Upgrading your set. How important is it to go from a psa

boggs301012 · April 17, 2003 4:29AM

9 to a 10? For example the card I want to buy carries the a weight of 6. Is it worth it in terms of increasing the point value of the set? What are your thoughts on the subject? If I am correct psa 10 x weight= the point value...... in my case I am going from a 54 to a 60? Is that correct?

And as of late most of my buys have been bumps in grades only. 8 to a 9 ...9 to a 10. I have seen a smaill increase in the point value of my set. And I like to look at my set and see the 10's.

James

RobE · April 17, 2003 4:44AM

James,I say more power to ya if you can upgrade to a 9 or 10.

You go and build the finest Collection to Boggs possible so wether it boosts up 1 or 6 points is irrelivant.10s are always nice additions to anybodies set and it never hurts anything except the pocket book.

FB · April 17, 2003 5:01AM

Boggsie...

Its one of the cruelest aspects of the Set Registry. Going from an 8 to a 9 gives you an 11.2% bump for that one card and from a 9 to a 10 only gives you a 10% bump.

Is it worth it? Thats a question that only you can answer... I only by PSA 10's for my 72 set. I'm working on sets from 67 through 72, but I'm happy with 8's and an occasional 9 for the others.

Let us know what you decide!

JH · April 17, 2003 6:31AM

You get a lot more bang for your buck upgrading 8's to 9's than you do 9's to 10's..... I can upgrade commons from 8 to 9 for an average increase in cost of about $55.. that will gain me 1 to 4 points, depending on the series of the card... going from a 9 to a 10 will cost me an average of about $275, or 5 times as much per point....

LuxuryWines · April 17, 2003 7:25AM

I guess it boils down to what are you trying to accomplish...

Do you want the all-time finest set?

Do you want every card in the highest grade possible?

Do you want a really nice set and can you tell the difference between a 9 and a 10? or for that matter an 8 and a 9? Is the price of upgrading worth it to you?

If you get a real thrill in seeing your weighted average go up and have the budget to fund it Why not? But think about those 3 questions...

Wabittwax · April 17, 2003 9:55AM

I say as long as you are not overpaying for the 10, buy it. At some point when you sell the set, you'll get your money back anyways. It's kind of like a savings account.

Virtualizard · April 17, 2003 10:51AM

I agree that it is frustrating when you pay top dollar for an upgrade and it doesn't affect your GPA or set rating, but over time it does. Note: this applies more to sets that are substantially complete - my '70 set now has 680 out of 720 cards listed, or about 95% completion. I just upgraded an 8 to a 9 today and it didn't change a thing. But, I know that if I keep doing this once or twice a week (as I have been doing) my GPA will continue to rise. I've gone up about 10 points in GPA in the last 2 or 3 months. What's even more frustrating now is when I add low pop 8's to my set, my GPA actually goes down.

Oh well, this will be a long process and it's fun.

JEB.

boggs301012 · April 17, 2003 12:30PM

My last 5 card purchases are all up grades. And I can make 2 upgrades ...ebay buys if I want. Change that if I can afford it. Money just is hard to come by as of late.

I always have seen a small jump when I add a card or upgrade.

James

PlayBall · April 17, 2003 1:15PM

Boggs,

Don't think about it in terms of 54 to 60. Think of it in terms of 6 upgrade points. For example, if the Boggs set has a divisor of 100 (not correct, but easy math for me), then you know that you need 800 total points for an 8.00 GPA. If your goal is then an 8.50 GPA, then you know that you need 50 upgrade points (850) to get to that number. In your example, for a card weighted 6, an upgrade from a 9 to a 10, is the same as going from a 3 to a 4. Six points either way. So the questions are, what is your GPA goal, what amount of money are you willing to spend, and how competitive are you in keeping the number one set? Basically, what Luxurywines said.

Bernie

JeffVN · April 18, 2003 5:42AM

The dollar spent per point of an upgrade increases dramatically going from 9s to 10s (when you can find them and if you can go high enough to grab them). If you have the coin and the willingness to do it GO FOR IT. you'll love the sets, and eventually the weighted average and set rating will show your efforts.

Vargha · April 19, 2003 1:18PM

Just buy want you want. The rating should be secondary to your enjoyment of the cards.

wolfbear · April 19, 2003 9:03PM

Once again Vargha has it all wrong ! Like that's news or something !

The whole point of building a set is to squish your competition like little bugs.

Duh ...

Vargha · April 20, 2003 5:54AM

Well there is a certain enjoyment in that, of course.

boggs301012 · April 20, 2003 9:05AM

I need some competition. Not some one with deep pockets that will win everytime. But some collector to give me a run, I have all the cards for the basic and some card that are worthy enuff to send in for possible upgrades. The master set will be on hold for awhile. The basic is my first goal. Not til it filled with 9's and 10's will I stop. Ok ok I wont stop but take a breather.

James

TWINRON · April 21, 2003 8:12AM

GOING FROM 8's TO 9's AND ESPECIALLY FROM 9's TO 10's REALLY SUGGESTS, IN MY OPINION, THAT ONE IS COLLECTING PSA HOLDERS RATHER THAN CARDS, UNLESS ONE ONLY CAN ENJOY THEIR COLLECTION WITH A 10X SCOPE. RON

Alfiewt · April 21, 2003 11:02AM

Boggsie,

First, great job on the Boggs cards, you'll have the basic set complete in no time. So far I have been very pleased with all of the 10's I have gotten, with the exception of the last one I bought. The 10 is great on the front, but the borders on the back have some chipping. I think it is better then my 9 of the same card, but I hope to find an even better example one day. I hope to have all 10's one day for the basic Mattingly set, and even when I get to that point I'll probably still try to find even better cards. To me, 10's are worth it because I want the best, if you just want nice looking cards, then 9's or even 8's should be good.

boggs301012 · April 21, 2003 12:39PM

TWINRON
DIDNT you ever want the best? I want the best for me, its all about me.

Alfiewt

Thanks for the kind words. I should have it done really soon. I have all the cards what I think is 9 or 10 condition, except for the 1997 and 1999 TOPPS

. I cant wait to finish the set. I imagine a 100% complete must feel great. I see your set is doing just as good it topped 50 % awhile back. I am waiting for a good special to come along again . It has been awhile. And I am trying to get an old issue resolved with PSA.

James

mikeschmidt · April 21, 2003 1:06PM

Boggsie:

Understand that TWINRON is primarily speaking from a vintage perspective....

I would agree that the differences between a 9 and a 10 are extremely subtle at times -- unless it is very clear that there are centering or minor corner issues. I would also suggest that as one gets older -- the eye's ability to evaluate the minute nuances of a card with a naked eye become increasingly difficult.

One other thought on this matter: Some of us have space considerations -- and thus, instead of wanting to build a 792-card set in PSA 8, we would rather build our favorite team set from the same year in PSA 9 or PSA 10 grade. I've sold hundreds, if not thousands, of PSA-graded cards over the years not because I really wanted to get rid of them, but rather because I have space and mobility considerations and divest those cards that fall off my top priority lists.

Finally -- as to PSA 10's, especially vintage ones (1968 Topps comes to mind). Sometimes when I see or handle those cards in PSA 10 -- even if it looks like it has the same corners, centering, etc. of a similar PSA 9, sometimes the PSA 10 card just seems to have a surreal glow to it. One of my favorite cards that I owned for about half a year was a 1968 Topps Roger Maris PSA 10 card (perhaps the first PSA 10 graded....?), and I swear that that card could glow in the dark. The contrast and vibrancy of the colors were unlike anything I've seen from that issue before.

goodriddance189 · April 22, 2003 5:39AM

mikeschmidt-

i agree, especially for vintage cards, that the prestige of a psa 10 is just stunning. there is something about owning a 30+ year old card that's in gem mint condition that is just really cool for me. i always wonder its history, and how something that survived that long in perfect condition

Basilone · April 22, 2003 6:26AM

From an investment perspective......I will take 9's over 8's....and 10's over 9's.

John

mars2001 · April 23, 2003 3:29PM

Heya James....

I just want to warn you not to rest on your laurels...

You know you ask for this competition in the set building.... I'd just like to
ask for a little more time so my friends & I can get together enough for a
bulk submission... at that point, I promise to give you a little better run for
your money

[though I hope to be submitting quite a few 1989 Donruss at the same time...]

will talk to you soon.....................................

Upgrading your set. How important is it to go from a psa

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