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The Bafflement of points

Started by Lee K,

12 posts in this topic

Lee K

Lee K

Posted
Posted

Or...How I learned to relax and love the bomb

 

As we all know - the registry assigns a point value to every book that is in a competitive set ranging from single digits to thousands of points for individual issues.

 

And - there is (or was - I haven't looked in some time) a fairly straightforward explanation of the point process which says that points are assigned based on the perceived value, desire by collectors, and how rare/scarce the book is - point value is then assigned for a particular universal grade and then an algorithm is applied to assign grades for all the other possible combinations of grades and restoration and signatures to arrive at a value for each particular book. This seems fair.

 

 

 

If each of my readers don't know I have two primary collections - Strange Adventures, which I won't discuss here, and the go-go check collection. The go-go check collection has the advantage of being limited to a very specific time frame - 1966 & 1967 - so when I compare equal grades from books in this set, the point values should be reasonably similar, with the exception of key issues. But, well - let's look below.

 

 

 

For NM books (9.4) in the go-go check collection that I currently have, point values range from 144 to 480 points. Since the single 480 book is a minor key (first SA Plastic Man) I will exclude it from this discussion. The next highest point value is 420.

 

 

 

So the least valuable book (in points) is Young Love 57 at 144 points. Right - try to find romance books in high grade - the demand may be low, but the scarcity is through the roof and the final hammer price at auction is quite high - substantially more money was spent on this book than any of the four books that the set gets 420 points from, or even the single book that brings in 480.

 

 

 

The next lowest point totals come from Strange Adventures 200 (150 points), Plastic Man 2, 4, & 5 (160 points) Challengers of the Unknown 54 (165), and Capt. Storm 14 & 18 (195)...hold on a moment, Capt. Storm? Really? Again - try to find any high grade issues of Capt. Storm.

 

 

 

In the 200s - World's Finest 164, Strange Adventures 191, 192, & 198 (210), Tales of the Unexpected 94 (240), Teen Titans 9 (240 - really? Teen Titans? you can't give this away and it is readily avaiable for purchase).

 

 

 

In the 300s - Adventure Comics 344, Brave & the Bold 70 (300), Sea Devils 34 (360 - ok, this makes sense - grey toned cover), Justice League of America 52 (360), Our Army at War 173 (375 - all the war books should be this high).

 

 

 

400s - Wonder Woman 164, 165, 170, and Flash 166 (420 points)...at least these books have demand - even if there are plenty of copies...

 

 

 

So - where do the points really come from? Superheroes.

 

 

 

But why? Superheroes are the most readily availble books in high grade...

 

 

 

I don't know - but I feel better for having had my rant for the quarter.

 

 

 

Happy Hunting!

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bagofleas

bagofleas

Posted
Posted

Yeah, I'm with you. If scarcity alone was the deciding factor on many of the rarer books, it would make the RP (Registry Point) value of them skyrocket. But of course, the lack of demand for the romance books and such makes them not worth as much in RP.

 

The same thing applies to many other sets, even in the Copper and Modern ages. For example, the Marvel 25th Anniversary Border covers set has six books in it from the Marvel/Star comics line. While these particular issues are extraordinarily tough to find at all, let alone in decent shape, they do not hold much in RP value, mainly due to the lack of demand to own these books. But just try to find any copy of Muppet Babies #10. Sheesh!

 

I think a lot more RP value should be applied to books that are very rare and tough to find, even without the high demand. I'm not saying to jack them up to ridiculous amounts of RP, just that books like this should garner a little more consideration of increased RP value IMO. After all, if a book is very difficult to find at all, regardless of demand, shouldn't that make its RP value a little higher than you might normally think?

 

Think about looking through a set's RP values and seeing an issue with a slightly higher RP and thinking to yourself, "Why is this issue worth more RP than many of the others around it?". Then, when you go to try and find copies of the book, you realize that they just aren't out there. Makes sense, right?

 

Anyway, I'll get off the soapbox now. I love that Sea Devils book!! What a great copy! Your Go Go Check set is one of the gems of the registry.

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mzhammer

mzhammer

Posted
Posted

I've had this conversation a couple times and it goes something like this... When I say... comic books, you think...Superheroes. The idea that the medium, comic books, is full of all kinds of genres gets lost on the non-comic book fan. So, ultimately, i get what you're saying & think that, yes, the superheroes have cornered the market on the comic book and it's somehow lodged itself in the point system. (Personally, i like to think of them as finished storyboards awaiting their turn on the big screen.)

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Rockblazer

Rockblazer

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Posted

Lee,

I feel that with scarce books they are way off on point values. Collectors and dealers probably have a better feel on what's really scarce. Collectors trying to complete a title with 50, 100, 200 plus issues know which issues were hard to find if they did find them at all. Maybe Collector Society members can supply that information in the future? Perhaps a survey of members who have nearly completed a title could help. Just a thought. I do agree with you about the superhero titles.

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Udidar

Udidar

Posted
Posted

It wouldn't be to difficult for CGC to figure out the scarcity of certain titles and books. They have graded well over a million books, and have records for every book they have graded, so they can figure out from there, what series are scarce or common. It would be a bit time consuming though. At the same time, the whole registry set is just a cool free service they offer. I am sure it has caused more then a few people (myself included) to buy books that they otherwise wouldn't have, just for the points. (Damn you Dell Giants, but I couldn't pass up those to 12 to 1 ratio books) Scarcity and collectability though are kind of a gray area. As mentioned that Muppet Babies number 10, incredibly difficult to find, does that mean its points should be like 5 times more then an X-men book from the same date? I would say no, the X-men is a more valuable comic, even though its more common then the MB. And its the genius or evilness of the registry that would make a person even want to collect a MB 10 if it were not for that border set that was mentioned?

I suppose CGC could simplify the whole point system by just say starting every 9.8 off at 25 points, maybe for the previous 10 years and then every year going backwards add say 5 points per year. Once it gets to the Copper age, it goes up by 10, Silver goes up by 20, golden, 50. And of course the points would get adjusted every year as well. Obviously key issues would have to have a different set of parameters, and CGC knows which issues they class as keys as they already have bumps in points. It then starts getting very confusing once again I would think.

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