Is Tom Seaver #32 worth grading?
Baseball · Baseball Cards 1986 Quaker Oats · full price guide →
Worth grading — even a PSA 9 beats raw
A Grade 9.5 Tom Seaver #32 sells for $53.00 against $0.25 raw: a $52.75 spread, 212× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($47.73) clears the raw price after an economy-tier ~$25 fee, so a near-miss still comes out ahead. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
- Raw (NM)
- $0.25
- Grade 9.5
- $53.00
- PSA 9
- $47.73
- Gem premium
- 212×
- As of
- Sep 4, 2026
Break-even by outcome and fee
| If it comes back… | Sells for | Economy / bulk (~$25.00) | Standard (~$50.00) | Express (~$150) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gem — Grade 9.5 | $53.00 | +$27.75 | +$2.75 | −$97.25 |
| PSA 9 | $47.73 | +$22.48 | −$2.52 | −$103 |
| PSA 8 | $16.98 | −$8.27 | −$33.27 | −$133 |
Net = sale price − $0.25 raw value − fee. Fee tiers are illustrative; plug your grader's current price into the calculator below.
Expected value — how often does it need to gem?
| Chance it gems | Expected sale | Expected net (standard fee) |
|---|---|---|
| 25% | $49.05 | −$1.20 |
| 50% | $50.36 | +$0.11 |
| 75% | $51.68 | +$1.43 |
Break-even gem rate at the standard fee: about 48%. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses — measure it before you decide.
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Grading Tom Seaver #32 — FAQ
Is Tom Seaver #32 worth grading?
A Grade 9.5 Tom Seaver #32 sells for $53.00 against $0.25 raw: a $52.75 spread, 212× the ungraded price. Even a PSA 9 ($47.73) clears the raw price after an economy-tier ~$25 fee, so a near-miss still comes out ahead. Centering is the usual reason a clean copy misses the 10 — measure it before you submit.
What gem rate makes grading Tom Seaver #32 break even?
At a standard ~$50 fee, submitting Tom Seaver #32 breaks even when it gems about 48% of the time (a miss assumed to sell at the PSA 9 price of $47.73).
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