This CGC 9 is a 10 in every category except for the 8.5 centering, hich is only off on the front. I assume this means it would have been a pristine 10 with perfect centering. This being an E-Series card means it’s not very noticeable due to the design of the card. Would you pay more for this than a PSA 9 with a few specks of whitening as many(most?) 9’s have?
I buy the card, not the grade. If I feel that the card is “strong” for its grade, I will pay a premium. Conversely, I stay away from cards that I feel are misgraded or represent the lower end of the distribution for that grade. In other words, I don’t always trust what the grades/subgrades say as they are subjective.
For Japanese vintage holos, I tend to stick with PSA 10s unless I am planning to crack it out for a binder.
I hope that this helps!
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I own a PSA 10 copy of the card which is more off-centered than this. Don’t know if I’d pay more, but it would be tempting at or below the same price as a PSA 9 (if only to crack and try for the 10 at PSA).
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Yeah I feel the same way. I also regularly pass up cards that are in worse condition than their grade would suggest. I’m just thinking that I either pay a bit above market for this or just go get a cheaper 9. Personally, I think I’d prefer a slightly off-center pristine card over a perfectly centered card with whitening. Some people probably prefer the opposite.
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I would value it as a CGC 9
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If only all 9’s were created equal 
They are not but I would say the market overall does not care for that level of nuance.
As a prospective buyer my only competition is what other people would pay. So while I may want your copy more than another, I wouldn’t expect to pay more ‐ or at least, much more.
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Yeah I see what you’re saying. I wouldn’t pay 10 pricing for a 9 that looks like a 10, I’d just go buy the 10. However, I think I’d pay 20% above market for a 9 that looks like a 10, assuming a 10 goes for like 4x as much.
Were you asking in general, or do you have one that you’re selling? If you’re selling one I’d love to buy it.
Is the back off centre?
I could be wrong but 8.5 is the lowest sub grade CGC gave before going down to OC on centering.
I think it’s a solid pickup if you don’t mind the centering and is cheaper than the PSA 9.
Just based on this small image alone I think the centering grade is incorrect. That’s close to perfect centering go for those cards I think
The centering is objectively not great. Personally I don’t think centering on eseries matters much. But if you had to put a numeric grade on it then 8.5 makes sense
Isn’t centering top/bottom and side/side and not top/side? I’m not sure about this set specifically, but some sets the overall top isn’t the same as the overall side so the top/side would be different widths even with a perfectly centered card.
Centering on e series cards is too abstract a concept. They’re basically measuring if the card is properly off center with the e series border.
I think grading companies have admittedly just been eyeing it. Nat Turner has publicly said PSA is using technology to some extent to measure it. Nat didn’t explain exactly how they’re using technology, but ultimately the best way is to measure pixels. I would hope, in the not too distant future, grading companies use technology to measure pixels. That way you’re not submitting the same card to BGS 4 times and getting 4 different centering grades.