Posted By:
cmokingI remember doing a similar type of PSA vs SGC grading analysis a while back, and I recall getting the same type of results - that PSA has a much higher percentage of PSA 7s and PSA 8s than SGC 84s and SGC 88s. But I was not sure about what that tells us. People who favor PSA will surely have a valid reason for the disparity that may make sense. And people who favor SGC will surely argue you can't argue with the numbers. If the total submission numbers were closer, instead of the 9:1 difference, I think there would be no question that SGC is tougher, but the 9:1 ratio really throws a big wrench into it.
Here are the arguments for both sides as I see it (the PSA side is a longer argument because PSA needs to look past the numbers, while SGC's argument seems clear cut. it's not that I'm siding with PSA, just saying this is why I wrote so much more for PSA's side):
SGC argument:
Just look at the numbers, it should be clear that SGC is tougher and not as lenient in giving 7s and 8s than PSA. There is no way to overcome the numerical differences no matter how you want to spin it for PSA. We can end the argument here.
PSA argument:
Imagine this hypothetical decision by a potential seller of a high grade Goudey card.
The potential seller has a NM/MT card 53 Babe Ruth card and wants to sell it. Let's assume he believes PSA and SGC have equal grading standards, and a PSA 8 does equal a SGC 88. So what is his decision? It's a simple economic decision - get it graded by PSA into a PSA 8 holder and get a lot more money. It's been proven over and over that PSA high grade cards in Goudeys get more money than SGC high grade cards (show me an example where you have the same card in the same grade where the SGC card went higher - don't just show me an example of a SGC 92 of a tough card to find if you can't find an equivalent sale of a PSA 8, because there won't be a good comparison). One of the major reasons people get their cards graded is to sell them, so that's why PSA cards get the higher graded.
PSA registry argument:
A main reason is PSA started the Registry and was so successful at it, that many people who are interested in high-graded cards are involved in the Registry. Take a look at the number of people with PSA 5 and higher quality sets on the PSA registry and compare that to SGC - it's a landslide (stuckmeyer (sp?) has a fantastic collection - but he's really alone in the SGC registry...personally I wish there were more like him). So even if you found a raw NM or NM/MT card, you would want to get it into a PSA holder if you are in the registry.
more PSA argument:
Don't forget about the re-submissions. It's a vicious cycle, people see the high price of 8s and 9s, you are definitely going to get people who crack out a card and resubmit over and over again. That will distort population numbers. It's not nearly as economically worthwhile to crack out a PSA 4 to try to get a PSA 5 as it is to crack out a PSA 7 in order to get a PSA 8.
Fees: I'm not 100% sure about the fees, is it correct that PSA is slightly more expensive than SGC? If so, this may mean if you have a VG/EX card (where the price difference is a lot smaller between a SGC or PSA graded card of the same grade), it may be economically useful to submit to SGC.
My experience and personal opinion:
I have come across a bunch of Goudey PSA 6, 7 8 and SGC 80, 84 cards in the past year. Much fewer SGC cards than PSA, but that is to be expected. My personal opinion is that they are close. I have cracked and submitted all of my high-grade SGC cards and sent them to PSA. From my data (about 20 cards in SGC 80 - SGC 92), they have come back roughly the same grade in PSA holders (the same CANNOT be said for other grading compaines). A SGC 86 Pepper Martin came back PSA 7. A 1934 Goudey Don Hurst SGC 92 came back as PSA 8 (Jim, this is the card I traded to you). A SGC 86 Jack Russell came back as a PSA 8. A SGC 84 Leroy Parmalee came back as a PSA 6. A SGC 80 Mark Koenig came back as a PSA 7 (I almost threw up when I saw this, way overgraded, I sold it on ebay, and it only got PSA 6 money as everyone knew it was overgraded by the look of the card). These are just off the top of my head.
Testing for lower grades:
Along with my PSA 6-8 1933 Goudey set, I am also building a lower graded set (why? I don't know, just love the set). In that lower graded set, I am much more willing to buy SGC and GAI cards, whereas I am very careful for the higher graded cards. I have about 12 of each, including a SGC 40 #149 Ruth and a GAI 3.5 #181 Ruth. I have been thinking of cracking them all and submitting them to PSA to see what happens in the lower grade. I'll post the results if I ever do that.