Is there a difference between a PSA 1 and PSA "authentic"

[ichieh]

anyone care to explain?

[E93]

In most cases "authentic" cards have been altered in some way. PSA 1s are simply in poor condition. I think there are times when the condition is so bad, such as when a significant percentage of the card is missing, that they will also grade it "authentic" even though it has not technically been altered.
JimB

[ichieh]

Then if a card was graded "authentic", how do i know whether it was altered or simply in such a poor shape that it was not good enough to be PSA 1?

[glchen]

Originally Posted by ichieh

Then if a card was graded "authentic", how do i know whether it was altered or simply in such a poor shape that it was not good enough to be PSA 1?

If it's a nice looking card, and the grade is authentic, it's altered. If it's a horrible looking card, then it could be both altered and extremely poor or "just" poor. I think PSA also puts the ALTERED qualifier for PSA Authentic.

[ichieh]

i don't try to be a smart ass here, but if a card is authentic, but condition is worst than PSA 1 "Poor", why not give the card "0.5" grade instead of authentic, and leave the grade "authentic" for altered cards only.

[philliesphan]

From a condition perspective, it is not possible for a card to be so mangled that it cannot grade at a 1.0 level. There are times when a card is too fragile to be encapsulated -- but a card would never get an authentic grade because it did not meet the standards of a 1.

Sometimes, a collector wants their card authenticated, without a grade assigned, and it is possible to get a card authenticated as such. This is most often seen with autographed cards, hand cut cards, etc. Beckett and SGC also offer this service. But typically an Authentic grade is reserved for cards that have been altered in a meaningful way.

[glchen]

Originally Posted by ichieh

i don't try to be a smart ass here, but if a card is authentic, but condition is worst than PSA 1 "Poor", why not give the card "0.5" grade instead of authentic, and leave the grade "authentic" for altered cards only.

I think the reason is that the card is in such horrible condition, it could have been trimmed or altered at some point. However, the card is in such bad condition, it's impossible to tell. For example, corners that are very rounded. Maybe one of the owners used scissors to round those corners, or maybe it was just horrible abuse. But those corners are in real bad shape.

[ichieh]

So why is this card a "1" instead of "authentic"?

[Matt]

That case has a bit too much frosting for my taste.