I have no idea why people would pay so much for damaged cards. For clarification, I’m not talking about those who are willing to collect a very rare card at any condition (e.g., a PSA 1 Illustrator). I’m talking about the type of collector interested in purchasing a PSA 1 of any WOTC holo for example.
Is this becoming trendy because the pop report is low for PSA 1s? People do the strangest things with their money.
I find it crazy that a PSA 1 sometimes goes more than like a PSA 4, one that could look ok for a binder. Also those thay damage cards on purpose to get a 1
I think one of the cards I’ve seen a lower grade outsell a mid-level grade was the no rarity charizard. My guess is the card in a low grade has the charm and nostalgia of the playground king standing atop their metal throne holding their card as high as they can into the air.
For other cards that hold the Pop 1 grade, I think it comes down to pure enjoyment. Since the card is a low grade, their is no liability. Whether you drop it, lose it, or give it away, the worry is gone and only enjoyment can be had.
There’s also the idea that the low Pop gives a sense of collecting something rare, even though it isn’t. I think this also cycles back to enjoying something that’s self-heightened and pure. Sometimes it feels good to not care and flex at the same time
I feel like the people collecting PSA 1s because they’re “low pop” are missing the point lol. They should really consider the PSA 1 pop of a given card as equal to the entire population of that card (since any higher-graded copy could become a PSA 1 if one wanted it to be). I personally don’t understand paying any sort of premium whatsoever for a PSA 1.
This could MAYBE be reasonable because to get the .5 is essentially luck of the draw with PSA. Would throw it into a “oddity or side” collection type category.
The fact is that a lot of collectors are attracted to the grade, not the card. The card is not what makes the pickup special or interesting, the grade is.
This is a major psychological difference that separates different types of collectors that is sometimes difficult to bridge because conflicting groups have their own understanding of what the appeal of graded cards actually is.
It can really be distilled to the fact for some collectors the card is what they are buying and the grade simply ensures a certain status of that particular card, but for other collectors they are buying a card specifically in that certain status because that certified status is the entire point.
I’ve come to the understanding that there are a lot of things in collecting hobbies that I will never understand and I only care about what other people do when it impacts my ability to accomplish what I want.
I do see this a lot in PSA GEM MINT 10 copies. Even if the card is misgraded and would be equivalent to a PSA 9, some collectors need the specific label for their collection and will pay 10 prices for a 9-quality card.
not my thing either