The first thing I have always done when I receive a slab is to sleeve it before it can get scratched. Over the years, I have also noticed an abundance of vertical scratches along PSA slabs. Now I see that they are related.
I just received back a PSA order and immediately got to sleeving my slabs into perfect fit sleeves. When I popped one back up, I noticed the familiar thin vertical scratches, but this time, I knew I had just put in a completely clear and clean slab. I went back and checked all of the slabs I had just sleeved, and sure enough, every single one had immediately been afflicted with the vertical scratches to varying degrees.
I attempted to buff them out with a natural polish, but had no success. I have read in forums about removing scratches with plastic polishes, but I don’t love the idea of putting abrasives that close to my cards.
After doing some research, I found that this is actually a pretty common phenomenon. See here for threads discussing the topic:
https://www.blowoutforums.com/showthread.php?t=1522481
https://www.elitefourum.com/t/do-graded-card-sleeves-scratch-up-the-case/40138/15
I must say that I am disappointed that even the new PSA cases scratch this easily - I gently slid the cards in and out of the sleeves, even being careful not to apply pressure to the surface. However, it seems that perfect fit sleeves are not at all suitable to protect slabs and actually do more harm than good. Looking through my collection, I see that this occurred with multiple brands of perfect fit sleeves rather than being a problem with one product in particular. This realization makes the appeal of alternative companies that focus on slab quality like Rare Edition - who use scratch-proof Gorilla Glass for their slabs - much more appealing.
My entire collection is sleeved, but I will be removing them from every card. I am looking for suggestions on alternative ways to protect and store large quantities of slabs. GradedGuard offer a nice product, but they are quite bulky and leave one side exposed. Slabmags offer protection on both sides but are also quite bulky and obscure the card a bit.
Would love to hear what other people use, and if people do have suggestions on safely removing scratches. Thanks!