Grading Classes

[MusterMark]

I like this idea. I don't think having the class at a convention would work though. I personally think just having an online course could do. Put some non-boring videos up and give out assignments

 

There are so many possible pitfalls when grading from online images rather than having the book in hand, that if the grading class were online, I would probably not want to take it.

After all, we already have a PGM sub-forum.

There is definitely something to be said for:

- being able to view a book in hand

- be able to view it from all angles

- be able to view it under different lighting

- be able to inspect all of the interior carefully

- look for many things that are often not even easily visible from online images (such as non-color breaking creases, stains, stains that may show up only under certain lighting, etc. etc.)

 

 

[Columbia Comics]

Great idea...I'll teach.

 

$25 a person

 

Where do I start?

 

I saw how you did in the grading contest

 

You couldn't pay me to take your class

 

uch............snap!!!

 

That was pretty funny.....I'll give you that.

[RCheli]

CGC could, nay, would likely discredit the class stating that they don't support or recognize it. If they did that, some people would probably be scared off because in their eyes, without CGC's approval or blessing, the class would not be deemed "legitimate." In effect, placing you back at square 1.

 

Does CGC have the right to say anything about others' grading? They certainly aren't the end-all be all of grading, and grading guidelines were written well before the company came into existence.

[AGGIEZ]

Go to the PGM board and look at the books you like. Get a feel for what issues lead to the various grades. When you get a comfort level, begin honing your skills by participating in the PGM posts. Over time, you'll see a book in a certain grade and know what you'd grade it out at because you've seen 100+ books, and may have your own, in said grade.

[mysterio]

CGC could, nay, would likely discredit the class stating that they don't support or recognize it. If they did that, some people would probably be scared off because in their eyes, without CGC's approval or blessing, the class would not be deemed "legitimate." In effect, placing you back at square 1.

 

Does CGC have the right to say anything about others' grading? They certainly aren't the end-all be all of grading, and grading guidelines were written well before the company came into existence.

 

At the end of the day, all CGC offers is an opinion. That opinion can even change if you resubmit the same book more than once. Their opinion of the label color can change too.

[steveinthecity]

Go to the PGM board and look at the books you like. Get a feel for what issues lead to the various grades. When you get a comfort level, begin honing your skills by participating in the PGM posts. Over time, you'll see a book in a certain grade and know what you'd grade it out at because you've seen 100+ books, and may have your own, in said grade.

+1 Great advice. Grading properly takes repitition and practice.

[The-Collector]

One of mine -- and everyone's -- pet peeves in this hobby is the inability for people to grade. Overgrading is rampant throughout the comic collecting world, and while companies like CGC can certainly help out in more valuable books, there are plenty of books selling in the $5-$30 range that just aren't candidates for professional grading. But a comic that grades at a VF that sells for $40 but is actually a VG selling for $8 adds up quickly.

 

Well... what would people think about a grading class? Specifically, at various conventions throughout the country, there would be a one-hour class, taught by dealers and collectors, where they can help educate people on the basics of grading: nomenclature, paper color/quality, what is and what is not allowed in a certain grade.

 

There would be a half-hour didactic lecture and then another half hour of people actually getting comics and grading them. At the end of the class, people would submit their grades and an e-mail address and after they would receive an e-mail with the "correct" grade, what was missed, etc.

 

This, of course, would not be an all-encompasing class and nobody expects someone to be an expert after an hour, but I suspect people would improve greatly just after a short bit of learnin'.

 

What you all think?

 

I don't think a grading class will help with the amount of over grading. Many of those selling VGs as VFs know what they are doing.

[MusterMark]

One of mine -- and everyone's -- pet peeves in this hobby is the inability for people to grade. Overgrading is rampant throughout the comic collecting world, and while companies like CGC can certainly help out in more valuable books, there are plenty of books selling in the $5-$30 range that just aren't candidates for professional grading. But a comic that grades at a VF that sells for $40 but is actually a VG selling for $8 adds up quickly.

 

Well... what would people think about a grading class? Specifically, at various conventions throughout the country, there would be a one-hour class, taught by dealers and collectors, where they can help educate people on the basics of grading: nomenclature, paper color/quality, what is and what is not allowed in a certain grade.

 

There would be a half-hour didactic lecture and then another half hour of people actually getting comics and grading them. At the end of the class, people would submit their grades and an e-mail address and after they would receive an e-mail with the "correct" grade, what was missed, etc.

 

This, of course, would not be an all-encompasing class and nobody expects someone to be an expert after an hour, but I suspect people would improve greatly just after a short bit of learnin'.

 

What you all think?

 

I don't think a grading class will help with the amount of over grading. Many of those selling VGs as VFs know what they are doing.

 

That's slightly missing the point, at least as far as I'm concerned.

For me, the class wouldn't be so I can "get the overgraders to stop overgrading". It would be for my own education (and increase in grading ability) so I can ascertain BETTER who overgrades and who doesn't, so I know who to buy from. I already do that to some extent; this would enhance my ability to discern more.

 

 

[rjpb]

One of mine -- and everyone's -- pet peeves in this hobby is the inability for people to grade. Overgrading is rampant throughout the comic collecting world, and while companies like CGC can certainly help out in more valuable books, there are plenty of books selling in the $5-$30 range that just aren't candidates for professional grading. But a comic that grades at a VF that sells for $40 but is actually a VG selling for $8 adds up quickly.

 

Well... what would people think about a grading class? Specifically, at various conventions throughout the country, there would be a one-hour class, taught by dealers and collectors, where they can help educate people on the basics of grading: nomenclature, paper color/quality, what is and what is not allowed in a certain grade.

 

There would be a half-hour didactic lecture and then another half hour of people actually getting comics and grading them. At the end of the class, people would submit their grades and an e-mail address and after they would receive an e-mail with the "correct" grade, what was missed, etc.

 

This, of course, would not be an all-encompasing class and nobody expects someone to be an expert after an hour, but I suspect people would improve greatly just after a short bit of learnin'.

 

What you all think?

 

I don't think a grading class will help with the amount of over grading. Many of those selling VGs as VFs know what they are doing.

 

 

Beyond that more obvious type of dubious grading, I've seen plenty of sellers dealing in both slabbed and raw who seem to use the loosest examples of CGC grading as the benchmarks for their raws.

 

There is no "correct" grade for any book, just a range of grades that most collectors would consider fairly accurate, and I don't know how popular a grading course at conventions would be, nor who would be trusted to administer them, but it would be interesting to see if something like that had any traction.