PMminer

I posted this in another thread but thought I'd make a separate topic for it:

When shipping books do you insure for the full FMV of the books? I may be paranoid, but the idea of insuring a package for thousands of dollars makes me feel like I've just put a big red target on my package for any less-than-honest employee to swipe or "lose". It also doesn't help that I may also add the name of an auction house in the address.

Just dropped some books off at UPS and got some extra insurance (not FMV), had the name of an auction house in the address, and was asked what was being shipped. Didn't like the feeling of walking away and thinking; "Did I just ask someone in the chain of delivery to steal that?"

I just got a couple of the plastic BCW CGC storage boxes and they're pretty good. Since I like to store my slabs flat I just turned the boxes on their ends so the books still lie flat. And since they come with a divider, putting one in the middle of the stack helps keep all of the weight off the books so that only about 12-15 are actually pressing down on each other.

I watched this and basically it sounds like having a safe only buys time, not security, as he mentions. Also having several layers of security is important.

I appreciate all the advice. For me it's about protecting my slabbed books so hiding them among my raw books in long boxes wouldn't work. They stand out like a sore thumb and are pretty obvious that they're something different/valuable.

Wow, that's insane about the safety deposit boxes. I've never had a liking for banks anyway.

Going down this rabbit hole, it's easy to get paranoid. Aside from insurance it seems like the only real option is to just hope that nothing ever happens.

I've looked into insurance over the years but haven't pulled the trigger for various reasons. The way I store them now is fine - horizontal, dark, climate control. Just curious about finding a solution against theft, fire, acts of god and the like.

Where I am now there's no private vault companies that I can find.

Sorry if this has been covered, but I'm looking for advice on the best way to store higher priced CGC books. Not just to keep them out of the sun in a cool dark place, but more for safety and security purposes: fire, theft etc. Because of their size I don't see keeping them in a bank safety security box. Also I think I've heard that there might be issues with humidity with those too? Same with a home safe. Not sure about that though.

Any advice would be appreciated.

On 7/31/2022 at 5:13 PM, KirbyTown said:

For whatever it may be worth at this point:

I'm not an autograph expert, but I've spent a lot of time looking at Kirby marks. Unlike his prolific convention signature, I think of the block letter stack as a rarely used maker's mark. His usual signature was consistent in appearance since the time of his early invoices, but the maker's mark was rarely so.

It's true that the cover location is uncommon in comparison to the splash page, but authenticated Kirby cover signatures do exist. However, I don't recall seeing authenticated Kirby blocks in general.

While this marking is on the cover and was done in ink that appears anachronistic, the features match the real marks surprisingly well. If this is real, I can imagine it being a specific request (as Mr. Zipper already mentioned) and perhaps it was intended as a throwback thing depending on where the red ink places this mark in time.

The block letter marks were inconsistent, but they all had a feel. It seems unlikely that a forger would have any interest in such a relatively worthless autograph, let alone be able to perform it so well in one go.

I hope these pics are useful for comparison; first is from a pencil drawing, second is from the Gods portfolio, and last is from this thread:

Wow, thanks for that. I came into this thread kind of embarrassed to even show something I thought was so obviously fake. And it may still be. But at this point, knowing the history of this book as I do, and the info posted here by people way more knowledgeable than myself, I'm going to consider it legit. Once again, I may be wrong, but since Kirby had such formative influence on my life growing up I'd like to believe it's the real deal now that it doesn't seem so implausible.

Just to follow up on this, after almost a year at CGC the book is coming back a 2.5 Universal grade. I asked for a blue label instead of green.

Is there a time limit for holders? Are they good indefinitely, or should books be re-encapsulated after a certain number of years?

On 4/21/2021 at 8:12 PM, REB007 said:

Update:  I submitted this question to CGC Customer Service representative and received this answer:  "If you have not yet shipped your items, simply hand write your request somewhere on the packslip itself."

 

I think the best way they could handle something like this (where the book fits into a category of receiving a green label) would be to give the submitter a choice, e.g. "After grading we've determined that your book is either a 4.5 blue label, or a 5.5 green label. Which would you prefer." That way you can make an informed decision.

The whole process of submitting a book and hoping for a grade can be stressful enough without adding more uncertainty to the mix. Plus, it's not like they're doing this for free. They're being paid so I see no reason why this couldn't be part of their service to the customer.

39 minutes ago, shadroch said:

Any idea what you paid for it? How did the seller grade it and did he place additional value on the signature or treat it like a defect?

 

This was so long ago I can hardly remember, but I didn't buy it from a store or dealer. A friend and I found an ad in the paper (I believe) from a guy selling all sorts of books and original art out of his apartment. So we would stop by occasionally when we had some money to buy whatever he had on hand.

Being so young and poor I can't imagine I paid more than maybe $10 - $20 for it, but that's just a guess.

We never really talked grades. It was just a matter of, did I think something he had was cool or not, and could I afford it. And as far as I remember he treated it as the real deal and a bit of a bonus, but I think the signature meant more to me than it did to him.

7 minutes ago, Mr. Zipper said:

Often, if a modern marker hits 50+ year old news print, it may bleed/feather. Not conclusive, but no signs of that.

Also, a photo of the inside of the front cover may be telling. The markers from the 70s - 90s would often "halo" over time. If there is a halo-ing effect, you know the sig is at least a few decades old, which would weigh in its favor.

This won't mean much to you guys since I'm the only one that can truly know, but I will say that I did buy this book back in the early 80's just as you see it in the photos, with the red marker signature. Since then it's been bagged and boarded and kept in good conditions.

I wish I would have thought to take a pic of the interior cover, but it didn't occur to me before sending it off.

Awsome! Hope lives.

27 minutes ago, Albert Thurgood said:

Looks much better, as far as we can tell from those high altitude photos. ;-)

:-) Yeah, it would be nice if they were a bit tighter in and higher res, but knowing the book firsthand from before I can say it looks much better.

17 minutes ago, Mr. Zipper said:

Kirby had his regular signature and then this stylized version you'd see on posters and some art, etc. And as others noted, he rarely signed on the cover. But, it's possible someone requested a cover signature and he obliged.

It looks as if it was signed quickly and with confidence, and a red marker on a cover would be an odd choice for a forger to make. The jury is still out IMO, but I think it may be good.

The pressing made a big aesthetic difference, but I'm not sure it improved the technical grade. I'd say around 2.0 before and after. With the long creases, spine wear and tape, I'm not sure it can surpass 2.0. Maybe 2.5 if you get real lucky.

I'd love to be wrong about that being his sig. I've just done cursory searches for it and none I've seen look anything like this one, but if I could find evidence that it might be real, then awesome!

I agree, I had this pressed really just to try and make it look a bit better (it was pretty rough). I'm not really expecting a grade bump.

2 hours ago, shadroch said:

How'd you get it pressed so quickly?

I'm suspicious of any Kirby signatures on the cover of a book, and yours looks even more suspect. With a book like this, I think you can get a blue label that says name written on label.

After just getting the results back and having great interactions with Dennis Shafer at Comic Book Pressing Service I can highly recommend them. I submitted 20 books to them on 6/18 and he finished up yesterday. Compared with the 2 or 3 months I was seeing elsewhere that's fantastic. And I'm happy with the results. Plus, as you can see above he sent multiple photos of the results for each book as well, which was nice.

So, I have no affiliation other than I've used their service, and give Dennis high marks for quality, speedy work and great customer service.

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Yes, IMO it's obvious there's no way that's a Kirby signature. Which made it all the more embarrassing when I figured it out. From what I can tell you can either get a blue label with a lower grade, or a green label with a grade as if the writing weren't there.

Just got the images back from pressing and I think he did a pretty good job under the circumstances. It was a pretty rough book. And, as it turns out, there was a detached staple. So...that's not great. But I'm still happy to have it.

1 hour ago, grendelbo said:

2.0/2.5

A press undoubtedly would help.

The markings doesn't look like how Kirby typically signed his name, but it does look a bit like how he wrote his name. The "K" and "y" in Kirby look right. But who's to say? I wouldn't immediately write it off as fake.

In any case, the markings will not effect the grade it's in so I wouldn't see why the green label.

Thanks for sharing.

Thanks!

I may be wrong, but I was under the impression that any unverified signature on the cover automatically got you a green label?

From awesome to embarrassing. I bought this as a kid many years ago (pre-internet) and thought I had both a great book and a sig by Kirby...and then reality hit and now I'm just sad and feel a bit silly.

I know it's a low grade, and I've sent it off to get it pressed and cleaned for what good it may do, but my questions are more:

1) How much do you think the "signature" will lower the grade, whatever that turns out to be?

2) Is it worth getting it slabbed, or just leave it raw? I've heard that raw is better than a green label.

Thanks in advance, and if these questions would apply better to another forum please let me know.

Freakin' awesome! Hope he kicks some butt.

Here's mine. Sorry for the lousy image quality. Don't have a scanner.