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Grader Notes

Started by lhcomics,

1,754 posts in this topic

Flaming_Telepath

Flaming_Telepath

Posted
Posted

Just some random thoughts...

 

CGC built the idea of pressing for profit into their very first business plan...go see the incorporation date of PCS, for those who doubt.

 

CGC were frustrated in their public floatation of PCS.

 

The profits related to grade-chasing pressing went out of CGC's control.

 

Grader's notes were the oil that greased the restorers' wheels.

 

CGC wanted a piece of the pie that they wrote the recipe for.

 

I'm just surprised that anyone's surprised that they want money for it. :/

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Bruno_s4

Bruno_s4

Posted
Posted

 

I'm just surprised that anyone's surprised that they want money for it. :/

 

A surprise would be if they instituted a $2-$5 charge for graders notes.... I would be slightly annoyed but would get over it.

 

My disgust is the $15-$30 charge.

 

And what makes the notes for a walk thru so much more special that they are double the charge.

Same time went into grading (once the grading process started) and the same time went into entering notes but because the book is worth more $$ they want more $$.

 

So $15 for notes and $12 for a re-holder?

 

It's wrong and we all know it. Keep this thread alive until CGC comes to their senses.

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pickycollector

pickycollector

Posted
Posted

I know this is going to change my buyer and seller habits:

 

Calling CGC for notes on books I was interested in for my own collection was especially useful for purchases made on auction houses like Comiclink, where most of the time there is no back cover scan nor it is possible to contact seller to have a description of defects (unless eBay or the CGC Forum).

 

Now that it is no longer possible to have notes unless paying a ridiculous high fee, my bids in auction houses will be seriously restrained if not totally stopped. Not Comiclink's fault, but I cannot afford to bid high and buy expensive books if I cannot have an idea of what I am going to receive (from the point of view of somebody whom always buy the book, never the label).

 

When buying here or on eBay, I will never pay $30 for CGC notes nor will I ask the seller to pay for them but I may need to ask questions about the book (which I already do sometimes) and hope the seller will answer questions since he can hold the book in hands and I can't. I will also focus on sellers whom accept returns on CGC books.

 

As a seller sometimes, I will also continue to answer any question regarding CGC books to the best of my ability (i.e. what I can see without having to crack the case) and will now accept returns on CGC books as well (which I didn't in the past) because I realize now that selling CGC books on-line will be more difficult since notes are no longer available for free.

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Old Fashion PB and J

Old Fashion PB and J

Posted
Posted
Seriously, if graders' notes are a necessity, either (a) you're trying to game the system or (b) CGC can't be relied upon or © you're personally clueless.
:golfclap:
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pickycollector

pickycollector

Posted
Posted
Seriously, if graders' notes are a necessity, either (a) you're trying to game the system or (b) CGC can't be relied upon or © you're personally clueless.

Nick, I would not say that CGC can't be relied upon but they certainly are very irregular and inconsistent with their grading.

 

I have seen so many 8.5 copies sitting in 9.2 labels and 9.2 copies sitting in 8.5 labels or similar cases that I do not rely on the number on the upper left corner anymore in order to buy a book.

 

In the past, CGC notes gave me more info and disclosure on a book than just what the final grade could give me and help me decide how much I was willing to pay for a book or simply if I wanted it at all.

 

Indeed grader's notes can be a necessity sometimes to determine if there is a particular defect (for example rust on staples) that I cannot see on the scan but that I know bothers me a lot as a collector although it may not affect the grade.

 

It is all about buying the book or buying the label.

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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
They are already overwhelmed?

 

I didn't know the CGC graders are also web developers.

 

To take the extra time to click another tab on the computer, a little :baiting: Bob.

 

That's not a very good argument if you are defending CGC. If a business is overwhelmed, they simply hire more employees and simply adjust rates accordingly.

 

In this case they adjusted rates but are still going to hand the notes out internally the same way, only through email.

 

What most people seem to be suggesting is that they don't mind that CGC make their money for handing out notes. People have been pretty reasonable in this thread about that. They are just wondering (at least I am) if making it a $15 or $30 charge is the best way to do it.

 

By making it expensive, you eliminate a lot of potential users. A cost/risk analysis would prove me wrong but I think you would do much better generating revenue if it was more affordable, thereby increasing the pool of users greatly.

 

By putting a small charge somewhere (ether in membership format with an annual fee, or a small "per book" fee), that generated revenue could go towards hiring someone to enter the notes and reply full time until the database is complete, and then automate it so that there is no 24-48 hour delay.

 

That's how I would do it, anyway.

 

Anything that helps people sell graded comics makes CGC that much more valuable.

 

 

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lizards2

lizards2

Posted
Posted
Seriously, if graders' notes are a necessity, either (a) you're trying to game the system or (b) CGC can't be relied upon or © you're personally clueless.
In my case, it is choice (b) :(
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VintageComics

VintageComics

Posted
Posted
Seriously, if graders' notes are a necessity, either (a) you're trying to game the system or (b) CGC can't be relied upon or © you're personally clueless.
:golfclap:

I don't think anyone is saying they are a necessity.

 

I think what people are saying is that it is simply another roadblock to buying slabbed books since you cannot, by nature of the slab, inspect the book very closely until you've cracked the book out AND you are at the mercy of the seller...something that CGC was created to eliminate in the first place.

 

It's all fine and dandy if you are spending the $15 or $30 and end up buying a $1000 or $25,000 book. It's like a mosquito sting. Annoying, but you get over it quickly.

 

The real crux, in my mind, is that you might pay $15 or $30 a book and not even buy the book.

 

Whether you are a dealer looking to buy a book for inventory or pressing or a collector looking to buy a book for your personal collection, you might spend $30, $100 or $200 on notes but only buy a fraction of those books.

 

That is where I think CGC did not think the decision of pricing through...or did they?

 

That leaves me to believe that either

 

a) they overlooked that part of it

or

b) they did think it through and just don't want anyone calling for notes so they made it prohibitively expensive enough that only a few people will ever bother them again.

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batman_fan

batman_fan

Posted
Posted
Seriously, if graders' notes are a necessity, either (a) you're trying to game the system or (b) CGC can't be relied upon or © you're personally clueless.

 

I don't know about a necessity, but I know the one time I used them I was glad I did. I was able to find out about defects that were showstoppers for me. I wasn't looking to buy the book to flip or crack and restore. Now I suspect I could have called Heritage to get a better description. hm

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lizards2

lizards2

Posted
Posted
You raise a very good point, I think Comiclink needs to start showing the Back Cover.
You can never make an informed decision until the backside is thoroughly investigated....., :cool:

 

 

gina.jpg

 

 

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toro

toro

Posted
Posted

While I have only called for notes a handfull of times about 80% of the time was to find out why one of my own books received a certain grade. (once was to find out why my ASM #14 that I thought was a 4.5 received a 7.5). But a few times I was calling about books on either Heritage or C-Link. Now I don't buy a ton of books, but if I felt I needed notes on a book I doubt that I will buy the notes. This means Heritage, Pedigree, Highgrade, Comic Connect and C-Link will have either lower winning bids from people just like me, or in the BINs they will have lower sales overall. Just my 2c

 

Yes I am beating a dead horse, but I want to make sure it is dead. :insane:

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