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Authenticity is Everything
Autograph Grading - Logical?
Hello, A "NM/MT 8" can have a slight retrace by the original signer. Or slight fading. Or odd placement. A slight skip - present here bottom of "B". 20% "weirdness" is allowed - some messed up/bleeding letter or such. This is not rushed - it is a style that has a 30 year history or more. So - is it a "9"? A "7"? It is said positive eye appeal adds, can add, .5 point. The smudge - should it remove more than .5 point as it is part of the signing? NOTE: Every "speck" is dust on the scanner or plastic sleeve. But then this does not affect eye appeal of the graph - or does it? Must it? Why not?
Do you think any of this makes any sense?
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Joe W. on
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In my very humble opinion, grading is not necessary. It still comes up to what the piece looks like to the potential buyer. Authenticity is important and I can understand why having a good TPA eases certain concerns but what a collector finds desirable is a personal decision. Emotion plays a big part of what someone is willing to pay.
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Permalink Reply by Eric Keith Longo on
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I agree. I was trying to illustrate the nonsense in just "8" - each is an individual.
Eric
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Thanks Paul. I'll see your 10 and raise you a quarter to three ..wait - wrong games!)
I figure it's gotta be an 8.5 or possibly 9 after reading the "standards" such as they are.
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Permalink Reply by TradeGeek on
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I don't think it's logical. It's an offshoot of sports card grading which has been around for decades. As card manufactures have focused more on autographs to sell their products the major grading companies (PSA and Beckett) started offering autograph grades as well (for an additional fee, of course). I've never been a huge fan of grading of cards (especially modern products) and I like it even less with autographs. Most experienced collectors know what they want in their collection as far as eye appeal. If I'm happy with how an autograph looks why should I care what grade PSA slaps on it?
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Permalink Reply by Scott Paul on
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Personally I think it is a complete waste of money. I cannot imagine that if there was an autograph I wanted that the grade would make any difference to me. As long as the item is as described I would take my chances. It is so subjective because unlike coins and stamps no two autographs are exactly the same.
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Permalink Reply by Ian Baldock on
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I'm surprised a "slight retrace" would qualify as NM/MT. Anyway its kind of silly to me. Its what appeals to the collectors eye. I don't need others to tell me whether its signed with a dead pen or what not.
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Good points all. I think it is an impossible task unless the item is graded to itself or others (same photo/LP...tough - pens, circumstances) because only then can placement and so on truly be appreciated. That does not seem practical. And I do not see how you can grade the signature alone and account for the skip allowed on most up till 8 w/o any regard for what is signed. Signed with what also plays a role. The resultant number grades are meaningless to me. They seem to place too much importance on what might be mostly the pen/ink type and not enough on the item's surface features which certainly influence what this is said to be all about - eye appeal. Said another way - too many qualities to render in a 1-10 assessment - not w/o loss in the translation/reduction. Oh - and a HUGE chunk of eye appeal seems dictated by what has been signed, and that is left by the wayside in these equations.
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I think you're spot on. The only place I see any value in grading services is in vintage sports cards. If your going to spend BIG money bidding on eBay for a 1915 Cracker Jack card, there is only so much you can see in a scan. Surface scuffs, very small creases and such. The $20 spent to have the card graded is well worth it, for the buyer and the seller.
But I will not pay several hundred dollars more for a "graded" autograph when everything I need to know is in the picture. It makes no sense.
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