Extrovert

I recently got this back from CGC. I really thought it would grade somewhere north of a 9. The most interesting part is that Gil Kane is "written" on page 1 in marker. I bought this comic at a FLA convention when I was maybe 14, likely a bit younger. I never opened the book, just kept it protected. I stupidly didn't look it over prior to submitting it for grading; because it was my first time submitting books and I didn't know any better. So now I have to wonder two things: 1. When they say written, does that mean it's a signature? 2. If it is a signature, and obviously CGC wouldn't recognize it as being genuine, could that reduce the grade? The grader notes make no mention of it.

A junkie named Speedy? Nice.

Yeah, of course it did, but I believe he, like me, was looking for a primary reason for the grade to have been dropped. I believe it's the upper left corner, it catches the eye all too easily.

I like how Batman's mouth and jaw don't need protection.

"very small scuff left top of front cover breaks color" - I believe that's the culprit right there.

And this one also came from the same yard sale. All in all I got a lot for $100, but I wasn't able to land the really big fish he had for sale.

I forgot - I also picked up this book at that same yard sale.

Oh wow, thanks! So I can pull the grader's notes using the Cert #? I didn't know that; again, this is my first time getting books slabbed. History on that book - I was likely about 13 years old and saw an advert for a local yard sale that had comics. I got there early, with the help of my dad, and they had three non-comic cardboard boxes full of loose comics, most in so-so condition, but nearly all were early Marvel. I tried to buy them all, but the seller was somewhat aware they could be worth some money. I only had about $100 to spend and bought as much as the guy would sell. I wound up snagging a run of ASM #16 thru the 30s (which should all grade around the 6.5ish level), and I snagged Conan 1-5. I can't recall everything he had but he wouldn't sell his early Avengers or any of his Silver Surfer books - I think he had a full run. He also wouldn't sell the main comic I was after, FF #1. I'd guess it would grade at a 5 or so now.

Here's the Hulk Joe worked on. Mecha - I can't check the results, they were all dropped off by Joe and run through his account. He offers a price reduction with CGC this way.

I had 20 books at CGC and 6 of them just came back to me, slabbed, in less than a month. No idea why or how they moved through that quickly, but I was damn happy to see them again. When the next batch will arrive is anyone's guess. Happy Holidays - Cheers!

Just got 6 of my 20 books back from CGC. Some fared much better than I thought they would, this one though - I was thinking it would be a 7 to 7+ but I imagine that dogged upper left corner did it in. Still, glad to have it slabbed up. Joe did a tremendous job, my Hulk 180 was absolutely cleaned by a master. The raw copy had some dark marks on the otherwise white spine, and Joe got rid of them completely. So glad I took good "before" pics to compare with the slabs. You rock, Joe! Cheers!

I'm Wes, I'm a big-time Marvel geek who collected heavily in my teens and pretty much quit paying attention once I started college. Fast forward to the Marvel movies and their affect on values, and I've found that my younger self was one hell of a good investor. I'm also shocked at how well preserved I managed to keep these comics for the past 40+- years, through many moves, and kids who are now in their twenties. I've just dipped my toes into slabbing, and have 20 books at CGC right now, after having them cleaned and pressed. The bug has bitten me once more. I was a web-head more than anything else, and managed to put together a nice early run of ASM. Glad to be here and I look forward to talking comics with you all. Cheers!

Yeah - I know - I'm at work doe and this is a shot I just happened to have on my PC. I'd update a better one when I get home - except this book, along with 19 others, is sitting - hopefully safely - in a box somewhere at CGC. The clip is quite small, but it's still an imperfection. When I dropped it off with my cleaner his comment was, "yeah - but I think this was done during production," leading me to believe there may be a difference in that and damage done after it was produced. Sorry the image kinda screws the question up, but again - it's small and it's a perfect cut, but that said - it is no longer a squared off corner. Cheers!

ASM 238 - it's in perfect, 9.8 range condition but has one flaw that was obviously created during production. The upper left corner, sorry for the poor image, has been clipped all the way through the book. The cut is perfect, nothing is frayed or anything like that. It's the perfection of the clip/cut that makes me believe it was done during production at the factory. My question is - is there leniency regarding this sort of thing in CGC grading? The book is perfection otherwise. I'm curious how CGC handles things of this sort when grading. Cheers!

This cover ranks pretty high on my bronze age list.

I pretty much know what to expect with my books that are already flirting with a 9.8, but it's the older stuff that I look forward to seeing what Joe can do with, like this ASM, for instance. This is pre-press & clean. A good cleaning should brighten this one up. I have no idea what this will grade out as. I'm guessing around a 7, but hoping for more. The upper left corner is gnawed a bit though. Still, again, as a noob, this is going to provide me some valuable information on grading. Cheers!

Yeah - he's been easy to chat with. Seems like a great guy. As a noob to the process, the wait is kicking my . I'll be more prepared for it on my next batch. I can't wait to see my 20 books slabbed. I have a large number of keys that should be in the 9.8 range, we shall see - then some older keys, ASMs especially that will likely be in the 7 to 8 range. I can't wait to see how it all turns out. Cheers!

Yeah, sunlight seemed a good choice - but sunlight doesn't look like that. Looks great on that cover though!

One of the best covers ever. I've got two high grade copies at CGC right now. I had them cleaned and pressed and I'm hoping for the best. They're both north of 9.0 but how far north is anyone's guess. Cheers!

One of my all-time favorite covers. I'm lucky enough to have a 9.8 copy of this beauty. Most of all, I love the bright yellow section in the background. While it looks amazing, it never made sense to me. What the hell is that supposed to be?

I love hearing all these positive comments on Joe & CFP. Thanks. It does my heart good. I handed my books over on 3/6/21 and they're currently at CGC, none of them have been graded yet; that's about 10 months and again, they haven't even been graded yet. So, yeah - with these crazy times every part of this process is backed up. It does sound like I went with the right guy and service. Cheers!

I'm glad to hear that. I'd read similar things and that's what prompted me to send him a stack of books earlier this year. I knew it would take a while, but the process was at least twice as long as I expected. I understand they received many more submissions than typical years. My books are at CGC now and haven't been graded yet. As a noob to the process I've been on pins and needles waiting to get my books back. I hand delivered my comics to Joe, and he seemed like a very nice guy. We were both masked, and didn't get to interact as much as I'd hoped to, but he did look over and comment on my books prior to me driving off and leaving a stack of - crazy way to go for my first time I know - 20 bronze age books, mostly keys - in a "strangers" hands. So, again, as a noob, it's been tough to not worry about my books. I'm sure once the process is over, and I get my books back, slabbed, I'll be more mentally prepared for the next batch I hand deliver. What was it Tom Petty sang? Oh yeah... The waiting is the hardest part. Cheers!

A little background: I was an avid collector at a young age, and collected until around the time I went to college in 1985. The vast majority of my collection are bronze age keys, though I've got a nice stretch of ASM pre #30. I've got quite a large number of comics as well. So I'm not really a noob at collecting. What I am a noob at is having comics pressed/cleaned & graded. Which leads me - at last, I know - to my question: Have any of you ever used CFP Comics & Services for cleaning, pressing and submissions to CGC? The price is nice. I've read some good reviews, though I've not been able to find many recent ones. I really like the fact that Joe, at CFP, hand delivers the books to CGC after finishing with them. Just keeping them out of the US mail for one of the steps in the process really appeals to me. If you've worked with them before, or have any input whatsoever, please drop in let me know your thoughts. Happy holidays, Cheers!

I collected heavily from the 70s into the 90s, then life took me in different directions. I kept my collection intact, bagged and boxed and safe from harm for the last couple of decades. Like many of you, I've recently had some time on my hands. I've had a blast digging out my books and checking out values, and considering grades. I was always a Marvel guy and I'm amazed to see the way the values have been affected by the slew of Marvel movies that have, shockingly - mostly been damn good. I've seperated just shy of 170 comics from the rest, the most valuable and highest grades, etc. About half of those have been in mylar bags with acid free backing for probably 20 years. Oddly, most of the mylar bags weren't meant, or don't appear to have been meant, to be folded and sealed. There's so little mylar left at the top of the sleeve? I guess, that you can't fold it down. Luckily I see no issue from that exposure on the comics, but I'm now looking at mylar bags that fold over and can be taped shut, for all the best books I have. Any recommendations? I'd also like to pick up some new boxes. I don't know how much boxes have changed in the last few decades, but I want some good sturdy long boxes and would love to find a box that would hold about 170 board- backed comics snugly, to keep them nice and flat. I've also never had anything slabbed... but that's a story for another day. I will say, I'm quite impressed by my teenage self. I made some damn good choices on comics, and typically bought multiple copies of what turned out to be key issues. I've once again been bitten by the bug. Cheers!