Are TPG Grading Standards Continuing to Slide ?

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At the Jeffrey Hoare auction sale No. 56 held at the June 1997 TOREX show I purchased a very nice original Bank of Canada $25 1935 note (Sheet # A015648, Plate A). It was Lot #1682 in that auction and was illustrated in the catalogue with an assigned grade of EF and an estimate of $2,000. I viewed the note in person and felt it was closer to an AU than to an EF because although there were several light counting marks at both the left-hand and right-hand sides there were no body folds. I bid strongly and won the note for $3,200 plus the buyer's commission.

I sold the note about one year ago and received what I considered to be a decent price for it. You can therefore imagine my surprise when I saw the identical note (Sheet # A015648, Plate A) being offered in the upcoming February 2014 TOREX auction (Lot 762) where it now carries the assigned grade PMG CH UNC64PPQ!

I guess the moral of the story is that if we wait long enough all of our Choice EF/AU notes will turn into Choice Uncs !

It has long been my personal opinion that the grading standards of PMG are far more liberal than any Canadian TPG.  I bet if you cut that note out of its PMG holder and got it graded by BCS, you would get back something considerably more realistic, and closer to your original assessment.

I guess the moral of the story is that if we wait long enough all of our Choice EF/AU notes will turn into Choice Uncs !

I think the moral of the story should be don't sell those EF/AU notes until you get them TPG by PMG

It has long been my personal opinion that the grading standards of PMG are far more liberal than any Canadian TPG.  I bet if you cut that note out of its PMG holder and got it graded by BCS, you would get back something considerably more realistic, and closer to your original assessment.

That being said, I have also seen some BCS notes that would easily be graded less if brought to PMG...

I've seen them go both ways.
Always buy the note, not the holder......