, I would suggest you take a ruler and measure the card. It should be 3 1/2 inches top to bottom and 2 1/2 inches across. Let me know what you find out. Just for the record, my opinion is that the card was cut up by an original owner, probably a child, and somehow wound up in the hands of a dealer - or the child became the dealer.

The serious side of this involves you, OP, becoming much more educated with regard to the card market and how to safely allocate your hard earned dollars. eBay is a wasteland for most intents and purposes. Please don't sacrifice yourself to the crooks and cheaters. I say this with the same amount of concern I'd have for anyone here in this forum. Too many people getting ripped off over a hobby. It's sad. Learn first, then spend.

Halos2002

Photos of my ungraded Clemente... I will be sending in soon...

divecchia

No do not grade it as that Clemente is missing a lot of real estate, especially top to bottom.

As Travis already pointed out, learn first then spend.

Good luck,
Donato