The pros and cons of grading your PC - I'm so conflicted

[jwillgrails]

Hey guys,

I have been back and forth in my mind a million times about grading my PC.

I collect Jason Williams cards from the 90s and have them all stored in penny sleeves, top loaders and team bags.

I own about 10 graded cards in total - mostly MJ's, Kobe's and a Luka. They're also PC cards but they sorta double as long-term investments.

I can categorically say I will never, ever sell my J-Will collection. It's been a labour of love for 20 years and it's truly my pride and joy.

Whilst I don't have anything crazy expensive, I've got several cards that would comfortably sell for a few hundred dollars nowadays (i.e. Flair Showcase Legacy RC /99)

A big part of me wants to grade them to protect them and maximise their value for when I eventually pass them onto my kids. I think a few of them would likely gem, significantly increasing their value.

The other side of me doesn't want to go through the headache of submitting to PSA and waiting for months. Not to mention the fact it'd be expensive. Not to mention I live in Australia so shipping is a pain and I'm worried the cards would get lost in transit.

I'm also pretty OCD so I feel like if I started grading a few of my nicer J-Will's, I'd end up wanting to grade everything in the name of consistency.

What does everyone else do with their PCs?

Help! I've added a poll.

[sebreg]

Since you're not in a hurry I'd at least wait till the backlogs and turnaround times get closer to normal. Not big on grading but I grade some of the more valuable cards so I have flexibility in case I need or decide to sell. But since you don't plan on selling I'd imagine no need to prioritize grading during the backlogs.

[BreaultCards]

If you can mentally handle it... Grade a few of the nicest ones over time and leave the rest raw.

[Hellcat]

Sign up as a member at PSA I think the bottom level is $79 a year. Then submit your cards in a bulk order they will cost you pre-2018 only $12 a card plus shipping and insurance. Yes it will take almost a year but you will love it when you get your cards back and wished you had done it sooner!

[Chryghst]

I personally feel once PC Cards are graded it’s very hard to appreciate the card itself without letting the grade cast a shroud over it. My entire PC is in one touches and I prefer it that way. The card is then central, not the grade.

I also have a belief, perhaps an irrational one, that the same card in the same condition released in 2015, for example, graded in 2050 vs 2015 will grade better. The further away from release the less frequently a grading company will see that card, especially in good condition. If you are keeping the card forever, and do feel the need to grade it, grading immediately after release is best and grading as far away from release is second best. I’d avoid the in between. The investment cards I would also wait to grade until you are prepared to sell. Grading company preference changes over time, grading premiums change over time, and you may as well save the expense and long distance shipping headache until all of this information is clear closer the time of sale. Just my thoughts.

[sethc1020]

"Grade everything that is valuable" is a bit vague because valuable can mean many different things. Thats what I voted for but was thinking of something that is rare and valuable. I think rare items should be graded to help preserve them over time no matter the grade.

[sebreg]

I personally feel once PC Cards are graded it’s very hard to appreciate the card itself without letting the grade cast a shroud over it. My entire PC is in one touches and I prefer it that way. The card is then central, not the grade.

I also have a belief, perhaps an irrational one, that the same card in the same condition released in 2015, for example, graded in 2050 vs 2015 will grade better. The further away from release the less frequently a grading company will see that card, especially in good condition. If you are keeping the card forever, and do feel the need to grade it, grading immediately after release is best and grading as far away from release is second best. I’d avoid the in between. The investment cards I would also wait to grade until you are prepared to sell. Grading company preference changes over time, grading premiums change over time, and you may as well save the expense and long distance shipping headache until all of this information is clear closer the time of sale. Just my thoughts.

I MUCH prefer the aesthetics of a raw card in a one touch. I think the graded slabs don't look all that good for the most part.

[smalltown]

I MUCH prefer the aesthetics of a raw card in a one touch. I think the graded slabs don't look all that good for the most part.

I’m 100% with you.

But as others have said and you’re intent of grading these so your kids can sell them better (might be a mute point by the time they do) I’d wait. No point in rushing to wait. The back log is huge. Also there will likely be significant changes in grading technology and practices over the next decade or two.

[DajuanWagner]

If you are into the hobby for money, grade everything............

[jwillgrails]

If you can mentally handle it... Grade a few of the nicest ones over time and leave the rest raw.

I think this is the approach I’m going to take. Thanks for the input everyone.

[buckunteer]

LMAO I just voted and now it's 10/10/10. #conflicted

[Beavers98]

Well, that part happened to me. Lost/Stolen. Stil sick to my stomach

"is a pain and I'm worried the cards would get lost in transit."

[oldschoolball]

If you have heirs or spouse, definitely option 1. You never know when your number is up.

Besides, grading fees are only going up.

[Cavaliercards]

Grade anything nice you have doubles of and sell the doubles is my suggestion.

We have graded some of our PC and will be doing more.

[jwillgrails]

LMAO I just voted and now it's 10/10/10. #conflicted

Seriously. The poll didn't help. :doh:

[larryhughes]

I graded everything to protect the card long term

[dasiegel]

Grading itself is a con.

Protection has some value but you can protect cards yourself with what's out there. In 25-50+ years it'll be funny if grading is even a thing or if it's seen as irrelevant due to the shady grading companies, slab breaks, etc.

I say only grade if you think you wanna sell a few now while we know it adds value.

PC is PC.

[Archangel1775]

If you have a large collection and are older like I am, going graded is the way go for important cards. For my beneficiaries that get my collection, there is ease of inventory(PSA registry,insurance list, etc), condition is already clear and the value is even tracked on PSA.

[1980bust]

Less than 5% of my collection is graded, but those are ones I've bought that way.

I have loads of others I want to grade for liquidity reasons if needed, or even if they are passed down.

But waiting months and months and months right now to do it? Nah. I'm waiting until grading base is dead or the backlog clears (which may be never).

[Stat Monsters]

I used to grade my cards, even ones worth $.05 as commons that I liked for my PC, via Beckett when I had a $5 per card rate and they included sub-grades with a turnaround within a month.

Things have changed so much.

Their rates are so high now and turnaround is off the charts to the point you don't know when you'll get 'em back, and you have to pay a premium for sub-grades.

It's too expensive to grade cards not going to be for resale that you can't make up the differential in cost and time (by the time I get my Mike Trout cards back he may have retired from baseball!), so you need to first off have a keen eye to grade on a pre-screen basis. It feels a "9" is as good as a "raw" so you really need a 9.5 or a 10 in order to get multiples on valuation for a prestigious grade. Then, you have to have a hot card. Nobody cares about rookies who are still prospects from 3 seasons ago, still struggling to realize even close to their projected potential. However, if it's a new rookie crop today, even mediocre players are still highly touted and chased as rookie specs.

For your PC, unless you feel like spending $15 per card to have a nice frame job with the slab, it's throwing good money away on players who will never return you any money. Even without an intent to sell, just put 'em in magnetic one touch or toploaders with team set bags, they present well enough that way.

[Lankybox]

The poll basically doesn't provide a clear answer still for the OP haha all 33% hehe

[Chryghst]

Poll definitely provides direction. Two-thirds of people say to either not grade at all or to grade with heavy discretion.

I too am of the belief grading is a scam. It makes sense for ‘80s cards that were overprinted and not looked after by their owners. But now the vast majority of cards are toploaded of magged directly out of the pack, and grading companies are evaluating printing and production flaws. A card removed straight from the pack should just be ‘new’. It detracts from the experience of pulling a great card to notice it’s OC and will therefore be less valuable.

What’s even more ridiculous is people grading SSP. Now every /10 has to be graded so we have an index rankings 1-10 best card to worst card. People grade 1/1s which literally makes zero sense because there are no others to compare it against. I still cringe every time I see a Flawless card broken from its seal and put into a slab instead. The whole notion of that product is the cards are in great condition, especially the sealed ones.

Graded cards are a gimmick to increase sale price. In a booming market, it just represents greed as people try to squeeze out every last penny. You can tell it bothers me. I’m a massive proponent of buying cards, not grades. #letthecardsbreath

[Bob824]

For your PC, unless you feel like spending $15 per card to have a nice frame job with the slab, it's throwing good money away on players who will never return you any money. Even without an intent to sell, just put 'em in magnetic one touch or toploaders with team set bags, they present well enough that way.

I waited until someone else mentioned what I’m about to say before chiming in.

Your PC is a special player that is under appreciated now, and will be more under appreciated in the future. Even non-Top 50 hall of famers from the 80s will not be too collectible in 20 years. Think Isiah Thomas.

Grade only if it matters to you. Grade only if seeing some of your cards in high grades or in slabs will make you happy.

[Gwynning]

I waited until someone else mentioned what I’m about to say before chiming in.

Your PC is a special player that is under appreciated now, and will be more under appreciated in the future. Even non-Top 50 hall of famers from the 80s will not be too collectible in 20 years. Think Isiah Thomas.

Grade only if it matters to you. Grade only if seeing some of your cards in high grades or in slabs will make you happy.

Thank you for this, it helped provide some clairty. I was about to prep a lot of PC stuff, rare and non-rare, but was still on the fence. Probably will now scale back what I was originally going to send.