[lsolarte1]

So my first submission was terrible. Gives me a very new appreciation for what a Mint card is. The only positives were my Bowman's Best Ray Lewis RC 9.5, my Topps Chrome Rodgers 9.0, the rest were 8.5 or worse. Have to use e sub grades as a lesson and look harder next time.

Are there tools I should be using, I have a jewelers loop for looking at corners but what else, really didn't expect these low grades.

[englandhousehold]

Here Leo this helps alot.

"1.) A bright overhead light with a magnifier.

2.) You will need a black light. You will know why in a minute. You can buy a blacklight bulb by its self and use it in an old lamp. The bulb will cost less than $5.00 and are easy to come by at any Home Depot or similar store.

3.) You will need a 6X or better jewelers loop. This is about $30-$50 for a TOP QUALTY jewelers loop. You know you have a top quality jewelers loop when you can see a spec or dirt/sand DEEPLY imbedded in the grooves of your fingerprints. I highly recommend you don't sacrifice the quality. It is a one itme investment as long as you don't lose it. Make it a good one.

4.) You will need an Omnigrid. An Omnigrid is a tool that is used by people who sew fabric. It is used to check accuracy in measuring when someone is sewing. It is a hard, clear piece of plexiglass/plastic with thin black lines going acroos and down that you hold over the cloth to check accuracy and measurements in your fabric. I recommend the 6X6 size for easy handling with your card. These can be had at a sewing/fabric shop for only a few bucks. $4.00 at the most. You will see why you need this IMPORTANT tool in a minute.

5.)You will need a CLEAN felt cloth about the size of a hankercheif or napkin. This will cost $1.00 or $2.00. You might possibly get a scrap one for FREE at a sewing/fabric store. MAKE SURE IT IS CLEAN! Grab a couple if you can. You DO NOT want to use a substitute cloth. Not even if the substitute cloth is clean. The reason being is that some fabrics have "micro-abrasions" on them that can scratch your card. A felt cloth is the best thing that I peronally have ever found.

The 4 characteristics we are looking for in card grading is centering, corners, surfaces and edges. I ALWAYS shoot for BGS 9 or better. I will not send a card made from 1982 and back to Beckett for regular BGS grading. I will for BVG though. And I will not send in a card that I don't believe will come back a BGS 9 or better. It is just a waste of time and money as far as I am concerned. The next thing you want to think about when grading is "process of elimination" so your not grading all these cards with a fine tooth comb for no reason. Another thing to keep in mind is that less than 1% of all cards produced are worth a BGS 9 or better. Hence why the Beckett guide is ONLY A GUIDE to Near Mint cards. And the first step is to take the clear plastic Omnigrid and place it over the card. This will tell you with AMAZING accuracy just how well the card is centered. It works on borderless cards too. The Omnigrid puts an imaginary border over a borderless card so you can see if other characteristics in the card are even on all 4 sides. Things to check for are lines on the card that might serve as a guide for you. Company logos are the best choice. See if the logo sits PERFECTLY in the lines of your Omnigrid tool. If a line on the Omnigrid tool covers up any part of the logo, your card may be about 51/49 centering. Which is still very good. I highly recommend practicing on cards already graded by Beckett with a BGS 9.5 or better so you develope an eye for accuracy. To get a BGS 9 or better, centering MUST be 51/49 or better! 50/50 centering means you are on your way to BGS 9.5 or BGS 10. You can also practice on cards that perhaps don't have a player worth sending in to be graded, but the card is a good "dummy card" to practice with. AND so you know what Beckett is looking at. This is very important folks. This truly does take a talented eye.

The next thing you want to check is the surface of the card. You will need your magnifier and loop as well as your 2 lights for this process. The black light helps with detecting finger oils/prints on the card. SOME manufacturing flaws are easier to detect under a blacklight as well. THESE WILL BE FOUND BY BECKETT! Make NO MISTAKE about it! And such things as minor print lines and small printing errors show up better. You will need the regualr light to compare differences in how things show up on your card. Finger oils/prints as well as small specks on top of the card can be wiped away with a felt cloth. PAY ATTENTION!: When you go to wipe away fingerprints/oil or any debris off of the card, it is VERY IMPORTANT that you GENTLY wipe from the center of the card towards the edges. You DO NOT want to do this backwards from what I just told you. You put your self at risk of damaging the edges of the card. AGAIN, practice these instructions on lesser common cards BEFORE you do this on a card you really like. You will be sorry if you don't. You also don't want to take away from the gloss on the surface of you card. A clean felt cloth will not hurt the surface of your card. You want to look for ANY KIND of flaw and imperfection you can find. Remember that MINT IS MINT! Every little detail matters and counts. Don't try to kid yourself into thinking it doesn't. That will be a costly mistake.

Next we are going to grade the edges and corners of the card. You will need your jewelers loop and your regular bright magnifier light for this. DO NOT sacrifice quality in this step by just checking it with the naked eye. This is a very easy step to take. It is the easiest of them all. Take your jewleers loop and inspect AND critique ANY kind of blemish what-so-ever. Dents, dings, chipping, bends, creases and small tears are considered "no-no's". The corners and edges should be RAZOR SHARP! You should be able to imagine the card being made of metal and being afraid to touch the edges and corners too hard or you will bleed. Make sure they look just that sharp. And remember that Beckett will see the same thing you see. You are not going to get it past them. Corners and edges cannot be fixed without altering the card in some way, shape or form. DO NOT cut your card to give it nice edges and corners. Beckett knows the routine/drill and will not grade your card. If your card has past these 4 inspections, you have just found a mint or better card worth sending to Beckett. You have saved yourself time, money, headache and aggravation by using these steps."

So my first submission was terrible. Gives me a very new appreciation for what a Mint card is. The only positives were my Bowman's Best Ray Lewis RC 9.5, my Topps Chrome Rodgers 9.0, the rest were 8.5 or worse. Have to use e sub grades as a lesson and look harder next time.

Are there tools I should be using, I have a jewelers loop for looking at corners but what else, really didn't expect these low grades.

[ugameck]

I've been jaded so I don't submit anything less than perfect and hope for a 9 or better.

[lsolarte1]

Thank you, def going to practice before my next submission.

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So, let's say these come back and it's surface issues, didn't even think to worry about that, just focused on edges, corners, and centering. Could an argument be made to crack and clean surface. For example all 9s but surface was 7 maybe because of a fingerprint?

[englandhousehold]

Absolutely, it's been done before. *wink*

Thank you, def going to practice before my next submission.

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So, let's say these come back and it's surface issues, didn't even think to worry about that, just focused on edges, corners, and centering. Could an argument be made to crack and clean surface. For example all 9s but surface was 7 maybe because of a fingerprint?

[nthnoak]

Thank you, def going to practice before my next submission.

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So, let's say these come back and it's surface issues, didn't even think to worry about that, just focused on edges, corners, and centering. Could an argument be made to crack and clean surface. For example all 9s but surface was 7 maybe because of a fingerprint?

Absolutely, people do it all the time. Mostly due to fingerprints.

[lsolarte1]

Well as soon as they come in, I'll have to scan ones in question. Is it hard to crack the BGS cases?

[englandhousehold]

Maybe your 1st time but it's easy after the 1st one....few videos on youtube about it although I just use wire cutters and a flat screw driver.

Well as soon as they come in, I'll have to scan ones in question. Is it hard to crack the BGS cases?

[lsolarte1]

Thanks everyone. I feel like a dope not to think to wipe the cards before I sent them.

[brentboudreaux1]

Thanks everyone. I feel like a dope not to think to wipe the cards before I sent them.

dont feel bad...i just sent a group and the one card i thought would get a 9.5 got an 8.5!

9.5
9.0
9.5
8.0 <--- surface

did not wipe the card!