Goldin Gem MT Ryan rookie

[Steve D]

According to PSA's own website, "A PSA Gem Mint 10 card is a virtually perfect card", meaning it does not have to be "perfect". It basically is equivalent to a Beckett 9.5.

Steve

[swarmee]

Originally Posted by Steve D

According to PSA's own website, "A PSA Gem Mint 10 card is a virtually perfect card", meaning it does not have to be "perfect". It basically is equivalent to a Beckett 9.5.

Basically, yes. But PSA is even more lenient on centering for a 10 than BGS is for a 9.5. Of course, then you have outliers like this BGS 8 graded card:

1992 Topps - Stadium of Stars Hobby Media #BOCO - Bob Costas [BGS*8*NM‑MT]
Courtesy of COMC.com

[puckpaul]

Sure, but the hurdles to get an 8 now are very high, and many 8 Ryans look nearly perfect too. In the end you have to buy the card. I don’t see this card as better than the 9’s and 8’s out there with its centering. But many seem willing to buy the grade. Is what it is!

Originally Posted by Steve D

According to PSA's own website, "A PSA Gem Mint 10 card is a virtually perfect card", meaning it does not have to be "perfect". It basically is equivalent to a Beckett 9.5.

Steve

[D. Bergin]

Well, I assume anybody paying more for that card then I paid for my house has looked at the centering in the giant sized scans in the Goldin Auction, and are ok with it.

It's not something I can explain or relate to, but it is what it is I guess.

The only difference between that card and my house, is my house has plumbing and electrical problems I have to troubleshoot and figure out every 3-5 months or so.

[Jim65]

So a 10 can have 75/25 centering on the back, what grade do they give an identical card but with 50/50 centering? An 11? I mean one card would clearly be nicer but they get the same exact grade. Why do people buy into this crap?

[swarmee]

Well, remember. Here are your options nowadays with the three major graders:
Mint 9: PSA, BGS, and SGC (old 96)
Mint+ 9.5: SGC
Gem Mint 9.5: BGS
Gem Mint 10: SGC (old 98), PSA
Pristine 10: SGC (old 100), BGS
Pristine Black Label 10 (all four subgrades are 10s): BGS

And that's not counting all the trimmed and altered cards (scratches on chrome cards buffed out with car wax) "earning" all of these Mint grades.

[Jim65]

Originally Posted by swarmee

Well, remember. Here are your options nowadays with the three major graders:
Mint 9: PSA, BGS, and SGC (old 96)
Mint+ 9.5: SGC
Gem Mint 9.5: BGS
Gem Mint 10: SGC (old 98), PSA
Pristine 10: SGC (old 100), BGS
Pristine Black Label 10 (all four subgrades are 10s): BGS

And that's not counting all the trimmed and altered cards (scratches on chrome cards buffed out with car wax) "earning" all of these Mint grades.

So the Pristine Black Label 10 would be a perfect card or does that allow minor O/C as well?

[swarmee]

Pristine black label requires a 10 centering which is supposedly defined as 50/50 both ways on the front, and like 52/48 one way on the back, as far as I remember. So pretty darn close.

But there's a recent picture of a 2019 Panini Prizm Black Label Zion Williamson card show on Blowout that has like 60/40 left-right centering on the front. So even when they have rules, they don't follow them. And I remember seeing a Mahomes last year that had similar immediately noticeable centering issues that got a 10 centering subgrade.

Neither company seems to grade "borderless"/full-bleed cards with much consistency, relying on the eyeball test rather than actually measuring.