D304 Young

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Posted By: Charlie Barokas

Jay,

Wow, there you go again trying to twist someones words around.

The point is: Grading is here to stay. Mistakes will happen frequently. And those who have the most cards graded with the highest dollar value will do what they have to do to protect their invesment.

While I understand that Zach and others have alot of knowledge about vintage cards, it is another thing to think that they can grade cards more accurately from a scan then the graders in the grading room.

Most graders will not even issue a final grade until cracking a card out of a holder in order to see all the angles and nuances. So I think it is ridiculous to think someone could grade cards based on a scan alone.

I am all for holding grading companies to account but it seems pretty one-sided here. I think that there are some people that believe the more mistakes they find that PSA makes the more they can make PSA and grading go away. I will choose to focus on the positives of grading and the countless times Mike Baker at GAI has saved me from huge losses.

While the big boys will protect there investment in Graded cards the little guy has the most to gain from grading. Everytime a small time collector reveals a 33 Goudey from the attic instead of asking the person who is trying to buy the card from them what it is worth they can sent it to PSA. PSA will then issue them a grade with the grade they now can cross reference with the price guide. This gives them the right amount of information to sell the card a true market price instead of a dealer price.

It is because of this that I wonder if some old-timers have a vested interest against grading because it has taken away the information arbitrage that used to exist. For example, the dealer or person who knows the most makes the most money or more favorable trade. In todays third-party grading world, if you take that Goudey Ruth from the attic and get it graded and it comes back an "8" you are guaranteed to get more than five hundred bucks. Its an insurance policy against getting taken advantage of by someone who knows more than you. It has leveled the playing field and allowed more people to get involved. All of these things are good things. I wish there was more talk about this. I will be the first to complain about a grade or two everytime I submit cards but there is so much anger and hostility towards grading that it makes you wonder if the anger is focused in the wrong direction.

I gave you Jay and you Zach an opportunity to apologize and both of you declined. As a result, you can understand how there are still hard feelings.