mike devon

Cheers LD. I am indeed going to sell it - probably after a clean and press. Bearing in mind I paid a lot for it what would you be looking at to buy it..?

Me neither till today Harry. Nearly impossible to discern I'd say. For me I would expect to pay less for one with the tear but in terms of fretting or losing sleep over it it doesn't bother me at all. The same tear on a cover would drive me completely batty and I wouldn't buy it - unless it was like an ASM 1 I guess.

Cheers Harry. 7.0 is fine by me - although as mentioned above this is a known factory issue on very early ASMs. Is there any way to tell..? It looks to me like a very clean split..? I'm happy with a 7.0 but if its a factory split it would be very handy to know.

My mistake - the wrap ISN'T off the staple. Don't know how much difference this makes..? Could be factory damage..? No idea.

How to tell..? Looks like factory issue but who knows..? All I can go on is what I can see and the book overall has practically zero normal handling wear - some dirt and mild stacking roll are the only real evidence it was ever owned and read. Very tight staples. How is it that some are grading this 6.5 as is and some 4.0..? That is an enormous difference.

Thats interesting. But how would we ever be able to tell..? The book overall is in excellent condition - almost no wear at all which suggests factory issue. The damage doesn't look like wear its just a clean split. But it could be.

Cheers - so how much do you deduct for an internal split..? 0.5 or 1.0..?

6.5 now or after clean and press..? Are you knocking off 0.5 for the internal split..?

Cheers. I'd say 7.5 without the internal centrefold split. That's a shame but unless you open the book right up you don't see it. As eye candy its great.

Cheers. I'm thinking of selling it raw. I didn't buy it to sell but I'm now thinking about trying for a low grade issue 1. I don't think I'd get it pressed I'd leave that to potential buyer. I like that its straight from original owner and totally raw.

What do you think the centrefold split takes off the grade - a whole grade or a .5..?

OK its just arrived. Here are some quick pics including one at rake angle to highlight the flatness. Laying flat it looks new - the only thing that says it isn't is a mild agedness. The whites have gone a bit off white. Centre fold split 2 inches - page off 1 staple. Can't tell if factory or user. The spine split/wear is about 2mm. Spine ticks 1 or 2 tiny tiny ones. Bit of dirt on the back Mild corner bend. No restoration its straight out of an old old collection. I think its 7.5..? The centre fold split doesn't show unless you open it quite far out. I'm very relieved - I was half expecting water damage or some other thing that wouldn't show on photos but there's nothing.

Absolute minefield. All I can say is ebay protection is very good for buyers.

Yeah seems like it although its not even restoration it just accurate descriptions - ofc CGC solves that problem too.

Sure - except I can't remember ever seeing surface fluctations - or whatever you'd call an artifact that isn't a crease or a ding/dent - on a description. Its always other mechanical issues. 'Book lies flat' - would that cover it..? Also factory/handling artifacts - I'm not sure how easy it is all this time later to tell those apart from wear. Except if you've seen the same book repeatedly with the same damage. On a Spidey 121 level of book its not that crucial is it. An apparent 8.5 may turn out to be a 7 or 7.5 - not the end of the world but on higher value books it really matters. Its making me really wary - although I guess with ebay you can return it but it seems potentially like a lot of hassle taking a punt on conditions.

Cheers. Yes there are a few defects but I'm really only interested in that type of corner bend. I'm not asking folks to grade this book. Apart from the bend I'm wondering about the other dings - would a grader usually look at a book under such harsh light..? Do they side light books..? The reason I'm asking is I think if all books were graded like this then a lot would presumably score lower..? Obviously not a pristine book but anything thats been mildly handled or read I would expect a level of wear that normal handling would not pick up..? Or factory defects..?

I took the least flattering side-light pic I could - this was deliberate so you can see everything. On normal viewing in normal light you can't see these creases at all - you have to angle it into the light. The book in the hand looks like an 8.5 at least. No colour break. So my question is: presuming starting from a 10 what would these ceases bring it down to if the only defect. Also would pro graders subject a book to harsh direct natural light in this way..? thanks in advance

Thanks Capra - I think I'm thinking I can make a bit buying at local auctions. I nabbed that Spidey 6 at auction and its likely a 7.5 (hasn't arrived yet). I didn't buy it to flip but if I can make a bit I might sell it to fund something else. As you do

Thanks again. Probably looking to re sell yes to flip to get higher grade books. But even if you buy from a dealer they may honestly not spot these kinds of issues. I restore toy boxes so I can spot the tiniest issue. I guess at my level averaging a few hundred pounds/dollars per book its not such a huge issue but its still an issue. Does EVERY dealer know about holding books up to the light at a 'rake' angle in order to see surface issues..? I do it next to a window so everything is highlighted.

Is this perceived to be a minefield..? what if you buy a nice looking collection from an amateur who honestly describes them but then find on close look they have these kinds of issues..? A 'normal' person would think you were a bit batty..? I understand only buy graded but if everyone only ever bought graded then this whole enterprise would dry up wouldn't it.?

Thanks thats really helpful - in other words in theory its not a big big drop like a rip or some bodge retouching. It begs the question to me about any kind of dings/non-breaking creases: how the heck do you know if its factory stuff or not and what do you do if you buy from scans but when you inspect it its got dings - couldn't the seller claim you did it..?

Thanks - tough to get a pic of it. From a scan it wouldn't show at all which is a bit worrying as you could get scans on a book and it could have bends/factory dings and you'd never know till it arrived - and the book might have cost £10 000.

Hi folks. I don't have a pic as its a very subtle thing and hard to capture so I don't know if anyone can help. Is there a general rule for a mild corner bend through the cover and 2/3 inner pages..? Absolutely definitely no colour break on cover. Would you expect that to knock a whole grade off..? Again sorry no pic but its invisible head on - if you angle the book you can see it but I can't get decent pic.

What do you guys think about this..? I mean missing as in never put in. I suppose a book with both missing - that had never been stapled - would arguably be a potential gem mint..? How about if just 1 staple is missing - does that devalue..?

OK thanks very much.