Quote:
Originally Posted by Snowman
This is of course utter nonsense. Centering has always been in high demand ever since the first cards were printed. As a kid growing up, trading cards with my friends, centering was pretty much the only thing any of us ever looked at (with the exception of obvious major flaws like creases and completely ruined corners). But the only thing that mattered as long as the card was otherwise EXMT or better was the centering. A centered NM card was worth just as much as a centered "Gem Mint" card is today. Nobody would have paid a penny more for it back then. And a centered NM card was worth significantly more than even a 55/45 "Gem Mint" card would have been. This was true of every single collector I knew, and I knew a lot.
I have no idea what you're talking about when you say there was a "huge centering pump and dump a few years ago", and neither do you. The "centering craze" is not some fad like WNBA cards or Wresling cards that kids are trying to pump. Centered vintage cards always have been and always will be the ocean front property of this hobby whether you like it or not.
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For whatever reason, the TPGs (and PSA in particular) have moved the goalposts on centering over the years. In the beginning, it was not uncommon to see cards with 85-15 centering receiving grades of 5 and 6, as long as the corners were sharp and there were no creases.
Over time, they have changed their standards. It used to be that the grade was primarily based on the amount of wear/damage the card had endured. Only later, did their grading shift to incorporate centering, print flaws, fish eyes, and other aspects pertaining to the cards' original production.
Just look at some of the earliest PSA-graded examples if you dispute this.