Coming Soon: Our Free Card Centering Tool — Join the Closed Beta

We've been quietly building something we think is going to change the way collectors approach grading prep. Today we're pulling back the curtain on a two-phase rollout of new tooling — and we're opening a closed beta for the first phase, starting with a waitlist you can join right now.

Phase 1: The Card Centering Tool (Closed Beta — Join the Waitlist)

Centering is the one grading subgrade you genuinely cannot fix after the fact. It's set at the factory, and if the borders are off, no amount of restoration work moves the needle. Yet most collectors don't have a reliable way to measure it before they commit a card to a grading submission.

We're fixing that. Our Card Centering Tool will let you upload an image of your card and get back a full centering report — left/right ratio, top/bottom ratio, and a clear read on whether the card meets the threshold for a PSA 10, PSA 9, or lower on the centering subgrade.

The report will include: - Front centering measurements (left/right and top/bottom border ratios) - Back centering measurements - A grade ceiling estimate based on standard PSA centering tolerances - A plain-language summary of what the numbers mean for your submission

We're rolling the tool out gradually through a closed beta so we can get it right before opening it to everyone. It will be free for all Cappy's users — no submission required. To get in early, join the waitlist; we'll invite beta users in batches and notify you the moment your spot opens.

Why centering first?

Grading is an exercise in prioritization. Before you spend money on restoration, you need to know what grade ceiling you're actually working with. A card with severe centering issues has a hard cap on its final grade regardless of how clean the surface is. Knowing that upfront lets you make a smarter decision: submit as-is, hold the card, or route your restoration budget somewhere with a higher return.

This is the same logic that guides how we assess cards before taking on a restoration job. Now you can run that same check yourself, instantly.

Phase 2: The Card Pre-Grader (Coming in a Few Months)

Once the centering tool is established and running smoothly, we'll be rolling out Phase 2: our Card Pre-Grader.

The pre-grader goes further than centering. It evaluates the full card — surface condition, corners, edges, and centering together — and returns an estimated grade range before the card ever reaches a grading company. The goal is to give you a realistic expectation of where your card lands, so you can decide whether it's worth submitting, what service tier makes sense, and whether restoration could meaningfully improve the outcome.

The pre-grader builds on computer-vision analysis. Grading companies like TAG Grading have been pushing this space forward with AI-assisted and machine-grading approaches that bring more consistency and objectivity to the evaluation process. Our pre-grader draws on similar principles — quantitative measurement rather than subjective eye — to give you a number you can actually rely on.

We'll open a waitlist before the pre-grader launches. If you want early access, you can join the waitlist now and we'll notify you as soon as spots open up.

How to get started

The centering tool isn't open to everyone yet — we're inviting beta users from the waitlist first. Joining takes a few seconds: you'll need a free Cappy's account, then tap "Join the waitlist" to claim your spot. We'll email you as soon as your beta access is ready.

You'll find the "Join the waitlist" button on this page, in your Cappy's dashboard, and in the site menu. The pre-grader will open its own waitlist closer to launch.

More detail on both tools is coming as we get closer to the Phase 2 launch. If you have questions or feedback after using the centering tool, we want to hear it.