AUTHENTICATION AND GRADING

What does it mean to authenticate an item?

Authenticating a collectible is the process of sending it to a third party in order to ensure that it is legitimate. Certain collectibles such as cards and magazines can be graded as well, given a rating on a scale typically from 1-10 to describe its condition.

Why should I authenticate my collectible(s) or trading cards?

From a personal point of view, it is worth knowing that your item is legitimate. From a resale point of view, authenticating and especially grading will help ensure you get an appropriate price if you are looking to sell your piece as you can compare to other similarly graded items.

What are the factors taken into consideration when grading a card?

Let’s focus on trading cards here as it is the most popular section of the hobby. Generally speaking, third parties who grade cards will be looking at these four factors:

1. Corners
2. Edges
3. Surface
4. Centring

I just pulled this card out a pack, it has to be a 10 right? Unfortunately, that is not always the case. More often than not, a card pulled out of a pack will not be perfect.

Typically, some of the reasons why are:

• One or many of the corners show a little white
• The edge might show a bit of a rougher cut
• The surface has some light scratches
• The card is not perfectly centred left to right or top to bottom

Why is my Gretzky rookie PSA 6 so different than my friend’s Gretzky rookie PSA 6?

This is the beauty of collecting as there are some cards for everyone’s taste. Your card may have lost some points due to the centring being off left to right while your friend’s card may have lost some point due to some rounded corners. The very subjective eye-appeal will come into play when trying to evaluate this card. Some collectors prefer a card that’s well centred with rounded corners and therefore will tend to gravitate more towards your friend’s card. Other collectors may prefer a card with crisp corners and for that reason value your card more. Although your cards received the same grade, they may be more valuable and attractive to different people.

What company should I use to grade my cards?

There are many grading companies available and they all have their advantages. The best advice we can give you in this case is to do your homework. Do some research on the specific card(s) you want to get graded and see if there are some discrepancies in prices making it more tempting to use a certain grading company over another one.

Can 643 Collectibles help me with the appraisal and grading of my cards?

We offer free appraisals and we submit bulk orders to different grading companies on a monthly basis. So the answer is YES and we will gladly guide you through the entire decision making process if you are new to the hobby!