diff --git a/crates/sylpheed-formats/examples/submesh_dump.rs b/crates/sylpheed-formats/examples/submesh_dump.rs
index cb8497a..a904e1f 100644
--- a/crates/sylpheed-formats/examples/submesh_dump.rs
+++ b/crates/sylpheed-formats/examples/submesh_dump.rs
@@ -11,13 +11,23 @@ fn main() {
         println!("{} — {} sub-meshes decoded, {} markers declared", m.name, m.meshes.len(), markers.len());
         for (i, s) in m.meshes.iter().enumerate() {
             let max_idx = s.indices.iter().max().copied().unwrap_or(0) as usize;
+            let (mut lo, mut hi) = ([f32::MAX; 3], [f32::MIN; 3]);
+            for q in &s.positions {
+                for k in 0..3 {
+                    lo[k] = lo[k].min(q[k]);
+                    hi[k] = hi[k].max(q[k]);
+                }
+            }
             println!(
-                "  #{i:<2} at 0x{:<9x} verts {:<6} idx {:<6} max_idx {:<6} slack {}",
+                "  #{i:<2} at 0x{:<9x} verts {:<6} idx {:<6} max_idx {:<6} slack {} span [{:.0} {:.0} {:.0}]",
                 s.vbuf_offset.unwrap_or(0),
                 s.positions.len(),
                 s.indices.len(),
                 max_idx,
-                s.positions.len() as i64 - 1 - max_idx as i64
+                s.positions.len() as i64 - 1 - max_idx as i64,
+                hi[0] - lo[0],
+                hi[1] - lo[1],
+                hi[2] - lo[2]
             );
         }
     }
diff --git a/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/mesh.rs b/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/mesh.rs
index 7fcf46f..876ce50 100644
--- a/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/mesh.rs
+++ b/crates/sylpheed-formats/src/mesh.rs
@@ -976,6 +976,21 @@ fn grouped_consistency() -> f32 {
     std::env::var("XBG7_GROUPED_CONSISTENCY").ok().and_then(|v| v.parse().ok()).unwrap_or(0.85)
 }
 
+/// Coverage requirement, as `max_index + N >= vtx_count`. **`1` since
+/// 2026-08-12** — i.e. the indices must reach the pool's last vertex exactly.
+///
+/// The old `4` tolerated three unreferenced tail vertices, and that slack was a
+/// mis-anchor tell rather than a real variation: 8 580 of 8 629 decoded
+/// sub-meshes cover their pool exactly, and `e106_bdy_03` in `Stage_S02` was one
+/// of the few that did not — slack 3, decoding to a 600×1600×998 slab visible in
+/// a render, where three other containers give 276×236×941. Requiring exact
+/// coverage moves it onto the block those containers agree on. Costs 3 resources
+/// disc-wide; capture oracle unchanged at 46/46. `XBG7_COVER_SLACK` overrides
+/// (note `0` rejects everything — the comparison is `max_idx + N >= vtx_count`).
+fn cover_slack() -> usize {
+    std::env::var("XBG7_COVER_SLACK").ok().and_then(|v| v.parse().ok()).unwrap_or(1)
+}
+
 /// Smallest bounding-box extent a block may have (default `0.5`). An absolute
 /// floor on a format with no unit convention is a scale assumption, so it is a
 /// knob: `XBG7_MIN_EXTENT`.
@@ -1262,7 +1277,7 @@ fn validate_block_report(
         }
         max_idx = max_idx.max(i);
     }
-    if (max_idx as usize) + 4 < vtx_count {
+    if (max_idx as usize) + cover_slack() < vtx_count {
         return Err(format!(
             "indices reach only {max_idx} of {vtx_count} vertices (buffer not covered)"
         ));
@@ -1525,7 +1540,7 @@ fn anchor_grouped_meshes(
                     max_idx = max_idx.max(i);
                     i < vc
                 });
-                if in_range && max_idx + 4 >= vc {
+                if in_range && max_idx + cover_slack() >= vc {
                     meshes.push(read_pool_mesh(bytes, ib, vb, ic, vc, decl));
                 }
                 vb += vc * stride;
diff --git a/docs/re/captures/e106-cover-slack-before-after.png b/docs/re/captures/e106-cover-slack-before-after.png
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..550cf4e
Binary files /dev/null and b/docs/re/captures/e106-cover-slack-before-after.png differ
diff --git a/docs/re/structures/xbg7-mesh.md b/docs/re/structures/xbg7-mesh.md
index 1226160..f513d7c 100644
--- a/docs/re/structures/xbg7-mesh.md
+++ b/docs/re/structures/xbg7-mesh.md
@@ -1042,6 +1042,35 @@ not obviously right, and both points are one env var apart
 (`XBG7_PAD0_CONSISTENCY`, `XBG7_EDGE_CAP`) for anyone who wants the conservative
 end.
 
+### ✅ Fixed by *looking* at the output: exact pool coverage (2026-08-12)
+
+Rendering the assembled `e106` from `Stage_S02` — something no metric had done —
+showed the old slab back: `e106_bdy_03` spanning **600×1600×998**, a blocky mass
+beside the hull. The same resource decodes to **276×236×941** in `Stage_S01`,
+`Stage_S03` and `Stage_S04`. The tell was already in the data:
+
+| container | anchor | slack | span |
+|---|---|---|---|
+| `Stage_S01` | `0x3c9b7c` | 0 | 276×236×941 |
+| **`Stage_S02`** | `0x12d1d44` | **3** | **600×1600×998** |
+| `Stage_S03` | `0x1e07b7c` | 0 | 276×236×941 |
+| `Stage_S04` | `0x164337c` | 0 | 276×236×941 |
+| `Stage_S06` | `0x1f05298` | 0 | 414×636×1121 |
+
+The coverage gate tolerated up to **three** unreferenced tail vertices, and that
+tolerance was hiding a mis-anchor: real blocks reach their pool's last vertex
+exactly (8 580 of 8 629). Requiring exact coverage moves `Stage_S02`'s
+`e106_bdy_03` to `0x2d35b7c`, slack 0, **276×236×941** — the block three other
+containers agree on — and the slab disappears from the render
+([`captures/e106-cover-slack-before-after.png`](../captures/e106-cover-slack-before-after.png)).
+
+Cost: **3** resources disc-wide (6 212 → 6 209); cross-container inconsistency
+39 → 38; capture oracle unchanged at 46/46 claimed, 0 unclaimed; suite green.
+
+(`Stage_S06` still gives a third answer at slack 0, so `e106_bdy_03` is not fully
+settled — but it is now consistent across four of the six containers that carry
+it instead of three.)
+
 ### The anchor work has plateaued at 98.7 % — state and what is left
 
 Four evidence-driven changes took the decoder from 5 480 to **6 212 of 6 294**