Mokiguy

So what's the grade? How can four people see this book so differently? .... 4.5/5.0 ..... 5.0 ..... 6.5/7.0 ..... 8.0 ....

Well you've proven the point now haven't you. I have never said a mean or even unkind thing to you, and yet every single time you have commented on anything I post, you go out of your way to ridicule or demean me. If that's what gives you pleasure, then go ahead and enjoy yourself, But take it from me. If you are really as wise and experienced as you so boastfully proclaim yourself to be, then you could do a great service here by helping newbies gain some knowledge rather than trying to demean them. It's not just me, I've seen your comments to others as well when you think their comment or question is beneath you. You almost always mock them or make fun of them rather than trying to help them. You have a chip on your shoulder my friend.

How come you're always a jerk? Most folks here answer question the best they can. They try and be helpful if they can, but you never seem to have a nice thing to say to me and to many others, especially those new to this hobby. So why do you have this big chip on your shoulder and why do you seem to garner pleasure from trying to make others look small?

No, that's not accurate. Here is a cut and paste about sizes from the net ......................... Know the difference in "standard" comic book sizes. The earliest comic books of the Golden Age contained 64 pages, enough to support 4 or 5 adventures within their covers. As the cost of paper gradually increased, the number of pages was reduced to 48, which accommodated up to 3 graphic stories, and then to 32, which usually meant a maximum of 2 stories. Also, while comic books consistently kept a height of 10 1/2 inches (26.7 cm), their width narrowed from the Golden Age dimension of 7 3/4 inches (19.7 cm) to a Silver Age width of 7 1/8 inches (18.1 cm), then widened to 7 1/4 inches (18.4 cm) in the 1970s and 1980s before narrowing to 6 7/8 inches (17.5 cm) in the 1990s. Bags for regular comics are thus broken into the following sizes: Golden Age: 7 3/4 x 10 1/2 inches (19.7 x 26.7 cm). This size accommodates Golden Age comics from 1943 up to Silver Age comics published in 1960. Silver Age: 7 1/8 x 10 1/2 inches (18.1 x 26.7 cm). This size accommodates some late Golden Age comics published in 1951 as well as Silver Age comics published as late as 1965, including annuals and 80-page giants published during that period. Regular: 7 1/4 x 10 1/2 inches (18.4 x 26.7 cm). This size accommodates comics published after 1965, including the late Silver Age and Bronze Age comics of the 1970s to mid-1980s. Current: 6 7/8 x 10 1/2 inches (17.5 x 26.7 cm). This size accommodates comics published since 1990.

I'm not a bean counter so have no clue, but I've wondered just how much extra profit the makers of comics made by trimming a 1/2" of paper off of comic widths around 1960 to go from 7 3/4" wide to 7 1/4", and then how much more again by lopping off another 3/8" inch around 1990 to wind up with a comic that's now down to 6 7/8" wide for modern day comics. At least they left the height relatively unchanged. Maybe there's an ex bean counter that now collects comics that will read this and let me know.

I'm not so sure that I could agree with that. First of all, in this computerized digital age that we live in, all those items that a book is graded on (as in my cheat sheet) are only a simple enter key stroke per item and then hit "print" after the last item and your done. Every reason for the grade is spelled out. I am sure that they must have a sheet that they already use as they grade, just not shared with the public. And as to whether or not there would be demand. As I said, it would not involve any extra time or expense other than a sheet of paper and some ink. Ask anyone that has ever had a comic graded if they would like a complete cheat sheet on everything that was graded that would be included with every submission, and I think you would have a 100% yes ............ if they didn't find a way to charge extra.

In previous posts I've mentioned that I also collect Morgan and Peace silver dollars, and I have the same question there as I ask here. And as I've said before, I rarely get a coin graded and as of yet have never gotten a comic graded, so this is purely curiosity on my part, wondering what others think. In coins it might be expressed on the holder as XF-45 (extremely fine - 45) or MS-63 (mint state - 63), and in comics it's 4.0 (very good) or 7.5 (very fine -), but neither one tells me much of anything, especially why. All you get is a number and perhaps a few words like white pages or cleaned. So isn't a grade in a way an appraisal? Since it pretty much establishes a value, and even helps raise the value by the very nature of it being appraised. Why is that different than a home inspection or appraisal, or a vehicle inspection and appraisal? It's all spelled out. The oil pan drips, small tear in the passenger seat, tires are mismatched, rust in the left rear quarter panel etc. You know why it was given the grade and value, but coins and comics remain a mystery, and as the curious novice to this hobby that I still am, it makes no sense. The suspicious nature in me thinks that the reason they keep grades mysterious is the same reason attorneys, courts and judges, still use archaic jargon and a 2,000 year old dead language for legal terms. If it was all simple and in plain English, maybe they couldn't charge $300 an hour. And one last thing ........ I grade my own comics and use this cheat sheet below. And I add this to the back side of every backing board of every comic I own, so if I grade a comic a 5.5, it's because of what those 38 items say about the comic, no mystery, and anyone can agree or disagree, but at least they understand why I graded it as I did. Why don't grading companies do the same? So as I said at the outset ...... I'm curious how folks in the hobby much longer than me feel about this.

That all makes sense except for the insuring part ...... that I don't understand. Who is paying the insurance and to whom and for what reason? Or are you just meaning about the cost to insure for shipping in case the book gets lost or damaged?

So then why did you say I don't get it when you just said the exact thing I said in my opening comment ....... because they can.

You are right ..... that was poor taste and I edited that out. But it would be nice if you took the time to actually answer my question rather than trying to denigrate me personally. Don't let facts get in my way you say ................ but what facts are you speaking of? you certainly haven't shared any. Everyone here gets it is not a fact.

So just why do grading services charge more for the same grading service and the same holder if the book is more valuable? It’s the same way with coins, and I never understood why. Are they spending more time grading a $2,000 book compared to a $100 book. If so, then the folks getting a $100 book are getting ripped off because the grader is not taking the time to properly evaluate a lesser value submission compared to a higher dollar submission. The only conclusion I can come to is because they can. Like what are you going to do about it?Grading is not like an auction where the auctioneer or auction company gets more money if the item sells for more. In an auction if an item sells for more, it is because bidders decided it was worth more and ran up the bid. And if nobody starts the bidding at the opening amount, the the auctioneer lowers the open until somebody bids. But a graded item is not the same. There are no bidders establishing the opening price, no guarantee that it will sell for a higher amount until it is actually sold. What say you?

Of course it's a "Funny" post ................. aren't we talking comics here?

Take a look at this reprint of Time #1 for sale on eBay .................... look at the back cover at the bottom right. This one says Printed in India which of course is not where the first edition was printed. So look at yours ................ https://www.ebay.com/itm/186275629399

No, this thread has proven a number of different things, mainly that there are many different opinions about what makes a comic valuable. But it's also become evident that some members, perhaps because they don't know enough themselves, for some inexplicable reason believe that their time is better spent analyzing and criticize fellow members of this forum rather than adding to the thread by commenting on the topic,

Your explanation about what happened to many old comics is a good one, and something I didn't consider when comparing coins to comics. But that still does not explain why one issue commands such a higher price than another. And that really was my question, wasn't it? I'm sure that a key issue was stuffed into that back pocket on the bicycle ride and read to death just like every other non key issue since nobody new a key issue from a hole in the ground back when they were printed 50 or more years ago. I think why this thread got off track was because I used the word "greed", and nobody wants to think of themselves as greedy, and so most of the comments tried to explain away that word when it came to them. In hindsight, that was not the best choice of a word for my question. But the other word I used, speculation was. Whether my simplistic assumption of print runs staying pretty much the same through out a year, or comics being worn out and thrown away at pretty much the same rate, key issue or not since no one new an issue would be a key issue at the time of printing. Not affinity for a character, not nostalgia, nothing explains the price disparity then other than speculation. And that's OK. My question was trying to understand why. It's still bloody nuts if you really think about it. Paying hundreds or thousands of dollars for a comic book. So thanks for all the comments, and my apologies for the word greed ............. bad choice of a word on my part.