CGC Jumping into card grading?

[Leon]

Originally Posted by swarmee

I think he's talking about the inherent poor quality of gray cardboard stock. Natural fibers from the 50s and 60s would look like surface wrinkles to a computerized grading system or to a person trying to judge a vintage card using the exact same rules as modern cards. Vintage cards also had odder cuts (edge chipping, rough cuts, diamond cuts, tilt) that are forgiven as a vestige of their production style. Corners and centering can be judged the same (mostly), but edges and surface subgrades would need to be determined differently based on the age of production.

Obviously there is a huge demand for card grading; all three "major" companies are months behind in keeping up. This company will get business just like SGC has been overwhelmed in the past few months. I hold out hope that some TPG will figure out how to reject altered cards. Issue is that more scammers want their altered cards graded, than it seems there are honest submitters that want their cards returned if they were altered. So by being accurate and honest, it may lose them business overall.

It will also be interesting to see what their "Guaranty" is (since it's in the name) and whether or not they hem and haw about taking before and after pictures of the same card as evidence of alterations. Will also be interesting to see if they publish a list of the submitters they've banned due to previous bad acts or ones done while submitting to the company.

Price point will also matter. Looks like their CCG (Magic, Pokemon) service requires a membership to submit and has the following price structure:
https://www.cgccomics.com/submit/ser...s/cgc-grading/

Other alterations they'll need to be aware of: bleaching vintage. wiping off autographs from certified auto cards and then people having them signed in-person to get cleaner, autograph authentication in general, waxing/buffing out of scratches from chrome cards, swapped patches from jersey pieces inserted into cards, adding of fake stamps (Desert Shield, serial numbering taking a "backdoored/bankruptcy" card to "production", autopens, family member signatures on "certified manufacturer autograph issues, rebuilding corners, microtrimming, printed signatures passed off as real, etc.

There are a lot of ways the current TPGs are being defrauded. I wish them good luck.

Add: Even more alterations: counterfeit modern cards (Chinese 1990s basketball fakes), counterfeit vintage cards, "game-worn" patches the manufacturer puts in from counterfeit jerseys.

Unfortunately, I agree that being honest might be bad for business for a TPG. And that says something about our hobby nowadays. I have heard countless stories, from big dealers., about what their customers want. They want a label with a high grade regardless of anything else. Sad.

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