I want to see more YouTubers recommend PSA 9s more

Hey guys, so I watch a ton of the poketubers, and I am in the discords and different lives. Recently battling some collecting addiction and I wrote a post about trying to buy on a budget. Now the thing I really discovered was buying the 9s I think we over value the 10s this is where someone like me really started spending more then he should l. So I am a middle class guy. I work 2 jobs second job is more for buying whatever I want and fun money my main job pays the bills and funds the retirement and all adult stuff. Between all the investment channels, and buying videos, I think we got into a habit of valuing the 10s and then treating 9s like they are worthless. I think if you’re a collector and (semi investor) I think 9s are An amazing way for the middle class or average person to be active in the hobby. I have graded many cards and it’s an amazing feeling to get the 10 you shouldn’t be upset about 9s and I think a lot of bigger content creators often help build that narrative. What do you guys think?

PSA 9s on cards from 1999 - 2010 are fine

PSA 9s on modern are worthless

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That’s exactly the sentiment I am talking about. If you get a 9 in modern it’s garbage. Now for some sets like crown zenith with very easy gem rate but we’ve gotten to this point 9s are garbage and we over value the 10s which people can’t afford. Most middle class people can’t afford the vintage cards they are very expensie. If you make 35-70k a year getting to vintage realm spending the vintage kind of money is out of the realm for most of those people. If I spent 800 on a card my fiancé would kill me.

Not everyone is buying for an investment though. I’ll aim for 10’s, but if the 9 is 2 - 3 times cheaper then I’ll pick up a 9 instead. One could argue that all modern PSA slabs are kinda worthless, so better to pick up the cheaper 9’s than dumping a load of money into modern 10’s.

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At that point if the modern raw is cheaper than a PSA 9 just buy that.

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I personally would buy even 7s or 8s for my collection, but the key is that 10s stonk. I read a lot of topic and posts here about 9s vs 10s, and it seems to me that a lot of people think what you think, and are not willing to pay the psa10 premium. It’s a matter of taste, and strategy.

If I have big youtuber money probably I would go for 10s.

There isn’t a right or wrong answer when it comes to buying 9s and 10s. Some of my most favorite cards I’ll try to get a 10 in, but for almost everything else I’m personally satisfied with clean 9s.

There’s definitely a camp of people who have a lot of expendable income and can pretty much do what they want when it comes to collecting. There isn’t anything wrong with that though. I’d be doing the same thing. Can’t lie.

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I think part of it is we have a lot of over night millionaires from the 2020 boom. If you owned a psa 9 first charizard in 2016 at $200 at peak you could have sold it for 70k or 20k now. Thing is I love the success of content creators but they forget 90% of their viewers are making average living. I go to cons and keep up with it but I don’t have the big money to play in the hobby the way it is now. Psa 9 gold star pikachu is 3500 bucks. On my salary I will never pay that price. All new people in the hobby are going towards the modern and we want them included. It’s how the channels grow and the hobby continues on. But if we say 9s are worthless and make the 10s super expensive people are going to get removed from the hobby because then it becomes a rich persons hobby.

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Agree, 9s are a very solid value option usually and should be recommended to most new/returning collectors compared to a 10. Some PSA 10s carry a very significant premium and can empty your wallet fast. Personally, I like a mix of multiple grades in my collection. I usually buy 10s of my absolute favourite cards, and buy 8s and 9s of everything else (mainly holos).

You can also find significant value in the 5-8 range at times. I’ll even buy a PSA 5 if it’s “strong” example, as there can be a lot of variety in condition/grade at times.

So overall, I think these lower/mid grades are great options for collectors on a budget. I’ve saved a ton just by willing to accept a little more whitening here and there as I build up my collection.

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Gotta stay off youtube

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I can understand what you feel. But try to rationalize it: poketubers will do what poketubers do, so try to not fall on the fomo/stonks/psa10 gem mint trap.

Even millionaires can’t collect everything, we will never achieve satisfaction since there will always be someone with an highest grade or a rarer card.

So why don’t you try to buy what you really enjoy? Maybe you could own less cards in psa10, saving money for that gold star that you really want.

Also, psa9 will never be worthless, they’re beautiful cards and 90% you can’t even even tell the difference with a psa10. How many people have cracked a 9 to get a 10 resubmitting it? If you’re not investing, is having 10s really important to you?

So, unfortunately we must accept that we are kinda late at the party and I know this sounds like the supreme copium, and probably it is, but we should really be thankful that we have an hobby involving a mass produced product, that is still fairly affordable despite the astronomical demand.

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With modern the 9s vs 10s, to me feels like just arbitrary difficulty you’re adding to your collection goals. And while that’s the case, I think that’s totally understandable, and I do it too. Like at the end of the day, all of the value of Pokemon cards is completely ephemeral and emotional. So if paying the premium for a 10 feels worth it to you, then that’s the optimum play.

Of course that all falls apart when talking about buying to make a profit. But that’s not what we’re talking about here, right? You have to ask yourself what exactly you value, and find the niche/price point that matches that.

Also please correct me if I’m wrong, but I’m under the impression that there were not any overnight millionaires from the 2020 boom. Like maybe technically, but those who had those big money rare cards were probably in the upper echelon of collectors to begin with, or they are the type to never sell. The prices just went up the collectors stayed the same for the most part.

I don’t want to see them recommend PSA 9 more at all lol. I love me some $35-$45 Japanese Base holos.

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PSA 9s are all that I collect unless I grade a 10 myself. But then again I sell the 10 and buy a 9 :grimacing:

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The PSA 10 narrative won’t price people out of the hobby. Most of the cards that the average collector is collecting are set cards or fairly common promo cards which means there are plenty of cards out there. If someone can’t afford a PSA 10 they are more likely to buy a PSA 9 or a raw card vs leaving the hobby.

I am fine with the whole PSA 10 hype because it allows me to buy more PSA 9 cards cheaply. This allows me to expand my collection for the same price.

I think this is part of the problem. Consuming a lot of Pokemon card content may lead to FOMO, problematic spending, collecting fatigue/disinterest in your own collection, etc. As with all things in life, moderation is key.

Vintage PSA 9s are great. There is no doubt there. Don’t let someone else’s opinion/flexing taint your views.

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This so the answer right here

No. Please leave the PSA 9s for me. :wink:

Edit: speaking of course about vintage, legacy, whatever includes pre-modern.
I feel like seeing the value in PSA 9s is a demonstration of maturity in one’s collecting journey. It means you’re thinking for yourself, especially with older products… Right or Wrong. Though, it will inevitably be that someone recommends 9s, and it starts to catch-on, and as such, my previous statement will hold no relevance.

Most YouTubers I see cover modern (around 2016- onwards) and almost always treat PSA 9s as complete failures and mention they will sell them on until they get a 10.

It’s strange as it doesn’t feel to me as though most of them care about the card at all once it’s a 9 - the first thing they look at is the grade without really appreciating card.

For me personally I’ll collect pretty much anything and have always favoured PSA 9s as I much rather have many more cards and be able to complete sets then spend 4-10x on the same card because a strong 9 vs 10 could be nothing more then a single white dot on the back.

I would recommend trying to pick up completed sets / raw copies and grade yourself, I have some PSA cards that are 5,6,7 etc I graded myself and have 0 intention of upgrading to higher grades - I really appreciate having the card rather then any card imperfections unless it’s major scratching or creases

However I wouldn’t actively purchase grades that low hence buy the 9s/10s based on the price point - there’s quite a few cards even in the mid era where the 9 to 10 is only 2-3 times the price so in some cases I go for the 10 I.e reverse holos.

Ultimately it depends on the individual and try to look at if some pricing is just out of wack but PSA 9s have and seem to always be a great value way of collecting!

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Personally, I like just having the card in the first place.

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