Plumb Grading Company
Graded True.
Precision sports card grading. Every card measured against the same true line: four subgrades, one honest grade, verifiable by anyone in seconds.
Verify a card
Find the cert number on the slab label, or just scan its QR code.
CERT #SAMPLE
SAMPLE CARD
Your card, graded true
PGC
10
GEM MINT
GRADED TRUE
The process
How grading works
- 01
Submit
Send us your cards. Each one is logged and handled by hand from the moment it arrives.
- 02
Inspect
Every card is examined under magnification and raking light. Centering is measured, not eyeballed.
- 03
Grade
We score centering, corners, edges, and surface individually, then set one honest overall grade.
- 04
Seal & register
Your card is sealed in a PGC slab with a unique cert number and QR code, and logged in our public registry.
The PGC scale
Four subgrades. One true grade.
Every PGC card receives four subgrades from 1 to 10, in half-point steps. The overall grade starts from their average, rounded down to the nearest half point. We never round up.
Centering
How evenly the image sits within the card's borders, front and back.
Corners
Sharpness of all four corners: no rounding, fraying, or dings.
Edges
Clean, straight edges free of chipping, whitening, or roughness.
Surface
Gloss, print quality, and freedom from scratches, creases, or stains.
| Grade | Name | What it means |
|---|---|---|
| PGC10 | Gem MintVirtually perfect. Sharp corners, clean edges, flawless surface, near-perfect centering. | Virtually perfect. Sharp corners, clean edges, flawless surface, near-perfect centering. |
| PGC9 | MintA superb card with one very minor flaw. | A superb card with one very minor flaw. |
| PGC8 | Near Mint–MintLooks mint at a glance; a closer look reveals slight wear or a minor print flaw. | Looks mint at a glance; a closer look reveals slight wear or a minor print flaw. |
| PGC7 | Near MintLight surface wear or slight corner fraying visible on close inspection. | Light surface wear or slight corner fraying visible on close inspection. |
| PGC6 | Excellent–MintVisible wear on corners or edges; surface still has most of its gloss. | Visible wear on corners or edges; surface still has most of its gloss. |
| PGC5 | ExcellentNoticeable rounding, chipping, or loss of gloss. | Noticeable rounding, chipping, or loss of gloss. |
| PGC4 | Very Good–ExcellentCorners clearly rounded; light creases or scuffing possible. | Corners clearly rounded; light creases or scuffing possible. |
| PGC3 | Very GoodHeavier wear, creasing, and rounding throughout. | Heavier wear, creasing, and rounding throughout. |
| PGC2 | GoodSignificant wear, creases, and possible staining. | Significant wear, creases, and possible staining. |
| PGC1 | PoorHeavily worn or damaged, but the card is authentic and identifiable. | Heavily worn or damaged, but the card is authentic and identifiable. |
Half-point grades (like PGC 9.5) mark cards that clearly exceed their whole grade but fall just short of the next.
Why “plumb”
A plumb line hangs perfectly straight. It's the builder's oldest tool for finding true, and it can't be talked into anything else.
That's our standard. Every card is held to the same line: no favors, no guesswork, and a public record anyone can check.
Contact
Questions? Let's talk.
Submissions, grading questions, or something about a cert. We read every email.
zachc.dev@gmail.com