marvelmaniac

I will not give a higher grade without seeing the book in person, however, this book IMO from the pictures posted is at least a... 9.4 NEAR MINT (NM): Back to TopNearly perfect with only minor imperfections that keep it from the next higher grade. Subtle bindery/printing defects are allowed. Bindery tears must be less than 1/16" on Silver Age and later books, although on Golden Age books bindery tears of up to 1/4" have been noted. Cover is flat with no surface wear. Inks are bright with high reflectivity and a minimum of fading. Corners are cut square and sharp with ever-so-slight blunting permitted. A 1/16" bend is permitted with no color break. Small, inconspicuous, lightly penciled, stamped or inked arrival dates are acceptable as long as they are in an unobtrusive location. Slight foxing. Spine is tight and flat. Staples are generally centered; may have slight discoloration. Almost no stress lines. Paper is off-white to cream, supple and fresh. Slight interior tears are allowed.

Stan Lee answers your question... https://fb.watch/7Tf-uE6Ada/

Spine Stress Lines/Vertical Creasing, Corner Creasing Lower Right, Blunted Corners, Minor Edge Wear W/Slight Creasing. Overall, the book presents nicely, IMO the amount of spine stress that is present keeps this book from a higher grade... VG+ 4.5 5.0 VERY GOOD/FINE (VG/FN): Back to Top An above-average but well used comic book. An accumulation of bindery/printing defects is allowed. Minor to moderate cover wear apparent, with minor to moderate creases and/or dimples. Inks have moderate to low reflectivity. Blunted corners are increasingly common, as is minor to moderate staining, discoloration, and/or foxing. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. A minor to moderate spine roll is allowed. A spine split of up to 1/2" may be present. Staples may show minor discoloration. Minor staple tears and minor stress lines may also be present, as well as minor rust migration. Paper is tan to brown with no signs of brittleness. Centerfold may be loose. Minor interior tears may also be present. 4.5 VERY GOOD+ (VG): Back to Top Fits the criteria for Very Good but with an additional virtue or small accumulation of virtues that improves the book's appearance by a perceptible amount. 4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to Top The average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple.

Welcome To The Boards!!! What I see is... Edge wear/dimples on the outside front cover and lower rear cover, slight color loss in the Red areas of the front cover, slightly blunted corners, I also see what appears to be two separate creases on the front cover...???

IMO, the bottom right corner keeps this book from being higher...VF 8.0/VF+ 8.5 8.5 VERY FINE+ (VF+): Back to Top Fits the criteria for Very Fine but with an additional virtue or small accumulation of virtues that improves the book's appearance by a perceptible amount. 8.0 VERY FINE (VF): Back to Top An excellent copy with outstanding eye appeal. A limited accumulation of minor bindery/printing defects is allowed. Cover is relatively flat with minimal surface wear beginning to show, possibly including some minute wear at corners. Inks are generally bright with moderate to high reflectivity. An unnoticeable 1/4" crease is acceptable if color is not broken. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. Minor foxing. Spine is almost completely flat with a possible minor color break. Staples may show some discoloration. Very slight staple tears and a few almost insignificant stress lines may be present. Paper is cream to tan and supple. Centerfold is mostly secure. Minor interior tears at the margin may be present.

FR/GD 1.5 /GD- 1.8 2.0 GOOD (GD): Back to Top Shows substantial wear; often considered a "reading copy." Cover shows significant wear and may even be detached. Cover reflectivity is low and in some cases completely absent. Book-length creases and dimples may be present. Rounded corners are more common. Moderate soiling, staining, discoloration and foxing may be present. The largest piece allowed missing from the front or back cover is usually a 1/2" triangle or a 1/4" square, although some Silver Age books such as 1960s Marvels have had the price corner box clipped from the top left front cover and may be considered Good if they would otherwise have graded higher. Tape and other forms of amateur repair are common in Silver Age and older books. Spine roll is likely. May have up to a 2" spine split. Staples may be degraded, replaced or missing. Moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Centerfold may be loose or detached. Moderate interior tears may be present. 1.8 GOOD- (GD-): Back to Top Fits the criteria for Good but with an additional defect or small accumulation of defects that detracts from the book's appearance by a perceptible amount. 1.5 FAIR/GOOD (FR/GD): Back to Top Shows substantial to heavy wear. Books in this grade are commonly creased, scuffed, abraded, soiled, and possibly unattractive, but still generally readable. Cover shows considerable wear and may be detached. Almost no cover reflectivity remaining. Book-length creases, tears and folds may be present. Rounded corners are increasingly common. Soiling, staining, discoloration and foxing is generally present. Up to 1/10 of the back cover may be missing. Tape and other forms of amateur repair are increasingly common in Silver Age and older books. Spine roll is common. May have a spine split between 2" and 2/3 the length of the book. Staples may be degraded, replaced or missing. Staple tears and stress lines are common, as well as rust migration. Paper is brown and may show brittleness around the edges. Acidic odor may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached. Interior tears are common.

3.0 GOOD/VERY GOOD (GD/VG): Back to TopA used comic book showing some substantial wear. Cover shows significant wear, and may be loose or even detached at one staple. Cover reflectivity is very low. Can have a book-length crease and/or dimples. Corners may be blunted or even rounded. Discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor to moderate soiling is allowed. A triangle from 1/4" to 1/2" can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" to 1/4" square is also acceptable. Tape and other amateur repair may be present. Moderate spine roll likely. May have a spine split of anywhere from 1" to 1-1/2". Staples may be rusted or replaced. Minor to moderate staple tears and moderate stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present.

4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to TopThe average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple

Welcome To The Boards!!! Excellent info above, one thing that was not mentioned in its entirety... CGC will treat any signature as a defect unless they witnessed the signing and the book then went directly to CGC for grading, in this case the book would receive a Yellow Signature Series Label. https://www.cgccomics.com/grading/labels/

Welcome To The Boards!!! I do not have my books graded so I cannot tell you what defects CGC hits the hardest, I do not see anything out of the ordinary with this book that would detract further from the grade (no pages missing, cutout ads, drawing/writing on the interior pages, detached/loose pages, etc.) What I do see is... Moderate cover creases, corner creasing with color break, blunted corners, edge wear, slight staple tears, slightly fanned pages, minor/moderate spine stress, color rub on "Reeds" right arm by the spine and what appears to be "foxing" on the back cover. 5.0 VERY GOOD/FINE (VG/FN): Back to TopAn above-average but well used comic book. An accumulation of bindery/printing defects is allowed. Minor to moderate cover wear apparent, with minor to moderate creases and/or dimples. Inks have moderate to low reflectivity. Blunted corners are increasingly common, as is minor to moderate staining, discoloration, and/or foxing. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. A minor to moderate spine roll is allowed. A spine split of up to 1/2" may be present. Staples may show minor discoloration. Minor staple tears and minor stress lines may also be present, as well as minor rust migration. Paper is tan to brown with no signs of brittleness. Centerfold may be loose. Minor interior tears may also be present.

August 1955

IMO, the creasing w/color break at the top right front cover, crease by the "G" in "Group" along with the crease on the rear cover prevents this book from being a VF. VF 8.0 - . An unnoticeable 1/4" crease is acceptable if color is not broken. Overall the book is nice, slightly blunted corners, slight edge wear, and without the creases may have been a VF/NM 9.0, with the creases... 7.0 FINE/VERY FINE (FN/VF): Back to TopAn above-average copy that shows minor wear but is still relatively flat and clean with outstanding eye appeal. A small accumulation of minor bindery/printing defects is allowed. Minor cover wear beginning to show, possibly including minor creases. Corners may be blunted. Inks are generally bright with a moderate reduction in reflectivity. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. Minor foxing. The slightest spine roll may be present, as well as a possible moderate color break. Staples may show some discoloration. Slight staple tears and a small accumulation of light stress lines may be present. Slight rust migration. Paper is cream to tan. Centerfold is mostly secure. Minor interior tears at the margin may be present.

I have two books with "Doodles".

I do not have my books graded so I cannot give you an exact answer, I did however, find this in an old thread from a CGC Rep on the boards... "We would need to remove the comic from the polybag in order to assess its condition and grade the book. The book will then be encapsulated and the polybag will be returned along with the encapsulated comic. (in most cases, we try our best) The polybag will not be encapsulated. We ask that you do note that the comics may be removed from the polybag for the purpose of grading on your submission form." You can also post this question here... https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/forum/23-ask-cgc/

You want Mylites (Mylar) and Acid Free Boards, Poly degrades over time and is recommended to be replaced every 5 years, Mylar is an inert substance that does not contain acids, nor does it break down over time, it is Archival safe. None of these bags are UV protected and neither are CGC slabs so proper storage is still needed.(Away from UV light, In a controlled environment (temp, humidity), away from sources of heat and moisture. CGC does not have/give recommendations for Archival supplies, most folks go to... https://www.egerber.com/ or https://www.bcwsupplies.com/ The biggest problem right now is that these items are backordered due to supply chain issues.

LOVE that book!!! 2.0 GOOD (GD): Back to TopShows substantial wear; often considered a "reading copy." Cover shows significant wear and may even be detached. Cover reflectivity is low and in some cases completely absent. Book-length creases and dimples may be present. Rounded corners are more common. Moderate soiling, staining, discoloration and foxing may be present. The largest piece allowed missing from the front or back cover is usually a 1/2" triangle or a 1/4" square, although some Silver Age books such as 1960s Marvels have had the price corner box clipped from the top left front cover and may be considered Good if they would otherwise have graded higher. Tape and other forms of amateur repair are common in Silver Age and older books. Spine roll is likely. May have up to a 2" spine split. Staples may be degraded, replaced or missing. Moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Centerfold may be loose or detached. Moderate interior tears may be present.

Disregarding the damage/restoration on the front cover, what I see is... Top left corner/edge blunted/creased, What appears to be a spine tear by the boulder by the left edge, minor staple tears at top staple, slight outer edge wear, stain at top left of rear cover, small tear (???) lower right of rear cover. IMO, without taking the damage/restoration into account the book is a FN 6.0, with the damage taken into consideration the book is a VG 4.0. 6.0 FINE (FN): Back to TopAn above-average copy that shows minor wear but is still relatively flat and clean with no significant creasing or other serious defects. Some accumulation of minor bindery/printing defects is allowed. Minor cover wear apparent, with minor to moderate creases. Inks show a significant reduction in reflectivity. Blunted corners are more common, as is minor staining, soiling, discoloration, and/or foxing. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. A minor spine roll is allowed. There can also be a 1/4" spine split or severe color break. Staples may show minor discoloration. Minor staple tears and a few slight stress lines may be present, as well as minor rust migration. Paper is tan to brown and fairly supple with no signs of brittleness. Minor interior tears at the margin may be present. Centerfold may be loose. 4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to TopThe average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple.

Corner/Edge Wear and Creasing, Spine Stress, Stain on top of rear cover, IMO even though there is no spine split, no pieces missing, no large creases through the cover the blunted corners and the amount of creasing on the edges/corners prevent this book from being higher grade. 4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to TopThe average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple.

Biggest issues I see are the spine split, small piece missing from bottom right corner and small tear on the lower edge of the front cover. a few moderate creases with color break... 4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to TopThe average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple.

Spine wear, spine stress lines/creases, edge wear/creasing, blunted/creased corners, slight staple tears, slight discoloration of the staples, staining/small tear on rear cover... I am on the fence on this one, it is better than a VG 4.0, I want to give the book a VG/FN 5.0, however IMO the spine stress may be too plentiful for that, hopefully I am wrong. IMO VG+ 4.5 5.0 VERY GOOD/FINE (VG/FN): Back to TopAn above-average but well used comic book. An accumulation of bindery/printing defects is allowed. Minor to moderate cover wear apparent, with minor to moderate creases and/or dimples. Inks have moderate to low reflectivity. Blunted corners are increasingly common, as is minor to moderate staining, discoloration, and/or foxing. Stamped or inked arrival dates may be present. A minor to moderate spine roll is allowed. A spine split of up to 1/2" may be present. Staples may show minor discoloration. Minor staple tears and minor stress lines may also be present, as well as minor rust migration. Paper is tan to brown with no signs of brittleness. Centerfold may be loose. Minor interior tears may also be present 4.5 VERY GOOD+ (VG): Back to Top Fits the criteria for Very Good but with an additional virtue or small accumulation of virtues that improves the book's appearance by a perceptible amount. 4.0 VERY GOOD (VG): Back to Top The average used comic book. Cover shows moderate to significant wear, and may be loose but not completely detached. Cover reflectivity is low. Can have moderate creases or dimples. Corners may be blunted. Store stamps, name stamps, arrival dates, initials, etc. have no effect on this grade. Some discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor soiling is allowed. As much as a 1/4" triangle can be missing out of the corner or edge; a missing 1/8" square is also acceptable. Only minor unobtrusive tape and other amateur repair allowed on otherwise high grade copies. Moderate spine roll may be present and/or a 1" spine split. Staples may be discolored. Minor to moderate staple tears and stress lines may be present, as well as some rust migration. Paper is brown but not brittle. Minor to moderate interior tears may be present. Centerfold may be loose or detached at one staple.

Aren't we all...

I have been collecting since 1979 and have always collected on a budget, filling the runs was always more important to me than finding that high priced grail, I have 2000 books (no duplicates) and the majority of my runs are completed (up to my stopping point, IE; ASM 1-200, F.F. 1-200) except for the grails (AF 15, ASM 1, Avengers 1, F.F. 1, IH 1, JIM 83, TOS 39, X-Men 1), where I used reprint issues to complete the run/story. I realized a long time ago I was never going to get any of these books (I did find a D.D. 1 in PR 0.5 (complete) for $50.00 in the wild back in the 90's) but that was a rare thing to do. I stopped buying completely 12 years ago when prices for the books I was looking for (early Pre-Hero JIM and ST) got out of hand and conventions started becoming more about "Pop Culture" than comic books. Over the last 12 years I have been at peace with my collection as is.

You would have to go back much further than 10 years for me, I stopped buying 12 years ago because the prices of the books I was looking for (Early Kid Colt, Rawhide Kid and Early, Pre-Hero JIM and Strange Tales) was getting out of hand, you would probably have to go back to pre-eBay days for me.

Are these graded books or raw books? If they are raw and have had a grade assigned... Every 6 month's I check eBay Sold Auctions for my top 100 (+) books and keep a log, and have been for 6 years now. eBay sold auctions are actual FMV since this is exactly what folks are paying for these books. You need to look at auctions that have a book in the same grade as yours with at least 5 bidders, being sure that there was not a bidding war that artificially raised the price. IE; Amazing Spider-Man 20 VG/FN 5.0, 2015 value = $105.00, as of June 2021 value = $400.00 For most Super-Hero books you should be able to find numerous past sales for books in your grade, I have a hard time finding actual FMV for my early Westerns and Early Pre-Hero Horror since there are not often for sale through auction, they are usually "Overpriced,(IMO) Buy It Now".

My "Well Loved" copy.