I’ve been purchasing some cards and looking to send cards to PSA (and wait 9+ months haha). I got some pretty nice WOTC sets and i was curious about what allowance are allowed for 10s. For example. I got a 1st edition fossil set and the cards are definitely PSA 9. There is no chipping on the front, 80% of the holos are centered perfectly. The holos don’t have any factory scratches or lines. However, there are very some small wear on the back. I’d like some feed on people’s experience on allowances for any wear.
The aerodactyl has wear that at most would qualify it at as a 9 Mint.
I’m not too worried about cards sneaking through. My question is about how much qualitatively is there allowed? sometimes print lines make it through. Other times cards like jungle and team rocket returns have very slight chipping on the top due to the way the factor cut/printed the cards.
When i first started grading, having no more than one small white spot on a corner seemed to be allowed for PSA 10s if everything else was perfect.
These were the worst one and an average one of the batch. I don’t expect to get many 10s, but I was pleasantly surprised there’s no scratches on the front. I used natural light, lamp light and LED light.
In your experience. PSA 10 doesn’t mean without fault? there are some allowances for higher grades with things like eye appeal and some small white spots. the size of a period (.)
You see, to grade a card you need more than just a front and back photo, so many details may be hidden. Take all grades stated here as they are, just a guess from those 2 photos.
Thanks Gary! I’m buying WOTC to grade so I go after the ex series. I’ve always been more of a fan of the ex series, but going over these cards I’ve really begun to appreciate the artowrk and design. The dragonite from fossil is just a beautiful card.
