Posted By:
Al C.risafulliI know I'm in the minority as far as this board is concerned, but in my opinion, paper loss is paper loss, regardless of what's on the back of the card. There are pieces of the card missing.
I understand that many of these cards were mounted in albums and scrapbooks, but that's what makes it so tough to find a high-grade prewar card. They're not supposed to be easy, that's why people pay a premium for top condition cards. I can't see relaxing your standards because a card is old, or because the manufacturer didn't print anything on the back of it.
To me, where do you stop? If you relax your standards on blank-backed cards, what about the blank area on the back of a postcard? Or the blank area on the back of a regular card? If I have a T206 with paper loss, but the paper loss doesn't affect the ad on the back, should I get a mulligan on that, too? What about a MODERN card with a blank back? Why should there be a difference between a vintage card and a modern card?
No disrespect meant at all, because you guys are all deserving of respect, but to me, the onus shouldn't be on the grading companies to change their standards, it should be on the collector to understand that there are variances within every grade. In other words, just because there's a 10 on the holder doesn't mean you should consult the price guides and pay accordingly - you actually need to look at the card and see what you're buying. While this card is a technical 10, it should be worth much more because it presents so well. But in terms of assigning a number grade to the card based on its attributes, a 10 seems about right for this card.
-Al