Does BGS now stand for "Be Gone Soon"?

[uniquebaseballcards]

...There really is no longer much of a "need" for *paper* magazines relating to sports card pricing. the *print media* is simply too slow to represent sports cards. eBay has made sports cards a NOW NOW NOW! type of commodity...

I focused on the line above but as others have said this only includes the most current, modern cards. Its not really surprising that the newest things - players and sets in this case - are the most volatile simply because they're unknown quantities at first by definition. Ebay enters into this only because it facilitates people wanting to quickly flip, its easier to come out ahead on the unknown I guess.

Not that I disagree with anything you wrote, but what I find most interesting is that you're saying in a general sense here is that there's no longer much of a need for *paper* or *print media*...which are exactly what cards themselves are!

 

[G $MONEY$]

Biased article from a PSA lover and a BGS hater


As far as Tuff Stuff going out of business i think that had a ton to do with them changing the name of their magazine about 3 or 4 years ago. Before Tuff Stuff changed the name of their magazine, up here where i live, there was several Grocery and covience stores that sold the Tuff Stuff. Most of the Wal Marts, Safeways and 7/11's by my house sold the Tuff Stuff magazine and i would buy it almost ever month off of the magazine rack for reading material at work. All of a sudden they changed the name of the magazine and i could not find it anywhere (I can't remember off hand what they changed the name to). I asked the local 7/11 manager, a few months after not seeing it anywhere, why they don't carry it no more and he said it was no longer on his list of magazines that he could bring into the store anymore and he figured that the magazine was no longer made. I told him that it was still being made and that they just changed the title of the magazine.

A couple months after that i was talking with the same guy about Tuff Stuff and he pulled out a separate list of magazines that he could subscribe too, sure enough the new titled Tuff Stuff was on this list, so basically it fell off the list of magazines that they did bring in and it went on the list of mags they can bring in. Like i said earlier, before they changed the name of the mag i could purchase Tuff Stuff at several stores every month, after the name changed i only once ever seen the magazine at a big magazine shop downtown. Im sure their name change had a lot to do with the magazine going down hill.

 

[Mudcatsfan]

...There really is no longer much of a "need" for *paper* magazines relating to sports card pricing. the *print media* is simply too slow to represent sports cards. eBay has made sports cards a NOW NOW NOW! type of commodity...

I focused on the line above but as others have said this only includes the most current, modern cards. Its not really surprising that the newest things - players and sets in this case - are the most volatile simply because they're unknown quantities at first by definition. Ebay enters into this only because it facilitates people wanting to quickly flip, its easier to come out ahead on the unknown I guess.

Not that I disagree with anything you wrote, but what I find most interesting is that you're saying in a general sense here is that there's no longer much of a need for *paper* or *print media*...which are exactly what cards themselves are!

That was the most clever thing you've ever posted here.

Granted that's culled from a small sample set.

I think most print magazines will find new life on things like the iPad or on the web exclusively. If anything this should lower Becket's cost and improve the timeliness of their content. Even their pricing could be close to relevant on volatile products while slowing them to list ALL the older sets with no more space limitations.

 

[AK11]

I agree with most that either an online or a magazine with articles revolving around product reviews and previews, collection showcases, big pulls, maybe some graded card relevant material since their "Graded Card Investor" mag is already gone, would be a new way to go. Also, articles about up-and-coming rookies, and star veteran's cards to look out for, and written material of that nature, would be still very helpful and fun to read. I agree the printed price guides are too slow on set pricings and the continuous pricing changes that occur. Hot lists are also nice to read just see which players are moving more and it's great to see when a card you already own is on the hot list. As for BGS, it better not go anywhere anytime soon. If PSA wants to take over the world, it better drop the subscription fees, and get a much better designed holder. Registries are nice, but set collectors are dying off and a registry for a player is very tough. I have a player collection and there is less than 10 out of the 135 cards I have that are worthy of grading at all. I realize the OP's concern in too many high grade examples, but if gem mints and pristines were still super hard to get, than that would just be another aspect of the hobby for the deep pocket collectors. It took me a couple years of grading submissions to finally develop an eye for finding flaws on the cards I buy or pull. Most cards I pull usually never are gradable. People care about condition more than ever (just listen to ebay buyers asking you if your card is gem mint 10). BGS is still preferred for modern cards and the only verifiable way to show a buyer proof of a card's condition. Until PSA rectifies their cases and fees and SGC becomes more mainstream for modern cards, BGS should still stand for "Best Grading Standard." Yeah, they made mistakes in some cases, but it is still a minority report for graded fakes and over-grades.

 

[Leaf]

BGS will not go away. I would buy it right now for a substantial sum (Ive always wanted to be in that business).
BGS is here to stay.... But you never know, the faces could change someday.
BG

 

[ThoseBackPages]

BGS is here to stay.... But you never know, the faces could change someday.
BG

True Brian, look at SGC this year

and for the record, i am NOT a BGS "Hater" i have hundreds of their slabs in my closet lol

what i DO "hate" about BGS are two main things

First: flips for grades "lower" then 8.5 (always feel like they are snubbing the submitter for a "lower" grade submission)

Second: Grading of sheet cut O-Pee-Chee Cards.

 

[jam92102]

Just about everyone knows that ebay is the best price guide out there. That said, I think beckett should focus more on the things impacting collectors and not the prices since they are usually outdated by the time it hits the shelves.

It would be nice to see them tackle patch-faking, backdoored cards, fake auto's slabbed as authentic etc...

Personally I used to love reading the articles and wouldn't mind a hobby magazine focused on box breaks, supercollector's showcased, pull of the months and things of that nature instead of prices.

+1 I wouldn't care for pricing at all. I just love reading pack pulls, articles, releases, etc.

 

[MOFNY]

Remember, minimum grades are more popular now than in 2006 (I think). So think of all the cards being rejected. I am hooked on harder-to-find-high-grade cards. I could care less about base $15 prospect auto. The only aspect I look for there is near-perfect centering. Great centering makes for an attractive scan. A high grade on a condition sensitive card is sexy; low population is great also.

 

[zach]

...There really is no longer much of a "need" for *paper* magazines relating to sports card pricing. the *print media* is simply too slow to represent sports cards. eBay has made sports cards a NOW NOW NOW! type of commodity...

I focused on the line above but as others have said this only includes the most current, modern cards. Its not really surprising that the newest things - players and sets in this case - are the most volatile simply because they're unknown quantities at first by definition. Ebay enters into this only because it facilitates people wanting to quickly flip, its easier to come out ahead on the unknown I guess.

Not that I disagree with anything you wrote, but what I find most interesting is that you're saying in a general sense here is that there's no longer much of a need for *paper* or *print media*...which are exactly what cards themselves are!

That was the most clever thing you've ever posted here.

Granted that's culled from a small sample set.

I think most print magazines will find new life on things like the iPad or on the web exclusively. If anything this should lower Becket's cost and improve the timeliness of their content. Even their pricing could be close to relevant on volatile products while slowing them to list ALL the older sets with no more space limitations.

I think an iPhone/iPad app would be great for their magazine!

 

[Joshua.Roundtree]

"Be Gone Soon" is what I think when I get the cardboard box in the mail back from BGS........with how this hobby has gone 95% online, slabbing cards is the only way to ensure sales. Yes, the grades are watered down, but people are comfortable with the slab. They take BGS's word over ANY seller on eBay with a raw card. The extra bids are worth it if you sub the right type of cards.

 

[011873]

As for the multi sport magazine, just about no one in my store likes it and sales reflect that.

IMHO, they should do away with it and only issue the $10 single sport titles.

Since this board is crazy with prospectors who live and die on what the hottest prospect last sold for on ebay, I understand why you all wonder why ANYONE uses Beckett.

Believe it or not, not all collectors do prospects. I see it all the time at shows I attend. Prospectors dont use Beckett, but people interested in low priced star player rookies do.

Im taking numbers out of the sky but if someone is looking to buy a 2003 Cano Bowman Heritage auto rc, they will look at the ebay prices and see they sell for $100, regardless if the book is $250.

For someone who is interested in adding a low priced rc of his, they could care less if his 2003 BDP sells for $5 shipped on ebay, they will buy it at the show for $10 because it books $15.

 

[piggy1918]

As for the idea that BGS "hands out" 10's, I really feel like more people are submitting cards. I bet the percentage hasn't changed. 3 years ago, I didn't own a single BGS graded card. I now own around ~20, and I barely dabble in prospects AT ALL. It's become part of the market. One thing I will say is that people seem to be submitting more low-end cards, those $5-$15 cards. The gem chrome has become popular. I mean, it is a $2 card most times, and yet people consistently pay $5 to grade it. When you have so many more people grading, more 10's are bound to enter the marketplace. Oh, and I believe BGS is here to stay.

 

[Big Mac McGwire]

in regards to psa = vintage only, $$ wise, modern psa 10's vs modern bgs 9.5's are neck in neck majority of the time and in many cases, have seen psa outsell bgs of the same said card.

as for bgs not being around? nah, they'll be around to supply you with the fine 9's, eric!

dave

I love my FINE 9 - mint is fine with me.

 

[The Cardboard Fan]

I personally don't care about the registry and do not like PSA slabs I use BGS for modern and SGC for vintage

 

[predatorkj]

Prospect cards especially fluctuate in price...

I think a good idea would to have a bi-weekly price guide for only bowman products (Bowman, Bowman Chrome, Bowman Draft, Bowman Sterling, Bowman Platinum + other major Topps related RC products) that would list all autographs and the major non-auto base and would go directly off low and high sales on ebay...Because prices change so much during the season, it could be bi-weekly....Possibly only monthly the rest of the year....

I think it would be a good guide to have at card shows for prospectors who don't want to do extensive research...It would be a lot of work and probably wouldn't turn a profit, but it would be a neat idea...

Actually...I this is a great idea but go for it more like this:

Have a bi-weekly magazine that comes out. But just put hot stuff in it. Things that are getting crazy on ebay. A player(s) who is heating up big time. Even guys who are getting a look on the secondary market. Anything making moves worth noting. Sets...whatever is getting hot for whatever reason. On top of that...fill the rest of the magazine with articles about the hobby. But for the love of god...make them worth reading. And please don't have anything that is uniform unless its voted on by the subscribers/readers. Because what would happen is they come up with some dumb idea on a column or something and next thing you know its forced into the magazine, read by readers or not, time after time after time.

You do that and charge maybe $3 or even $4...people would buy it. Because I'll tell you...I buy maybe 1 or two becketts a year and that's it. And that's just to get an update on the new sets that came out that year. But in all honesty...prices for a lot of stuff from a beckett 2 years ago, well it still hasn't changed. So I am buying the entire thing just for the newer stuff. Hell...best case scenario I am reading 2 articles out of it(all which are poorly written) and looking at the last 3 pages of the price guide just to get an idea of how many cards are in what sets and who is in them instead of waiting an hour for their stupid web page to load. And too me...I think they could get a hell of a lot more out of me if they'd just cater a little more to actual collectors. They don't.

Now you tell me if they made a magazine with this kind of stuff in it...even at $4 a pop...you wouldn't buy it every two weeks. If you said you wouldn't...I'd call you a damn liar!

 

[predatorkj]

As for the multi sport magazine, just about no one in my store likes it and sales reflect that.

IMHO, they should do away with it and only issue the $10 single sport titles.

Since this board is crazy with prospectors who live and die on what the hottest prospect last sold for on ebay, I understand why you all wonder why ANYONE uses Beckett.

Believe it or not, not all collectors do prospects. I see it all the time at shows I attend. Prospectors dont use Beckett, but people interested in low priced star player rookies do.

Im taking numbers out of the sky but if someone is looking to buy a 2003 Cano Bowman Heritage auto rc, they will look at the ebay prices and see they sell for $100, regardless if the book is $250.

For someone who is interested in adding a low priced rc of his, they could care less if his 2003 BDP sells for $5 shipped on ebay, they will buy it at the show for $10 because it books $15.

Yes...please ditch the 4 sport mag already. Its a waste of space. I hate it.

As for the beckett regular mag...there are people like me who buy it but chances are...they could still entice me to buy a bi-weekly version if it simply covered hot items. That way I know who I am looking to pay more for and what the ranges are. I don't always have time to keep track of the three sports I collect and there have been times where having something like this would have helped me out. There have been times where I'd go to my shop asking if they had player X just to find out they are all out or that his cards are hot and going to cost me a ton.

 

[predatorkj]

And man...hate to get into this again but...ebay isn't a great indicator of prices. People pay particular amounts of money for particular items based on quite a few variables. It cannot ever and will not ever, translate well for shows or shops. I can't stress that enough. Even if I could find a completed listing for the same exact card(which isn't always possible) on ebay...there are way too many variables. Oh it went for no bids at $0.99 with $2.00 shipping? The seller has it listed at $4. Should I buy it? Oh...it went for $126.99 plus $3.00 to ship. Should I go ahead and snag it for the $80.00 the show seller has it at? The first one, believe it or not may be a great deal. The second scenario may be a bad one. In the first case...maybe nobody on ebay saw or needed it at the time. In the second scenario...maybe too many people saw/needed it at that time. So maybe even the $80.00 isn't a great deal. It can't be easily quantified.

In every single case a card sells(or doesn't) based on a whole lot of factors. Player collectors. Set builders. It might not sell. I see nice Bagwells all the time on ebay ending way lower or higher than I'd pay. But I may have the card already. Or maybe I can't afford it. You tell me if I bid up(against another player collector) a card I really want, that you'd pay even close to it? No. Because chances are you aren't in it for the same reasons I am and you aren't going in with your ears pinned back to get it! I have paid some nice coin for some really wanted cards. But trust me...if I go to the TriStar show and see a cool looking Kevin Youkillis card or maybe a nice James Loney card...I am going to pay how I see fit for it. You want top dollar? Put it up on ebay and let the player collectors fight it out or take your cards to L.A. or Boston. You come to my town or you have a shop in my town...you aren't getting that kinda coin.

And unless all of you are doing this with all of your cards, which you aren't, then ebay isn't going to be an answer to anything. There are things I pay for at a show depending on a lot of factors. I may not have ever seen it and may not feel like going through the trouble to find it when I can just whip out a few bucks and have it right then and there. And there are also things I may pay less for at a show because I am not getting caught up in a player collecting war.

It still amazes me how many of you use ebay as a guide.

 

[Big Mac McGwire]

And man...hate to get into this again but...ebay isn't a great indicator of prices. People pay particular amounts of money for particular items based on quite a few variables. It cannot ever and will not ever, translate well for shows or shops. I can't stress that enough. Even if I could find a completed listing for the same exact card(which isn't always possible) on ebay...there are way too many variables. Oh it went for no bids at $0.99 with $2.00 shipping? The seller has it listed at $4. Should I buy it? Oh...it went for $126.99 plus $3.00 to ship. Should I go ahead and snag it for the $80.00 the show seller has it at? The first one, believe it or not may be a great deal. The second scenario may be a bad one. In the first case...maybe nobody on ebay saw or needed it at the time. In the second scenario...maybe too many people saw/needed it at that time. So maybe even the $80.00 isn't a great deal. It can't be easily quantified.

In every single case a card sells(or doesn't) based on a whole lot of factors. Player collectors. Set builders. It might not sell. I see nice Bagwells all the time on ebay ending way lower or higher than I'd pay. But I may have the card already. Or maybe I can't afford it. You tell me if I bid up(against another player collector) a card I really want, that you'd pay even close to it? No. Because chances are you aren't in it for the same reasons I am and you aren't going in with your ears pinned back to get it! I have paid some nice coin for some really wanted cards. But trust me...if I go to the TriStar show and see a cool looking Kevin Youkillis card or maybe a nice James Loney card...I am going to pay how I see fit for it. You want top dollar? Put it up on ebay and let the player collectors fight it out or take your cards to L.A. or Boston. You come to my town or you have a shop in my town...you aren't getting that kinda coin.

And unless all of you are doing this with all of your cards, which you aren't, then ebay isn't going to be an answer to anything. There are things I pay for at a show depending on a lot of factors. I may not have ever seen it and may not feel like going through the trouble to find it when I can just whip out a few bucks and have it right then and there. And there are also things I may pay less for at a show because I am not getting caught up in a player collecting war.

It still amazes me how many of you use ebay as a guide.

First Point - People Like myself use ebay BECAUSE local shops or anything resembling a Show near me NEVER has what i am looking for. Thats why is EBAY is the shattt. If i want a card, that is nowhere to be found, how would i have access to it from a guy who lives in Orgeon who is planning to sell it? Bam, Thats why ebay is Golden and always will be.

How else are you going to determine what something is selling for???
Where do you think price guides get their info from??
Next time your on the can, and your looking at your old price guides you will see under some, now i have becketts from 05 in my bathroom, don't really know if they still do it, but under some set names you will see "Reported Ebay Sale etc"

Beckett Does use Ebay as a way of determining the "Value" of a card. You must remember, any kind of sports memorabilia is not "Worth" anything. It is what someone is willing to pay for it. And you can bet your life that Ebay is used in some percentage of beckett listing cards with "value".

Your statement of "how many use ebay as a guide" can not be more inaccurate. Beckett is not calling up card stores around the country asking them "What is the 02 SP Authentic Joe Smith card selling for in your shop", why because most card stores do not have that card to sell, who does????- PEOPLE ON EBAY.

 

[Rickzcards]

Remember, minimum grades are more popular now than in 2006 (I think). So think of all the cards being rejected. I am hooked on harder-to-find-high-grade cards. I could care less about base $15 prospect auto. The only aspect I look for there is near-perfect centering. Great centering makes for an attractive scan. A high grade on a condition sensitive card is sexy; low population is great also.

I think the minimum grade limit has maybe caused them to boost borderline cards just to collect the extra fees. An in doing so turning a lot of 9's into 9.5 gems. Just my opinion which I think makes sense when they could be potentially losing out on thousands a day when a card is oh so close to the minimum. Why leave all that money on the table. One could say that would be unethical, but so are sub bumps and the favorable grades that some of the larger submitters routinely get. It's all arbitrary and all about money.

 

[JVC]

Remember, minimum grades are more popular now than in 2006 (I think). So think of all the cards being rejected. I am hooked on harder-to-find-high-grade cards. I could care less about base $15 prospect auto. The only aspect I look for there is near-perfect centering. Great centering makes for an attractive scan. A high grade on a condition sensitive card is sexy; low population is great also.

I think the minimum grade limit has maybe caused them to boost borderline cards just to collect the extra fees. An in doing so turning a lot of 9's into 9.5 gems. Just my opinion which I think makes sense when they could be potentially losing out on thousands a day when a card is oh so close to the minimum. Why leave all that money on the table. One could say that would be unethical, but so are sub bumps and the favorable grades that some of the larger submitters routinely get. It's all arbitrary and all about money.

You might think this is true but on normal orders, BGS collects the grading fee whether the card meets the minimum grade or not. This would only apply to bulk orders where the submitter pays a lower amount for cards that don't meet the minimum grade and even then, it is more cost effective for BGS to reject cards than to give them 9.5's or 10's. It takes the grader 10-15 seconds to determine whether a card is a 9.5 or not. If they're charging you between 50 cents and $1 for rejections, that's about $180 an hour in collected fees. On the other end, you're being charged between $6 and 8 for cards that get the 9.5 or 10 and it takes them an extra 5 minutes to print the label and seal the slab per card, thus only making about $84 an hour.