Hey guys,
I recently bought a blue label CGC 9 card, and after taking a closer look I noticed some strange residue on the back of the card. I’m pretty sure it’s actually on the card itself rather than on the case, and it looks like it might have come from the sealing process.
Has anyone here ever tried cleaning something like this off after cracking a slab?
Thanks in advance for any advice!
Grading companies use ultrasonic sealing (aka heat) to fuse the plastic together so there’s no residue that would come from the sealing process
Thank you for your reply. I see it the same way, but I’m quite sure that these residues come from the grading process. This has already happened dozens of times with PSA as well — for example the well-known PSA 10 that was cracked and resubmitted.
This is not residue from the ultrasonic welding, but it could be manufacturing imperfections in the plastic. Regardless of what it is, you wouldn’t be able to clean it off if it’s on the inside of the case. Best to reholder if it’s bugging you.
Thanks Dyl, for your reply.
Yea I am aware that I could reholder it. My main concern however is, that this residues are already on the card like the PSA 10 BEWD 1st. Because I can’t tell with 100% confidence that it is only on the case. The residue is the same like on the PSA 10 BEWD, I already had a quick chat with the guy from back then - he confirmed it. I also reached out to CGC, there are answer was basically “we have no clue what this is”.
Thanks all for your input, much appreciated.
Could it be mould growth accelerated by fluctuations in humidity?
I live oceanfront and have had to monitor a few cards i had left out in card savers without adequate humidity protection as they began to show mould both on the inside of card savers and the cards themselves (from windows and doors being opened and closed in the house).
They were smaller than what you’ve shown here, but were typically where they had been handled in the past, then restricted in airflow.
If you are seeing it across multiple cards from or in the same place, then its likely from being in either your storage environment, or the previous owner’s, if it is mould growth.
It may not be, but I figured it is worth mentioning.
it does look a bit mold-ish. Is it on the cgc scan?
Thanks rainbow. However I am not living near oceanfront, so if that’s the reason it probably happened before with previous owner.
Hm, you can just see one spot there. (Bottom right area). When I had checked the scan back then, I would have bet it’s on the case.
Did you ever find out if this was on the card vs. the case, or what was the issue? I am experiencing what looks to be the exact same thing with a PSA slab. It really looks to me like the actual residue is on the card. My card was unfortunately never scanned/photographed by PSA as it is a 5xxxxxxx cert, so I cannot confirm if this was there during the slabbing process.
Just wondering if you re-slabbed your card – my primary concern is if it is mold that is going to worsen over time.
This looks like mold. How has it been stored?
I would crack this and clean it off.
I’ve never tried to clean it or have it reholdered - I’ve just kept it as it is. I still can’t say for certain whether it’s on the card or on the case. If it’s on the card, I am confident it could be cleaned off. Also pretty sure it isn’t mold. It hasn’t gotten any worse, and it was already visible on the scans.
