FREE Card Grading!

[rdwyer]

Like to see PSA and others do this:

http://www.globalauth.com/grading/free

I like the idea. What do you think?

[Robextend]

I'd like it if it was PSA/SGC/BVG...

At least my trimmed cards can get slabbed as 8's for free!!

[Ease]

Good idea. Too bad GAI ceased being legit 5 years ago. I love the old GAI slabs with the metallic flip though. They put the info on top too so when you have em in a box standing up you can just look at the top and see what card it is.

[T206Collector]

I'd like it if it was PSA/SGC/BVG...

At least my trimmed cards can get slabbed as 8's for free!!

While I love SGC, it is short-sighted to believe that any one grading company will be the market leader in new submissions forever.

[JasonL]

As a collector, I love the idea.
However, someone would need to explain to me how this policy wouldn't introduce bias towards higher grades, as it is reasonable to expect that customers are more likely to spring for the slabbing only for higher grades that would make it worthwhile...

no?

[wake.up.the.echoes]

Personally, I would think that if one of the "legit"—and I use that term loosely—companies tried this, then someone could use the grading companies simply as a means by which to authenticate cards that they may be unsure of. I could send in a bunch of RAW t206 cards, for example, and if they come back with number grades, then I could at least know that they aren't reprints and that they haven't been trimmed. then i could pass on paying for the card grades, get the cards shipped back to me RAW and simply grade them myself (like how they used to do it in the old days, LOL), knowing they were real and untrimmed—at least "knowing" with a reasonable amount of certainty, as I am sure that PSA and SGC have slabbed a few trimmed/reprinted cards in the past.

All in all, it would save me the time of having to untomb my cardboard, and I guess it would save PSA/SGC a lot of plastic.

[fkw]

Thats what I was thinking too.

They get paid only if the collector likes the grade they assign.

[tbob]

Has anyone here had any transactions with GAI lately and want to report on their opinions of grades received for their pre-war cards? I am curious as to how their graders are doing vis a vis accurate grading, etc.

[JasonL]

Has anyone here had any transactions with GAI lately and want to report on their opinions of grades received for their pre-war cards? I am curious as to how their graders are doing vis a vis accurate grading, etc.

at which point I will call and check on my order...:D

[T206Collector]

Thats what I was thinking too.

They get paid only if the collector likes the grade they assign.

This sounds like a good short-term business model for breaking into the SGC, PSA and Beckett oligopoly. Get a bunch of cards into their slabs, which would then broaden their market and appeal to that collector and perhaps others. At some point down the road, you would pull the promotional freebies when you have acquired some meaningful market share. In this environment, you could see bias in both directions -- too harsh in order to prove legitimacy; as well as too lenient in order to attract submissions.

[E93]

This is a terrible idea for the hobby. They only get paid if they give you the grade you like? So their incentive is to overgrade and overlook doctoring. That is how they get paid. It is ridiculous. GAI is a joke. It is a desperation act. Thankfully nobody with any knowledge of the hobby uses them to grade cards any longer.
JimB

[chaddurbin]

this is an old concept. gai and beckett used to have on-site prescreens. gai would literally take 15-20sec per card under a loupe and yellow lamp and assign a sticker grade to it. cards with grades you like they take back to the office to slab, the ones you don't want slabbed you keep.

they are probably world-class graders as they can spot minute imperfection/assign grade/detect alteration all within first glance...

[Frank A]

Instantly, all the naysayers show up with a down comment. WHY? Are you all experts as to the service? I thing its a great idea. I never had aproblem with the old GAI and don't see why I should now. We always seem to get a few guys with a bug up their A$$ that start a problem with every post. Do you guys just sit around all day thinking of someones balls you can bust. Get a life.

[HRBAKER]

If it's the same company/graders that have been purportedly grading trimmed/alterted cards with numerical grades, what difference is it if it's free? Who wants it.

[T206DK]

Has anyone here had any transactions with GAI lately and want to report on their opinions of grades received for their pre-war cards? I am curious as to how their graders are doing vis a vis accurate grading, etc.

I almost bought something from their Ebay account ,starxcards , but the card was in one of their budget card savers with the new tamper proof label so I passed.

[bobbyw8469]

If you mess with GAI, you deserve everything you get. I heard from the other board that GAI has "lost" subs that people send it. GAI is worthless....