I'm mostly interested with older cards (pre-1970) and have a small, but prized, collection. The majority of my cards have been graded by PSA (some SGC, some un-graded) and it's something I typically look at when considering a purchase or an auction bid.

I had a couple of cards out today, one of which raised an eyebrow. It was a '52 Topps card with a PSA 8.5. It's a classic set, anything with a grade that high is going to look nice, right? But when you take a closer look at this card, you'll note that the bottom edge is frayed - very frayed, it has a noticeable fringe. But this is an 8.5?

On the other hand I have cards in my collection that look fantastic, I'm looking at a '57 Topps Bob Lemon right now that looks great, perfect centering, sharp corners...it's a PSA 4. I have a lot of cards that look better than they've graded. They are, of course, encased so I've always assumed there might be flaws that might be more visible outside the case.

I'm really not a condition snob, especially in the latter case...If a card looks like an 8 but is graded at a 4 I can get it cheaper!

But when I have something in my collection that goes the other way, that looks like it's obviously over-graded, how gospel is that grade? If a card is encased as an 8.5 is it definitely an 8.5? I don't sell my cards, but I could put this particular card on ebay and have a disappointed buyer on the other end - despite getting what they paid for, the label on the case says 8.5 after all.