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In addition to my comments above regarding what is stated in CGC's own 'Official' Grading Guide (Section 5 page 133): If a new user is on the 'Join CGC Today' page . . . and hovers over the '?' for "Free Grader Notes for Comics When Available" . . . this is what it states: "Free Grader Notes for MOST Comic Book Submissions". So far, for me, 'Most' has been 2 out of 16 books had grader notes. Maybe CGC should update that note . . . because it sure seems like false advertising.

I am fairly new to the CGC world and 'grader notes' has been a issue for me, and apparently many others, as well. This whole notion of "Grader Notes being at the graders' discretion", while contractually true, is nonetheless lazy business practice and a sub-par customer experience. If a McDonald's employee only had to add pickles to a burger 'at their discretion', virtually nobody would get pickles. Silly example, but it is lunch time here. The reality is that if an employee is given the option of doing an exceptionally good job and enhancing the customer experience, they will often - in my limited experience - rarely do so these days. I have placed only two submissions thus far with CGC . . . 16 total books . . . and have received a grand total of two grader notes. Two out of sixteen. Coincidentally, or not, one grader note for each submission and each time only for the lowest graded book. Grader notes 12.5% of the time. According to CGC (and many of the seasoned CGC users on the forum who defend the policy), I should consider myself lucky because the grader never really has to provide reasoning as to why he/she/they/them arrived at a specific grade. I suppose I just have to guess at why a book was a 9.6 as opposed to a 9.8 (or higher) or an 8.5 instead of a 9.0. No one is asking for a novel to be written about a grade (the grader doesn't actually type anything), but what does it take for the grader to check off a couple 'notes' boxes on the screen? An extra 10-15 seconds per book? I want that job - 'Grade these comics, but don't worry, you do not have to tell the customer how or why you arrived at that grade . . . unless you feel like it'. Before all the CGC defense attorneys blast me about the 'agreement' - yeah, I know, I read it . . . this is from the 'Official CGC Guide to Grading Comics' (for the most part - great book BTW). Does this sound like a CGC customer should expect to see grader notes around 10-15% of the time, as a "courtesy"?: Section Five, Page 133 "During the grading process, CGC lists the presence of some or all the defects on a comic book, called "grader notes", which mirror the terms in this section, and can be obtained online for MOST comics that have been certified. Because it is not viable to list every single defect on a comic, particularly for lower grade comics exhibiting several defects, CGC will often only record defects that are relevant to the grade. Only ONE or TWO notes may be recorded for high grade comics, or for comics that exhibit one defect that significantly impacts grade. On OCCASION a certified comic will have no grader notes, particularly for very high grade comics or copies that exhibit defects evident through the holder." Call me crazy, but I read that section of the CGC Grading Guide before having received my first submission of ten comics back . . . what do you suppose I may have expected? Only one comic to have grader notes - or that MOST would? Maybe, given the upcoming price increases, CGC will begin providing what they allude to in their Official Guide. That'd be a welcome enhancement to the customer experience. And, yeah, I expect pickles on my Mcdonald's cheeseburger too.

I know I am a little late . . . but if still available, I will take this one too. If too late, no worries. Thank you.

I know I am a little late . . . but if still available, I will take it.

Understood . . . but they should be. Many clients probably spend a great deal of time and care, and/or cost, to prepare books for submission. What does it take for a grader to check off a couple of pre-defined defect boxes to provide some clue to the owner of the book? 10-15 seconds? The whole 'it's up to the grader' thing is . . . a lazy business practice. It would probably be better to offer the Grader Notes as an option for a nominal fee. In this way, the client would be assured to get grader notes if desired.

Makes sense. That would also probably explain why they instruct Express submissions to plaster "EX in large, bold letters" all over the box. LOL. Thanks again.

Sounds like a definite maybe. LOL. So . . . generally . . . it is possible that books submitted as Express with values up to $3,000 could end up in the hands of those, who would normally be, Modern Tier graders? Umm, yikes. I am not submitting anything to Express anytime soon, but good to know. I was more considering the extra cost for Modern vs Economy. If Graders were of a more experienced staff - may be well worth the extra cost (and wait, or Fast-Track). I do appreciate your help, as I am trying to learn the CGC 'ins and outs'. Thank You!

Yes . . . they also do the 'Fast Track' for the extra $$. With that, 20 day TAT.

Hello, I heard mentioned on a YouTube video (Future Past Vintage Collectibles, I believe) . . . who stated they will now only submit at the 'Economy' level at a minimum, even for Modern books, because they have more experienced graders.. Question: Are there different staff at the varying level of Grading Tier submission? In other words - are 'Modern Tier' submissions looked at by lesser experienced graders than 'Economy' (or Standard, or Express)? Or, does a submission goes to the next grader in the queue, regardless of the Grading Tier purchased? Thanks in advance, Art

We could always make believe it is still 1999. Or . . . I will pay you in dollar bills that were actually printed in 1999. LOL. Thank you . . . if you still have, PM me with a price. Thanks again.

Ugh . . . sorry, I too did not realize this was an older thread. I did not make it to the end of the thread. LOL. My bad. If the book is available, let me know. Thanks!

Hi, zzutak. Yes . . . the 6.5 was 'low man on the totem pole' by a ways and, not coincidentally, the only book that I did not personally buy new. The 6.5 was, I believe, the correct grade. Color breaking spine ticks, edge wear and even a small dog-ear bend to the upper right front cover. No issues with that grade whatsoever. Your comments are exactly what I am talking about . . . but better said . . . thank you!

Hey there, Torch . . . thank you. I have attached a couple pics from the Punisher War Zone 1 (Newsstand). This, nor the other 9.4 I questioned, are all that valuable on the market . . . but these are books I purchased new off the shelf and have personal value. If they are to be encapsulated, I just want them to get the grade they deserve. If truly a 9.4, that is fine. This book is not even as sharp as the other. PWZ copy has some very minimal bindery bump. And, because I can't take a proper picture to save my life, anything that looks like waviness is not - it is reflection (I am even visible on the reverse cover photo. Hi!). I will acknowledge, as with the other book, I never looked through all the pages - this book was never read - so it is possible there is some oddball issue within the wraps. I doubt it, but anything is possible. One of the books from the same submission came back a 9.6 and it has several visible spine ticks. Now, that one, I could see being a 9.4. Some grader notes sure would have solved the mystery. In my head at least. LOL. Thanks again. These boards are awesome. Comments are appreciated as I am most certainly in 'learning mode'. Art

Thank you. I am old enough to know that I don't know even half as much as I need to know . . . and probably trying to absorb it all too fast. It's a character flaw. LOL. Thanks!

Did I write that I thought a 9.8 was the 'standard'? I hope not, but I do think that a book which appears as new off the shelf - and not only that - but has sharp corners, perfect cover wrap and staple alignment with no visible defects would probably warrant one. A 9.8 is allowed to have " . . . very minor wear to the cover. Only one or two handling defects are allowed on a 9.8, such as a very small color breaking stress line on the spine, or a couple of light bends to the cover. Tiny wear can exist on one corner or around a staple." Pg 276 of the CGC Guide. I did also write that there could very well be a defect inside the book, as the only human to flip through al the pages was the CGC grader(s). But I do take your point and agree . . . the 9.8 should not be tossed around like candy. It should be for exceptionally high grade books and it should be rather rare. I have a feeling CGC is grading 'tighter' than they may have in the past - judging from what many of the YouTube wonders are claiming. It is less important to me, as these books are all childhood books and for my PC. Thank you for the note about Mechanical Error, tier submission/personnel and the time frame. I Appreciate your comments and advice. I have much to learn . . . and enjoy!

I didn't 'assume' there would be grader notes . . . I wrote "It would be nice . . . ". I did read the disclaimer, but not including notes is nevertheless . . . lazy (IMHumbleO). Maybe I am too old school and still half-expect people to do a thorough job. But, after reading and watching much about the process . . . in general I get how the game works. I suppose that is why CPR is a thing. Ha.

Yes, I know . . . and noted as much: "The membership is only a year and there I was, nearly a month in and just finally getting the initial shipping kit (I know I did not have to wait, but this was a 'test' after all)." I'm sure I will not be using one going forward - no real need to - not with free USPS boxes and Gemini's at the ready. Unless, of course, I want to take a second crack at getting that hard-to-get CGC Pen. LOL.

Brief background: I am returning to the hobby after a roughly twenty year hiatus. I began purchasing comics at about 8 years old until 17 years old, when it was off to the US Army. Returning saw a new family life begin shortly thereafter . . . wife, house, kids, etc.. Many of you know the drill. The only interaction I had with my, rather small (500-600 books), collection was rebagging/boarding about every 5-6 years - with a smattering of new LCS purchases sprinkled in. Fast forward 40 years or so and decided to get involved again. Many changes. One of which was the idea of sending my books for 'grading', and moreover, the idea of having my childhood books encapsulated. Read a lot of forums. Watched a lot of YouTube. While, it seems all the grading services have their demons, CGC seems to be the industry leader - so CGC it is to start. Paid my $140 for a membership and also purchased the CGC Grading Guide (super nice, high-quality book) and it was off to the races. The plan was a small 'test' submission of 10 books. So, ordered a small shipping kit as part of the membership store credit. Received the grading guide in about three days. Nice, great start. Odd, they did not just pack it with the shipping kit, but probably comes from a different fulfillment area. Long story short and several calls to customer service . . . it took three weeks to ultimately get the shipping kit ordered. A very nice CS lady actually told me it could be because CGC may be out of bags and/or boards. I chuckled and told her that if that's the case to let me know, I can send them some. Ha. When it did finally appear, what is depicted in the store photo and what appears in all the videos I have watched, is not what I received. The return box did not have the 'Fragile' printing anywhere on it. Ok, I can write it on there myself. The package did not contain the little flair "9.8" label. Ok, who really needs it? But worst of all, to me, it did not contain a CGC Pen, which I actually would have liked. LOL. The membership is only a year and there I was, nearly a month in and just finally getting the initial shipping kit (I know I did not have to wait, but this was a 'test' after all). Disappointing, but 'stuff' happens. I was excited to finally be able to submit books to CGC . . . and give them more of my money in doing so. LOL. Books were sent, Books were received by CGC, graded, slabbed and sent back to me. Outstanding TAT. In fact, less than the posted TAT. Like a kid on Christmas morning, I was, opening up that first CGC box. Some observations: 1) Out of the 10 books, all of which were 'White Pages' as expected, there were only two grades I questioned. In my, albeit untrained, eyes . . . both appear absolutely perfect in every way. Sharp corners, perfectly even cover wrap, perfectly centered and aligned staples, no indication of bindery issues - none, no creases, no color rub, no scuffs, no fingerprints, no wrinkles or waviness, no spine ticks . . . and I don't just mean no 'color breaking' spine ticks, I mean zero spine ticks. I understand that a 10 or a 9.9 is nearly impossible to get and that the move down to a 9.8 is ever so slight and also subjective (also that a 9.8 can actually have a couple of very small acceptable defects) . . . but both of these books received a 9.4. I am not complaining . . . well, I suppose I am, but I accept the grades due to my inexperience. Again, this submission was a personal test of the end-to-end process, which includes me and shows how much I obviously need to learn. I can only assume there must be something within the books that was 'off' because the only person to have ever flipped through each page was the CGC Grader - as both were unread, bagged and boarded from day one. Yes, they were dry-cleaned, pressed and allowed to rest for several weeks (due to the shipping box issue, ha) to ensure no reversion for good measure. I even wiped down the poly bags so they would appear tight and clean with no evidence of handling to the person opening the package. Yes, my OCD kicked in. And, when I say I can only 'assume' what may have been wrong, that is because there were no Grader Notes for either book. I suppose that is the root issue of this observation: Out of the 10 book submission, only one single book had Grader Notes. It would be nice, and seemingly what is paid for when hiring a 'grading service', that there would be some notes to indicate why otherwise outstanding looking books received a 9.4. According to the CGC Grading Guide, everything starts as a '10' and moves down as defects are encountered. So, if not a Unicorn '10', then why not? Why a 9.4 or 9.6 and not a 9.8? What makes it so? Something swayed at least two graders - what? Providing zero Grading Notes seems . . . lazy. 2) Out of the 10 books, four of them have the same encapsulation issues . . . 'Newton Ring' the in the upper left corner cover box (more like a Newton 'Line' that extends across the cover box) and a small crack where the CGC hologram label is. Both issues are relatively minor - the cracks are hard to see because they are over the hologram - but they are there and should not be. My newbie guess is the machine that presses the slab together had too much pressure in the top corners causing the cracks, and probably the Newton issue. QC? There was a QC stamp on the return packing slip, so someone looked at them before shipping. Maybe QC needs some QC. LOL. Aside from that, everything else was great - well centered, no bonus hairs, no plastic flash, no squeaks, labels matched the comic, etc. Although, I guess another minor mention, Punisher War Zone #1 submitted is a Newsstand issue and not noted as such on the label - I thought CGC did that now. Maybe not. No biggie as the UPC can be seen clearly on the back. So, then, the questions for CGC: 1) What are the options to correct the encapsulation issues? I am on the fence about doing so, as the thought of sending them back (and all that can happen enroute) - CGC cracking them open to re-slab (and all that can happen during that process as one is a 9.8 and I'd like to keep it that way) - return shipping back to me (same fear as before) - not to mention the addition time all this will take, frankly, it is a bit unnerving. Nevertheless . . . what are the options, if any? 2) Are there different graders in the various tiers? In other words, if I were to submit books next time in the Economy Tier, will they go to a different team of more experienced graders than say, the Modern Tier? Thanks in advance, Art

Spider-Woman 1 I will take that one. Thank you. My first 'buy' on CGC I tried to message you already to pay . . . but being 'new' I am locked down and cannot message you yet.