PSA v SGC; Gold club is it worth it?

tonylags

So here's my question. I have a bunch of cards/auto's that I'm considering sending in to SGc; I need to join their gold club $125 to take advantage of their $5 card/$8 auto special. I have at least 300-500 I am considering.
1. Is it worth it? Do they often do this special or is like once a year?
2. How do SGC cards compare to PSA in terms of resale? say from 40's to present I know it's lower but how much lower {ie. 10%, 30%, etc}
3. Does Sgc grade cards that PSA calls Minzero? Cards not trimmed but apparently cut short at factory

miwlvrn

• SGC will reject minzero cards just as often as PSA. If the cut is close, keep resubbing it and eventually you might get lucky and have it graded.

• SGC certainly grades cards from many many sets that PSA does not, but those are mostly comprised of relatively obscure oddball and foreign items from the pre-war era.

• The price point of SGC's specials are very enticing this month, especially if you add in the quick turnaround that comes with it (quick relative to PSA). You can save a lot of money on the front end overhead costs when subbing to SGC instead of PSA and still receive comparable service all around. However:

• For most items, it has been my experience that the same card with the same grade in a PSA slab will sell for a higher price than in the SGC slab, with an amount that will more than make up the cost of grading difference. This is not always the case, but seems to be so most of the time. Do your research on completed sales data and check for yourself. SGC is a reputable company with trustworthy grading, and I have had plenty of success with straight crossover to PSA, which is not something I can say for BVG with any consistency. However, there just seem to be more buyers for PSA cards. Some of that has to do with the Registry. Some is brand recognition.

• So, if you are not concerned about resale and the items are for a personal collection, SGC is a great option since you can save a bunch of money and time, and still get your items put into holders with accurate grades from a reliable company. If you do intend to sell your items, then I would recommend you only sub the ones to SGC that are from sets that PSA won't grade.

tonylags

thanks miwlvrn.

any other opinions?

KbKards

I'm assuming that SGC also has a message board, where 100's of diehard SGC collectors and dealers are hanging out. They will be eager to answer all your SGC specific questions and hoping to get first crack at 300-500 fresh new SGC cards to stock their inventories and fill holes in their registry sets.

brad31

I believe SGC grades fairly and have a significant number of SGC 92s and 88s in my collection. Some are stronger than PSA examples same grade same year, most are on par. SGC seems a little softer on centering at the low end of their grades. If you are grading to sell - PSA cards sell for more. As a collector who does not participate in registries I love SGC as I feel like I can often get the cards at a little better price. I am completely agnostic on if a card I purchase is SGC or PSA - I look at the card and see if it looks like one I want for my collection. However I am not a set collector just collect HOF - think the disparity in price might be greater on commons.

spanky74

Do SGC autos easily crossover to PSA?

jackstraw

@KbKards said:
I'm assuming that SGC also has a message board, where 100's of diehard SGC collectors and dealers are hanging out. They will be eager to answer all your SGC specific questions and hoping to get first crack at 300-500 fresh new SGC cards to stock their inventories and fill holes in their registry sets.

This is not true.. Lol

miwlvrn

@brad31 said:
I love SGC as I feel like I can often get the cards at a little better price. .

I agree with this. I've picked up some great deals on SGC items that crossed to PSA and would have cost notably more than the grading fees for the cross had I bought them in PSA holders initially.

Panama Mutiny (Formerly lawyer05)

whats SGC

Panama Mutiny (Formerly lawyer05)

For a real deal do ISA

http://www.isagrading.com/ISA_subform.pdf

Mefer

SGC is reputable in my view though (again from my view), their grading standards seem a bit more relaxed. I generally would not hesitate to purchase SGC graded cards but the few times I have done that, such was done with an eye of getting the cards in PSA holders.

Personally, I strongly prefer PSA for a variety of reasons. Chief among those are prices realized, the holder and grading scale. PSA secures stronger pricing than SGC almost across the board (I'm sure there may be a few exceptions but in my collecting world, it does not register with me). On the holder front, I don't really like the SGC holder; it is too busy and I prefer the more simple approach of a PSA holder.

Turning to grading scale, SGC is generally the same scale as PSA with half point grades but it also adds in grades on a 100 point scale. For example, an 8 is also graded an 88. There is also the "100" which is above the SGC 98/10 Gem Mint; I think of it as the Spinal Tap 11 grade. It is really silly to me to have a 100 point scale when, in fact, all 100 points are not used but instead tied to a 10 point scale (save for the "Nigel 11").

In my little world, I would wait for a better deal from PSA. Your little world may differ and that is fine too. We can all enjoy the hobby in different ways.

My useless two cents,

Matt