Hudson

In another recent thread, there has been some discussion about how CGC grades. I believe (although I could be wrong) that as “buyers” we appreciate and respect the “tight” grading standards of CGC. (I cannot speak to the selling side of the house, as I am not in that camp). Regardless, however, if you are a “buyer”, “collector”, or “seller”, I would think you would want more than anything to see “consistency”. I don’t think the numeric grade is as important as knowing that any given book with the same defects will be given the same grade, regardless of what day of the week it is or which CGC grader is grading it. From reading through many threads, I believe there are a few camps of thought on this… There appear to be those who believe that CGC has always graded consistently, from day 1, and that it has not changed. There are those who believe that CGC has gone through periods of “tight” grading and periods of shall we say “more liberal” grading. These people appear to believe that CGC grading was at least “consistent” during each individual “period” even if not “consistent” when comparing one “period” to another (say when a different “head grader” was in charge). There are those who appear to believe that sometimes it is a flip of the coin as to what grade a book will receive. It is likely, we have all seen posts by members who post an image of a book and ask how it achieved a given grade. So then if CONSISTENCY is the goal of CGC (which I would like to believe it is) AND is the goal of the collecting community in general (which I again believe that it is), then I would like to know how CGC grades defects. I am going to assume that a book starts at a 10 and that each defect (minor or major) brings that grade lower. If this is the case, then by how much does each defect cause the grade to fall? I have heard it said (although I don’t personally know) that an otherwise perfect book, with a full length subscription crease will top out at 5.5. Does this mean that an otherwise 10 book falls 4.5 points simply because of a subscription crease? That seems harsh to me, HOWEVER, I can accept this IF it is consistent. What about other defects? Does each defect deduct a certain amount until a final score is reached, or is this book looked at as a whole? What about “overall eye appeal”? Does that count for anything? I am asking a lot of questions and writing a “wall of texts” (for which I apologize), in order to make the following suggestion to CGC…. I would like to suggest that CGC write a book on how they grade. I think this would be a big seller to many collectors and more importantly, it could lead to people feeling more confident that CGC is consistent in their grading (for those who are in the questioning camps). To begin, I believe CGC should find a collector who has at least a 100 copies of a single SA book (in multiple grades). This should be the same book (Title and Issue #), so as to make it easy for everyone to compare “apples to apples”. (this eliminates a lot of the issues that could arise in comparing two different books). They should then start with a high grade copy and take detailed photos of every defect they find and say how much they are deducting for that defect. In the end they should then show the final grade for that copy. Then they should move to a slightly lower grade and continue this process until they get down to a 0.5 or incomplete. For many of the mid grade books, they should show multiple examples. They could show how two books might at first glance appear the same (say 6.0, but are numerically different or vise-versa (perhaps two books have the same numeric grade but look completely different). After that they should perhaps find another book (probably modern) where they can do the same thing for say grades 10 – 9.0 (since I am not sure they will be able to effectively cover that entire range with the silver age book chosen above). This would be the high grade section, usually found in newer books. Finally they should do a golden age section using a similar principle, however, I would expect less copies of a single book to be available (not sure any collector has 100 or more copies of any given GA book in a variety of grades wide enough to accomplish the goal). I suggest this as I have often heard the term "Golden Age Bump" and would like to know how the age of the book is taken into account when judging defects. This is just my thought for day on a possible “solution” to the question of grading consistency. Before any discussion begins, I want to thank CGC for the opportunity to post suggestions like these and for allowing collectors a place to gather and share ideas.

I can't tell you how much I enjoy it, whenever you post a photo of this incredible book. Simply awesome!

Looks like I am going to be forced to go buy a Mega Millions ticket.

Thank you for letting me know that I am not the only one!

Thanks for the info on this, Bob. I haven't done the SDCC in several years now. This may be a fun alternative.

Thank you. I think I will try setting up a want list with Bob, although I am guessing many more comics flow through MCS than through highgradeconics. I will also add, that I have done business with Bob in the past and would recommend him.

I appreciate everyone's thoughts and comments on this.

Perhaps this is the problem, if in fact it takes an extra day to notify "want list" customers. Perhaps they are listing books on eBay, before notifying "want list" customers. Then if I see the book and buy it the same day it is listed, I suppose they would never end up emailing me, since it is no longer available.

I just went to my account and doubled checked. I have it set for "no minimum grade" on every book on my list. Thank you for the suggestion and for letting me know that at least it s working for some of MCS's customers. I really like MCS and I hope they will one day resolve this issue. I agree with KAV that as a general rule they are a "top notch" organization.

I am right there with you, Rick. I bid on that book, but $21K for a 1.0 was out of my league.

Yes. I recall looking at that book at the Baltimore convention and not pulling the trigger. In fact you had two copies for sale that day. Stupid me.

First off, let me say that I like MCS. Their comics (other than consignment items), I believe to typically be fairly priced and their grading is spot on (at least IMO). So why am I frustrated? It is there "Want List" service. On their web site it states, "When you add an out-of-stock issue to your want list, we will notify you by email whenever the issue comes in stock. You can also add an in-stock issue to your want list to track it for purchase at a later time." I have several books on my "want list" and MCS does not seem to email me when they get them in stock. In the past, I have contacted customer service about this and even directly communicated with Conan via PM on these boards. Yet, regardless of the promises, I still am not receiving emails when books on my "want list" become available. In fact, on Friday, 03/23/2018, I once again found a book listed on eBay (by MCS) that is on my current "want list". Oh yeah, and before anyone asks, I did check both my email inbox and spam folder. I do not understand why MCS has customers take the time to create "want lists" if they are not going to notify them when the items become available. I am curious if anyone else has run into this problem with MCS or am I the ONLY one having this issue?

I had my eye on that one. Hard to tell FMV on a book that rarely comes up for sale. Glad it went to a boardie.

Thanks to the OP for sharing this info,

First off, your run of 30 books is nothing to be sad about. Didn't you just add an Action 31 to that run? I would say (IMO) that 30 GA Actions is better than full runs of many modern, bronze, and even silver age books. You should be proud of your collection. You worked hard at it and should be happy for what you have accomplished. On another note, however, I am a little confused by the title of this thread. It refers to "run collectors", but then the OP seems to talk about owning every appearance of a character. I think these are two different things. For example, a person may collect every Action Comic, but have no interest in collecting many of the other titles that Superman is in. They are still a "run collector", they are not an "every appearance collector". Just my 2 cents.

There has been LOTS of discussion on these boards as to which book is king (Action 1 or Tec 27). Well, the AC1 in 5.0 went for 815K; the Tec27 went for 732K in 6.0.

Congratulations. That is a nice looking book!

The colors on that WW9 look really nice!

Glad to see MCS is always trying to make things better. That is what makes you guys so well liked. To answer your questions.... seller-configurable auto decline, auto accept options - able to set as account-wide defaults as % of your asking price, plus override on an item by item basis This is sounds great. how many chances should the buyer have to make an offer on a given item, and is this number known in advance or random/hidden Three seems reasonable to me (although if this is like eBay, people will just get someone else to make the 4th and subsequent offers for them). if a buyer makes an offer and is declined/countered and is making a new offer, assuming the new offer has to be higher than the previously rejected offer, can it be any higher amount, or should there be some minimum % increment higher? Any amount. If they want to use up their 3 chances raising their offer by a small amount, that is up to them. should the highest previously rejected offer be visible publicly, or not? If some sellers like this and some don't, is it worth making it a consignor option? No! (I guess if some consignors want it, then that is up to them) minimum values - is there a minimum value where best offer shouldn't even be an option because it's not worth the extra steps to buy No opinion.

Margo, Thanks for sharing your story here. It was a fun read and exciting to learn that undiscovered collections are still out there. As for the value of the books, as I believe you know, "condition is key". Regrettably many of the books you showed are in lower condition. Fortunately, however, when it comes to some books (especially "keys" lie Detective 359), collectors will buy them in any condition (provided the price reflects the condition). At this point, however, I know you are not looking to sell your books, but are just looking for how to best store them until you decide what to do. You were wise to come to the boards. There are a lot of good people here that will help answer all your questions, without seeking personal gain. Welcome to the boards.

Is it for sale??? I could use a copy!

I assumed this purchase was made by someone looing to marry the cover with another interior, however, as szavisca pointed out, the recent 6.5 universal went for $1673. So assuming the interior is perfect, what would a "qualified" be worth with this cover (with the crease in it and all)? In addition, the right side of the front cover appears to be missing some artwork. I cannot tell if the book was trimmed or if it is due to the cover being cut incorrectly. I tend to think it is the latter of the two, due to all the white I see on the left side.

I was watching an eBay auction last night for a Jo Jo 25. https://www.ebay.com/itm/Jo-Jo-25-golden-age-comic/152925360400?ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT&_trksid=p2060353.m1438.l2649 Although, I am a big fan of this book, it seems like almost $700 for a copy of this book, that is missing almost half it's pages is a little steep. I mean Jo Jo 25 is a nice book and the cover seems to be in "decent" shape, but is the cover alone worth that kind of coin??? Maybe I am completely off base here. Thoughts???????

To me, this is what true comic collecting is all about. It is not about having the "most valuable" book or what something is worth in regards to FMV. It is about collecting what you love. It is about the feelings and / or memories that a book can bring to your mind and heart. Way to go, Rick!

Words cannot express the awesomeness of this thread. Way to go, Brian!!!