Welcome to the Assay Journal
Long-form on collectibles valuation — market trends, grading insight, source-by-source breakdowns, and how Assay actually does the maths.
What this journal is for
Every collectible has a real value. The trick is finding it without inheriting someone else's bias.
The Assay Journal publishes long-form on three things:
- Market valuation method — how blended pricing actually works when PCGS says one number and eBay sold-comps say another
- Grading and authentication insight — how to read a PSA pop report, when a CGC bump moves the needle, what BGS subgrades do and don't tell you
- Per-category deep dives — Pokémon WOTC Holos, Rolex 1675 patina, Morgan VAMs, Funko CHASEs, vinyl matrix codes
It's written by collectors for collectors, with the maths spelled out plainly. No hype, no AI-slop, no recycled press releases.
What you can do today
Right now Assay sells one thing: a branded PDF valuation report for any item you can describe, paste an ISBN for, or cite a grading certificate for. Fourteen ninety-nine. Delivered by email. The report:
- Pulls live data from PCGS, PSA, Discogs and eBay (and a dozen reference databases for metadata)
- Blends it into a single fair-value estimate with a confidence band
- Shows you the per-source breakdown and the comparables it used
- Includes a signatory page so a credentialed assessor (ISA, AAA, ASA) can countersign for insurance, probate or estate work
You can run a free preview right from the front page. It's the same engine; you just see the headline and confidence band instead of the full pack.
What's coming
The iOS app ships shortly. Same engine, plus:
- A live portfolio of everything you own with real-time market drift
- Push alerts when a piece moves materially
- One-tap selling into our escrow marketplace
- Pro and Vault tiers for serious collectors
Your account here at assayapp.net is the same one you'll sign into on the app. Every report you buy on the web is waiting for you on day one.
Read along
We'll publish here weekly. The first long-form pieces drop within a few days. If there's a category you want covered first, reply to your delivery email — we read everything.
— Merlin, on behalf of Assay Editorial