SGC grading is super fast.

[BobC]

Originally Posted by ClementeFanOh

To nineunder71- It is very dangerous to suggest that SGC is returning cards
quickly merely because demand "may" be light. Not sure if you've ever been
to a Chick Fil A drive thru. TONS of customers, but they are met by a well
organized work force that knows it's stuff and gets the food to you fast. Now
imagine a McDonald's drive thru with a ton of customers. You can actually
grow a beard waiting in the same line. The reason? Less organization, less
happy employees, more foot dragging. SGC isn't perfect, but they provide
what so many of us lament as lacking from PSA- a great product, FAST.
(And no, I don't own a Chick Fil A or work for SGC

Trent King

Trent, the only one missing any points in this thread is you.

No one said or implied that SGC wasn't quick and doing a great job in turning around submissions. The implication was that SGC, as well as with PSA and other TPGs, turnaround times recently all seem to be getting better and faster, is an indication that the backlogs and new submissions are not at the levels they were not too long ago. No one said anything detrimental about SGC's work or business, which you used the ridiculous McDonalds/Chick-Fil-A drive thru time comparison to attack with. A grader at any of the TPGs is going to take a set, average amount of time, to grade a single card. And I would expect that that average grading time per card does not vary much, if any at all, between their best and worst graders. So unless a TPG has suddenly hired/added a lot of new graders, they are predictably going to be able to turn around and grade so many cards, per day, on average. So if they go from taking about three weeks (21 days) to grade and turn around someone's card submissions to now turning them around in say just 9 days, that invariably indicates that they have significantly reduced the backlog of cards they have to grade. And the only real way to significantly do that, again without having hired/added lots of new graders, is if the new submissions are coming in at a lesser number than the graded cards going out on a daily basis. That is just simple math! Now there could be other reasons that have a partial or temporary effect on these backlogs and how quickly cards are turned around, but arguably not like we're consistently seeing among all the TPGs turnaround times recently.

Regarding the Chick-Fil-A versus McDonalds comparison, could some of that drive-thru time difference also be a function of the different menus and number of items on them, as well as the inside, sit-down business they each may or may not have as well? And as for less happy employees and such, McDonalds primarily sells beef products, whereas Chick-Fil-A primarily sells you-know-what. It is also seems that poultry prices and supply haven't taken as big of a rise/hit as beef prices and supply appear to have lately. And as a result, McDonalds may in trying to maintain menu pricing without doubling the cost of Big Macs, not be able to simply increase employee wages to where more, and supposedly better, employees would sign on. Though they are both fast food businesses, they are not necessarily similar businesses in that their main products are totally different. And okay, so it takes a couple minutes more in McDonald's drive thru sometimes. Can you do a better and faster job of cooking the same burgers and fries at home as you can by going to McDonalds to get them? Assuming not, then McDonalds is still fulfilling their commitment to getting customers fast food at a somewhat reasonable price. Now if you were to compare McDonalds to say Burger King or Wendy's drive thru times, that makes a lot more sense. What you're doing seems to me more akin to comparing a pizza parlor to a gyro place, as far as order/preparation times and comparisons go.

I don't get what your beef (pun intended) is with the one poster who merely suggested that faster turnaround times are possibly an indicator that the submissions coming in are slowing down. That poster never said or implied that his comment was directed solely at SGC, but you sure seem to have taken it that way. His comment was also not attacking SGC, nor suggesting SGC was doing anything wrong, or even naming them. Before attacking him, did you even think to possibly ask him first if he was talking solely about SGC, or maybe about all TPGs in general? No you didn't, did you? And then others followed and posted how the dropping turnaround times are across all the TPGs, and that may indicate an overall drop in submissions for the entire TPG industry, not just SGC. And as also mentioned by other posters, that could then potentially spell some issues for all TPGs who hired/added a lot of new graders during the pandemic to deal with the backlogs and submission surges. Your defense of SGC against nineunder71 was merely that, and I quote, "SGC isn't perfect, but they provide what so many of us lament as lacking from PSA- a great product, FAST." No one said otherwise or disputed that.

But the fact that a lot more collectors/investors seem to want to send their cards to be graded by PSA because they tend to bring higher prices than any other TPG graded cards, and that PSA has recently started to lower their submission fees and expand submissions they accept, might that not also be a contributing factor as to why SGC could be suddenly experiencing fewer submissions, and therefore faster turnaround times as well? In addition, you apparently didn't even think of or mention the fact that there is a new qualified TPG out there, CSG, that is now competing against SGC, PSA, and BVG, and most likely taking away business from all of them as well. And of course, there is the economy itself, and the inflation we're in the midst of, that is also likely having an overall negative effect on the hobby, which will of course naturally extend to the grading of cards and their submission as well. If people start thinking that card prices may be going down in the near future due to the economy, doesn't it make sense that submissions will likely go down, at least for a period of time, as well?

Use some common sense and logic. Aside from hiring/adding many new graders, the only way SGC (or any other of the TPGs for that matter) could suddenly cut their backlog and dramatically improve their turnaround times other than by decreased submissions, wouldn't be due to sudden increases in efficiency. It would most likely be due to them telling graders to start cutting corners and not be completely thorough in the examination and grading of cards, so they can turn even more of them around faster and faster. Face it, there is going to be some minimal amount of time and effort to properly examine, grade, and encapsulate a graded card. And all these TPGs (with the exception of CSG) have been in the grading business for decades now. Do you really think that any of them have not already fine-tuned their grading processes and efficiencies so as to have each grader be able to turn out as many graded cards as they can each day, and thus maximize each company's potential for profits? I'd love to hear what sudden upgrade or changes to their procedures and operating efficiencies you're aware of that SGC has recently put into place that would otherwise explain the increased speed in their turnaround times.

If you can actually come back with ANY factual, logical or senseful arguments(s) to the contrary of what I or others have posted (because you sure haven't so far to anyone), I'm all ears. Actually convince me you're possibly at least partially right about something, and have some valid reasoning and arguments, not just the usual "Well I'm right and you're wrong!" crap I seem to most often get from a lot of others on this forum. Otherwise, you owe nineunder71 and Chase (Lorewalker) apologies!!!!!

(And for the record, I have no interest or anything to do with PSA, SGC, BVG, or CSG, and I sure as hell have nothing to do with McDonalds, Chick-Fil-A, or any other fast food place for that matter!)

[ClementeFanOh]

BobC-

1) I owe neither Lorewalker nor you, an apology.

2) Since sarcasm/ subtlety are beyond your comprehension, I
don't truly have a "beef" with Lorewalker. I feel compelled to call
foolish statements out for what they are.

3) You have strayed way beyond the point, not me. You are
operating under the notion that painfully long responses somehow
count for more. You're not being paid by the word, and it's been a long
time since I've read so much verbiage with so little content. You're like
Eugene O'Neill, except your manifestos are tripe.

4) Now then, high tail it to your nearest Chick Fil A with your list of
outstanding PSA submissions. Here's a test- write another load of pseudo
babble and be sure to post it as soon as you can. Make it full of anger and
admonition directed at me (I won't read it, but you will feel better). Then,
see which happens first- the arrival of your PSA cards, or the completion
of your magnum opus. I'll check back in a year.

Trent King

[vthobby]

is super fast!

SGC gets cards back quicker than other grading companies even load the order in their system.

Fact!

Those that know.......just know.

Chik-Fil-A references just make me hungry. Honest.

Moo!

[tod41]

Originally Posted by ClementeFanOh

BobC-

1) I owe neither Lorewalker nor you, an apology.

2) Since sarcasm/ subtlety are beyond your comprehension, I
don't truly have a "beef" with Lorewalker. I feel compelled to call
foolish statements out for what they are.

3) You have strayed way beyond the point, not me. You are
operating under the notion that painfully long responses somehow
count for more. You're not being paid by the word, and it's been a long
time since I've read so much verbiage with so little content. You're like
Eugene O'Neill, except your manifestos are tripe.

4) Now then, high tail it to your nearest Chick Fil A with your list of
outstanding PSA submissions. Here's a test- write another load of pseudo
babble and be sure to post it as soon as you can. Make it full of anger and
admonition directed at me (I won't read it, but you will feel better). Then,
see which happens first- the arrival of your PSA cards, or the completion
of your magnum opus. I'll check back in a year.

Trent King

Eugene O'Neill Trent? Leave a good Irishman alone. John Updike makes the point, perhaps better

[BobC]

Originally Posted by tod41

Eugene O'Neill Trent? Leave a good Irishman alone. John Updike makes the point, perhaps better

Tim,

Please don't feed a troll and give them more fodder to spew their ridiculous lies and statements about others. To complain like they do often demonstrates the attention span of a goldfish, and responses like that are frequently just an attempt to deflect and get around truly answering questions asked of them. Most likely because if they did honestly answer, it may show they were wrong to begin with, which they'll never admit to. Instead, they'll usually just come back at you with more sarcasm and hate.

I still haven't seen a single other poster in this thread agree to or support the premise that SGC has such a shorter turnaround time for grading cards than say PSA, primarily, or even just significantly, because of their organization skills or efficiencies. And what does that tell you?

By the way, Eugene O'Neill and John Updike are both great men and authors. Someone being compared to either of them wouldn't seem to me as a bad thing at all. To use such a literary heavyweight as Eugen O'Neill to supposedly make a sarcastic comment/insult directed towards someone by comparing them to him, ranks right up there with touting a Chick-Fil-A/McDonalds comparison to explain TPG turnaround times. No comment regarding the former, but the latter is most definitely a joke!

[55koufax]

I still haven't seen a single other poster in this thread agree to or support the premise that SGC has such a shorter turnaround time for grading cards than say PSA, primarily, or even just significantly, because of their organization skills or efficiencies. And what does that tell you?

Bob. Respectfully, and curiously wonder what it tells you?

Are you thinking they are dis-organized and inefficient?

[BobC]

Originally Posted by 55koufax

Bob. Respectfully, and curiously wonder what it tells you?

Are you thinking they are dis-organized and inefficient?

Good God no, I, and no one else in this thread, ever said or implied that SGC was disorganized or inefficient. Quite the contrary, it seemed to be the implication of one poster in this thread that it was PSA that was less organized and/or efficient in relation to SGC, and that that somehow, to that particular poster, helped to explain SGC's fast(er) turnaround times.

What no one else really posting their agreement to what that guy was saying tells me is that no one else truly thinks SGC having a faster turnaround time than PSA really has anything significant to do with SGC's organization or their efficiencies either. Yet he kept posting like he's right, others are wrong, and don't know what they're talking about.

Go back and read what I said in post #13. I surmised that the reason(s) behind ALL the TPG turnaround times recently starting to get faster is most likely due to the TPGs having recently hired/added more graders, or that the number of new submissions coming in each day are dropping below the number of cards they have going out and reducing the TPG's backlogs, or possibly even some combination of those factors. SGC is primarily getting cards turned around faster because they have fewer to grade relative the number of graders they have.

Now go read posts #2, 4, 6, and 9, and see how what they were saying was apparently misunderstood and attacked in posts #5, 7, and 11. I came to the defense of the earlier posters as they did nothing wrong in putting forth some of their thoughts and premises. But in countering their statements, the only facts/arguments the antagonist has given to them or anyone else that I can see is the ridiculous Chick-Fil-A/McDonalds drive thru comparison he made. And that is totally wrong as he makes it sound like ChicK-Fil-A gets food to their customers faster than McDonalds does because they are better organized/efficient, and then transfers that same logic/reasoning to SGC being faster than PSA. The joke is on him though because it is a fairly well-known and documented fact that Chick-Fil-A has the slowest drive thru times in the fast food industry. So how that supports an argument of SGC turnaround times being faster than PSA's is laughable. And of course, he didn't ever respond and explain how it could be relevant, probably because it isn't and never was (and he knows, but won't admit it).

[55koufax]

I get it Bob, thanks....

I am just trying to understand (from some of the veteran, quality collector's) if I can get my own mind to believe that SGC is worth the time and trouble to submit at $23 per..

Been thinking for about one year of trying them on a 100 card sub to hit $23 level. That said, of course I am concerned about what their graded value may be if I were to want to flip and sell most of them. We ALL know and agree their sales cannot match other TPGs, and if indeed values in general are dropping, likely not a great time for me to test the SGC waters.

[Orioles1954]

Originally Posted by BobC

Tim,

Please don't feed a troll and give them more fodder to spew their ridiculous lies and statements about others. To complain like they do often demonstrates the attention span of a goldfish, and responses like that are frequently just an attempt to deflect and get around truly answering questions asked of them. Most likely because if they did honestly answer, it may show they were wrong to begin with, which they'll never admit to. Instead, they'll usually just come back at you with more sarcasm and hate.

I still haven't seen a single other poster in this thread agree to or support the premise that SGC has such a shorter turnaround time for grading cards than say PSA, primarily, or even just significantly, because of their organization skills or efficiencies. And what does that tell you?

By the way, Eugene O'Neill and John Updike are both great men and authors. Someone being compared to either of them wouldn't seem to me as a bad thing at all. To use such a literary heavyweight as Eugen O'Neill to supposedly make a sarcastic comment/insult directed towards someone by comparing them to him, ranks right up there with touting a Chick-Fil-A/McDonalds comparison to explain TPG turnaround times. No comment regarding the former, but the latter is most definitely a joke!

I will say that Trent’s original premise of a highly functional SGC is just as valid as surmising that business is poor as mass lay offs are in the future. In reality, none of us know the truth.

[Lorewalker]

Originally Posted by Orioles1954

I will say that Trent’s original premise of a highly functional SGC is just as valid as surmising that business is poor as mass lay offs are in the future. In reality, none of us know the truth.

It is clear demand is down for all of the grading companies and this can be seen by their bringing back lower priced grading tiers and returning cards faster. We all agree prices are dropping on most cards. People will logically end up grading less. All of the big 4 expanded their payroll to meet the demand during the boom. I don't think it is a huge leap to think they might need to downsize.

[ClementeFanOh]

BobC-

1) For someone so enamored of words, you are remarkably poor at
understanding them. Multiple posters did in fact provide specific detail
about the speed of their returned submissions. For this next sentence,
read slowly and sound it out: a person/business who performs faster and
better than a competitor, even during a work glut, IS "efficient". It is
really strange that you'd take offense to the word- but it applies.

2) So you know my emotional state now? You're an empath- awesome!
The vast majority of my interactions and comments on net54 have been
for acquiring cards or complimenting them or their owners, and what
you've been reading from me isn't "hate"- nice try though. You are a
creature who is utterly incapable of understanding even basic subtlety or
nuance, so I'll bluntly say your behavior has become that of the "troll".
You even came back to this AFTER the talk turned to other matters. In
other words, look in a mirror, goldfish!

3) For the record, I did NOT "compare you" to Eugene O'Neill. Anyone with
a high double digit IQ could glean that from my comment. Instead, I
picture Alfred E. Neuman when I think of you.

4) Your posterior is mighty chafed, partner. I think you should invest in
some Triple A Gold Bond Medicated for that condition. I've heard it is
efficient!

Trent King

[BobC]

Originally Posted by Orioles1954

I will say that Trent’s original premise of a highly functional SGC is just as valid as surmising that business is poor as mass lay offs are in the future. In reality, none of us know the truth.

No one ever said or insinuated that SGC is not a highly functional business. Also, no one ever disputed SGC's overall turnaround times are faster than PSA's. But are you honestly suggesting that SGC's organization and efficiency could be the reason that SGC has a faster turnaround time than PSA?

The only real way to get a more true and accurate reflection of either one's turnaround time would be if you could send a similar card in for grading to each of them, that arrives on and at the exact same date and time, and most importantly, neither SGC or PSA has any backlog at all. As such, both cards would be available for immediate examination, grading, encapsulation, and return. That way you really could tell which of the two TPGs, SGC or PSA, actually may have the faster turnaround time due to their respective organizations and efficiency.

Aaahhhhhh, but the problem is they both have backlogs of cards to look at first before looking at the two cards you just sent in to test how fast their turnaround is. And I'm going to go out on an extremely thin limb and guess PSA's backlog is going to be waaaaaayyyyyyyy bigger than SGC's, so you'll probably get your graded card back way faster from SGC than you ever will from PSA. But what the hell does that faster turnaround time have to do with SGC's organization and efficiency then? Most likely not really a damn thing.

The backlog is currently the main thing likely impacting how fast either one of them can turn a card around. And what impacts that backlog, a combination of how many graders they have, how many cards on average each grader can examine every day, and lastly, how many new card submissions you have coming in on average every day. Pretty basic and simple math, more cards coming in every day than going out, the backlog grows, along with the turnaround time. More cards on average going out every day than coming in, the backlog shrinks, as does the turnaround time.

Funny how I don't really see where a TPG's organization and efficiency really have a significant impact on that very simple and basic formula. Especially when talking about SGC and PSA, since they have both been in business for decades now. And as they are both for-profit companies, one would highly expect they have both tweaked their organizations and efficiencies long before now in their efforts to maximize profits, to the point they have their graders going as fast as they can. And even if not for profit, one would logically think both TPGs would have tweaked their organizations to maximize efficiencies first, before even starting to hire more graders, in combatting the huge backlogs these past couple of years.

Now I've given you some logical and sensical business and real life arguments as to what mostly likely impacts these TPG turnaround times. And the fact, as other have posted, that the turnaround times of all TPGs appear to now be going down, is most likely due to a TPG hiring/adding more graders, and/or the number of submissions coming in to them every day on average going down. And there are multiple reasons the submissions could be going down. Among them, overall demand across the hobby for grading cards is going down (possibly influenced by the current economy), pricing differences when one TPG lowers their grading fees and therefore steals submissions from a perceived higher priced competitor, or even the formation and start-up of CSG as a new grading company definitely has them taking some submissions from all the other TPGs, as people in the hobby may want to try out the new TPG on the block.

So having said all this, want to explain to me again how Trent's original premise, that SGC's fast(er) turnaround time versus PSA apparently has something significant to do with their organization and efficiency, is actually as valid as the many points I've outlined and made, along with the logic, common sense, and facts I've presented with them? And by the way, just saying none of us know the truth is not going to cut it in this case. Can you give us any mature, logical, arguments or facts to really support the organization efficiency theory. He sure as hell couldn't/wouldn't.

And for the record, responding to someone's innocuous post and telling them what they said is definitively "very dangerous" implies that someone is potentially subject to harm or loss for merely giving their opinion on this forum. And without further explanation, reasoning or context, such a response can easily be seen and taken as an implied threat. The old carpenter's rule is pretty apropos in this instance - "Measure twice, cut once!". Except in this case it should be - "Think twice, post once!".