[tweeder64]

Hello, I have never graded before and would like to get into it. I figured that I would start with 1986 Topps Baseball (Pretty much just HOF). It was the first set that I remember my parents getting packs for me when I was very young. Just wanted to see if there is a difference in condition of the cards between Vending boxes or Wax boxes? Just wanted to ask the knowledgeable collectors and graders on here before I do anything. Thanks for reading

Joe

[Hofcollector]

Hello, I have never graded before and would like to get into it. I figured that I would start with 1986 Topps Baseball (Pretty much just HOF). It was the first set that I remember my parents getting packs for me when I was very young. Just wanted to see if there is a difference in condition of the cards between Vending boxes or Wax boxes? Just wanted to ask the knowledgeable collectors and graders on here before I do anything. Thanks for reading

Joe

I think what your going to find is that 1986 may not be the best year to get into grading unless your doing it strictly for fun. You wont break even on grading costs on any cards what so ever unless you manage to get 10's for grades and even then there's only a handful of cards that would be worthwhile to grade.

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Btw, definitely stay away from vending boxes if your looking for gradeable cards. Always go wax.

[the cardboard fan]

^ He is correct. Unless you are talking about getting back Gem Mint's plus from a set such as 1986 Topps Traded Tiffany the return will not be there. That being said if it is simply for enjoyment in the hobby then don't let this stop you but be careful not to over invest in this way. My suggestion would be find out which cards are SP's, errors, and RC's of HOFers and perhaps a couple other star players from the 1986 year sets and go with a small batch of very well centered, sharp cornered, and smooth surfaced cards within those parameters for a submission.

[tweeder64]

Thank you guys for your replies, I appreciate it greatly. I have noticed that even singles that appear to be perfect on ebay are not when they arrive. Finding a ton of small printing flaws and surface issues, while the top black border seems to be a monster in itself. I do like the Tiffany idea, I seem to run into those in much better shape far more frequently than the base issue. Recently picked up 3 wax boxes from krukcards and hopefully yield a few decent finds worthy of submission. Just looking for enjoyment, Always wanted to get a 9 or 9.5 of topps HOF from 80-90 topps.

[Hofcollector]

Good luck with your boxes. Here's to pulling a few 10's.

[djohn]

The 1986 Topps set is an interesting one for grading due to the black border. However as others have stated there really aren't any cards worth grading in terms of value. That being said if you are going to send some in for grading be sure to check the front and the back of the cards for centering and surface issues. One of the biggest mistakes people make is they carefully check the front of the card and forget about the back. The card grade is based off both the front and back of the card.

[nolan5000]

The card grade is based off both the front and back of the card.

At least for Beckett Grading, it is.

[tweeder64]

Thanks for the heads up djohn. I actually fell into that category. I paid way more attention to the front than the back. I recently set up a spreadsheet with fields for the front that I give my grade from 1-10 (more for me to learn how to do it more accurately). The only back criteria that I had listed was the back centering. I will have to go and check for printing flaws and such on the back. Thanks again.

Joe