The new SGC is almost here!

[TheRocket9]

For those of you who haven't read this yet here it is. It's nice to see some changes coming to SGC.

SGC Moving to 10-Point Grading Scale, Plans Submission Process Upgrades

June 19, 2018 By Rich Mueller from Sports Collectors Daily

SGC will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer but cake and ice cream aren’t the only thing the grading and authenticating firm will be passing out.

Some big changes are happening as part of an overall rebranding of one of the hobby’s most familiar names. Earlier this month, the Florida-based company announced the upcoming launch of a uniform authentication division. That was the first of many developments customers can expect in the coming weeks.

The biggest move centers around the core of its business. SGC says it plans to do away with the 100-point grading scale it implemented upon the company’s 1998 launch, moving instead to a 1-10 system. While SGC’s holders currently include a 1-10 grade on the label, it has always been in smaller font and below the assigned grade from the 100-point scale. With PSA having adopted half-point grades several years ago, SGC’s labels will match those of its competitor—with one difference: SGC is adding a new 9.5 grade, something Beckett Grading also offers. The SGC label itself is also being redesigned. The changes are expected to take place before the National Sports Collectors Convention in early August.

“The 1-10 scale has become more universally recognized in the industry, so we decided to fully adopt it in order to better unify collectors and simplify the process,” stated SGC Director of Business Development Tyler Grady.

It isn’t the only change, though. SGC says it’s making improvements to the entire submission process including the ability to know where a particular order is within SGC’s system at all times.

“The new ‘Submission Tracking’ feature will allow SGC customers to easily and precisely track where their order is within the process: from receiving, data entry, and grading, to encapsulation and shipping,” Grady told Sports Collectors Daily. “This feature will also allow our customers to see a current estimated date of the completion for their submissions.”

The online submission form, too, will be simplified and Grady says every card SGC grades will be scanned in its holder prior to shipping.

“Customers will be able to see the images of these cards via our new ‘certification number look-up’ feature. This will allow customers to further verify authenticity by comparing the card they are planning to purchase with its image on the SGC site and be confident that it is actually the same card that SGC graded. SGC will also make sure that all certification numbers are randomized in order to protect customer privacy.”

Population Reports on the website will include images and users will be able to automatically upload scanned images of their cards to the Set Registry.

Later this summer, SGC will also begin offering a ‘Grader Notes Option’ which will allow customers to review the notes made by its graders as they examined a card, which will help better explain the reasons why it received a certain grade.

For the first time, Grady says SGC will also offer a buying and selling platform for users, which will be ready by late this year.

“We are building a marketplace that will connect collectors across the world and facilitate transactions. Collectors will be able to make offers through the Pop Reports, the Registry, and our new platform. We anticipate that this marketplace will serve as a valuable asset to collectors and will also provide us with helpful real-time pricing data.”

[pokerplyr80]

Grade notes would be a nice touch. Hopefully they're more than the post it note you get from PSA that just says corners.

[Johnny630]

My biggest concern is the new labels :-(

[Joe_G.]

Originally Posted by Johnny630

My biggest concern is the new labels :-(

I concur . . . If the new label is black in color . . . how much longer do we have to make a submission with the old green label?

[Johnny630]

Originally Posted by Joe_G.

I concur . . . If the new label is black in color . . . how much longer do we have to make a submission with the old green label?

I don’t know Joe. I was wondering the same thing. I have a few sgc cards I’d like to have reholstered due to scratching. I wonder if I can request they insert the same old label? I don’t want this new large numbered one.

[Joe_G.]

For us Pre-War guys the grade typically isn't the focal point. It is a feat for me to simply obtain SF Hess Newsboy cards. I want the slab to frame the card nicely and the grade is a distant second. I don't want a large number trying to take attention away from the card.

If you collect post war Mickey Mantles, maybe the grade is the bigger deal and you want to bring attention to it.

The size of the number isn't a deal breaker for me but I do hope they retain a green label . . . seems were through this once before.

[Joe_G.]

I believe this could be a good move for SGC, give them an edge to the competition for the time being. Without these changes there wasn't much chance of taking market share away from others, this gives them a chance.

SGC, IMO, has always had the best looking slab. I like the black insert surround and the green label. My slabbed cards are better than 90% with SGC. My big question is how similar is the new slip and label to the old? Can we see a scan of new and old side by side? It is hard to tell from the following picture how well the two will match/compare. Does the green become black?

Attached Images

 

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

Can't wait to crack a few.

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[ruth_rookie]

Originally Posted by TheRocket9

June 19, 2018 By Rich Mueller from Sports Collectors Daily

For the first time, Grady says SGC will also offer a buying and selling platform for users, which will be ready by late this year.

“We are building a marketplace that will connect collectors across the world and facilitate transactions. Collectors will be able to make offers through the Pop Reports, the Registry, and our new platform. We anticipate that this marketplace will serve as a valuable asset to collectors and will also provide us with helpful real-time pricing data.”

This could be pretty cool, especially if they don’t take 10-20% of the sale like eBay or an AH.

[the 'stache]

I like the change to a 1-10 grading scale. But that gold label for pristine cards is hideous. A simple "10" is enough.

[deadballpaul]

One thing I would like, is for SGC not put "hand cut" on all W cards. Not all W cards are hand cut strip cards.

[TheRocket9]

I hope they are not just changing the label alone. I hope they introduce a new holder as well. Just changing the label doesn't do anything. They have done this several times already.

[Johnny630]

Will PSA continue to sell for a premium to SGC ? Or will these new changes help their product sell on par with PSA.

[conor912]

Originally Posted by Johnny630

Will PSA continue to sell for a premium to SGC ? Or will these new changes help their product sell on par with PSA.

My guess is if PSA even remotely saw SGC as a threat, they would have just bought them by now.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by conor912

My guess is if PSA even remotely saw SGC as a threat, they would have just bought them by now.

And my guess is PSA thinks competition is good. I doubt they would buy SGC regardless of the situation. But who knows? I know I need to send in another submission to SGC soon to keep my 18 yrs streak going. The only grader for me is SGC.....My one submission to PSA sucked and I doubt I go back to them to submit. I will still have cards in their holders but SGC gets my business for being the most accurate (not perfect) graders. BVG is a close second for me. If Beckett did a better job marketing their vintage they might get the prices they deserve. Until then SGC is my main choice. It sounds like the old flips are staying for now, which is a good thing for many. For me, flips aren't that important.

[CMIZ5290]

Originally Posted by Johnny630

Will PSA continue to sell for a premium to SGC ? Or will these new changes help their product sell on par with PSA.

Really? Holy cow....PSA will always command a premium over SGC...Prewar cards like T206s, not even close....

[Johnny630]

Originally Posted by CMIZ5290

Really? Holy cow....PSA will always command a premium over SGC...Prewar cards like T206s, not even close....

Seems like they demand a premium in all their cards. People are addicted to their registry and pop report.

[Peter_Spaeth]

I see the certs no longer have the dash and three numbers after what used to be the submission number, representing the cards within the submission. Is there somewhere they explain the change in cert. numbers?

[Anish]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I see the certs no longer have the dash and three numbers after what used to be the submission number, representing the cards within the submission. Is there somewhere they explain the change in cert. numbers?

Yeah, they said they randomized them for greater privacy.

[sb1]

The sequential cert and submission numbers made it very easy to ID bad card batches, you no longer have that tool to weed out some problematic cards.

[RedsFan1941]

Originally Posted by sb1

The sequential cert and submission numbers made it very easy to ID bad card batches, you no longer have that tool to weed out some problematic cards.

excellent point

[swarmee]

Originally Posted by Anish

Yeah, they said they randomized them for greater privacy.

I think the question is how they're going to square it with the current listing, both in the registry and pop report.
1) If they do a straight reholder, will the new flip have a new cert number?
2) Will it if they do a review submission where the card is being regraded?
3) Can both number types live together in harmony in their database?

[steve B]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I see the certs no longer have the dash and three numbers after what used to be the submission number, representing the cards within the submission. Is there somewhere they explain the change in cert. numbers?

PSA style obfuscation?

Nothing like making your business stand out by combining the worst features of your competitors.

[Republicaninmass]

Between this random number generator

Refusing to honor old label grades


Sudden attention to centering


The sweet embrace if death wont be long now. Since psa has failed any star cards and vintage signed cards, and SGC has added Phil Marks, I'll continue to send them signed cards, but that where it ends for me. On a recent sub they told me a psa 7 o/c equates to an SGC 2! The only saving grace from SGC was an accurate grade where anyone can judge centering, now that is out the window.

[Jdoggs]

Anyone have more pics of mantle 52 topps sgc 9 or t206 Wagner sgc 4?

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

This may have been addressed---if so I just missed it, but is the actual size/ dimensions of their slab going to remain the same?

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[vintagebaseballcardguy]

The holder looks the same, which is fine with me.

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[iowadoc77]

Saw them at the National today. I actually like the look. I know that puts me in the minority but I like them.

[dio]

I like it look better than the previous one. but still wish they use better material like beckett, and maybe security sticker like psa

[Neal]

Impressive

[griffon512]

The picture in a previous post doesn't give perspective on how large the number grade is on the flip. SGC is doing a lot of things right by collectors with the changes they are making, but the size of the number grade on the flip overshadows the card underneath. The close to uniform feedback I heard from other hobby collectors was that the size of the number grade should be reduced significantly to keep the focus on the card itself and not cheapen the look of the flip. I'm in that camp!

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

I am very curious as to how all of this is going to play out. With the exception of a couple of times during my first lifetime as a collector in the late 1990s-early 2000s when I submitted a few cards to PSA, I have only submitted to SGC. It has been a few years since I even did that. Lately, I have considered sending a few to SGC, but all this makes me ponder exactly where this will all end. I have a couple of football sets which are almost 100% SGC graded. I could live with the flips being different. However, if the holders themselves change in a substantial way and they don't resemble the SGC holders the rest of my sets reside in, I'm not sure that I would feel very good about it.

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[Marslife]

from the SGC display at the National:

wags.jpg

mickey.jpg

dont know why they rotated...

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

Maybe it's just the pic, but those holders look different, almost a translucent quality? Unless I am missing it, I don't see the black SGC gasket??

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[swarmee]

Gasket is definitely there.

[KMayUSA6060]

What are the show specials for this weekend at the National?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Within a month it will look normal, I predict. It only jumps out at people now because they aren't used to it.

[martuzzi]

So does this mean if you submit an existing SGC card to get reholdered, you’re exposed to the risk of it coming back labeled as “sheet cut”? Seems that’s what happened with the T204 Johnson - was previously a “clean” SGC 96 in the old holder.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by martuzzi

So does this mean if you submit an existing SGC card to get reholdered, you’re exposed to the risk of it coming back labeled as “sheet cut”? Seems that’s what happened with the T204 Johnson - was previously a “clean” SGC 96 in the old holder.

The world knew those were sheet cut anyhow, from a write up in REA and probably otherwise.

[swarmee]

Originally Posted by martuzzi

So does this mean if you submit an existing SGC card to get reholdered, you’re exposed to the risk of it coming back labeled as “sheet cut”? Seems that’s what happened with the T204 Johnson - was previously a “clean” SGC 96 in the old holder.

http://www.net54baseball.com/showthr...ighlight=ramly

[Republicaninmass]

Did they add the tagline "actively seeking submissions"?

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[vintagebaseballcardguy]

Sorry, Jason. I didn't intend to quote you.

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[Jason]

Quote away! Im not on the registry for say the reasons people are on PSA's registry. Not alot of competing going on at least on the sets I collect. SGC was more of a way for me to see my progress and store the cards in the album for quick digital reference. Everything changes.

[vintagebaseballcardguy]

I understand and agree. I can see how the changes would disrupt that.

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[TheRocket9]

I think they did a great job on the new labels. The quality looks much better and they are more professional looking. The labels were in desperate need of an upgrade so IMO this is a step in the right direction for SGC. Now I can't wait to see the new holders. Exciting times for SGC fans!

[Donscards]

I saw the new SGC Labels, the only thing I don't like is the Large Number grade--I just think it is too big and a bit enormous. Otherwise not bad.

[MartyFromCANADA]

Originally Posted by Donscards

I saw the new SGC Labels, the only thing I don't like is the Large Number grade--I just think it is too big and a bit enormous. Otherwise not bad.

I agree with Don. The number is too big.

[Andrew1975]

They were grading/slabbing on-site. I submitted these on Wednesday and got them back on Thursday afternoon. Personally, I like the new label. If I was being picky, I would say the grade number is slightly too big and the cert number is slightly too small.




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[Anish]

Originally Posted by Andrew1975

They were grading/slabbing on-site. I submitted these on Wednesday and got them back on Thursday afternoon. Personally, I like the new label. If I was being picky, I would say the grade number is slightly too big and the cert number is slightly too small.




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Those are sweet

[calvindog]

The black flip combined with the black insert is fantastic. I agree the number grade is too big.