Back centering and whitening on left border.
I see the same thing. What do we think this is PSA 8?
I’m interested. Just trying to make sense of this card.
PSA has lenient standards for back centering, especially with the front being excellent. I can see this being a 9. If the left edge white spot knocks it down to an 8, could crossgrade to BGS as a 9+ with 8.5 or 9 edges.
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Yea that is well within PSA 10 back centering qualifications
Front bottom left whitening of the corner.
Back whitening on the left edge. (dust?)
Dubious whitening on the back surface. (dust?)
The important things that you cannot see are surface damage to the front and back, which is possible given that the reflection makes this virtually impossible to see.
I believe this card will grade minimum 8. Most likely 9 and if you’re lucky, and the PSA grader is feeling lenient, 10.
The centering on the front is the nicest I have seen.
They did not grade all their cards at once but rather in batches. I assume due to reasons such as corona (shipping delays etc) they decided to sell ungraded. Plus grading those cards will cost a lot. Additionally it‘s always risky sending these high end cards to PSA.
The seller probably realised that he can sell cards for high amounts even without grading them so no need for all the above mentioned hassle.
Also the argument that he leaves a lot of money on the table: they simply don‘t care. They want to sell in the easiest way without too much attention.
I think people have to stop treating pkonno like a shady person… All cards he sold arrived savely, all (as far as I know) were PSA 8 quality or better.
This is a great opportunity for whoever wants to buy an Illustrator. Don‘t get talked out of it by people on here. Yes it might be more comfortable to buy a card off ebay or heritage etc, but we are talking about the rarest pokemon cards. There was a time when you could only buy those cards in Japan. If it‘s too much hassle for a person to buy from Japan then maybe collect English cards lol
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His instagram is even more mysterious than he is haha.
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I guess the more copies of a card there are, the more important grades will become. So once he has sold his 1000th Illustrator, people won’t be satisfied with a lousy PSA 9. I’d skip that copy and wait for him to sell a real gem mint one 
Edit: it’s the bane of my existance on this forum to reply to posts that got deleted once I finish my comment. Duh.
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It’s hilarious to me that people get hung up over something like a tiny white speck on the back of the card when it comes to an Illustrator.
Some people don’t seem to get it - this is not a 1st edition Base Charizard, or an ‘86 Fleer Jordan, or a ‘52 Topps Mantle. You do not need a premium grade to distinguish the card. All that matters is that you have the card.
The Illustrator has 39 awarded copies + however many archived copies that came from that same original sheet. Even if pkonno has like a dozen extras, you’d still be talking about like 50 or so copies of this card ever made.
With the previously mentioned set cards, exponentially more copies were produced. Therefore you need a high grade to distinguish these cards.
Some people are only used to dealing with these mass produced set cards and don’t fully grasp how the equation changes when it comes to cards that have inherent scarcity.
If you’re serious about getting the card, stop sweating the grade. Otherwise there’s a good chance you’re going to end up feeling like a moron.
Also for what it’s worth, personally I would prefer to have a card that’s beautiful on the front, including great front centering, that has a couple of tiny flaws on the back to having a card with a flawless back that was badly centered on the front. When I spend time appreciating cards, I look at their unique front. Condition matters to me insofar as there aren’t flaws that ruin my enjoyment of the card while viewing the front. The back of the card is very secondary. Just one person’s perspective, of course.
If I hadn’t just spent a good chunk of change to get my No. 1 Pika Trophy (which I’ve personally always viewed as a bigger grail than the Illustrator) I might have been going after this Illustrator copy.
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Haha, you were quick to reply. In all seriousness though, I can’t imagine that a speck of whitening will change the mind of a serious buyer.
I mean that card can still easily be a 9 anyways.
Thanks for coming back though
Yeah I was just teasing. I’d imagine the people who are seriously upset about those tiny imperfections are set collectors who aren’t used to cards that are *really* rare, where the value doesn’t come from the absence of defects but from objective low print numbers.
Still, I find the idea of ‘pkonno’s trophy printer going brrrrrr’ absolutely hilarious and I’ll laugh my ass off if we’ll ever reach a point where more than 39 Illustators have surfaced, or maybe even more than a whole sheets worth. Probably won’t happen, but a man can dream 
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Is funny reading about people talking about the card like they have choices if they want a illustrator lol
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Clearly you do though. Wait until pkonno lists their next extra copy.
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No guarantee
Don’t think anyone is hung up over the condition… just giving two potential buyers opinions on what ‘could’ affect the grade. Owning the card itself is an accomplishment but if you are patient enough and don’t mind paying a higher price for the ideal card you want, then why not?
The white spots on the back could very well just be dust. And the bottom left of the front is most likely whitening.
Overall still one of the nicest copies out there
thanks for sharing thee link, excited to see where it ends up!
There is no guarantee more copies will show up. This could literally be the last you ever see on the open market for 6 digits for all we know.
Maybe. But its far more likely its not the last copy considering how slow & careful pkonno has been.
He rarely lists at instabuy prices now, and isnt afraid to relist
The Illustrator is no longer listed. Given how quickly the listing was removed, I’m guessing it was most likely sold.
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