General Forum

I've only purchased one graded card so I'm a bit inexperienced with this. However after reading the other thread about the Mantle reprint, it got me concerned that I may be purchasing from a scam artist despite even 100% track record. Even more now with Chuck's post of how easy it is to reuse slabs. 

My question is basically this: How certain can one be that a card has actually been graded by PSA - as the one I'm following is said to be and the picture shows with the bar code and ID# - and pricing seems to be fair? Is there a way to check authenticity of the grading?

Also, this seller in his sales pitch states, "low POP". What's that mean?

Low pop means that company has only graded a few at that grade. It's completely made up scarcity and in reality means absolutely nothing.

In reality it means nothing, but sure does drive up the prices nicely come auction time. Only 1 of this card graded by PSA at 10 so it super-rare so you must get. Oh, ignore the other 20 that were graded at this level by this other company or that recent attic find of another 30 cards that could grade at this level. No, this is the ONLY one so spend, spend, spend.....

Sorry, my mind is clouded and I'm trying to multi-task with a deadline looming - unrelated to cards, unfortunately - but jimetal7212, I couldn't tell if you were being sarcastic and telling me that's what the seller wants me to believe in his pitch, or if you were advising to buy, buy, buy!

My tendency is to believe that Ebay opens up selling to non-marketers and sometimes the verbiage and presentation comes across like those old (maybe even current) car dealer commercials. So I don't usually pay attention to that as much as I look at price, and inspect the card and the seller as much as possible.

Also, do either of you (or anyone else) know the answer to my other questions about the authenticity of being PSA graded?

My example of the old-style slabs is why they have changed to a newer, more tamper-proof style.

Sarcasm, pure sarcasm. I'm not a believer in graded cards to begn with. For more vintage cards I get it. Look at Mike Trout's '11 Topps Update card. The market is flooded with PSA 10s of this card and it still attracts astronomical prices.

As for your guarantee that the card in the case is the same as the one graded... You can't unless you watch them through the entire procss. There have been stories of former employees taking cards from one person's submission and swapping them out with a preferred customemers to begin with. When the prefered customer submits a lower grade card it gets switched conveniently with someone else. Lo and behold your PSA 5 is now an 8. 

For the Mantle discussed in the other forum it's the seller's way of saying "I have a shady card so as long as I market it as a reprint they can't come after me when they find out it's a fake." At least, that's my takeaway.

Not to mention the cards that are fine but come back from the grader's with bends in it. 

Personally, I view grading as a way to fleece gullible fools who are either too lazy or too stupid to learn anything about the hobby, so they don't even try to think or learn about anything, but accept some possibly random, arbitrary made up "grade"- and then pay what the price guide, made by the grading company, says it should sell for. 

Edit: I originally posted except instead of accept. Grammer matters. 

Grammar matters. :)

The educator in me was going to jump on that one. 

Thanks, Billy. As always good info.