Newbie PSA ticket grading questions
 

I am pondering whether to get into collecting tickets-full and stubs--and would appreciate some basic info on how they are graded. I see some stubs graded authentic while others receive grades with appearances that seem indistinguishable to me. What are they looking at/for? I have seen stubs parted cleanly at the perforation given the "A" while others with uneven edges--either tears inward or surplusage beyond the perforation receiving numbers. Is there at least some logic and consistency that escapes me?

I see from PSA's website that submitters can request a non-numeric, "A" grade for stubs, but did not see that option for full tickets. What advantages are there to foregoing a number? Why would a full ticket receive an authentic grade?--seems even staple holes or writing would make it a poor 1 and not just authentic.

Third,what is the ticket collecting hobby's view of PSA or any other TPG when it comes to grading tickets? I am no fan of the company, and at this point would use them merely to guaranty authenticity. Does their involvement noticeably increase value, and are there significant jumps in price/value between one number and the next?

Finally, what is the value drop-off from a ticket stub that receives a numeric grade to one that is slabbed as "Authentic". I have seen a few World Series stubs marked "A" that look to be nicer than their numeric counterparts-- 1968 comes to mind.

Any help appreciated.

You can ask for any ticket or stub to be graded authentic. Most tickets do not grade very high numerically because they get handled more than a baseball card. They have to be taken to a game and then kept in your pocket all night. What tends to happen is that bidders see a low grade on a ticket and use baseball card mentality on it and bid low. Quite frankly a lot of collectors on here don't believe in grading. Personally I've won graded tickets for a low price, cracked them out and sold them for more. Just my opinion.

My opinion of putting any piece of memorabilia into a plastic tomb: (save your money)

If there is a real question of authenticity that you can't resolve on your own or with the assistance of folks here, then I could see using the services of a TPG to help. I doubt that would happen very often. Otherwise, I wouldn't recommend spending the money for a grade or an A. And if you want to protect your tickets, there are much cheaper and more attractive ways to do so. I would buy a ticket in a TPG holder but not at a premium, and I'd promptly crack it out.

Thanks guys,