ExNihilo

Why not just set the listing to automatically reject offers below a certain threshold?

Not the best response, but I would consider framing and protection all part of the cost of owning OA. You wouldn't want to spend 4 figures on a nice piece just to skimp out at the very end. They say you get what you pay for so I would personally go with the museum glass. I would be concerned that a plastic sheet would bubble over time if not applied properly and that the spray wouldn't have full coverage (it sounds kinda gimmicky to me).

I see this and sometimes question whether or not I'm packing things securely enough. I just feel like no matter how securely you pack some things, someone will find a way to crush it. I mean, there's only so much protection I can pack when shipping is $3.75.

Can 2nd this. I paid an extra $30 per book and then spent the entire weekend trying to get justification from CGC and from JSC. It makes no sense to me that someone could buy an unsigned book for $20 and then another $30 for a signature, while someone else is paying $40 for a pre-signed copy of the exact book and then has to pay $30 on top of that. It's really soured me on the JSC books I've bought and is really making me second guess any future purchases from the site (or from his booth).

Didn't much care for the story. The interior art was bad as well. I mean, I like Kubert, but he was imitating Miller and I honestly can't stand Miller's art style. Ironically, the little one shot side stories were my favorite part about the whole series. But those copies you have and the completion of most of the signatures is cool.

You can never be too careful about a group of people so slavishly devoted to maple syrup as Canadians are. One day your maple syrup reserve will be ours.

I believe the Max Value of whatever tier you associate it with is also the max you can claim for insurance in the event something should go wrong. So if you sub a NM ASM#300 as a Modern and something happens in the grading process, I've been told CGC or whomever will only pay you up to the max value ($200). So that's probably something else you'll want to consider when selecting a tier.

This gives me hope. I've got 2 books currently with them in the process of being pressed. Praying they come back better and not worse.

Oh geez. I had mine sent to be pressed as well. But hey, at least we'll get some nice Christmas presents from ourselves.

I'm not happy about the price, but at least the books are graded. I'm a little finicky, but I prefer signed books to have a yellow label (as opposed to be unslabbed) and unless I bought the books here on the boards, there was no way that would have been possible via the online store.

When I first learned about signings, my inclination was to get all keys signed. But now that I've had a few signed, part of me regrets it. I've reached a point where I prefer blue labels of major keys and enjoy sigs on less valuable books. Lucky for me I only had two expensive major keys signed, but unluckily it means i'm now on the hunt for that book in a blue label. I would say if you have two copies of TMNT, then by all means, get one signed. But if not, find a minor key or something that can more easily be replaced.

Everytime I look at this I stop and think "why is Crystal in this image?"

Thanks for the input @shortboxed and @BassGMan. The other part that gives me pause is the reputation for long lines and a lot of waiting around. I imagine that is the case for the big Hall H panels, but is it the same with the smaller ones? For example the Agents of SHIELD or panels related to TV shows? It sounds like I'll definitely have to find a way to stop by. The most difficult aspect is probably the fact that I work in finance and July is quarter end which happens to be one of the busiest months of the year for us so if anything I would probably only be able to attend Sat/Sun.

This is going to be an incredibly n00bish/naive post on my part, so I'm just gonna apologize in advance. I've never been SDCC. Heck, the only comic con i've been to was Sacramento Comic Con which was just a one day event. And even then, I only bought some prints, and a blank Infinity Gauntlet cover for sketch purposes. As a lifelong comic fan, I've always wanted to go because the idea of it sounds like something I would do. But I've been thinking, is it something i should do? Most books I buy are from my weekly pull list. I'm not a GA/SA collector (asides from a handful of key issues). And I'm not a collectible (read: Funko) collector. I guess what I'm trying to say is i'm not the big spender type. It sounds like most of the keys tend to be overpriced anyways. Now, a few SDCC exclusives appeal to me each year. And getting sigs and having small interactions with the creators would interest me. And I love buying up cool prints (simply because OA is out of my price range). But outside of the major Hall H panels, the smaller ones didn't immediately catch my attention. Is it worth it to go to SDCC if you don't plan on buying a whole lot? Do you find there is plenty to do over the full 4 days (5 if you include preview night)? Are you of the state of mind that someone should go at least once? Every year? Or that the show isn't for everyone and can be passed up entirely depending on what a person is looking for?

@Get Marwood & I revat is correct, it was still Thai Iced Tea. The first place I went to I just ordered an Iced Tea and got exactly that...an Iced Tea. So after that, I had the confusing conversation with the waitress and from there on out specifically ordered a Thai Iced Tea. I like sweet drinks, so I was in my happy place. Especially considering the fact that it was so hot and humid the entire length of my stay.

It's still called American Pickers. I actually had the same question when I went to Thailand and ordered a Thai Iced Tea. I stopped and looked at the waitress and just asked "or do you just call it iced tea here?"

What's an Alan Whicker? And here I thought "loonies" and "twoonies" were funny enough.

One second while I start "a little @revat 'APPRECIATION' thread /s"

Well, I guess I'm the outlier here... 1. Is it acceptable? Yes, in a way. My primary purpose for slabbing is two fold, authentication (of sigs) and preservation. The slab serves its purpose in that regard (or at least I hope it will in 30 years time). Appearance is secondary to preservation as far as I'm concerned. Is it normal? No. You wouldn't buy a picture frame that distorts the image you're attempting to showcase, so we shouldn't have slabs that have Newton Rings either. But if I have to put up with some Newton Rings to ensure the long term preservation of my book, then I can live with that. My books spend 99% of the time tucked away in a box anyways so its not like it affects me that much.

In all likelihood, the 2nd guy had to go back and pay the $30 upcharge before returning to the CGC table for submission. I was told by CGC (I made several calls to them when I was trying to understand the process better) that the creator has a card and they write down the number of books that have been paid for for CGC grading. That card is then handed over to CGC thus confirming that the creator was paid for in accordance with their tiered rates.

Unfortunately, the CGC upcharge seems to be where the business is heading. Creators see that CGC SS books are selling for more money than unverified signatures and so they charge more. I get that creators see an opportunity to make some extra money and they grab it. It's unfortunate for the fans, but so long as people are willing to pay it, there's obviously no reason for them not to bill in such a way. By that same token, I wholeheartedly agree that if the experience of getting a signature from your favorite creators is tarnished by bad experiences whether personal or because of the perceived greed behind it, it negatively impacts the emotional resonance a book has. This experience has certainly soured how I feel about the books I purchased. When I see them now, I'll just feel like I was ripped off and won't be able to fully enjoy the covers the way I had hoped. It's definitely fuzzy math. I think part of the reason it bothers me so much is because it feels like I've been lied to. As you said between when the book was purchased at JSC's booth to when it was initially brought to the CGC table for submission, there was no question as to the authenticity of the signature since the CGC witness was on hand to witness the handling of the books. But suddenly CGC is asking for a card confirming payment of signature fees otherwise it doesn't qualify for S/S. The people handling JSC's booth certainly didn't care at the time of the initial purchase, otherwise they would have required payment up front. Instead it was CGC who said "nope, you gotta go back". And I understand it's just CGC respecting the policies of the creators (I think that's where the dispute with Jim Starlin arose was because Jim wasn't getting paid his CGC signing rate by some fans). But I think CGC is also partially culpable in this because it's clear that not all signing fees are the same and they're not taking responsibility for the system they've helped create.

Yeah, but Dre acquired those and had them signed earlier this month. I'm not aware of any unsigned virgin copies being sold at SDCC directly from the JSC booth.

Did he even have any unsigned virgins? I was told all copies were pre-signed.

Some of you are probably thinking, "it's your own fault, you could have bought the pre-signed books and then just not submitted them and saved yourself $270." Yes, this is true, but if I get a signed book, I really would prefer it be authenticated and slabbed through CGC. It provides a level of assurance as to the authenticity that is otherwise unmatched currently should I find the need to sell off my collection down the road. You might also be thinking "you should have thought about this in advance." This was my first time buying pre-signed books and then directly submitting to CGC for a yellow label. I didn't know another $30 would be tacked on per book at the time of the initial purchase. By then, the books were already in hand and I didn't want to waste my facilitator's time. SDCC is the biggest con of the year and I'm sure they have better things to do than to wait on me. Not to mention, I can be a very calculated thinker at times and take a few days to really mull things over.

(TL;DR at the bottom) Apologies in advance for the rant, but it's been bothering me for two days and I just need to get it off my chest. I understand that nothing can be done about the following situation but still wanted to at least express myself. For those who are going to say "this is why I don't understand the need for people to acquire sigs, its a waste of money, blah blah blah." I already know your position and you can probably save yourself the trouble and move on to the next thread. Not that it matters, but I'm going to omit names simply because I don't think it's particularly relevant. To be honest, you guys are so savvy, I know you'll have it figured out anyways. With that out of the way, here we go... With the help of a facilitator, I got a pre-signed book from a creator for $50. The book was then walked to the CGC booth for Signature Series submission. But, it turns out this creator (like many others) has a separate rate for signing books submitted to CGC for grading. So another $30 was handed over to the creator, the book was walked back to CGC, and submitted. Now, the more I thought about it, the more it began to bother me. Pre-signed books are routinely advertised as "including signature fees, a $20 value". And with the $30 tacked on, that means I effectively paid $50 for signing fees. Now, I know if you were to take an unsigned book to this creator during one of their signing windows, the cost would be $30 whether it was for your personal collection or whether you planned to submit for CGC grading. Which means, I've somehow been charged a $20 premium. I thought about it this way: Customer A buys an unsigned book at the table for $20 and then pays $30 to have it signed and submitted to CGC. Customer A paid $50. Customer B buys the same book pre-signed at the table for $40. They then pay $30 and submit to CGC. Customer B paid $70. Both books end up the same, signed and submitted to CGC for grading, but Customer B paid a $20 premium. This is where the confusion arises in my head. Logically, the $20 value associated with the signature on the pre-signed book should be applied towards the $30 signing fee for subbed books and the difference is what is owed (in this example, $10). Now, I know a lot of creators charge different amounts for unsubbed/subbed signings, key books, etc. In those instances, the transaction plays out as such: Customer A and B bring copies of books to be signed. Customer A pays $20 and does not sub. Customer B pays $30 and does sub. Customer B does not pay $20, then another $30 (for a total of $50) for the right to submit to CGC. And that's the difference that I am struggling to contend with. To me, the total signing fee in my case should be $30 and not the $50 that I ultimately paid. Now, there are a few counterpoints that I'll just throw out there: 1) The creator can price their books however they want. 2) There are no unsigned copies of this book (all books were pre-signed exclusively for SDCC), so the creator can just claim the cost of the book was $50 and the value of the signature was free because the creator was being generous to the fans. 3) That's the nature of the business. That's how it's been for years and I'm just new to this and haven't dealt with this before. For (1) and (3), I've got no arguments against those. But for (2), I go back to my first example where getting a sig on any other unsigned book would be cheaper than subbing a pre-signed book. Had there been an opportunity to buy an unsigned book (as there is with every other book of theirs), I would have certainly gone that route and saved myself some money. But despite that, the principle of the matter is that the CGC subbed signing fees aren't even equal to each other since I paid $50 in signature fees for the right to sub, while any other book it's $30. By now you're probably thinking, "it's an extra $20. Get over it and move on." Except I was asked to dish out another $30 above what I initially paid. And it wasn't just one book. It was 9. TL;DR I bought 9 pre-signed books and was charged a $30 signature fee to be able to submit to CGC in addition to $50 for the pre-signed book which already had a signing fee (valued at $20) baked into the cost. Creator signing fee is normally $30. I Feel like I got ripped off on signing fees and should have only been charged a $10 premium instead of $30. Frustrated with creators signing fee policy. Thoughts on my particular situation and on the subject in general welcome.