Certified Collectibles Group (CCG), a long-time major player in grading services for coins, paper money, comic books, magazines and concert posters, will begin authenticating and grading sports cards and memorabilia. On Monday, CCG announced they would soon begin accepting submissions of Pokémon TCG and Magic: The Gathering cards, but added to that on Tuesday by … [Read more...]
Editor’s Blog: Online Tools, Dogged Collectors Put Focus on Card Makeovers
Hobby message boards have been buzzing with threads centered around a variety of questionable practices including cards that have been graded, cracked out of their holders and then reappear with fewer defects and higher grades. The image research by forum members to make those connections has resulted in enough glaring examples of both vintage and modern cards to make a … [Read more...]
PSA Making Changes Aimed at Improving Submission, Communication Processes
PSA will announce several changes to its submission processing platform on Tuesday and provide customers with an update on efforts to combat slower than normal turnaround times. Company president Steve Sloan says some of those changes will include: A "Turnaround Times" feature on the PSA website that will update current turnaround times each Monday "using actual order … [Read more...]
PSA Announces New Pricing Structure
Still deluged by submissions, PSA is changing its pricing structure for several service levels beginning January 1. While collectors and dealers who submit orders of 50 or more cards for grading and encapsulation and those who use the company’s regular 15-day service won’t see any changes, those who want faster turnaround times will notice some significant price … [Read more...]
PWCC Launches Eye Appeal Scale
You hear the term “eye appeal” a lot when collectors discuss vintage trading cards. It’s a somewhat subjective quality but now one dealer is putting a number behind it. PWCC Marketplace has instituted a program to assess how subtle aesthetic qualities impact a card’s market value. While third-party grading companies work with a set of technical guidelines, PWCC … [Read more...]
SGC Moving to 10-Point Grading Scale, Plans Submission Process Upgrades
SGC will be celebrating its 20th anniversary this summer but cake and ice cream aren’t the only thing the grading and authenticating firm will be passing out. Some big changes are happening as part of an overall rebranding of one of the hobby’s most familiar names. Earlier this month, the Florida-based company announced the upcoming launch of a uniform … [Read more...]
Beckett Grading Suspends 10-Day Service Option as Orders Pile Up
Due to a backlog of orders, Beckett Grading has suspended its 10-day guaranteed service for trading cards. A message on the company’s website reads, “Due to a historic number of orders/cards being submitted, and our growing wait times with our non-guaranteed service level, Beckett Grading will temporarily suspend their 10-day service level starting June 7, 2018.” With … [Read more...]
10 Fun Ways to Spend Your Tax Refund: Sports Collector’s Edition
We're not all lucky enough to get one. Some of us might need to sell some cards to keep Uncle Sam happy on April 15. However, if you are among the millions of Americans who will see a nice deposit in your checking account this time of year, what to do with it is sometimes a dilemma. Pay bills? Fix your truck? Stick it in the bank? All may be responsible … [Read more...]
BGS to Offer Single Grade Option
Beckett Grading Services (BGS) is offering to grade your modern era cards without sub-grades. The company announced Monday that it would offer the new single grade option at a lower price than its usual service that features separate sub-grades for corners, edges, centering and surface. Those ratings are used to determine and help explain the overall grade of the card. The … [Read more...]
Ramblings: Past Not Always Better
We spend quite a bit of time talking about the "good old days" of the hobby but one should realize not everything was better years ago. Sometimes the past can’t compete with the present. There’s no debate that the dissemination of information is much better and more efficient than it once was. There was a time when everyone waited for the new Beckett magazine(s) to come out … [Read more...]