Could I hurt my card's value by getting a low BGS grade? What's the minimum BGS grade which would help the card value?
Hello, I recently found a moderately valuable Alpha card that's in very good condition. I'm considering getting it BGS graded, since the $11 grading price may add value to the card and assure buyers that it's authentic.
However, as typical with Alpha cards, its printing is off center. With no grading experience, I estimate the grading may be 7 centering, 9.5 surface, 8.5 edges, 9 corners.
Would a grade like that hurt or help the value of the card? What BGS grades would increase value, decrease value, or keep it the same? I'm guessing that if it's not BGS 9, 9.5 or 10, I shouldn't bother.
BGS grading may hurt the value in other ways. The card has value because it's Vintage playable and black bordered (it's not Power 9 or a dual land). Having BGS slab it would prevent it from being played, making it a collectors piece, but with a grade lower than the 9-10 that collectors demand.
Should I leave it in a top loader for Vintage players, or BGS grade/slab it for collectors? Thanks.
...being awesome with a violin doesn't mean you're awesome at writing your own songs. And writing good songs doesn't mean you're good enough at playing an instrument or singing to get a contract with a label.
Reflecting Pool: You know, technically, I *CAN* make any color of mana.
Exotic Orchard: Prove it. Do it right now.
Reflecting Pool: Well, not right now. I need some condi....
Exotic Orchard: LIES. GO DIE IN A FIRE.
Reflecting Pool:
I've collected sets all the way back to Beta over the years, and at least for the last few years BGS ratings up to and including 9+ don't seem to be vastly different from unrated cards, providing the seller has large, detailed scans of the card in question and the gradings are similar.
For example, I bid on a BGS 9.5 Bazaar a couple years ago because no one else seemed to want it and the ending price was far below magic-traders. So I waited a month, cracked the case open (carefully), and resold it double-sleeved with high-res scans for 22% more. I'm not saying one can profit off this, I happened to do this because I won a x2 auction and was left with a playset+1. But I think there's something to be said for a card that can be played and scanned flat. As a buyer, I've certainly passed on graded cards knowing I couldn't actually sleeve and play it.
Given proxies and fakes are getting better each year, there may come a time when BGS meets and passes ungraded card prices (like Comics did some years ago). It just hasn't happened yet for all but the pickiest collectors.
Thanks for the info. At a quick glance of eBay, I saw some 8.5 to 9.5 cards selling well above their retail value.
What card is it?
I get the feeling that I shouldn't say. In case I want to sell it on MTGS, my inaccurate grading of "8 to 8.5" in this thread may skew buyers perception. It's a player's card, there are plenty of reprints available so it's not super high priced, and it's no Alpha Pearled Unicorn.
I'm a player, not a collector. If I wanted Beta dual lands, I'd gladly buy BGS 6-7.5 slabbed cards and open them, purely for the authenticity that BGS provides. Counterfeits are my biggest concern, so I wonder if other people feel the same way. Would they'd pay more for my authentic, graded card, even if it's graded "low".
...being awesome with a violin doesn't mean you're awesome at writing your own songs. And writing good songs doesn't mean you're good enough at playing an instrument or singing to get a contract with a label.
Reflecting Pool: You know, technically, I *CAN* make any color of mana.
Exotic Orchard: Prove it. Do it right now.
Reflecting Pool: Well, not right now. I need some condi....
Exotic Orchard: LIES. GO DIE IN A FIRE.
Reflecting Pool:
I'm a player, not a collector. If I wanted Beta dual lands, I'd gladly buy BGS 6-7.5 slabbed cards and open them, purely for the authenticity that BGS provides. Counterfeits are my biggest concern, so I wonder if other people feel the same way. Would they'd pay more for my authentic, graded card, even if it's graded "low".
I dont think were really at that point yet, maybe in another 5-10 years but not yet. I know that I wouldnt give any kind of an authentication premium for a 6.5 or lower graded card. Most of the people looking to acquire the really highend stuff where this would be relivent know what to look for (or atleast know someone who does) and honestly most of the fakes Ive seen have been shooting for the higher grades.
I mean its hard enough to fake a card that will fool hardcore collectors/graders when its new let alone one that weathers identically to the originals (and sell for lesser value since its worn).
when i was buying sports cards, it was only worth it to buy a PSA 8 or BSG 8 or higher. Anything loader was not worth buying because the value really takes a hit. I would also not buy anything the was "O.C"
I think magic cards would be a little different. There are only so many alpha and beta cards printed, unlike sports cards. so as a collector, i would pickup lower grades if the price was good. Also, with graded cards, its not always the grade that sets the value. It is also base on population. Are may only be a handful of 10s, 9s or even 8s. So even 7s and 6s is valuable.
It varies from person to person, and the card in question. In some cases (like the sch beta set) it was to determine the collection as being one of the nicest condition wise. For some the rarity of abu alone is enough to give graded copies value. For many only high grades actually matter, and anything below an 8 is not worth the premium. Grading a card doesn't guarantee a premium except to the right buyer.
Thanks for all of your input. I probably won't grade it. Without being in a slab, the buyer/trader could see how nice the condition really is. So it's a little off center. Who cares, it'll be in a Vintage deck beating down an opponent and looking beautiful.
...being awesome with a violin doesn't mean you're awesome at writing your own songs. And writing good songs doesn't mean you're good enough at playing an instrument or singing to get a contract with a label.
Reflecting Pool: You know, technically, I *CAN* make any color of mana.
Exotic Orchard: Prove it. Do it right now.
Reflecting Pool: Well, not right now. I need some condi....
Exotic Orchard: LIES. GO DIE IN A FIRE.
Reflecting Pool:
I actually don't think there's any vintage playable creatures in Alpha since the printing of Lodestone Golem apparently obsoleted Juggernaut, so the "beating down" comment has me really curious now.
On topic, when I bought a Mox last December I strongly considered buying a graded one because I was afraid of counterfeits. Even one graded at 6 would have fit the bill just to be sure it was real. Ultimately I ended up deciding to buy a real good-looking Jet at the SCG physical store location because I happened to be travelling through there, I could look at it in my hands that way, and I trusted them to be wary of fakes. I owned Moxes and Big Blue many many years ago as a teenager and I believe I could spot a fake, but I got a little paranoid. Anyhow, although I generally trust SCG and maybe another major retailer, I would probably consider buying graded power in the future just for that sense of security. But I really doubt anybody would forge a Lord of Atlantis or whatever you have, so I probably wouldn't care.
The people who gobble up the graded cards to upgrade their Alpha sets would probably be your audience, and a low grade does nothing for them. On eBay, graded cards are almost always BIN, because the audience that will actually pay that premium is very small.
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Hello, I recently found a moderately valuable Alpha card that's in very good condition. I'm considering getting it BGS graded, since the $11 grading price may add value to the card and assure buyers that it's authentic.
However, as typical with Alpha cards, its printing is off center. With no grading experience, I estimate the grading may be 7 centering, 9.5 surface, 8.5 edges, 9 corners.
Would a grade like that hurt or help the value of the card? What BGS grades would increase value, decrease value, or keep it the same? I'm guessing that if it's not BGS 9, 9.5 or 10, I shouldn't bother.
BGS grading may hurt the value in other ways. The card has value because it's Vintage playable and black bordered (it's not Power 9 or a dual land). Having BGS slab it would prevent it from being played, making it a collectors piece, but with a grade lower than the 9-10 that collectors demand.
Should I leave it in a top loader for Vintage players, or BGS grade/slab it for collectors? Thanks.
FireFox31
Validating Netdecks and Land Smackdown
For example, I bid on a BGS 9.5 Bazaar a couple years ago because no one else seemed to want it and the ending price was far below magic-traders. So I waited a month, cracked the case open (carefully), and resold it double-sleeved with high-res scans for 22% more. I'm not saying one can profit off this, I happened to do this because I won a x2 auction and was left with a playset+1. But I think there's something to be said for a card that can be played and scanned flat. As a buyer, I've certainly passed on graded cards knowing I couldn't actually sleeve and play it.
Given proxies and fakes are getting better each year, there may come a time when BGS meets and passes ungraded card prices (like Comics did some years ago). It just hasn't happened yet for all but the pickiest collectors.
BGS does half-grades, so it's either 9 or 9.5
I get the feeling that I shouldn't say. In case I want to sell it on MTGS, my inaccurate grading of "8 to 8.5" in this thread may skew buyers perception. It's a player's card, there are plenty of reprints available so it's not super high priced, and it's no Alpha Pearled Unicorn.
I'm a player, not a collector. If I wanted Beta dual lands, I'd gladly buy BGS 6-7.5 slabbed cards and open them, purely for the authenticity that BGS provides. Counterfeits are my biggest concern, so I wonder if other people feel the same way. Would they'd pay more for my authentic, graded card, even if it's graded "low".
FireFox31
Validating Netdecks and Land Smackdown
I dont think were really at that point yet, maybe in another 5-10 years but not yet. I know that I wouldnt give any kind of an authentication premium for a 6.5 or lower graded card. Most of the people looking to acquire the really highend stuff where this would be relivent know what to look for (or atleast know someone who does) and honestly most of the fakes Ive seen have been shooting for the higher grades.
I mean its hard enough to fake a card that will fool hardcore collectors/graders when its new let alone one that weathers identically to the originals (and sell for lesser value since its worn).
Currently looking to buy miscut Homelands, (my wife thinks I'm crazy too).
Semper Gumby (Always Flexible)
I think magic cards would be a little different. There are only so many alpha and beta cards printed, unlike sports cards. so as a collector, i would pickup lower grades if the price was good. Also, with graded cards, its not always the grade that sets the value. It is also base on population. Are may only be a handful of 10s, 9s or even 8s. So even 7s and 6s is valuable.
FireFox31
Validating Netdecks and Land Smackdown
On topic, when I bought a Mox last December I strongly considered buying a graded one because I was afraid of counterfeits. Even one graded at 6 would have fit the bill just to be sure it was real. Ultimately I ended up deciding to buy a real good-looking Jet at the SCG physical store location because I happened to be travelling through there, I could look at it in my hands that way, and I trusted them to be wary of fakes. I owned Moxes and Big Blue many many years ago as a teenager and I believe I could spot a fake, but I got a little paranoid. Anyhow, although I generally trust SCG and maybe another major retailer, I would probably consider buying graded power in the future just for that sense of security. But I really doubt anybody would forge a Lord of Atlantis or whatever you have, so I probably wouldn't care.
The people who gobble up the graded cards to upgrade their Alpha sets would probably be your audience, and a low grade does nothing for them. On eBay, graded cards are almost always BIN, because the audience that will actually pay that premium is very small.