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Brian H (misunderestimated)1.) Which of three major companies do you use and trust the most and why?
I use both PSA and SGC. So far I personally have had no negative experiences with either company. PSA is larger and far more bureaucratic if any problems arise. SGC is smaller and you can even talk to the graders if need be. Both make mistakes. It is easier to get SGC to fix its errors because it is smaller. I generally like the SGC holders more and also their expanded grading scale. Conversely, PSAs cards are generally more marketable although this is less the case with vintage than more recent issues.
In particular I like the job SGC does relative to PSA with Old Judges and Mayos. I think SGC figures the peculiarities of the set into its grading more effectively -- SGC recognizes the inherent problems of the cards and is not as fixated on grading the backs as PSA.
For me the jury is out on GAI. I think that GAI grades a bit more generously than the other two based on my admitedly limited experience.
2.) Which of the above companies seems to have better resale if any in your opinion?
I think PSA wins this one. SGC is certainly close on vintage (pre-WWII) cards -- especially the less popular issues where the PSA Registry isn't affecting the market as much.
PSA pretty much obliterates SGC on what I call the baby boomer cards (1948-1980). After that SGC is barely a player and BGS is PSA’s primary competition.
3.) Do you feel graded cards have had a positive or negative effect on our hobby?
I think that on the whole they are a good thing – especially when purchasing online. I must emphasize that this only applies to the better grading companies. While there will always be subjectivity in grading and even (very rarely) detecting trimming and other mischief, the better grading companies have decreased that subjectivity significantly.
4.) Do you feel ultra high-end mega buck cards are a sound investment, or overpriced hype and marketing?
No clear answer: Some are — some aren’t.
5.) Does having your cards graded always assure you better profits when selling vs. non-graded?
Not always but most of the time. After all many of the buyers of non-graded cards (especially dealers) are thinking about grading the “raw” cards. Also, much of the time I find myself being skeptical about certain ungraded cards because they are not graded. “Why didn’t the seller get them graded?” I wonder. “Were these raw beauties returned as ungradeable?” I sometime fear. I am especially weary of ungraded decent condition cards from certain sets – T205, T202, Mayo and Cracker Jack come to mind.
6.) Which of the above companies is the most consistent in there(its) grading in your opinion?
Over the short haul both PSA and SGC are fairly consistent – if you go back more than a few years there is less consistency. Because vintage cards are generally graded with the same small allocation of time as newer cards and they are far more complicated and rare the graders tend to make more errors and there tends to be more of a difference from grader to grader over time. I don’t feel sufficiently informed to comment on GAI.
7.) Do you feel any of the above companies are biased or give special treatment and considerations to larger customers of there’s. As compared to the avg. consumer?
I would be surprised if this didn’t go on to some degree with all companies. I have heard stories and theories about preferential treatment (especially on the part of PSA which has graded the most cards by a lot) but I have no first hand knowledge.
8.) Do you ever feel graded cards and companies will go away or will they become even more prominent in our hobby?
I don’t think they will go away – I think that all of the grading companies discussed above may not exist in their current form in the near-future. I recall a rather loud rumor a year or so ago that GAI and SGC were going to merge. Also, I haven’t examined the books (accounting) so I don’t know how these companies – or their parent companies – are doing. If nothing else the holders generally keep the cards safe and confer some legitimacy on the cards inside.