Time to test your grading skills!

[comicinvestor-migration]

One example of this is slight moisture damage that doesn't cause paper rippling. Reynold Jay has a few CGC 6.0s that looked like 9.8s, except that the whole comic was slightly water-logged yet displayed NO rippling whatsoever.

 

That grade seems a little strange, as I would expect nothing more than a VG/VG+ for a comic with water damage/exposure, ripple or no.

[fantastic_four]

I don't really see what you mean; how big is the LLC bump you're referring to? Do you mean the very slight corner rub that's about 1/32" ? If that's what you mean, that's consistent with the 9.4 grade and is insignificant to the overall grade due to the much greater comparative severity of the LRC creases.

[comicinvestor-migration]

Start at the Left Corner of the Yellow Blurb (below "The") and see if you can make out a crescent shape.

[fantastic_four]

Yah, I see the discoloration, but couldn't verify that it was definitely a crease; scans are quite often misleading on non-color-breaking creases.

 

JLA, is there a bump in the LLC?

[supapimp]

i'd to have to agree with FF and say it's a 8.5 also, due to the two LRHC creases that break colour...rest of the book looks close to perfect.

[comicinvestor-migration]

Either way, I'd still say CGC 9.0 for this era.

 

Or a 8.0-8.5 Bronze, or a 6.0 Modern.

[Bonds25]

I finally checked out the whole scan, and I'm gonna guess a VF/NM 9.0. It's a gorgeous issue, but I think the blunting on the top left corner and the teeny crease on the lower right corner probably knocked the grade down a bit.

[comicinvestor-migration]

So we've all looked over the scan and posted our opinions, so get with the real CGC grade!!

[Darthdiesel]

Since you asked for it, it looks better on the front than the the current CGC 9.0 with date stamp on ebay now 9/8/02, but your scan of the back looks atrocious in comparison

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2137760432

 

Judging from your quandry, JLA, yours probably did not get this high.

From the bumps, and the dirty back (use an eraser lightly next time...grey not red), maybe it's color touched? I'm guessing either a CGC VF- 7.5 or restored grade CGC 9.2 app

 

 

ask for a Modernites opinion you get a modernite answer

[fantastic_four]

I'd like him to post the defects he can see in person before he gives it away.

 

JLA!!

[fantastic_four]

I disagree, the one on ebay doesn't have any visible defect as bad as those creases in the LRC of JLA's copy.

 

Not liking date stamps is a separate issue. I don't like them, either, but we've got to realize that the historical consensus from Overstreet and other published grading standards is that date stamps and writing ARE allowed in the NM grade. Like I said, I'm not sure I agree, but it's not something you should ignore when assigning a grade, until one of us writes a well-received book on the subject like Overstreet has.

[Darthdiesel]

WHa...whah...whaaat???

 

Maybe it's just in the scans as you mentioned but JLA's front looks better to me than the one on ebay, and I guess that my aversion to date stamps in my modernite eys could account for it. Colors are brighter on JLA's, ebay's seems faded a bit. I did say that JLA's back cover was totally jacked in comparison to the one on eBay. My grade guesses also have been swayed by and taken note of past posted opinion including yours.

[fantastic_four]

I totally discount colors when grading comics via scans. Scanners warp and twist them in weird ways. If the colors mean anything in a scan, then every comic Heritage has ever sold must be about 200 years old judging by how yellow they all look.

 

The scan up on ebay looks structurally almost perfect...discounting the date stamp and colors which shouldn't come into play in scan-grading, what defects are present in the ebay scan?

[Darthdiesel]

ebay flaws:

front cover top left corner, looks "mashed", pressed down from top,

spinal nicks: about 7 real evident beginning at the left of the dc national comics logo, then left of the bald blue guys head, left of GL elbow in white are, left of GL small of his back in white area, two left of GL's thigh area in white area of spine, one or two in brown area on lower corner;

the top edge and upper right corner show discontinuous breaks in color, maybe cover folded there?

on the back, lower left corner dulled/bent, maybe a dust shadow on nonspinal edge???maybe just the scan

[fantastic_four]

It's always tough to tell on a scan...several of those spine nicks you mention actually extend beyond the left edge of the comic itself and into the case. The two in the lower-left brown area are like that; I doubt they're on the book, but it's too tough to say from a scan.

 

Still, all of what you listed is consistent with a lot of CGC VF/NMs I've seen...a double 1/4" and 1/8" color-breaking corner crease isn't. I've never seen a defect like that on a 9.0.

[Darthdiesel]

Thanks. I agree there. The flaws are consistent with what's been going on on CGC 9.0's, but the main reason for my low low grade on JLAs was influenced by your mention of the bumps and compund that with his seemingly high degree of disbelief at the grade received

[Jgel]

I am going to say 8.0. Why...the creases and the fact that you asked us all to look. If not, if I just looked at it.....I would say 8.5 - 9.0. There does seem to be a impact on the corner as well. Is the back cover soiled?

[MikeS]

I'll have to say you received a 7.5 which is why you are so baffled and confused. I would have guessed based on the scan that it was a 8.5, maybe a 9.0 if you were lucky (but obviously, you weren't lucky or you wouldn't be asking.....)

[murph0]

I'm going to say VF+ 8.5 due to the following reasons: lrc mark, 2 points of loss of color right about the LRC mark, a slight printing press mark on the edge of the bottom below the R in Secret, slight dirtying of the bottom of the back cover, slight blunting mark on URC of back, possibly a couple impacts along the top of the front and back cover?, and 2 very very slight breaks in the spine.

 

Brian

[JLA_ALL_THE_WAY]

Thank You everyone who contributed. Sorry I'm not posting sooner, but I had to work OT at the j-o-b (note the time of this post).

First some individual notes:

 

Darth- The back cover scan does not do justice to the book. I posted other back cover scans of books I listed on ebay & immediately removed them; for some reason the scans made the backs of all of them look darker/dirtier than they really were...? I'm stumped. There is no restoration. "Use an eraser lightly next time?" You mean I can remove those scuff marks?!!

 

Borq- No, there are no tears (I would never send any book in with a flaw like that). The LLC is a bump; the LRC is a crease. After reading your comment about GL's, I'm wondering if they get harsher treatment because graders don't see them nearly as often as other titles...? Hey guys, that would make a great thread: Do titles that are sent in less receive more detailed inspection due to unfamiliarity?

 

CI- Please don't get me started on pedigrees. I saw a bunch of 'Boston' copies of early JLA in supposedly high grade at the San Diego Con...NEXT!! I do agree with your comparative grading ie: silver to bronze to modern. It shouldn't be that way but it is.

 

FF- Since you know your scan knowledge, you do realize that the larger than scale scan exagerrates the book's flaws (especially the LRC). I wasn't aware that there were actually TWO creases there until I saw the magnified scan myself! Do you know what magnification CGC uses- if any- when they inspect each book?

 

Murph0- I'm glad you're not grading at CGC! If this book had all the flaws you mentioned, I would not have sent it in. But you caught two flaws stated by CGC over the phone which were...

 

Bottom edge roughness (the mark under "R" in 'Secret'); black spots on the bottom back cover (odd; I thought the spine scuffing was more noticeable); and a faded section in the upper left area (like from a recently removed price tag).

 

THAT'S IT! No mention of the lower corners at all! I'm going to call them again Monday. Maybe they read the wrong info or were incomplete in telling me. Plus I find no faded spot on the cover; neither did anyone else.

 

As for the grade..... 8.0

 

What baffles me is that I've sent in over 20 comics from that era so far & I've only been off by more than 1/2 a grade on 3 of them: one was restored, the second was 1.6 points higher than I expected, and the third proved I'm not perfect. I was expecting a minimum of 9.0 considering the other Silver I've gotten back from them. This one is going in my "Re-Grade" pile for sure. Yeah, I know I sound cocky, but I'm proud of my collection. I only wanted to sell this to help fill my JLA set. Anyone care to ponder the difference in value (of this book) between an 8.0 & 9.0?

 

Finally, kudos to all who took my bafflement & 'need to post' into consideration when making an informed guess at the grade. Did y'all graduate from the same detective school!

 

Thanx again for all your time and input.