New Member: ObsessedWithSports

[nat]

I don't know that most of us do mostly buy graded. I certainly don't. It's a good idea if you're after something that's actually expensive, but for the lower-tier stuff I think it's usually not necessary.

It's true that there's somewhat more risk with buying raw cards, but it's a risk that can be mitigated. Spend some time learning to spot fakes. A few commons from the sets you're interested in, plus a loup will go a long way towards that. Also don't buy from sketchy sellers, don't buy cards listed as "unknown".