Grade Master Centering Tool - Step by Step How to Use

Have you ever wondered how some 'Card Guru's' constantly get good grades - always 9s and 10s, and your stuck in the 5-8 range? Well I'll let you in on a little secret - most of the time THEY KNOW the cards they send in will get these high grades. 

Today, we will show you a tool that will help you identify an essential component of 'high card grades' - the Centering!

Now I want to clarify that centering alone will not get you 9s and 10s when you send for grading, so please just understand this first. There are other factors - Surface, Corners and Edging that also play a part in the cards grading scale. Centering is however, a big part in a cards overall grade and should never be overlooked before sending your card n for grading.

The tool in question is obviously the Grade Master, and today we will examine the steps on how to use this great tool. Keep in mind the tool was made specifically with PSA Grading Scale System, and might wield slightly different results when preparing cards for BGS/SGC/CGA etc, however it will still show you how centered the card is.

GET THE GRADE MASTER TOOL HERE

USING THE GRADE MASTER TOOL

Step 1. Decide which part of the card to measure for worst centering (top-bottom, or left-right).

Step 2. If one or the other isn't obvious, Measure both and use the worst one of the 2 - this eliminates the guess work!

Step 3. Center Standard sized card as closely as possible under tool 'window'.

Step 4. Read Line Numbers on either side of the card (if not exactly lined up on one or both sides you must extrapolate or average between the centering percentages).

Step 5. Reference numbers on the table provided to get an approximate of the centering. EG. left and right edges of the printed image on the card or of the writing on the card

Step 6. Decide if your card is good enough for grading based on the centering you have found.

You can also watch my video guide on How to Use the Grade Master Centering Tool below!!

 

 GET THE GRADE MASTER TOOL HERE