RockMyAmadeus

My first Death In The Family 9.8 set is complete!

Truly. Extra virgin.

:shrug: You didn't even try. It's like serving someone a cold hot dog. I wanted to get the pics up fast. And that flash is actually the overhead lightbulb.

:shrug:

Thought I'd share a bit about the SIP #1. So, for years, there were no SIP #1s in 9.8. The book was produced under horrid conditions, with a 3,000 print run, so the shots at a 9.8 were infinitesimal to begin with. I troll eBay for SIP, cause it's solid stuff, and probably the most important and valuable book after Bone #1 from the 1990's. Anyhoo...in February, I was searching eBay, and found this auction... http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=320483568819 Figured I'd give it a shot. Notice anything missing from the title...? I put in a snipe...and won it by a nickel. I begged the seller to ship it safely packed, which she assured me she would. The book was shipped in a large, flat rate Priority box...wrapped in tissue. God's grace, man, God's grace.... How it survived all this time, I do not know. So, I sent it in, and the result is the book you see here. I think it's payback for all the overgraded junk I've had to deal with all these years. The Primer #5, I bought from Greg Buls back in 1999 for $10 or so. I'd been looking for that book forEVER.

Sorry for the awful, awful pics.

This was a good thread. We should do this more often...

Awesome, as usual Dover. Your copper books are great!

I was just thinking about that the other day....one reading this thread might get the sense that Turtles #1 is common in high grade....without realizing that it's likely the majority of high grade copies are held by the people in this thread. (thumbs u

So...are you saying actor is your choice...?

Always count pages on every Silver and older book you buy.

This thread always makes me feel sad...then happy...then guilty, because I laughed while reading it. Then sad again. Poor ajax.

The answer to this thread is simple: 8 is a higher number than 6. No other reason. There is a difference between average 9.6s and average 9.8s, but the price for weak 9.8 is the same as the price for an average 9.8 which is the same as the price for a strong 9.8...because they're all 9.8s (setting aside issues like "centering" and "page quality", which don't affect the numeric grade.) What's the difference between a strong 9.6 and a weak 9.8? Often nothing. I've pre-screened books at the 9.8 level, had them rejected, sent 'em back through...having done nothing to them in the interim...and received 9.8s. Now, don't get me wrong....there IS a very noticeable difference between average 9.6s and average 9.8s...but there are just as many strong 9.6s and weak 9.8s that, on any other day, would easily...and quite justifiably...reside in the other's case. Why, then, is the price so vastly different between 9.6s and 9.8s...? REALLY GOOD question, eh...? And of course, the other answer is that there are plenty of copies in CGC 9.8 of most anything modern, so there's no sense in wasting time with an "inferior" copy.

I feel you, man. I cracked my .5 and gave it to a buddy that is a huge Infantino fan. He loved it and I didn't have to look at it mocking me. I'd be mocking you too for sending in a Silver Age book without counting pages first.... Looks like you already are. Oh, no, that was just a hypothetical....I would never mock you in public. (but seriously, folks...count your pages. Not counting pages is a rookie mistake. )

I feel you, man. I cracked my .5 and gave it to a buddy that is a huge Infantino fan. He loved it and I didn't have to look at it mocking me. I'd be mocking you too for sending in a Silver Age book without counting pages first....

Which needs to be in a Green Label, but what the heck...

Printing plates. Pffft...newsstand drek... Mike Zeck junk. X-Men trash.

Printing plates. Pffft...newsstand drek...

"One BEEELION DOLLARS!!!"

Someday. I know, I know, I'm a slacker...should be fixed tonight.

Yeah, I know. I still want your #3 Blue, so lemme know if you wanna trade.

Are you wasting time buying CGC 9.8s...? No. They will always and forever be the "highest graded" that one can obtain a complete collection of whatever it is they collect from about 1972-present. Will anyone be able to put together a 9.9 run of ANYTHING of any significance..? Tell me...how many *complete* runs of anything have extant copies in 9.9, with at LEAST 2 issues in the run...? Wolverine Limited series (by the skin of its teeth.) Wolverine: The Origin Locke & Key Anything else...? Probably a handful of IDW titles. Any Spidey titles? Even Spidey Minis? Not likely. X-Men? Batman? FF? Watchmen can't be done. Miracleman can't be done. Punisher can't be done. Nothing John Byrne did can be done. Nothing Jim Lee did can be done. Nothing Todd McFarlane did can be done. So....9.8 remains the legitimate ceiling for "highest graded" that one can reasonably pursue as a collection with any kind of completeness. Are you wasting time buying 1975-up 9.6s and lower, unless they're rare Indies like TMNT, Albedo #0-2, Cerebus, etc.? Yes. You can quite literally buy 9.4-9.6 examples at almost any convention, raw, without paying the slab premium.