What does an "A" grade mean from grading services?

[SymphonicMetal]

Yesterday a friend of mine saw a Topps Gretzky rookie graded with an A at a card show. He was wondering what that meant. I think it means Authentic and also think it means the card has been altered (ie trimmed) in some way. Does anyone know exactly what this A grade means?

My friend said the Gretzky looked really nice but could not understand why the card would have only been graded as an A vs having a 1 thru 10 grade assigned to it or even an explanation as to if it were altered in some way.. I ran into a similar situation a few years ago with a 1969/70 Oscar Robertson with an A grade. I passed on it since it had that odd grade on it and I was leery about trading for it. It was also a great looking card but I sensed something was amiss with its condition despite its' eye appeal.

Any help on this matter is geatly appreciated!

 

[PRosefan1]

Authentic

 

[PRosefan1]

Sometimes if the card is suspected to be altered a person will send it in to be authenticated,

 

[SymphonicMetal]

Sometimes if the card is suspected to be altered a person will send it in to be authenticated,

Thanks for the input. It is very confusing since it seems the same terms mean duifferent things depending on the grading service. Some use Authentic and another uses Authentic Altered which is a clearer term. It looks like trimming and recoloring are the two biggest altered occurences.

I've also heard that the thinkness of the card in question is a big thing. Apparently if you put a card in a screw down too tightly the card depresses and gets major downgrades for it's thinkness. WTH?. How the general public can tell the thickness of a card is beyond me.

I think my general rule will be to avoid any cards with an "A" grade which I have done thus far. Staying clear of "Authentic ALtered" is a given.

 

[PRosefan1]

Yes, screwdowns over time thin the card. Allegedly. I have heard people say that cards that they had in screwdowns for years all came back as altered.

 

[SymphonicMetal]

Yes, screwdowns over time thin the card. Allegedly. I have heard people say that cards that they had in screwdowns for years all came back as altered.

WOW! My brother was correct about that. That puts a buyer of a card, especially a vintage one, in jeopardy of buying an altered card without either party realizing it. I can't imagine 99.99% of collectors being able to diagnose that. I was never big on screw downs due to their bulkiness but they were all the rage in the hobby for at least 4 decades. Just beacsuse I, or any other collector, did not use screwdowns it does not mean the people who owned the card previously didn't either.

 

[dan5]

A lot of times if an older card won't get a high grade people will just get it slabbed as Authentic. Especially if it's something that is commonly counterfeited like a Gretzky or Jordan rookie. It makes it easier for them to sell than a raw copy.

 

[dragonfire613]

I've had SGC specifically give things a grade A if the card sent in for grading does not meet the size requirements for grading (often from being in a screw-down for a long period of time, or perhaps trimmed) but is still an authentic card.

The value takes a big hit but still marketable.