Has anyone tried HGA grading?

[Burner]

I am interested in grading some Jagr OPC Premiere RC which I believe to be in really good condition, however with PSA/BGS being backlogged or charging an arm and a leg, I thought I'd give HGA a try since it seems like their grades hold their value similar to PSA/BGS. The only thing I'm noticing is that HGA is grading EXTREMELY tough. I'm seeing cards on eBay and Youtube with a HGA 8.5 and 9 that would without a doubt be PSA 10. I can't imagine what it would take to get a HGA 9.5-10.

 

[JR]

In my opinion the best bang for your buck right now is SGC. They are somewhat reputable, the slabs look great and the price right now seems great. I think they are doing nice work and we will be seeing more and more of their stuff out there. It seems like the only option right now with mid range cards.

I haven’t looked much into HGA though. It could be just as good.

 

[Chinner]

I have submitted to HGA after my friend was talking about them. I do agree that HGA seems to be tough, especially on centering, but that is in large part due to their AI system - which is one of the selling points of their grading system. I guess it depends on what you are looking for from grading a particular card? Is it for your PC? Investment/flipping reason? True grading assessment of the card?

Although I do like the idea of a computer system that for something like centering, that way it is much more objective than traditional methods.

Personally I've never been a fan of the look of SGC slabs and the label customization option for HGA can really make some slabs pop. HGA is a new grading company and it will take some time for them to gain ground in the hobby when compared to BGS/PSA

 

[Fred Bear]

I tried like heck to get in when HGA first began. Not really to grade 'investment'-type cards like your OPC Jagr RC, but stuff like OPC Platinum parallels or Canvas YGs as nice, high-grade customs. After 12 weeks, I never got in and, in retrospect, thank goodness. It looks like they've cooled on handing out high grades and I don't know if it's marketing to make it look like they are tough, or if they are really tough. I've heard mixed reviews on their slabs both in quality and appearance. I don't feel like the value is there at the high end, either, but it's probably more that there still isn't enough data on most cards and the market has cooled considerable.

From ebay sales on the Jagr, HGA 8.5 is most common and they sell for ~$35, an HGA 9 is probably a $50-60 card right now. I couldn't find sales data on HGA 9.5 or HGA 10. An SGC 9.5 runs around $60-75 right now, SGC Gem 10s are $150, and SGC Pristine 10s are $500+. A PSA 9 is ~$70 and a PSA 10 is ~$325.

As you said, PSA, at current prices, isn't worth it. If you think it's a PSA 10, I'd either wait or go with SGC for short term.

 

[plubers]

I’m definitely rooting for HGA to establish themselves as one of the top grading companies. They have absolutely awesome labels, they give sub grades and AI is the future for sure. Grading will be more accurate and more importantly the grades will be consistent. No more sending cards in over and over until your PSA 8 gets that 10.

Has anybody tried CSG yet?

 

[japhi]

If for resale, you are throwing your money away. No one is going to pay a premium over raw for HGA.

PSA will have a $50 level in 2022 most likely. That's your best bet or SGC @ 30.

 

[Arkhive]

Just wanted to get this out there but HGA does not use AI to grade their cards, they got a ton of traction early on with that as their pitch but what they do is use a scanner to get high-resolution images. They use those images to help the grader grade the card. That is not AI.

I do think there will be genuine technological advances in the grading industry but HGA's use of AI was for buzz and to get business which they successfully did. They don't actually have any sort of AI doing the grading.

 

[plubers]

Just wanted to get this out there but HGA does not use AI to grade their cards, they got a ton of traction early on with that as their pitch but what they do is use a scanner to get high-resolution images. They use those images to help the grader grade the card. That is not AI.

I do think there will be genuine technological advances in the grading industry but HGA's use of AI was for buzz and to get business which they successfully did. They don't actually have any sort of AI doing the grading.

Interesting, thanks for clearing that up lol

 

[Arkhive]

Interesting, thanks for clearing that up lol

No worries! I was also excited early on about it but when it came out what they were actually doing, kinda put a damper on things haha. Hopefully, genuine AI grading is in the near future for us! :beer:

 

[TMCards]

Just wanted to get this out there but HGA does not use AI to grade their cards, they got a ton of traction early on with that as their pitch but what they do is use a scanner to get high-resolution images. They use those images to help the grader grade the card. That is not AI.

I do think there will be genuine technological advances in the grading industry but HGA's use of AI was for buzz and to get business which they successfully did. They don't actually have any sort of AI doing the grading.

This x1000. It's actually insane how their AI claim stuck has stuck to their branding for this long. They removed the AI claims from their website a few months after they started up.

 

[chakhae1]

If you go to the HGA FB Group they have a post explaining how they are back logged and what they are going to do about it.

 

[plubers]

If you go to the HGA FB Group they have a post explaining how they are back logged and what they are going to do about it.

I don’t have fb. Maybe post a link?

 

[chakhae1]

https://www.facebook.com/HybridGradingApproach

 

[chakhae1]

Hybrid Grading Approach

Horizontal slabs are ready and here!!!!!!

I will have a few updates below regarding Horizontal slabs and the backlog.
Horizontal Updates
1. Horizontal slabs are now here. They will be a $5 upcharge. If you have cards with us now that you want to be switched to Horizontal you can log in to your account and update it as long as it hasn't been printed yet.
2. We will be adding a Horizontal reslab option soon as well. It will be $15 to switch from a vertical to horizontal.
3. We only have 40 point horizontals. We may in the future offer other sizes but for now we will stick to this size and see how things go.
Backlog Updates
1. We have hit the pinnacle of the backlog. We are around 38 days behind. From here going forward we will be working this number down fairly quickly. Our goal is to clear the backlog in 3 months. Each month we should knock through at least 10 days of the backlog. We will be putting up a ticker to follow soon.
2. We are doing this by strategically adding 2 more of our new production pods to increase output. This is going to allow us to keep ahead of all orders.
Submission Updates
1. We are now limiting submissions to only 60 days to make sure we can get caught up in the quickest manner possible.
2. We are limiting submissions starting Monday to 5,000 cards a week. Again this is being done so we can catch up as quickly as possible.
We are in a great place going forward. We are in no way, shape, or form closing. We have just been revamping and getting better for the long run. I'm sure starting ASAP you will start seeing the results of all of our hardwork and investments. I truly hope everyone accepts our apologies. We never wanted anyone to be concerned but we were putting our focus into fixing the issues within the production lines.
Also, we are behind on messages but have put more staff on this to try to catch up. With all the holidays and missed days we got behind on messages but we will be caught up soon. Again I apologize for the delay and we will get it all back together soon.
I hope everyone has an amazing weekend. We will keep you updated on everything going forward much better.

Sincerely,

Tyler Hitt

 

[plubers]

Thanks buddy