Posted By:
Al C.risafulliI love graded cards.
I love ungraded cards.
Some cards, I buy raw, and get graded.
Some cards, I buy graded, crack out of their holders, and keep them raw.
Some cards, I buy graded, crack out of their holders, and then send them to another grading company.
Does it really matter?
I don't consider it to be jading myself if my first thought is grading. For instance, if I see a really cool raw card for my HOFer collection, the first thought I have is "That's a great card. I wonder if it will grade?" I think this way because my HOF collection is all in SGC holders, and they look great displayed together.
If I see a really cool card in another grading company's holder, I think "I wonder if this card will cross?" Because if it doesn't, then maybe I paid a PSA 7 price for an SGC 6, and I don't like doing that.
Other times, though, I look at a graded card and say "Wow, that's going to look really great when I break this card out of its holder and stick it in a binder with my other raw cards.
It all depends on how I store or display whatever it is I'm buying.
-Al