Thanks for the interesting video. Makes a lot of sense. I actually have a raw 1954 Banks card in what appears to be EX+ condition that I'm thinking about sending to SGC or PSA.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Appreciate the positive feedback. That 1954 Banks is one of my all time favorites!! Awesome card. Thanks for watching and commenting.

I like the comparative analysis. And the cards shown as well (haha). That Ernie Banks card is one of my favorites. I know several people swear by the scoring companies, since they are professionals in the field and therefore (in theory) harder to fool (for old vintage cards). I can see that point I guess, especially since we are buying so many cards off of Ebay. But as you showed in the video, assigning worth to what someone scored something as is also very expensive. Very cool video!

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Wow. That means so much. Thanks for the kind words. I put TONS of time into all of my videos. So when I get positive feedback, it truly means a lot. Thanks so much!!

Interesting. And you made some really good points

Agree with you 100%. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for watching and commenting. It really means a lot. Thank you.

Love the content. Great advice. Keep it coming.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much. I really appreciate it. Thanks for watching and commenting.

Its hard to see the surface and corners on these pix. But some of them you are right.

@MidLifeCards

3 ай бұрын

It's not an exact science. It's more food for thought.

Such a great video. Most don’t understand new/old labels until they have been in this a while. The ones who want the higher grade are about the scarcity/investment/resale. I try to stick with Grade number to a decade (50’s = PSA 5) and that makes most (except my 48 Leaf chase) achievable and we would get good cards but in the end you need to buy the card and not the grade. I bought a 49 Bowman Jackie that was PSA 3 with a MK qualifier - a tiny blue dot on his hat. Other than that it was beautiful and the dealer prices it as a PSA 1. I bought the card and will never sell it.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

That’s awesome!! I think collecting the grade of the decade makes a lot of sense. Makes it realistic and still solid cards. I love that 49 Bowman Jackie card. I wish I had one myself. I really appreciate you taking the time to watch the video and comment. It really means a lot, thank you.

Great video, I like getting my cards graded to make sure they are authentic and protected. Think we all want the highest grade we can get but regarding which card to buy I totally agree to buy the card, not the grade. I think there are so many variables, a PSA card graded 15 years ago and one graded now are not even graded the same!

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Very well said!!

I agree with the set registry argument, but to me, and you were spot on about the older certs being "overgraded". Doubt they used a loop in the '90s when they started drafing cards. To me, the biggest thing with PSA is POP CONTROL! I'd be willing to bet that the "Old Boy Network" has the higher grades in certain cards, especially Vintage rookies, and most of those jacka$$es are/were affiliated with PSA. Just my humble amateur opinion. Wasn't a sub, but I am now. Love this content!!

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Really appreciate the sub. That means a lot. It's interesting how polar opposite some people are. I had a comment on a different video about an hour ago that told me I was crazy for suggesting older grades were higher than newer ones. I tend to agree with you...they're grading MUCH HARDER now. Sure, there are some older grades that hold up, but there are more that don't. Thanks for watching and commenting. Really appreciate it.

@CitizenX367

Жыл бұрын

@@MidLifeCards Just another example of why I will keep 99% of my collection ungraded. The 1% will be a mix of HOF cards from each set. Love raw cards and if we're to be honest: Only the "experts" at the grading companies can discern a card is fake, trimmed, colored, etc, so it's doubtful anyone viewing your cards would think it is. If you have a collection, you know the sweet stink of a real Vintage card. I don't need some 25 year old kid they trained for 90 days to tell me a card is real. And if I were to buy something in person and find out it wasn't the real deal, BRAVO to that artist! 👏

One of the best common sense videos I’ve watched. Personally, I’m not a fan of grading companies. There is lot to be said about the subject though and I’ve watched others discuss it as well. It sure can’t be addressed in my tiny reply. But I will say this. Consistency seems to be a big issue. When you can send in a card multiple times and get multiple grades, that’s a red flag. Again, nice video. You and others have said it the best, buy the card, not the grade.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Thanks so much for taking the time to watch the video and leave a compliment. I genuinely feel honored when anyone takes the time to watch content I've created. Something that I didn't say in the video, or any of my videos for that matter, is I believe the MAIN reasons for grading companies, is EBAY. People want to buy cards on ebay, because so many people don't have access to cards otherwise. Or, they have access to cards, but not the ones they want to own. People don't like buying raw cards on ebay because you can't really trust a picture and don't really know the condition of the card. What the grading companies provide, is a way for people to buy cards on ebay with a "fairly good" idea of what the condition of the card is. If ebay and online sports card sales went away, I think grading companies would take a major hit. If a person lives in a metropolitan area that they have access to big card shows somewhat regularly, I think buying raw cards that you've set your own eyes on and evaluated, it probably the smartest thing for a COLLECTOR to do. If you're in it for an "investment", then grading is probably still the way to go, because it gives you access to sell worldwide. It's definitely an issue with many dynamics. Thanks again for watching and commenting. I truly appreciate it.

Great video, A few thoughts: the registry definitely plays a part, but in addition, people just want higher grades on cards. In a similar way that people will buy a smaller number size on clothes if presented with two options where the actual size of the article of clothing is the same - just human psychology. Also, yes you can gauge centering, edges, and corners from pics but it’s tough to gauge the overall eye appeal without the card in hand. Since the lighting plays such a huge part. For example colors can look washed out or bright based on set up. Also, you were only judging the front and never considered the back. There could be wrinkles light stains etc. But yes, overall I agree with you and your point is well taken.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Good points. I like the analogy of the clothing sizes. And I agree about not showing the backs of the cards. The problem was that I wanted to compare as many as possible side by side and including the backs would make that impossible. But I agree with your point for sure. I appreciate you taking the time to watch the video and comment. It means a lot to me whenever people spend time watching any of my content, so thank you.

We see the same thing in graded numismatic coins, and the CAC sticker (from another grading verification service) will sticker a coin that is at the top for the grade. While putting together my 1975 Cincinnati team set, I have had to look at several hundred cards to get the best of the best.... Yet I will still have to do about 5 upgrades, as I couldn't find the right card to meet my expectations. I seen 7's that look better than 8's and 9's.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

No doubt about it. Ultimately, as long as humans are doing the grading, there will always be imperfections in the system. Similar to umpires calling balls and strikes.

This is what Collectors Universe group wants. This has been the case with PCGS in coins for some time now. The focus is on registry sets and people who have more money than they know what to do with will lose their minds in auctions just to have the best graded coin (or card in the case of PSA) for that year and type. For a long time we’ve said to buy the coin, not the slab and now I hear the same in cards.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

No doubt about it. I agree with you 100%.

I am a big fan of your channel and of your views on the hobby. When I watch other channels on here, like Sports Card Investor, it is clear that today's collectors and the prices, are greatly influenced such creators.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Can’t tell you how much I appreciate those words. Since I started my channel, I’ve remained determined to stay true to my beliefs on the hobby and attracting subscribers. So many other channels sell out to trends and promoting companies, that I don’t really believe most of what they say. Many other channels do giveaways to get new subscribers, but I’m not going to do that. I want people to subscribe for the content, not some free drawing. Now, that being said, when I hit 1000 subscribers I will do some free giveaways as a way to thank everyone who helped get me there…but not as a way to inflate my numbers. Everything I post, I truly believe and feel, and it’s not to try and placate anyone. Appreciate you a lot. Thank you.

Oh, I forgot to mention. With Numismatics, we have a grading scale Poor 01 thru MS 70. Often the P-01 is worth more that even a G-04, due to the registry set peeps competing for the "Lowest" graded set, as well as the best graded set.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

That's interesting. Similar to how PSA doesn't give many "half" grades, so those pops are low as well.

Doesnt the back matter to some degree. Sure the fronts might look slightly better but maybe the backs have a more noticible difference. I don't think the back should factor in much, but when grading it can knock 1 or 2 down.

@MidLifeCards

5 күн бұрын

Yes. It does matter to some degree. No question. But, I checked the backs on all of these and there were no major issues on them.

To me, the PSA registry should only be used to verify if your slab is authentic. It shouldn't have POP numbers for graded cards. That POP number greatly influences the prices more than it should.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Agreed!! Thanks for watching and commenting, and I think you make a really good point!!

I'd love to see a video of someone who buys 10 'below pop average' vintage cards, cracks them out, and submits them to PSA and see how many graded either below, same, or above the existing grades. If its this subjective, which it is, maybe there are arbitrage opportunities here.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

I agree. That would be a super interesting video. I’ve talked to several people who have cracked SGC slabs and gone to psa with success. And I also know people that have cracked psa and resubmitted with success. But I agree that a video on it would be really interesting.

The back of the card is just as important as the front when grading. The front might be near perfect, but if the back is off centered then it could drop it two grades or more. Remember, PSA grades the card exactly how they received it. If there are fingerprints, then that can be a huge negative no matter what the rest of the condition. Always wipe the card down with a soft cloth before submitting.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Totally agree and I definitely get it. For collectibility purposes, most people overwhelmingly are more interested in the looks of the front.

@Politano1955

Жыл бұрын

@@MidLifeCards Absolutely true. But the only reason to grade (in my opinion) would be as a future investment to sell someday or pass on to family members. Many that are just collectors like myself never have any intention of giving up some of our sacred vintage cards so really no need to spend the money to grade. Our love of the card is the grade.

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

@@Politano1955 Well said and I don't disagree.

Wait using your eye don't always tell the full story, you need to look at the cards under magnification, what I don't like is that psa don't use sub grades, I think sub grades should be a standard in the hobby instead of this guessing game.... also I don't like the rule that a card can't grade more then a full point above the lowest grade... it should be an avg of all sub grades.... but you need graded cards because most people buying cards can't physically see them.... and a picture can be manipulated and hard to see the card

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

You make great points. I don’t disagree with any of that. Sub grades should definitely be the standard.

Idiots keep buying the slab, let them keep it up

@MidLifeCards

Жыл бұрын

Lol. That’s a strong way of saying it for sure. 😆 I’m simply suggesting people focus on what they like instead of what PSA does. I appreciating you watching and taking the time to comment.