How important is it to get Vintage cards graded?

[Hawaiian BamBam]

hey guys, I was wondering. How important is it to get Vintage cards graded? I ask because i have some vintage cards laying around and I was wondering should i have them graded? is it necessary to have the graded? is it worth the price to have them graded? are there any benefits to having cards graded? (ive never sent a card in for grading before, thats why i ask) my cards in question are basically red man tobacco cards from the 1950's

 

[valediction]

How important it is depends entirely on what you want to do with them and what condition they are in. Are you planning to sell them? Are they very high grade? If yes to both, grading is a very good idea to maximize your sale price. If you are not planning to sell, then it's up to you if you want them graded or not. In theory and as part of the sales pitch, grading/or at least encapsulating helps make sure a card stays in said condition. I haven't had any horrible mishaps with my ungraded cards, but I know people that have spilled stuff or had kids get a hold of some nicer cards that ended up a lot less nice after the experience. Some people like to hold and touch a card, can't do that with graded cards unless you break it out of the slab. I do notice all the PSA graded Red Mans I see have the tabs, I'm not sure if that's a requirement for grading, if they consider it trimmed/altered without them or not, so that may be something to find out before sending if yours do not have the tabs. I see BVG slabs them either way and notes with or without tab. the It also depends how much you are into them for. If they are low grade purchased at the height of the hobby boom, grading might not help enough to offset the cost if they typically sell for a fraction of what you paid already.

The biggest 'benefits' of grading are experienced when selling. It's a lot easier to claim a grade when someone else graded it, limits the problems from people who grade differently than you. Also, people are far more willing to pay more when it's been graded.

here's a Bob Lemon graded and ingraded

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

Thanks so much for your input, it is greatly appreciated. the red mans i have, have the tabs on them. they are in decent shape, not gem mint 10 and not grades of 1 or 2, maybe somewhere in the grades (my best guess 3, 4 and 5's) I dont plan on selling them, i plan on keeping them and eventually passing them down to my kids. I do love the feel of holding real old vintage in my hand, but the other side of the coin is, it is nice to have them slabbed for protection. i keep going back and forth on whether to do it or not, part of me says, there is something about holding a raw vintage hard in your hands. the other part of me says if they are graded then maybe 20-30 years from now my kids will get more money for them (by the time my kids sell them, they will be maybe 100 year old cards!). with all of this added info, what are your thoughts on what you would do/recommend?

 

[David K.]

Like what Valediction said! Vintage cards sell for more if there graded. Best regards, David

 

[valediction]

Personally, I'm not big on third party grading unless it's specifically for selling. I'd leave a note with my will saying what they were and where to get them graded if they want to sell them. Top loaders, penny sleeves, and semi rigid holders have worked fine for me.

 

[Hawaiian BamBam]

thanks guys for your responses, i appreciate it. also, soon my kids will be at an age (adults) where i can show them all about beckett and psa grading and they will be old enough to do whatever they want with them. (get them graded or not) and also who knows what the future will hold, they might just want to hold onto them and never sell them. i still have baseball cards that my parents both gave me before they passed away and i would never sell them as they have sentimental value to me. maybe the only other reason i would have them graded is just to get them encapsuled by beckett or psa to protect them from the humidity of Hawaii. the humidity and cardboard dont mix! so getting them sealed will help keep them protected from humidity. i can also see why having cards that will be over 100 years old graded can bring a premium just like now, cards that are 100 years old now, sell good when they are graded. thanks guys

 

[mrmopar]

Grading is all about reselling in my opinion. There is no other reason to take a perfectly good card, pay someone good money to render their option and then seal it into a case.

Buyers like the comfort of knowing that someone else thinks the card is both real and unaltered and that might be your biggest selling point. Any vintage collector out there can probably share a story or two about buying that 71 Topps card that someone touched up or maybe that too good to be true, razor sharp 1953 Topps card, only to figure out later it was trimmed or even that they bought a Fleer Jordan rookie card and later learned it was counterfeit! Grading helps you sell the idea that these cards are unaltered and thus if someone were to prove otherwise later, it certainly isn't the fault of the seller who trusted the grading company, but the fault of the grading company who turned out to be wrong.

If you have the money to spend and the right cards to grade, it can't hurt you to do it. If you get junk graded though, you waste your money and floor the market with crap cards with an over the top protective case.