William-James88

Thanks. By comparison though,(judging from the scans) the rusty staple on that spidey book is the only defect stopping it from being higher. In this example, we also have the staple tears (you can see them near the staple extremities), rounded corners, overhang bends and what appears to be creases in the lower left. The spidey book shows the most this could ever get is an 8.0, but this book doesn't look as good, far from it. Hence why I wonder what the grade is. Pretty sure it ain't 8,5, which I find troubling from what is said to be a renowned seller and my main provider of rare GA books. Also, in regards to the golden age stuff, the leniency only applies to bindery defects, so defects made during production (missing staples, spine roll, loose centrefolds, corner chips, ect). The wear of the book is judged ceterus parabus as far as I have seen.

Thanks man. In short, this kinda sucks.

4.5 sounds good

Same here, and I don't know if rust migration worsens that or if it's included as part of the points you lose for the rusty staple itself. In any case, if any of you want to see the listing in question, here it is https://comics.ha.com/itm/golden-age-1938-1955-/captain-marvel-adventures-146-fawcett-publications-1953-condition-vf-/a/122003-15106.s?ic4=GalleryView-Thumbnail-071515 The seller claims an 8.5 which I find very hard to believe. And as with what marvelmaniac said, the lack of extra photos really doesn't help.

I know and I wish I had better pics, but this is all heritage has provided in their current auction. Hence why I am having a hard time gauging it myself. I am pretty sure there is no trimming though as the corners have the same wear as the rest of the book (were it trimmed, they would be more straight). It looks more like a printing mistake which is very common for golden age books.

Yeah, it gets marked down to a 4.0 already due to the subscription crease (with colour break) so there's just a few too many extra defects, like the hole that keeps lowering the grade. I too would say about 3.0-3.5

6.5, what does the slab say?

I would be more comfortable calling this a 6 than a 7. That spine doesn't look great, plus you have the colour breaks in the corner. But it's hard to tell with the blurry pics.

I am thinking of purchasing this but not sure about the grade. The main defect I see is a rusty staple (with rust transfer on the comic) along with staple tears from the same staple. I also spot creases along this comic (bottom left). I personally think it's a 7.0, at most, due to the rust and tears, but I'd like to know if I am wrong about this.

The higher grade for sure since that's what is tied to a price in the guide. Page quality only becomes a factor when grades are either the same or really close.

Some of my slabs look like this. So I wouldn't call it damaged from what I see (the more usual damage is an actual crack somewhere, there isn't any here).

Someone brought the notion of the newton rings in the thread discussing the pros and cons of competitors like CBCS. If these new holders from CGC are the best we have so far and yet other companies do not have newton rings, does it mean that slabs from elsewhere are inferior in other areas? What I mean is, is anything sacrificed by having a slab that doesn't have newton rings? Is what is being gained with the new slabs worth the newton rings? Just confused by all this since it's not an issue I ever thought we'd have and my other CGC slabs look great.

It's not something I was suggesting, I was just trying to understand what was being discussed.

But then in that case, shouldn't the tiering system be based only on the era rather than the worth?

7.5-8.0

It's really too bad for that staple tear because otherwise it's a nice book. 6.0

I don't think so since the defects that bring down the grade are the missing pieces on the corner and the staple tears, none of which are rectified through a press. Pressing is more for folds and such, which is not the biggest issue your book. I too would say 4.0-4.5

8.5

4.0

9 in the census, can't believe how cheap such a rare golden age superhero comic is.

That's the hope!

I see. So, applying your answer to the even when pressing is involved, just use the rate of what the book currently looks like (rather than what you hope it looks like after it's pressed) and if it comes out great and you get the bump, then they'll charge you the additional fee. That about right?

I asked some people and they told me the best was to ask the community as a whole since it's tricky. The bit I always have a hard time to the point of anxiety with submitting (I only submitted 3 times to CGC and once was a simple signature event) is when an integer of grade can change the tier of the book. For instance, looking at the grades people estimate for this Captain marvel comic I posted (issue 51), this could be between 250-450, so between 2 tiers (value and standard). While grading is objective, it's hard not to fear that selecting the cheaper tier cements that this comic won't get the best possible grade. Plus I would like to have it pressed and I have no clue how much better it can be if pressed. Like a 9.0/9.2 golden age detective that if pressed might get to those fabled 9.4/9.6 grades that can fetch way more than what the price guide end at. So it's moments like these that I don't know what to do. How does one submit a book in those cases?

Here's my Master Comics 76 (the Crippen copy). Only 8 in the census.

Yes, pressing will help with that fold at the top and could make it worth more. Do not get it restored. Right now you are looking at around a $3000-$4000 book (around the 5.0 grade). Getting it pressed and graded would help get you the most for it.