Do creases still bother collectors as much

[TheNightmanCometh]

Originally Posted by Leon

I am ok with creases (on some cards that are relatively expensive) but not in the facial area. However, centering is what I care about most. It doesn't have to be a 4, it could be a 2. This one might skew some vcp...

With the '51 Bowmans I have the creases are in the corners or near the corners. Definitely agree that a big crease that covers the player is a creased card I don't really want.

[mrmopar]

You take what you can get on tough issues, but I'd rather not have any creasing or bad centering. I am not a big spender though, so this is rarely an issue. I wait for a better copy if I need to.

I have a 56 T Mantle that has some light creasing but it still looks decent and I didn't want to spend the bigger $$ for a better one.

[pokerplyr80]

I picked the centered 4 with the crease but only because I wouldn't even consider the other two. It would have to be a very tough card, something along the lines of Leon's 52 Mantle for me to seek out a card with a crease. A card I could not otherwise own. A Ruth RC, CJ Cobb, Matty, Jackson, etc. I would take a centered card with a spider wrinkle all day in those cases. If I can afford to wait for a better example with other cards I will.

[Harliduck]

This discussion has mainly been about graded cards, and I own my share of high end SGC cards, but creases are an absolute deal breaker for me. In my youth my prized card was a 65 Namath RC. It was perfectly centered and corners were sharp...but it was creased right through the middle. I was the local hero for owning it (pre-internet most only saw cards like that in a book or a becket) and as much as I LOVED the card, I hated it too.

Being a set builder, I will never buy a card with any creasing. OC (to a degree) is OK...corners can be a little fuzzy...but zero creasing. My set standards are 4 to 7's ideally and I am sure I have a few that could grade higher. Anything that comes in my initial lots that don't meet my criteria I upgrade after the set is done (or during as I keep a list).

So for me, creasing is completely out. I respect the high grade collectors here that covet centering, and I am sure if most of you guys were looking through my binders you would often cringe...haha..but you won't find creases. There are the obvious exceptions...I wouldn't turn down ANY shape 52 Mantle, but even my 55 Clemente is crease free (SGC 4, PSA would give it a OC).

[itjclarke]

Personally, I'd choose a nice, sharp cornered, clean image card that's OC over a perfectly centered one with a crease. I also remember creases as the "kiss of death" when collecting as a kid, and know all my friends who collected back then felt similar.

I think that it was very different then though, when we actually handled ALL our cards raw. You could see the creases more easily and often feel them, as well as feel how different dinged corners felt than razor sharp. Now most available/for sale high value cards are graded, and I think the premium on flaws that stood out more on a raw card (creases, fuzzy corners or edges, indentations, etc) are less noticeable to collectors who may never even touch the card (I own many I'll likely never touch).

Though it seems centering has probably always been appreciated, I think it's premium is in part driven recently by the fact these cards will forever be framed in a TPG holder. I think this draws more attention to the card's framing, and the fact the card will never be handled, minimizes the negative impact of crease/wrinkles, etc.

[bobsbbcards]

No creases for me please. I've also sold off nicely centered out of focus PSA 9's and kept a slightly off-center PSA 8 (1967 Topps #1 for instance)--out of focus is worse than a crease, although both are deal breakers.

I don't mind a non-Q centering issue--they came out of packs that way, so that's good enough for me. I've recently added a MC 1948 Leaf to my collection that is gorgeous except for the MC thingy. I couldn't have sprung for a PSA 8 of the card or even a 7, so a PSA 8MC is the best I can do. I'll find the link to the auction in a second.

[bobsbbcards]

Found it:

[MCoxon]

Thanks for responses so far. the poll as of now shows:

70% PSA 4, with spider wrinkle
5% PSA 6, off registration
25% PSA 7, off-centered

A good distinction has been made between people considering PSA 4 cards for really high-end and/or scarce cards, where allowances are more likely for creases/wrinkles - "you take what you can get", versus if a card is plentiful and relatively affordable, many collectors would still prefer a card without a crease.

Also, definitely a crease through a face is far worse than a spider wrinkle on a border or away from the portrait area of the card.