Everyone pointing out that PSA 9s do in fact have flaws is obviously right, although I can relate to OP wanting the best possible condition.
Well, as many have said before, you’re unlikely to get that perfection from 9s.
BUT if you make up your mind on what’s the most important condition factor to you, you may be able to find the 9s that are most suited for your own personal preferences. The grade is always a trade-off between multiple factors.
For example, I really enjoy clean cards without whitening, but I don’t mind off-centering all that much. Therefore I can specifically look for PSA 9s with bad centering. Because this is likely the reason for it not getting a 10, it probably won’t have many other flaws like corner or surface damage.
Works for me at least
Those are 9s, there is a range of 9s and 10s. If you don’t like it, don’t buy it. PLEASE don’t waste a sellers time buying a card and returning it because you find a scratch or whitening, get all the pictures up front that you want and ask questions, most of the time you will get honest answers or skip the listing.
Its your collection, buy what you want, but nothing makes more me upset than getting someone messaging me about how they are returning a card because they don’t believe its worth X grade while never asking for more pictures and wasting my time and money on their expert opinion.
How to test if your card is a PSA 9… give the card to yo mamma and ask he to find something wrong. If she finds nothing but you did then it’s a psa 9 lmao
Buy the card not the grade. Everyone’s standard is different. For example, when I buy PSA 10 cards, I want them to look like BGS 10 Black Label. When I buy PSA 9 cards, I want them to look like normal BGS 10. Exceptions will be made for rare cards. You have to decide for yourself and whether you mind paying a premium for strong PSA 9/10.
This is why I started seeking out strong 8s more these days if I can’t get a nice 9 or even a nice 10. All the PSA 10s I’ve bought I’m really happy with, but sometimes an 8 can be just as satisfying to own as a 9 is for me as they can be really close in condition at times. Slight amount of more edge or corner whitening doesn’t bother me at all, and sometimes the 8 can be 1/2 or even 1/3 the price of the same card in a PSA 9 grade. Obviously in the end it’s the grade that sells, but I’ve learned to make compromises in the technical grade and find enjoyment in all the cards that I’ve bought regardless of grade at this point.
Hi guys! Thank you very much for this awesome discussion! This is very helpful for me as a newcomer. It’s good to hear that in the experience from all of you, PSA 9 cards are allowed to have flaws.
Considering these new pieces of information, I am not too bothered about corner whitening and edge wear. The only thing which slightly bothers me are surface scratches. Unfortunately, this is the only issue you can often not see properly from images before purchases. I already got two PSA 9-graded cards in my collection with 2-3 obvious scratches where the rest of these cards is immaculate. Because it is highly difficult to properly assess the holo surface before a purchase, I decided to lower my standards a bit and live with scratches.
My aim is to re-build my childhood collection with almost perfect card condition, while still being affordable for me. I think PSA 9s are the best compromise for my purpose - and will definitely be in better condition regarding scratches than my old childhood collection.
PSA 9s are definitely a strong value play compared to a 10 for most cards and sets and will be generally very satisfying to own. I think you’d be surprised to find that even a PSA 7 or PSA 8 can be quite well conditioned compared to the cards you would have had as a child and are still pretty high grades in the world of trading cards. The thing is, many elements of wear on these cards is straight from the factory and many cards out of a pack will only be PSA 8 grade due to factory defects and wear from the manufacturing process. Some cards are also known for showing wear easily, like the Base Set Chansey or Neo Genesis Lugia.
This is why I’ll often go for a PSA 8 on some cards as they can often be very similar to 9s but also much cheaper. A lot of them can look like a PSA 9 on the front but with only slightly more wear on the back or vice versa. For me personally the front of the card is most important, so I don’t get too bothered by the back of the card at all. It all depends on what you value in terms of condition of course. I am very satisfied with my PSA 8 Chansey, it really only has a tad more whitening compared to a 9 but was far cheaper in price as well:
A PSA 9 is a PSA 9. A “weaker” PSA 9 is a PSA 8.5 or lower. A “high” PSA 9 = PSA 10.
You either believe in what PSA does as a professional grader, or you don’t. If not, there is always CGC and BGS and a host of other graders out there that you can go with. Or you can just assign your own grades “weak this”, “strong that”, 9.26337, blah blah.
I’m on the 8 bandwagon too, I picked up an 8 randomly (admittedly a very strong 8) and couldn’t find a difference between it and the same card I had in a 9. Now I am slowly working my way through completing base and other WOTC sets in that grade, that meet my visual expectations.
You’d absolutely hate speaking to me then, if you were selling a card. I’m the worst.
Some people want to buy the best condition card they can afford, IMO if you’re selling you should accommodate most questions.
I do p**s off a lot of sellers asking questions and asking for multiple pics and videos - doesn’t bother me at all (although once I buy card, it would not be returned).
It also depends how you ask. I ask a lot too (sometimes…) and as a seller, I don’t mind accommodating (usually…). I’ve worked some great deals on either side because of being willing to accomodate.
I’ve never asked for extra pics of a 9 or 10 as I find them to be usually the most consistent in condition compared to lower PSA grades. Usually whatever a flaw a 9 has is pretty obvious (i.e. minor edge or corner chip, centering). If the flaw is on the surface it’ll be usually very minor and very difficult to even show in pics in my experience. Of course none of these cards are truly flawless due to the manufacturing process it’s almost impossible to find a truly pristine example of any trading card.
I will ask for pics of a 7 or 8, particularly a holo card as they can either have very clean holos or very flawed holo surface in my experience. I’ve acquired a couple of 8s lately that look as good as my 9s on the surface but just have a bit more whitening on the back than a 9. It all depends, but again it’s often obvious why it got less than a 9 with just a bit of inspection.
I can definitely understand and respect asking for pics of a 9 or even a 10 - they usually cost quite a bit more - but I’ve never felt the need to yet. I think a 9 is one of the most satisfying grades, if you’re fine with a couple of minor flaws you shouldn’t be too worried I don’t think.
