PSA & wrinkles

[jchcollins]

Got a PSA 5 '55 Bowman in the mail yesterday which had unusually sharp corners for a 5. Upon closer examination, I noticed some very light - nearly imperceptible surface wrinkles on the front of the card. The kind that you can look at and find only under bright light and then may have trouble finding again.

Has anyone else seen this with a PSA 5? I have seen SGC grade wrinkled cards EX before, but not PSA - at least not personally. It's not a showstopper for me all things considered (dinged corners on a garden-variety 5 would be much more noticeable...) but I just find it interesting.

Thanks.

[Stonepony]

Originally Posted by jchcollins

Got a PSA 5 '55 Bowman in the mail yesterday which had unusually sharp corners for a 5. Upon closer examination, I noticed some very light - nearly imperceptible surface wrinkles on the front of the card. The kind that you can look at and find only under bright light and then may have trouble finding again.

Has anyone else seen this with a PSA 5? I have seen SGC grade wrinkled cards EX before, but not PSA - at least not personally. It's not a showstopper for me all things considered (dinged corners on a garden-variety 5 would be much more noticeable...) but I just find it interesting.

Thanks.

I've never had PSA grade a card with faint surface wrinkle higher than 2.5

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by Stonepony

I've never had PSA grade a card with faint surface wrinkle higher than 2.5

I have another PSA 5 (a '57 Banks) that also has better than normal 5 corners and a very very tiny what looks like the beginnings of a surface wrinkle - like less than a millimeter long.

Who knows. Neither of them bother me, and I have other PSA 5's that of course have considerably worse corners if the surface is technically better. Eye appeal can be a funny animal...

[vintagetoppsguy]

Originally Posted by jchcollins

I have another PSA 5 (a '57 Banks) that also has better than normal 5 corners and a very very tiny what looks like the beginnings of a surface wrinkle - like less than a millimeter long.

Who knows. Neither of them bother me, and I have other PSA 5's that of course have considerably worse corners if the surface is technically better. Eye appeal can be a funny animal...

PSA's grading standards (posted online) for a PSA 5 used to allow for surface wrinkles. I just looked at their grading standards and they've changed them. It no longer says that, but that IS what it used to say.

[DeanH3]

Originally Posted by vintagetoppsguy

PSA's grading standards (posted online) for a PSA 5 used to allow for surface wrinkles. I just looked at their grading standards and they've changed them. It no longer says that, but that IS what it used to say.

I agree with this. In fact, at one time, SGC was stricter on surface wrinkles than PSA. I know when Baker was grading for PSA , he was more lenient on surface wrinkles. Years ago I tried crossing a couple PSA 5's over to SGC and they would not cross due to surface wrinkles. PSA has become more strict over time so I don't doubt they have changed their grading scale descriptions to reflect that. '

[1952boyntoncollector]

Originally Posted by DeanH3

I agree with this. In fact, at one time, SGC was stricter on surface wrinkles than PSA. I know when Baker was grading for PSA , he was more lenient on surface wrinkles. Years ago I tried crossing a couple PSA 5's over to SGC and they would not cross due to surface wrinkles. PSA has become more strict over time so I don't doubt they have changed their grading scale descriptions to reflect that. '

I never heard of PSA 5s with wrinkles...PSA 4s arent that common but happen more than i initially realized.

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by DeanH3

In fact, at one time, SGC was stricter on surface wrinkles than PSA.'

I would agree with that. I have an older SGC slab on a '56 Ted Wiliams. The card has what I've always considered a wrinkle, but it's more noticeable because in a place it breaks the color surface - so SGC probably considered it an outright crease. Otherwise the card is a 5 all day long based on corners and eye-appeal. They gave it a 3. Slab is probably at least 10 years old. The card was a part of the only grading submission I have ever made; I've had it since I was a kid.

[jchcollins]

The '55 Bowman Kaline in question with wrinkles is an older slab, so maybe that's it.

I've also seen PSA blatantly ignore their own published standards apparently if eye appeal is good enough. A miscut card (even on the back) should have a MC qualifier or it should be a 1-Poor, the way I read their standards. I have a '66 Koufax that looks like a PSA 7, but it is miscut on the back (decently centered on the front). It's slabbed a 6.

[glynparson]

They are tougher now than they used to be but 4-5 for nm or better cards with a surface wrinkle is not uncommon. The reason you do not see more are they are often either kept by the buy the card not the holder crowd for sharp discounted prices or they are scooped up by the card doctors and pressed or spooned out and resold as 7,8, and 9 grade cards.

[Harford20]

I had a recent submission to PSA at the end of 2015 in which I sent in two cards that seem to be similar to what you describe. I expected EX-MT PSA6 on both. I missed the small surface wrinkles:
The card with the very faint front surface wrinkle = PSA4
The card with the wrinkle on the back = PSA4.5

In "my" interpretation of the published PSA grading standards, wrinkles/creases should max at PSA4.5

Either your EX PSA5 looks like a NM PSA8 or your card hit the grader on a good day.

Dave

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by Harford20

Either your EX PSA5 looks like a NM PSA8 or your card hit the grader on a good day.

I must have hit the grader on a good day, it's definitely not an 8. I would say 6 at an arm's length if I didn't notice the wrinkle based on everything else. It has one NM corner but definitely not 4...