ARiche503

Congrats but I know I will own a 9.8 WP of this book within my lifetime so I'm holding out. That's still a killer grade though. Display it proudly (just not in sunlight).

DJB, you'll also have to compete with me. Right now I'm only missing 15 books from the 1 - 62 run. Each book I own so far is 9.8 with white pages (no off white pages for me) so I think in the next couple of years i'll have all the books with that exact rating except for #1 which will take me longer to achieve but I'll get there. I have books that are 9.8 with white pages that have been signed by every TMNT artist that ever did the first series run too but I only have a handful of them signed and graded. This is because I feel the sigs detract from the great artwork on the cover and despite what others might say, I've seen the signatures bleed through and damage the comics underneath over time so I feel that a 9.8 rating on those books are kinda pointless anyway as down the road they will become less than mint from the signature ink bleed-throughs. So having a universal grade 9.8 is better since it will stand the test of time. I haven't registered my collection with these boards yet. I hope to complete it first and then get my name at the top of the list. I look forward to seeing your progress.

very nice but your raphael is "off white to white pages". Mine is going to all 9.8 "white pages" but yours is signed though so kudos. I should have my leo 9.8 back in the next two weeks.

I'm about to drop off about 20 TMNT books that I think most will come back with a 9.8 to CGC. I live in Sarasota and the CGC building is like 10 minutes from house which saves on shipping plus I'm always worried about the comics getting degraded or damaged during shipping. I'll post the rarer ones that come back with a high rating here. I'm hoping my Leonardo 1 shot comes back with a 9.8 as it's close and I want to be one of the only ones to have all the one shots as a 9.8. Keeping my fingers crossed.

there's been a few "original" pieces of art that have come up on ebay but the only thing that's original about them have been that it's just some random, original artwork by some random fan. Buyers must be cautious nowadays.

I'm not a huge fan of the signature series but I guess it depends on the artists. It's so fricking easy to get a lot of artists signatures that they're not even close to rare. Eastman and Laird have signed so much stuff it's crazy to even try and count it. I guess my problem with signed comic books having a 9.8 rating is that eventually, the ink from the signatures starts to permeate through the book and starts staining the pages behind it. I have a Detective Comics book signed by Bob Kane in black marker just like the books above. After 10 years, I opened the front cover and noticed that the ink stained several of the pages below it in a large, spot like, manner. I know signed books aren't collected for their condition of the comic itself but when CGC puts a NM rating on it, that book won't be near mint in another 10 years, even inside that case but the 9.8 books without the signatures, will be in fact in better shape so hence is my problem with signature books. I feel like my TMNT CGC 9.8 books will be in fact better condition than the signatures series which I'd rather have a book that is in the best possible condition than to have an artist's signature on it which isn't even that rare. I'm sure I'm in the minority but it's just my opinion. With that said, i'd still like to get at least one signature series book (to go along with my pristine CGC 9.8 already of the same book) of the major artists like Stan Lee and such. My 2 cents here. Not like it matters.

how soon will you have it in hand Danny? Inquiring minds would like to know

I'm betting it costs right at $4,500, right Danny?

very cool....i'm still holding on to hope that someone pulls out a 9.8 WP variant that I can buy some day.

Why are we out of our ever lovin' minds for wanting the best? Surely you collect CGC TMNT comics if you are on these boards. I didn't win those auctions because I already have those books but I'd pay that high for them if I didn't have them and needed them to complete my 9.8 collection. Some of us have money to blow and in this hobby, some of us like as close to perfect as possible. I bought a TMNT #8 CGC 9.8 a couple of years ago but then later sold it back once I realized it had "off-white to white pages" on it. I only collect CGC 9.8 or higher with white pages only. I do this because this is a hobby and the highest grade books get the bragging rights, the highest investment value, and the closest means of perfection for that hobby. I'm not a perfectionist in real life nor do I obsess over anything else. I just like my graded books to be the best of the best. You can say it doesn't matter all you want, but i'm sure if you are a diehard TMNT collector, and you saw a collection of original volume 1 TMNT comics all CGC 9.8, it would bother you more than you think when you look at your colleciton of 9.6 or lower. Just a theory. I just think that us 9.8 collectors take pride in what we have as not everyone can afford it nor does everyone appreciate the pristine nature of the book inside. That's my rant. Now I said it. I've had my party and cried since I wanted to. The end.