What's Buzzing: Roman Anthony rakes, Samuel Basallo gets paid, Nick Kurtz, Greg "Toe" Nash dies at 43, a 1990 Upper Deck autograph tip and ... what's the point?

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1 -- Checking in on the Roman Anthony thread

2 -- Orioles make a big move

3 -- Greg "Toe" Nash dies at 43

4 -- What's the point?

5 -- Talking Nick Kurtz

6 -- Something to know

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

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Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ...

TO SEE WHAT CONDITION MY CONDITION IS IN ...
The Album: The Big Lebowski soundtrack (Mercury, 2014 -- first pressing)
The Reason Graded: As you can probably tell, I'm a dabbler with grading in a few -- but not yet all -- directions, but the notion of having a pristine item encased for permanent protection to be appreciated as an artifact of sorts appeals in a lot of ways. Video games, Funko Pop! figures, other toys, VHS, tickets, press photos and more can be graded just like cards, comic books, magazines and coins. I've tried grading VHS and there's a chance I might do more there with a different company that I use for pretty much everything else, but vinyl is one that, well, I jettisoned most of what I had long ago. That means this was more of a first project than just a first try. (I didn't have much vinyl as my early music-buying years were where the Sony Walkman and then CDs were a thing or emerging, not records.) I spotted this soundtrack cheaper than it might have been elsewhere and it's an original, so I grabbed it with an eye for a slab with Texas-based Tuned In Grading as this one is memorable as more than just a soundtrack but a film that's a cult classic with tons of interest and action beyond a couple hours of screen time. And the total package is cool front and back with scenes and even key characters noted.
The Grade: Tuned In Grading 9.0 (sealed)

Reality Check: I did this one to basically to go through the process and see if I liked the results and then to decide how I would approach doing more. It seems based on their grading scale and description that a 10 isn't easy -- that's fine in my book and that took away some of the grade-shock here. (A nine is fine in all realms, really, but we all want perfection and in some genres a nine has a few slots above it on the scale. Not here.) There isn't really a pop report just yet (but I know of at least one copy*) and it appears that the typical overall grade is a meshing of five applicable sub-grades -- record, cover, inner sleeve, labels, shrink -- but since this is a sealed record only two of those are in play. They both clicked at nines for me -- the cover here had a small bend on the back, while the shrinkwrap has a couple minor spots on the right side but I didn't notice one of them previously. I wasn't totally surprised as I knew the small bend would hurt me but everything else seemed strong. Part of me wants to try something vintage that's not sealed next time, but that's easier said than done in terms of balancing condition, an item I like and price -- I know of a few I'd try but I'm a stickler for condition and this kind of grading isn't quite as cheap as others but still less than some so I'd want something with an appealing grade. Plus, if it's not sealed then other things get looked at ... that you can't examine unless you're buying stuff in-person. Part of me also thinks albums without shrink-wrap could look better in the sleeve but I haven't really read up on what the musical devotees prefer. I think, generally, I dig it but I think for storage and size I like the idea of slabs for CD, DVDs and stuff that's more game-sized more ... but the size here also makes all the details you see on the back of this one as well as that main art on the front pop a bit more, too.

Keep reading for more of this month's pick-ups and new slabs for Buzz.

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The newest Bray Wyatt card dropped Friday night via Panini Instant.

The Blowout Cards Forums are where thousands of collectors converge daily to discuss, well, a little bit of everything. Here are a few threads about collecting and more that you should check out right now.

What's Buzzing: MLB postseason, erased cardboard, reeling in a huge auto, wrestling chatter, a big WNBA pull and more.

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Like many collectors, Buzz is a fan of grading and knows that there are many reasons that collectors choose to slab cards. Sometimes it's to enhance the appeal and protect them when selling. Other times it's to protect an investment for the long-term or to protect for sentimental reasons. Or, it might be just for fun or curiosity about a potential grade.

Here's this month's grading diary here on The Buzz ... a super-sized edition this time around that's heavy on MLB and NBA but with a few surprises.

The Cards: 1991-92 SkyBox #544-546 Team USA puzzle
The Reason Graded: I picked up a box of this one for roughly $16 late last year (a bargain price) and pulled two sets of these puzzles, which was good. Why? Because grading these and the other notables from the iconic Hall of Famer-loaded Dream Team is pretty heavy and this one has been on my to-do list. I landed most of the notables more than once but just one Jordan that was noticeably off-centered. These glossed cards on the puzzle could have issues that the standard cards don't have simply because of their surfaces, but mine were clean. I will revisit my second set to see if anything stands out. I may go the PSA route on the other set for variety's sake if I see anything that would make me wonder about potential grades.
The Grades: BGS 9.5

Reality Check: This one was a stressful one as I had hoped for matching grades. Thankfully, that's what I got and that's where most cards land for all three pieces of the puzzle. This is a textbook example of the kind of cardboard that can make you some money with grading, too, as they're no more than $10 total raw, while BGS 9.5s together should top $100 in some cases and asking prices for the middle (Jordan) card alone can be steep. It's memorable cardboard from the past with nothing but iconic players involved, so there's still good demand -- and that's another reason why I slabbed. Wax boxes aren't all that plentiful, either, compared to other boxes around that time.

Keep reading for the rest of this month's new grades and additions.

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