scburdet

I have seen some evidence that cleaning the rust can earn you a purple label, which is unfortunate. Both b/c that seems like it should be a legal cleaning process and I don't think people should be down on less invasive restoration techniques.

A broken clock and all that.

You should show us the back too. If rust free (and the back was OK), this would be in my >9.2 bin. I don't have a good perspective on staple rust deductions but I'd guess 2 grades. Maybe down to an 8.0.

.5.5/6.0. Same rationale. I think CGC graders may ding the rust stain more than they probably should

6.0±0.5. Going on the standards CGC seems to be using where stain (rust, etc) are judged more harshly than the comparable defects from a different category.

9.0 or a grade in either direction.

9.4±0.2. I don't think a 9.6 is in the cards, but I'm not going to dismiss the possibity.

I have a 4.5, this looks much better. 5.5±0.5 with some uncertainty about that purple spot on the back. Is that overspray or something else? If that little piece wasn't missing, you'd obviously get a bump up

9.2±0.2. I'm seeing CGC not penalizing small spine ticks as much as I might. I think you've got a real shot at the higher end of my range.

I'm a 2.0, but I could see a grader penalizing the discoloration more

I think you're right on the pressing, but I speak without authority. To me, with pressing this is 9.2±0.2. The little dents probably won't disappear completely. There's a little something showing around the top edge of the back cover, but it looks like it could be overspray?

As is, I'm going with 4.5. If cleaned, as recommended 5.0±0.5. Enough creases to keep it out of the FN level.

I'm at 9.0-9.2. The inside of the front cover might be a little tanned, not sure. That could lower things if it is determined to be such.

I mean, there was like 0 disagreement on the prediction here. A record?

I think more like 5.5±0.5 b/c of the tanning. Unless there's some allowance for early silver age, this is the latest think I'm learning CGC graders are really hammering.

4.5±0.5 and I'm more toward the 4.0-4.5 range. Too much creasing and that staining/discoloration/foxing isn't going to go away with cleaning IMO.

I'm right in the middle 6.0±0.5

I see a possible crease on the front (top right) and back (middle left), but they don't appear to extend like I would expect. Not sure what's going on with that. I'll say 6.0±0.5

Got it. My other right 🙂 I checked, if it's color rub it's extraordinarily minor. I agree the photo highlights something. In hand I really have to take a flashlight to it and find the right angle for it it look like anything. The lighting in my comic photo station is not the greatest....

I wouldn't swear to it (nor anything else when it comes to grading), but I think that's little pixels of yellow ink that are part of the texturing on the Hulk's arm, there's quite a bit of subtle coloring here considering the art is mostly covered by the title. We need the virgin variant to really study this

@AhsokaTano Jedi Apprentice @grendelbo Maybe you two can help point me to what you're seeing that I'm not. TBF, there does appear to be a thumbprint or something above the newspaper in the trash along the spine in the 1st full cover photo I originally posted. That must have been a ghost in my comic room since I don't think there's anything actually there. I took a different perspective of the top staple and all I can see is the slightest amount of fraying, which would be normal for stapled paper? Just trying to see what you see since we often are in close agreement on other posts.

I'll play

3.5±0.5. The spine split drops you down below the overall appearance.

5.0±0.5. I was going to say 6.0, but then I think there's a tear in the top of the front cover? There are enough tics, soiling on the back and whatnot that would definitely put in in the FN range and I think the tear drops it by a grade.

3.5/4.0 My understanding is that you won't take a hit in the grade, but you would get a conserved. Here is a somewhat recent discussion of another book with extra staples