New to graded cards, the age old question: BGS or PSA?

[RezWing]

Curious about your guy's preference, most of the cards I buy are either of my favorite players or a set I really like such as Young Guns, Prizms, or Bowman Chrome autos. I used to just buy individual cards never graded but as I've gotten older I like the assurance, history, and detail the graded cards add. I only have two graded cards at the moment and both are BGS, I like the gold slab and I think the detail of the 4 subgrades is nice but I personally only like if all 4 subgrades are 9.5 or higher (true gems). My issue comes in there, PSA does not have subgrades and I have yet to see any that grades the autograph if the card is an auto, so that also makes me give the edge to BGS on autographed cards, but PSA also has more 10 rated cards which is also nice and I feel like those have an edge on BGS 9.5 but a BGS 10 is better than PSA 10, but I am OCD at times and that makes me want to (or think I have to) have all of the same gradings for the most organized collection and I'm having trouble leaning to either side for my Prizm or Young Guns collection and I wanted to hear different opinions from different users on here!

I don't really care to go through the process of sending in my cards rather just buy them graded so I don't have to deal with the possible let down, figured I should add that in case that is a deciding factor for some of you who submit.

[dictoresno]

I exclusively use PSA. I like their holders better, since there isn't a mylar sleeve and thinner case, you can see the card better and clearer. Also, PSA's value in the same grade vs BGS is usually considered higher (PSA 10 vs BGS 9.5).

I own 3 BGS graded cards only because they are hard to find in PSA holders and for the price and grade, I couldn't pass up the deal. I plan on crossing them over to PSA when I can. I like BGS holders, they are kinda growing on me. But their labels are just archaic looking and look cheap.

[ThoseBackPages]

BGS & PSA have been around for a long time now. There is also SGC, but they are rarely thought about. there's nothing wrong with them but they just don't compete with the "big two"

BGS and PSA both have their faults and strengths, both make mistakes.

Third-party grading is done by human beings, therefore there are going to be mistakes. You're going to find flaws in all graded cards. There are no perfect cards.

Why PSA? Because PSA is a lifestyle. If you collect graded cards, and collect them long enough, you will understand. It's really nice to have your collection uniform.

Want to know why "modern" is starting to be PSA's forte as well? Because those with big wallets are getting interested in current players. They have their fill of vintage PSA, and now, wanting modern, why would they want BGS?

Has PSA made mistakes? Of course they have. "oh, they slabbed that trimmed Wagner!" "Their cases are easily faked!" i say, do your homework. If something is too good to be true, it usually is. Card collecting is not for you if you're willingly to blindly buy a slab of a significant price tag (everyone has their own level here) and get burned, its difficult to feel bad. Do your homework.

Has BGS made mistakes? Absolutely. Handing out 9.5's like candy comes to mind, especially on the Strasburg Super years ago.
BGS also has that multi-tiered "label" thing going on, which they should have remedied years ago, They also "upped" their scale system to include a BGS 10 - PRISTINE years ago. But then, they had to go higher, making a Black Label Pristine.
So, now your regular Pristine is inferior to a Black Pristine (right? lol)

i think a lot of people fail to realize that all cards have "flaws". Getting a PSA 10 with "flaws" is gonna happen, and that is OK.

if you are one of the mega-anal folks that have to have your cards with ZERO issues, buy a Black BGS 10 (which im sure if you looked at hard enough, you'll find issues as well)

Now, knowing that BGS is owned by a company that has little interest in cards, what is to stop them from just "pulling the plug" one day? Not much i say. Then what becomes of BGS slabs? i doubt they'll go the GAI route, unless some scandal ends them.

PSA is the "little brother" of PCGS. Collectors Universe is a publicly traded company (i dont put any stock into that meaning they are any better because of it) But PSA is a somewhat small percentage of what CU does.

PSA also seems to care about the card business.

Go to The National and you get to attend the PSA Luncheon. You get free food, free goodies and get to hear about the company and see your fellow PSA collectors win awards. Just a great overall community. You also get to hand in your cards for submission, get them back (if they arent too busy)

Go to The national for BGS? You get to hand in your cards for submission, get them back (if they arent too busy). Nothing else. Thats a fact. Not even a free price guide lol

Yea, i know that comes off as petty and whatnot, but it's something that just adds on top of everything else.

At the end if the day, collect what and how you want.

BGS vs PSA is never going to go away. We, as collectors, are a stubborn bunch. im not going to change your mind, you're not gonna change mine.

it is what it is

[ThoseBackPages]

[guru]

I collect PSA slabbed for non-autographed cards.

I collect BGS slabbed Certified autographed cards.

I love the way BGS grades the Autographs

PSA has started grading Autos but it's too late for me to change lol

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

BGS & PSA have been around for a long time now. There is also SGC, but they are rarely thought about. there's nothing wrong with them but they just don't compete with the "big two"

BGS and PSA both have their faults and strengths, both make mistakes.

Third-party grading is done by human beings, therefore there are going to be mistakes. You're going to find flaws in all graded cards. There are no perfect cards.

Why PSA? Because PSA is a lifestyle. If you collect graded cards, and collect them long enough, you will understand. It's really nice to have your collection uniform.

Want to know why "modern" is starting to be PSA's forte as well? Because those with big wallets are getting interested in current players. They have their fill of vintage PSA, and now, wanting modern, why would they want BGS?

Has PSA made mistakes? Of course they have. "oh, they slabbed that trimmed Wagner!" "Their cases are easily faked!" i say, do your homework. If something is too good to be true, it usually is. Card collecting is not for you if you're willingly to blindly buy a slab of a significant price tag (everyone has their own level here) and get burned, its difficult to feel bad. Do your homework.

Has BGS made mistakes? Absolutely. Handing out 9.5's like candy comes to mind, especially on the Strasburg Super years ago.
BGS also has that multi-tiered "label" thing going on, which they should have remedied years ago, They also "upped" their scale system to include a BGS 10 - PRISTINE years ago. But then, they had to go higher, making a Black Label Pristine.
So, now your regular Pristine is inferior to a Black Pristine (right? lol)

i think a lot of people fail to realize that all cards have "flaws". Getting a PSA 10 with "flaws" is gonna happen, and that is OK.

if you are one of the mega-anal folks that have to have your cards with ZERO issues, buy a Black BGS 10 (which im sure if you looked at hard enough, you'll find issues as well)

Now, knowing that BGS is owned by a company that has little interest in cards, what is to stop them from just "pulling the plug" one day? Not much i say. Then what becomes of BGS slabs? i doubt they'll go the GAI route, unless some scandal ends them.

PSA is the "little brother" of PCGS. Collectors Universe is a publicly traded company (i dont put any stock into that meaning they are any better because of it) But PSA is a somewhat small percentage of what CU does.

PSA also seems to care about the card business.

Go to The National and you get to attend the PSA Luncheon. You get free food, free goodies and get to hear about the company and see your fellow PSA collectors win awards. Just a great overall community. You also get to hand in your cards for submission, get them back (if they arent too busy)

Go to The national for BGS? You get to hand in your cards for submission, get them back (if they arent too busy). Nothing else. Thats a fact. Not even a free price guide lol

Yea, i know that comes off as petty and whatnot, but it's something that just adds on top of everything else.

At the end if the day, collect what and how you want.

BGS vs PSA is never going to go away. We, as collectors, are a stubborn bunch. im not going to change your mind, you're not gonna change mine.

it is what it is

You actually may have changed my mind more than you think, although the potentially getting fake slabs is a little scary, whats the best way to investigate if the item potentially doesn't have a photo of the back?

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by guru

I collect PSA slabbed for non-autographed cards.

I collect BGS slabbed Certified autographed cards.

I love the way BGS grades the Autographs

PSA has started grading Autos but it's too late for me to change lol

I'm really starting to consider the same approach

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by RezWing

You actually may have changed my mind more than you think, although the potentially getting fake slabs is a little scary, whats the best way to investigate if the item potentially doesn't have a photo of the back?

check for "frosting" on the outer rims, especially corners

its become less of an issue with the last couple of generations of slabs PSA has used.

But always better to be safe then sorry. never hesitate to ask the board here what they think of a listing.

remember, if you think you're "getting a steal" and dont want to share it here, you more likely then not to be falling for a scam

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

check for "frosting" on the outer rims, especially corners

its become less of an issue with the last couple of generations of slabs PSA has used.

But always better to be safe then sorry. never hesitate to ask the board here what they think of a listing.

remember, if you think you're "getting a steal" and dont want to share it here, you more likely then not to be falling for a scam

I take it the newer generations have this holographic looking rectangle in the center?

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by RezWing

I take it the newer generations have this holographic looking rectangle in the center?

yep

these are the last three generations (no silver on flip, silver hologram on flip and currently "Lighthouse" flip)

[dictoresno]

the older generation slabs were the same size, sandwiched and had dots where the slab halves met and would frost over if cracked open. the newer slabs are two different sizes, back fits into the front like BGS holders. makes it much harder to crack open.

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

yep

these are the last three generations (no silver on flip, silver hologram on flip and currently "Lighthouse" flip)

Thanks for this! Going to look at a good amount and see if I can spot the difference and what the "lighthouse' flip is

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by dictoresno

the older generation slabs were the same size, sandwiched and had dots where the slab halves met and would frost over if cracked open. the newer slabs are two different sizes, back fits into the front like BGS holders. makes it much harder to crack open.

Thank you! The case is about the same width as a magnetic case and a little taller? I believe I have heard or seen they are more slim than a BGS case?

[dictoresno]

Originally Posted by RezWing

Thank you! The case is about the same width as a magnetic case and a little taller? I believe I have heard or seen they are more slim than a BGS case?

they are slightly taller and narrower than a BGS case. and thinner than a mag holder too I think and yes taller.

[mjohnatgt]

The hologram flip has the clear PSA and the lighthouse flip has the blue and red PSA.

[RezWing]

Originally Posted by mjohnatgt

The hologram flip has the clear PSA and the lighthouse flip has the blue and red PSA.

Is there a technical difference in meaning or anything or is it strictly appearance?

[mjohnatgt]

Just different generations. Cards graded before either of these versions of flips may be lower in quality, as most people think PSA grading has gotten more strict the last few years. Most of the lighthouse flips are being put in the new cases like BGS has. So if you care about which holder you want, the lighthouse flips are going to be in the harder to crack cases.

[dictoresno]

Originally Posted by RezWing

Is there a technical difference in meaning or anything or is it strictly appearance?

cosmetic label changes, with some "security" enhancements such as changing the font and watermarks in the label. its called a lighthouse label because the foil the PSA logo is printed on is split in half. one side refracts one way and the other side the other way to mimic a lighthouse light sweeping.

[dfr52]

Originally Posted by mjohnatgt

Just different generations. Cards graded before either of these versions of flips may be lower in quality, as most people think PSA grading has gotten more strict the last few years. Most of the lighthouse flips are being put in the new cases like BGS has. So if you care about which holder you want, the lighthouse flips are going to be in the harder to crack cases.

I tend to side with this but it always best to take a close look at the seller's scan as the age of the label/holder is not always indicative of the condition of the card.

[Dnic]

Well I'm not sure but I did have good luck recently with a PSA sub same card btw

[socal805]

Originally Posted by Dnic

Well I'm not sure but I did have good luck recently with a PSA sub same card btw

This is a great example!!!

Let's be 100% honest...the Mamba looks FANTASTIC in the BGS slab. Not so much so in a PSA slab.

Dnic hope you don't mind if I save these photos. They'll come in handy the next time someone asks "Should I use BGS or PSA?". I'll just answer by posting both pictures. Thanks

Sent from my N9519 using Tapatalk

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by socal805

This is a great example!!!

Let's be 100% honest...the Mamba looks FANTASTIC in the BGS slab. Not so much so in a PSA slab.

Dnic hope you don't mind if I save these photos. They'll come in handy the next time someone asks "Should I use BGS or PSA?". I'll just answer by posting both pictures. Thanks

Sent from my N9519 using Tapatalk

[Dnic]

Originally Posted by socal805

This is a great example!!!

Let's be 100% honest...the Mamba looks FANTASTIC in the BGS slab. Not so much so in a PSA slab.

Dnic hope you don't mind if I save these photos. They'll come in handy the next time someone asks "Should I use BGS or PSA?". I'll just answer by posting both pictures. Thanks

Sent from my N9519 using Tapatalk

It would have looked better in a BGS 9.5 slab for sure imo lol, and no I don't mind at all bud