AFA GRADED GI JOE Discussions

[Mr. Crimson]

Hello,

I do not have anything of mine graded, because most gradeing companies are a joke.

Thank You,

Mr. Crimson

[TYPE*S*TOYS]

Hello,

I do not have anything of mine graded, because most gradeing companies are a joke.

Thank You,

Mr. Crimson

I would love to hear why you think grading companies are a joke. Please explain your opinion as this is a "discussion thread"

[Mr. Crimson]

Hello,

I feel I have offended you. I will explain myself by saying this, consistency is one thing these companies do not have. I mentioned I do not have anything of mine graded this is because while I was having items graded I was getting jipped. When you can take an item that has been graded by one company and send it to another to get it re-graded, and get a far different grade there is something lacking, it is consistency. The only company I trust is PSA, but I do not deal in cards much anymore.

Just my 2 cents.

Thank You,

Mr. Crimson

[TYPE*S*TOYS]

Hello,

I feel I have offended you. I will explain myself by saying this, consistency is one thing these companies do not have. I mentioned I do not have anything of mine graded this is because while I was having items graded I was getting jipped. When you can take an item that has been graded by one company and send it to another to get it re-graded, and get a far different grade there is something lacking, it is consistency. The only company I trust is PSA, but I do not deal in cards much anymore.

Just my 2 cents.

Thank You,

Mr. Crimson

all grading companies have different grading standards. Some grade harder and some are more leanient. You should know this already if you are into sportscards. As far as toy grading goes so far there is only one company (AFA) so I do not know how you can compare when there is nothing else to compare them to. I guess the ultimate test would be to send in a carded figure to AFA to be graded get it back and then 6 months later crack open the case and send it back in to be graded again. If it gets different grades then your point would have been proved. Maybe someone else has already done this. Anyone?

[gutstheberserker]

Hello,

I do not have anything of mine graded, because most gradeing companies are a joke.

Thank You,

Mr. Crimson

I've heard this argument numerous times not only about AFA but about CGC. But the bottom line is that grading companies provide three things: 1) certainty -- if I am paying top dollar for a piece, I want to make sure its not a restored comic or resealed figure; 2) protection -- the acrylic case provides an increased level of protection that can't be offered by bags and boards or star cases; and 3) increased value -- as with comics, graded figures are worth multiples of their ungraded counterparts. Given the number of times I've been screwed by sellers describing items as C9.5 when its a C8 at best or MISB when the tape is off one side, I would much rather shell out a little more to have the graded figure and know exactly what I am buying. Of course, grading isn't for everyone, but if I have a great condition carded piece or sealed vehicle, I will get it graded.

[Iron Snake]

The only thing that makes AFA an authority on anything is because they say so... well that and they have no competition. I've seen it asked before and no one's ever even attempted to answer the question, but what makes these people qualified to grade anything? Who dubs these people authorities on grading items?

If I go to a beer master and give him some samples and ask him for his grades, then I can trust his opinion because becoming a master brewer is something you have to train for and are recognized in. What are AFA's credentials?

[whitedalek]

The only thing that makes AFA an authority on anything is because they say so... well that and they have no competition. I've seen it asked before and no one's ever even attempted to answer the question, but what makes these people qualified to grade anything? Who dubs these people authorities on grading items?

If I go to a beer master and give him some samples and ask him for his grades, then I can trust his opinion because becoming a master brewer is something you have to train for and are recognized in. What are AFA's credentials?

Agreed!! Perhaps I should open my own action figure grading company: 90+ costs $75, 80-89 costs $50, etc. There are no standardized methods to see how somebody is accredited the ability to grade figures, etc.

[gutstheberserker]

It's my understanding and I could be wrong on this but I believe just like CGC there are different levels of graders with master grader being the highest level and taking months of apprenticeship before you reach that level. I think their website addresses the process or you can e-mail them for more details.

[Iron Snake]

It's my understanding and I could be wrong on this but I believe just like CGC there are different levels of graders with master grader being the highest level and taking months of apprenticeship before you reach that level. I think their website addresses the process or you can e-mail them for more details.

That still doesn't answer the question. What, or who, qualifies these people as experts and who verifies that they even know what they're supposed to know?

And I looked for a website... still can't find any info. I'm assuming their website is www.actionfigureauthority.com (which doesn't work - it's not afa.com/net/org either) but if that's not it someone throw up a link.

Regardless... you have to go to legitimate schools to become qualified as a master brewer (to again use that example), there's no such thing for grading toys which again means there's no qualifying someone as an expert other than them saying they are. I, or anyone, could start up a toy grading company with my own grades (complete with my years of extensive toy grading experience*cough*) and nifty packaging and say I was an expert at that and start charging a premium price for my "authoritative" work just as easily and that would make me no more of an authority than AFA.

So the question remains...

[gutstheberserker]

It's www.toygrader.com. I guess my response would be that if you had x number of years experience and were use to grading figures on a daily basis and then went through the process of grading hundreds of figures a day then you would be qualified to grade. I have been consistently satisfied with the product I have received from AFA and was able to accurately guess the grades probably 80% of the time. Given that I'm not trained to look for things like reseals and sticker residue, I could easily miss something and that's why I would rather rely on a 3rd party.

The reality of it is that if a graded Firefly 90 sells for $3,750 and a CC 95 for $5,250, I would much rather have my high end carded figures graded just to increase their overall value and resell capability.

Of course, grading isn't for everybody.