My ASM purchase from Metro.....

[jimjum12]

CGC books have commanded a premium over a raw counterpart almost since the inception of CGC, even when the raw book is nearly identical. That is because CGC has gained a reputation for undergrading books. I think most of us buy CGC books EXPECTING the book to be nicer than most dealers' raw stock with a similar grade....which they usually are. I would grade most of my CGC books higher than the CGC grade. It is unfair to hold Metro to CGC standards when they consistently price CGC higher than raw...which almost ALL dealers I know do. I would have been bummed with the 8.0 curtain call also....but the time to make a stand was before the warranty expired .Pretty decent of Metro to offer either full trade credit or a $ 300 credit when they are not even contractually bound to do so.If I were you, grinder....I might consider applying the 8.0 towards the CGC 9.2 ( NICE color)....time will bail you out. Hey...grading was always subjective .GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

P.S. Almost every nice book I own , I overpaid for at one time.It's all relative to the long term collector.

[Foolkiller]

The raw Spiderman #9 was sold for exactly $2400. I would have no problem taking the book back and giving a full credit toward the CGC 9.2

 

S

 

Well... this of course forces the buyer to spend more money with someone who he has had a frustrating experience with already (at least in his perception).

 

However, that being said, and grinder, I'm not trying to be unusually harsh, look, Metro, or any other dealer, should not be under ANY obligation to take this book back or frankly, do anything more than what they have already done. When a book comes back graded from CGC, that is one opinion. If it comes back 1.5 points (steps) lower... well, that's happened to me quite a few times, even from purchases here on the boards. In the same vein, I've sold books that I've graded higher and had them from time to time come back lower... and I am not going to give a refund because CGC said it was a lower grade.

 

Now, should I start emailing all these people asking them for my money back? I dare say it would cause some real chaos.

 

If you want a book graded to CGC standards, then buy a CGC book.

 

If you can't grade when you see the book in hand, stop buying high dollar books.

 

If you were happy when you received the book, the CGC opinion shouldn't change that.

 

When a book grades higher, does the buyer send me extra money? Nope. I've sold many books on this forum and when they've come back from CGC they've been much higher. Same with Nick (FT) and same with others. Do they get extra money when you go ahead and sell that book and make a killing? Nope. Zip. If it works that I owe you a refund as a seller when the book comes back lower, don't you owe the seller more when you submit it and flip the book for mucho dollars?

 

I understand that obviously that will never happen.

 

This talk of exchanging graded for the raw one is INSANITY. I really would like to know how many sellers here would do the same if asked. I also question how many people would do a refund after two months. Just FYI, I did give a partial refund to someone just recently who thought the book was slightly lower than I graded it, but they informed me of it as SOON AS THEY RECEIVED IT.

 

I've gone round and round with Metro on returns and have approached them with success when I've returned within the time period. Additionally, I've had many times where I've had to return Metro raw books -- and even slabs -- simply because they didn't meet my expectations or I saw a later flaw. While not thrilled, they still took the return.

 

I've had no problems with Vinny or Stephen in any of my dealings and my in person interactions with both have been positive.

 

However, I will say that often times I feel Metro can be a bit short sighted in their dealings. Small discounts on books ($20 on a $520 book?) and other policies end up in PR nightmares and whispers that spread around the collecting community that Metro both overgrades and is completely impossible to work with. Still, they have such a large database of well off collectors that sometimes I feel that they may take some customers for granted. This is nothing different than anything I've said to Vincent in person, so I know he knows that I feel this way.

 

I'm sure Metro looks at me as a frustrating customer at times. I'm certainly not the easiest to make happy and I have very specific criteria. But somehow, in every conversation I've had with Metro, they have found a reasonable way to address all of my concerns when I have raised complaints.

[TrippyMcSkippy-migration]

Agreed they don't guarantee CGC grades. But 20-30 days return service is more time for the buyer to get a butt load of more opinions once the book is in his hands.

[fantastic_four]

This solution is about me still paying $800 above GPA.... ... which is $2700 . store credit of $2400....I still have to shell out $1100..... .....

 

A few positive points about this:

• It'd be useful if they'd tell you exactly how long that bottom crease breaks color for, because it really doesn't look as if it breaks color the entire two inches, nor can I imagine it'd ever get a 9.2 if it broke color for that long. If the actual color break is small--the white pixels evident in the scan indicate that it's possible the break is only as small as 1/4"--then that could be a solid 9.2. Before they indicated the bottom crease broke color, this looked to me like a potential resubmission candidate, as the spine and right edge look flawless, and the creasing on the top and bottom edges look reversible. If that bottom color break is as small as 1/8", it still could be a resub candidate. Obviously, this is a longshot, perhaps 1 in 3 chances, as the defects that lowered it to 9.2 may not even be visible in the scan.
• You really do have to expect this kind of thing if you haven't reverse-engineered CGC's grading well enough to have known that those creases would lower the grade. You either learn a $1400 lesson and get a book you didn't want by not trading it in, or you learn an $800 lesson and get the book you wanted by going ahead with the exchange.

[Foolkiller]

"You really do have to expect this kind of thing if you haven't reverse-engineered CGC's grading well enough to have known that those creases would lower the grade. You either learn a $1400 lesson and get a book you didn't want by not trading it in, or you learn an $800 lesson and get the book you wanted by going ahead with the exchange.

 

 

Great analysis FF. This is a very pragmatic analysis.

 

 

 

 

[joe_collector]

Better yet, if you really want to compare the two, there is no comparison.

 

That's why one's in a slab and the other isn't.

 

One thing I dislike about all this is that Metro obviously overgraded this book, no question. But they hide behind the "it's gotta be YOU who catches us overgrading, not CGC" defense.

[Silver Surfer]

I have bought raw books from Metro before and after grading them my initial reaction was shock and disappointment but after looking back at it I think I actually agree with the grade that Metro provided (CGC was way too harsh).

[TrippyMcSkippy-migration]

"One thing I dislike about all this is that Metro obviously overgraded this book, no question. But they hide behind the "it's gotta be YOU who catches us overgrading, not CGC" defense. "

 

Exactly...well said!!! A lot of us are more collectors than dealers and grading experts, that is why CGC is around-to help establish consistency.

 

[blazingbob]

The barely non-color breaking crescent crease is directly under spiderman's elbow going left. It's approximately 1.5" in length.

 

 

[jimjum12]

"You really do have to expect this kind of thing if you haven't reverse-engineered CGC's grading well enough to have known that those creases would lower the grade. You either learn a $1400 lesson and get a book you didn't want by not trading it in, or you learn an $800 lesson and get the book you wanted by going ahead with the exchange.

 

 

Great analysis FF. This is a very pragmatic analysis.

 

 

 

 

....and with the $ 800 lesson you end up with a 9.2 ASM 9 that has the DEEP color strike, rather than one of the dull copies. What I have learned with Metro is that whether I AGREE with their grade or not....they are usually consistent, and usually only charge a small mark up from current market value on books that are very difficult to find elsewhere..GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

[FatComicMafia]

"You really do have to expect this kind of thing if you haven't reverse-engineered CGC's grading well enough to have known that those creases would lower the grade. You either learn a $1400 lesson and get a book you didn't want by not trading it in, or you learn an $800 lesson and get the book you wanted by going ahead with the exchange.

 

 

Great analysis FF. This is a very pragmatic analysis.

 

 

 

 

....and with the $ 800 lesson you end up with a 9.2 ASM 9 that has the DEEP color strike, rather than one of the dull copies. What I have learned with Metro is that whether I AGREE with their grade or not....they are usually consistent, and usually only charge a small mark up from current market value on books that are very difficult to find elsewhere..GOD BLESS...

 

-jimbo(a friend of jesus) (thumbs u

 

 

Their price on the CGC 9.2 is actually an OK one. I was tempted to buy it earlier myself, when I saw a CGC 9.0 sold for nearly 3K, it's actually one of their better deals. It's extra money, but puts you in a much better place.

 

Unless they would refund you the money, I would upgrade to the 9.2 in a second. While certainly not the nicest 9.2 I've seen, considering how much you paid for the one you received an 8.0, you'd be better off with the 9.2. At the very least you could re-sell it on a broker site like ComicLink, Pedigree, QualityComix, or HighGradeComics, of course, for maybe even a few hundred bucks more, leaving you about even, should you not want the book. My 2 cents.

 

PS Blazing Bob's opinion don't count here, he used to work for Vinnie.

 

 

 

 

 

 

[joe_collector]

Unless they would refund you the money, I would upgrade to the 9.2 in a second.

 

I totally agree.

 

Look at the two scenarios: a) Hold onto the 8.0 and eat the loss, or b) get a full credit and spend $1100 more to snag a 9.2.

 

Assuming you have the extra cash, it's a no-brainer and I guarantee a year from now you'll be glad you took their offer.

[Foolkiller]

Unless they would refund you the money, I would upgrade to the 9.2 in a second.

 

I totally agree.

 

Look at the two scenarios: a) Hold onto the 8.0 and eat the loss, or b) get a full credit and spend $1100 more to snag a 9.2.

 

Assuming you have the extra cash, it's a no-brainer and I guarantee a year from now you'll be glad you took their offer.

 

Agreed

[Mephisto]

I'm in the trading it in and paying up for the 9.2. Unless the great crash comes early ASMs have been climbing and climbing and not even in high grade as this one is.

[fantastic_four]

Their price on the CGC 9.2 is actually an OK one, I was tempted to buy it earlier myself, when I saw a CGC 9.0 sold for nearly 3K, it's actually one of their better deals. It's extra money, but puts you in a much better place.

 

I tend to agree with this -- the GPA I'm seeing on Spidey 9 in 9.2 appears a bit low. If you're going straight GPA, then the 9.2 being $2700 and the 9.0 being $2200 is an anomaly due to not enough data--either one is too high or one is too low, or both. There's usually more of a spread between the average price of a 9.0 versus a 9.2. So I don't really think it's an $800 lesson at all, probably more like a $300-$500 one.

 

It'd be a stretch to get that ~$3800 you alluded to though. Possible, but not likely.

[Sal]

I was going to comment, but Brian went and cut the knot on this thread.

 

 

I will say that this thread is a great example of why the hobby needs a true 3rd party grading system. Not implying that CGC is by any means ideal, just to head that particular line off.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

I said "CGG" earlier when referencing grading guidelines, but obviously meant the Overstreet Grading Guide, 2nd ed. Mea culpa

[nik]

This solution is about me still paying $800 above GPA.... ... which is $2700 . store credit of $2400....I still have to shell out $1100..... .....

 

So wait, if its all about GPA and not wanting to pay higher then the average. You stated somewhere in this thread that you thought the book being about a 9.0, which still would have been about $600 more then GPA average not including slabbing fees and shipping.

[Aces]

The raw Spiderman #9 was sold for exactly $2400. I would have no problem taking the book back and giving a full credit toward the CGC 9.2

 

S

 

 

In this case, that seems like a fair deal to me !

(thumbs u

 

 

Case closed, and I'm critical of Metro. They seem to be trying to remedy the situation with this one.

 

 

 

 

Not me, but he should take the offer.

 

 

 

[piper]

The raw Spiderman #9 was sold for exactly $2400. I would have no problem taking the book back and giving a full credit toward the CGC 9.2

 

S

 

 

In this case, that seems like a fair deal to me !

(thumbs u

 

 

Case closed, and I'm critical of Metro. They seem to be trying to remedy the situation with this one.

 

 

 

 

Not me, but he should take the offer.

 

 

 

At this point, I think it's about the only way to salvage the situation. Do you have the funds?

[VintageComics]

 

Does Metro report to GPA?

 

 

R.