The soft holo scratches at the factory
The texture on ex cards marks easily, and focal-area scratches are observed on copies that were never handled. It is the set's most frustrating flaw: it depends neither on you nor on your sleeves.
Pokémon 151
The 151 set (Scarlet & Violet, 2023) replays the original 151 Pokémon with modern printing. On paper, a grader's dream. In practice, it is a surface set: condition comes out of the booster, it does not degrade afterwards.
In short
On the 151 set, the deciding criterion is the surface: the textured holo on ex cards — the Charizard ex first among them — is soft, and focal-area scratches are regularly observed straight out of the booster. Add frequent print lines on holos, all the more visible because they interrupt the foil pattern. These flaws often show only under raking light, at the right angle — which is the main cause of “surprise” PSA 9s on cards that looked perfect. Before any submission, inspect the surface under raking light and check the centering: both can be measured on a photo, before you pay.
The 151 set at a glance
- Full name
- Scarlet & Violet – 151 (SV3.5 / MEW)
- Western release
- September 2023
- Concept
- The original 151 Kanto Pokémon
- Reference card
- Charizard ex 199/165, special illustration
- Limiting factor #1
- Surface — soft holo, factory scratches
- Factor #2
- Print lines on holos
- The right reflex
- Raking-light inspection before submitting
- Facts verified on
- 5 August 2026
What costs points on 151
Print lines love holos
A thin line, vertical or horizontal, created by the printing process shows all the more because it interrupts the foil. A faint line often passes; marked or multiple lines close the 10, and a striped card rarely gets past a 9.
The head-on lighting trap
Under frontal lighting most of these flaws vanish. It is under raking light, card tilted, that they appear — exactly as on the grader's desk. A card judged “perfect” without that check is the textbook candidate for a surprise PSA 9.
Centering still needs checking
Less critical than on vintage, it still varies sheet to sheet. Since PSA's ladder tightened in early 2025, a front beyond 55/45 closes the 10: thirty seconds of measurement spare you the bad surprise.
Frequently asked questions — the 151 set
Why did my “perfect” card come back a 9?
Almost always for a surface reason invisible head-on: a micro-scratch in the holo or a print line, caught under raking light by the grader. It is the most common scenario on this set, and you can screen for it at home with a simple lamp.
Is the Charizard ex worth grading?
It is the set's card with the clearest gap between raw and high-graded, so the maths work best there — provided the surface holds. Inspect the holo under raking light before paying: the holo decides, not the corners.
Freshly opened booster = high grade guaranteed?
No, and 151 is the proof: factory scratches and print lines exist under the wrapper. “Never touched” does not mean “flawless” — it only means the flaws came from the printer.
Japanese or Western version?
Japanese 151 released a few months before the Western version and benefits from the general trend of Japanese print runs: statistically better centering. The soft ex surface does not fully disappear, though — the raking-light inspection still applies.
Read next
Screen for the surprise PSA 9 before submitting
The analysis reads surface and centering from your photos — the two judges of the 151 set.