Old vs. New Condition Standards

[Archive]

Posted By: Plastic Dog

I passed out and was dragged in to my couch. But my friends who managed to remain standing ended up getting arrested. I was awoken by a phone call in the middle of the night to go bail them out . . . ah, the good old days. Now, I just yell from my own patio while watching a game on TV. Beer is much cheaper that way, and no line for the toilet.

But on to Pete's comments: Pete, I don't think the pendulum has swung. In fact, I still think that the grading companies generally overgrade top cards. A mint card should be perfect. I have yet to see a perfect card. Give me an SGC 96 or a PSA-10, and I will find the tiniest of defects which should make the card NM. Plus, there was so much doctoring going on in the 1970s and 80s by most dealers (when it was still unethical, but maybe just not as horribly unethical as today) that I think close scrutiny of cards is warranted and necessary. In my book there's still only 4 grades: NM, EX, VG, and Fair-Good. If it's not NM, it's EX. If it's got a crease, stain, or really bad corners, it's VG. And if it looks mutilated, it's Fair-Good. I don't mind people making subtle distinctions - all the power to them. But I pay based on my own perceived grading scale. But Mint is still a hypothetical grade that cannot be attained in reality.