Are PSA qualifiers really that terrible?

[vargha]

Originally Posted by sreader3

I will go a step further. I don't think cards that are trimmed should be rejected for "evidence of trimming." Instead, a card should be downgraded according to the severity of the trim. Perhaps two grades for a minor trim and four grades for a severe trim. I personally would prefer a sharp looking EX-MT card with a minor trim that cannot be detected with the naked eye than VG card with rounded corners and creasing. Yet due to TPG's refusal to assign a numeric grade to the former, the latter is considered more valuable.

One of the major reasons for TPG's was that they would detect (where possible) alterations made to a card. That, "objective" grade evaluations and detection of counterfeits were the reasons to have a "trusted" third party that set a standard. Even SGC, which doesn't use qualifiers, designates altered cards with an "A" for authentic. One can then evaluate just how "nice" that altered card is based upon a visual inspection. But they will have the knowledge of its alteration.