I've slogged through the 30-some odd pages of this thread and must confess that I don't get why there is such an uproar here. Maybe its because I buy ungraded cards almost exclusively, in fact I strongly prefer them. Here is what my takeaway is from the Battles'. They freely admit they are selling some cards that have been altered - they have identified them as such in the auction. Additionally, they are guaranteeing that if any card sold in their auction that was NOT identified as altered comes back that way from a TPG they will offer a full refund. That seems like a reasonable position to take.
As a buyer of ungraded cards, I pay little to no attention to the sellers grading of the card - it is almost always overstated! I make my own decision based upon the scan. I do expect the seller to be honest about flaws that may not show up on the scan, or to identify if the card has been altered or trimmed, but just because the seller claims the card is "NM-MT" and its really only "VG-EX" or comes back from PSA as a 4 I don't see that as fraud.
I know that Battlefield was renowned for doctoring/photoshopping the photos of the cards so that the actual card did not match the photo. It does seem, however, that when the buyer took issue with this refunds were generally given.
So, if the photos are genuine, and you know in advance if you are buying a trimmed (or otherwise altered card), I don't see how this auction is any different from any other. Those who desire the lower risk of buying a card in a graded holder are certainly going to sit out this auction; those who prefer them out of slabs can jump in.
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