Thor #156 CGC 10.0 2 2

[bpc3qh]

29 minutes ago, jcjames said:

There's probably no better specimen of that book in existence, so is that what makes it a 10?

 

If it's flawless, isn't that the definition of a 10? I suppose you can argue that no book is deserving of a 10, but I'm not seeing any reason not to award this a 10, and you haven't identified any flaw worth downgrading it.

[Rip]

There is a small piece missing on the right due to the rough cut.

Also looks like some marks on the back spine line, but I would have to see that in person.

I wouldn't give it a 10

Edited March 23, 2021 by Rip

[jcjames]

25 minutes ago, bpc3qh said:

If it's flawless, isn't that the definition of a 10? I suppose you can argue that no book is deserving of a 10, but I'm not seeing any reason not to award this a 10, and you haven't identified any flaw worth downgrading it.

CGC Standard Grading Guide: 10 Gem Mint - "The highest grade assigned. The collectible must have no evidence of any manufacturing or handling defects."

 

[LDarkseid1]

On 3/18/2021 at 9:35 AM, silverseeker said:

Oh man...I wonder what the final hammer price will be for it?

I'm going to say around $60K, give or take $10K in either direction.

[silverseeker]

1 hour ago, Rip said:

There is a small piece missing on the right due to the rough cut.

Also looks like some marks on the back spine line, but I would have to see that in person.

I wouldn't give it a 10

I totally agree, and suspect it would be a 9.8 if it were graded today...just enough small defects going on that would keep it out of the 9.9/10.0 category in my opinion.

Would be a bummer if SCS caused the top edge wear pointed out in the first image shared by @jcjames...

[jcjames]

44 minutes ago, silverseeker said:

I totally agree, and suspect it would be a 9.8 if it were graded today...just enough small defects going on that would keep it out of the 9.9/10.0 category in my opinion.

Would be a bummer if SCS caused the top edge wear pointed out in the first image shared by @jcjames...

I think SCS accounts for both the top edge and the bottom spine corner.

[Sweet Lou 14]

SCS?

[jcjames]

4 minutes ago, Sweet Lou 14 said:

SCS?

Shaken comic syndrome. Edge or corner gets bent by impacting inside of well if slab is dropped or "shaken".

 

[Sweet Lou 14]

4 minutes ago, Mt. Dew said:

Did you ever figure why this makes sense Lou?

Nope!

[LDarkseid1]

So sold for $37,200 with BP. I really thought it would go for more, especially with how insane prices have been lately.

[Sweet Lou 14]

1 hour ago, LDarkseid1 said:

So sold for $37,200 with BP. I really thought it would go for more, especially with how insane prices have been lately.

I was expecting something truly insane as well.

Honestly?  Not knowing anything about the book, I suspect that a lot of investors are guessing that the 10.0 was a fluke and that the book would never get that grade if resubmitted.  At least, that seems like a likely conclusion to draw.

I still can't tell you the difference between 9.8, 9.9, and 10.0.  The fact that even modern books pretty much never get 9.9 or 10.0 says a lot about this book.

Edited June 17, 2021 by Sweet Lou 14

[tth2]

6 hours ago, LDarkseid1 said:

So sold for $37,200 with BP. I really thought it would go for more, especially with how insane prices have been lately.

 

Yeah, this market is so whacky now that I also immediately thought that it seemed like a bargain.

[silverseeker]

Maybe the people bidding on it saw the comments in this thread and pumped the brakes a bit... 

[VintageComics]

9 hours ago, LDarkseid1 said:

So sold for $37,200 with BP. I really thought it would go for more, especially with how insane prices have been lately.

Considering 9.8 Thors were going for $20K range recently, I agree.

[LDarkseid1]

28 minutes ago, VintageComics said:

Considering 9.8 Thors were going for $20K range recently, I agree.

Yeah I think buyer may have gotten a steal. Won’t be surprised to see this flipped for $75K in the near future.

[pemart1966]

On 3/23/2021 at 1:29 PM, jcjames said:

There's probably no better specimen of that book in existence, so is that what makes it a 10?

 

No.

There's no way anyone would know that it's the best copy in existence unless EVERY copy that was in existence was in the same spot at the same time for comparison.

[VintageComics]

On 3/23/2021 at 1:29 PM, jcjames said:

There's probably no better specimen of that book in existence, so is that what makes it a 10?

 

What made it a 10 was that the graders could not find any defects on the book according to their grading standards.

Razor sharp corners and edges, no spine ticks, no wear, no staple stress, well centered staples, etc.

[jcjames]

1 hour ago, VintageComics said:

What made it a 10 was that the graders could not find any defects on the book according to their grading standards.

Razor sharp corners and edges, no spine ticks, no wear, no staple stress, well centered staples, etc.

More likely it was over-graded, based on the pics. 

And my point in my question was that the best specimen should not be graded 10 because it's the best out there. This specimen has defects and "is" not a 10 book regardless of the number on the top.

[jcjames]

2 hours ago, pemart1966 said:

No.

There's no way anyone would know that it's the best copy in existence unless EVERY copy that was in existence was in the same spot at the same time for comparison.

Yep.

[VintageComics]

5 minutes ago, jcjames said:

More likely it was over-graded, based on the pics. 

And my point in my question was that the best specimen should not be graded 10 because it's the best out there. This specimen has defects and "is" not a 10 book regardless of the number on the top.

It's often impossible to judge accurately from scans and pictures as digital images introduce lots of ghost effects that may or may not be on the books. I guess I'm curious which defects you're talking about.

I just took a look at the book on Heritage and blew the scans up and it looked far too nice to just be a 9.8 but once you get into that territory you're probably splitting hairs that can't be done with just an online image.