Your Best Raw Card Success Story

[Chris-Counts]

I've told my one grading success story here before, but I'll summarize it again. I picked up seven "colorized" 1940 Play Ball card at the S.F. Cow Palace show a couple years ago. The seller thought some kids colored them in. Later I described the cards to Mike Baker at GAI and he encourage me to send them in for grading. I sent him several, and for a couple months, they sat in the GAI office. Finally the cards came back with the explanation that they were "too controversial" to grade. Mike confirmed with me that one prominent dealer in particular was campaigning against their authenticity, but he said he believed they were legitimate. So I took the cards to SGC's table at the National in Anaheim. I showed them to several of their representatives, and they repeated the story about the previously-mentioned dealer. Out of frustration, I handed them a card of Frank Demaree and said, "Please, take this card back to your lab, and if you have to destroy it in a science experiment, go ahead. I'm convinced these cards were printed in color and I'm willing to sacrifice one to prove it." The rep from SGC took the card, and a few weeks later it was returned in a slab identifying it as a proof. It graded excellent. Here's the card before it was slabbed ...

[calvindog]

Originally Posted by Chris Counts

...Later I described the cards to Mike Baker at GAI and he encourage me to send them in for grading.

Did this conversation occur on a Sunday night?

Originally Posted by Chris Counts

I sent him several, and for a couple months, they sat in the GAI office.

I know, I can't get anything done either when I only go to work on Mondays.

Originally Posted by Chris Counts

Finally the cards came back with the explanation that they were "too controversial" to grade.

Yeah, far be it from Mike Baker and GAI to get involved in anything controversial.

[wolfdogg]

Got a 1915 Cracker Jack Joe Wood in a trade (guy told me he would take $300 in trade). Later sent it to PSA and returned an 8 NrMT-MT.....since been sold

[Fred]

A few years ago a D304 Cobb came on ebay with a BIN. I must have been the first person to see it. I emailed the seller and asked if I could return it if it were found to be a reprint. The seller immediatley responded and said "yes". I BIN'd it, submitted it and got it graded for about $500. The card actually presents better than the grade.

I picked up one of those 4-1 Goudeys with three HOF players. I probably paid less than $50 for it. I sat on it for a while then submitted it and it came back an SGC84.

[DeanH3]

Back in the mid 90's I was buying raw 50's. When I finally bought into the grading scene in the late 90's I submitted a few of my cards.

1955 Al Kaline graded PSA 8
1955 Ernie Banks graded PSA 5
1956 Sandy Koufax graded PSA 8
1956 Roberto Clemente came back trimmed
1961 Roger Maris graded 8
1959 Duke Snider graded PSA 8

[Doug]

I bought a 1961 Topps Juan Marichal rookie and a 1961 Topps Roberto Clemente from a guy that worked at my bank for $20 each. The Marichal graded a PSA 7 and the Clemente got a PSA 8. I ended up getting $100 for the Marichal and $250 for the Clemente.

[jbsports33]

When I first started collecting pre-war cards, that first summer I went into a local shop and found a Old Judge Connie Mack. I did keep it until really started buying T206 cards when I traded it for some Hall of Famers. I paid 250.00 for it and later got 1500.00 in trade

Jimmy

[sox1903wschamp]

I think around the late 90's I made a deal for a real nice T-207 Speaker and a raw T-207 Cicotte was thrown it that was thought to be trimmed. I figured it was a filler until I found another but was never sure if it was actually trimmed. In 2008 I sent the Cicotte into SGC and it came back a 50

[FrankWakefield]

.

[Exhibitman]

I picked up a couple of raw 1954 Bowman cards: Reese and Furillo. Came back SGC 88s. I still have them; just great looking cards.

I've also had a few 1971 Topps come back as 9s. Nice when that happens.

In terms of prewar, I bought a raw R94 Ruth that came back a 60 from SGC, a V61 Heilmann that came back a 70, a Tattoo Orbit O'Doul that came back an 80, and a 1939 Play Ball Hubbell that pulled an 84.

[Irwin Fletcher]

My two best so far:

1960 Fleer Arky Vaughan - Bought for $1.99 on eBay, sent it in to SGC and came back as a 96

1933 Goudey Harry McCurdy - Bought for $20 on eBay, sent it in to SGC and came back as an 80