Why not Beckett?

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Posted By: Texas Ted

This is not intended to start a re-hash of why the other graders are good, bad or preferred, but why Beckett is never mentioned as an alternative for grading. Is there any segment of the card world, 50s, 40s, 30s where Beckett can be trusted for their opinions? What are the experiences that cause the silence on them? Lack of knowledge? Inconsistency? Price? Attitude? Perhaps some bone to pick over the price guides? Since I live in the Dallas area, it sure would be easier, and cheaper to have stuff graded locally, but not at the expense of making the stuff totally ignored.

And if anybody has anything nice to say about them, that would also be appreciated (although uncommon).

Texas Ted
Starting my third attempt at a second childhood.

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Posted By: dennis

i like to see vintage cards being sold in beckett holders (or scd) because they don't get high bids. the ones i have bought are graded fine(IMO). but there just aren't too many out there. If you use the search tool i think you'll find a lot about this topic. here is an example http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=31721&item=5192412085&rd=1&ssPageName=WDVW i bet the sell would have got more for this card raw.

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Posted By: dan mckee

Beckett and vintage do not go together. Though the current publisher of the Beckett thick guide is doing a great job and trying, they still have a long way to go. When you think of SCD you think of "shiny stuff". I haven't subscribed to that magazine in years. I was also bummed that they wouldn't run my PSA case, I sent them an article. It was the advertisement I ran in SCD that helped me find many other PSA customers that were mistreated and ripped off. SO with all of this said, when I think of Beckett grading, I think of Topps, Bowman, Shiny stuff. Dan.

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Posted By: Josh K.

I think part of the problem is their grading method. If you look at the example above, their subgrades are 3.5, 5, 4.5 and 2.5 and it got an overall 2.5. That is b/c beckett will not assign an overall grade that is more than .5 higher than the lowest subgrade (except in cases where 3 of the 4 subs are significantly higher than the lowest, an then it can not receive an overall grade more than 1 grade higher than the lowest grade). So, if you had a T206 with corners rated 9, surface rated 9 and edges rated 9, but centering only rated a 2, that card would get only a 3 overall grade from Beckett. Clearly that is just not an accurate way to grade vintage material. The card in the example above looks like a solid 4 to me (assuming no creases).

To say something positive, I do think that Beckett is considered the most respected service for new issues (ie the shiney stuff). My understanding is that beckett will command a premium over psa for any new stuff in identical grades b/c they are considered tougher graders.

I personally have a couple of beckett graded cards from the 50's and I got them for a steal compared to what they would cost if graded by sgc or psa (ex. '57 Frank Robinson rc graded 6.5 for under $100 - psa 6's are selling for about 150-175).

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Posted By: WP

Beckett is a good place to send your trimmed cards if you want them in holders. They have a tough time catching vintage alterations. The primary reason for this is their incompetant vintage grading team.

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Posted By: leonl

If you are going to make those kind of statements you will need to post your first and last name.....thanks for your understanding......moderator dude

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Posted By: Adam J. Moraine

Is the "Wally Post" on this board, the same Wally Post who played for the Phillies during the late 1950's?

Best Regards,

Adam J. Moraine

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Posted By: Mike P.

It seems every grading company has its niche. Beckett is definitely the prefered grader to many modern card collectors. I think beckett needs more expereince with pre-war cards. In my opinion, their ability is defined by their experience not by incompetence. I do agree with the above poster about the grading scale they use. I don't think modern and vintage cards should be streamlined together on the same grading criteria like beckett seems to do.

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Posted By: qualitycards.com

"Is the "Wally Post" on this board, the same Wally Post who played for the Phillies during the late 1950's?"

I hope not, Post died in 1982!

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Posted By: Richard

I agree with the above comments about the subgrade system and how it can often (unfairly) undergrade a card. This, along with the bias against Beckett Vintage graded cards, makes for some great deals (or steals) as a buyer.

As for a seller, I do not understand why someone would grade vintage material through Beckett strictly for resale purposes. Personally, I like their holders and do get some cards graded by BVG. These cards are not for resale, but for my personal collection. For preservation purposes, I would much rather have my cards in a sturdy Beckett case than a flimsy PSA case.

However, when I end up selling some of my personal collection, the inevitable question of "do I sell as is in the Beckett case or spend the extra $$ to cross it over to PSA" comes up.

I believe that "some" of the vintage cards that you see on ebay fall into this catagory - cards that may have been graded for a personal collection that the owner does not want to take the time or money to cross over for a better return.

Beckett is trying to make somewhat of a move with some recent specials such as $6 for vintage grading. This is why you are seeing more 50's through 70's material in BVG cases over the past month.

Their graders are still inexperienced by SGC and PSA standards, but I do believe that they are catching up. I also believe that PSA's grading rep is a little overdone with their employee turnover. I have my share of altered cards in both BVG and PSA holders. Both of these companies make their mistakes.

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Posted By: Darren J. Duet

Beckett is an expert 1948 and up. I too like bidding and buying Beckett graded vintage stuff--undergraded and great prices.