Should I have my comic graded?

[kcinsd1-migration]

Was able to have my The Avengers #25 comic (estimated VF+) signed by Stan Lee at Comic Con. Should I have this comic officially graded so that it is safe and lasts forever. Or does grading and casing a comic devalue a comic at all? Thank you for your time.

[joeypost]

Was it signed in front of a CGC Witness?

[Amadeus Arkham]

Was it signed in front of a CGC Witness?

 

If it were, wouldn't it already be on its way to Florida?

[Doktor]

this will end up green-labelled.

[InvstmntComcSuply]

The short answer is No

 

What everyone else is getting at is: since the signature was not officially witnessed by CGC, in this case, it does not make financial sense to have the book graded

[Doktor]

Encapsulation will certainly help protect the book & help preserve it to a degree. But it will not significantly raise or lower the value of your book most likely because while graded books tend to sell for at least slightly higher prices than their raw counterparts, the green label of "qualified" (because the signature was not witnessed & therefore verified by CGC) could potentially offset that increase.

 

So for preservation & protection, grading is just fine. For value purposes? It may reduce the value or it may increase it or it may remain the same (I've seen some green-labeled signed books still sell for nearly yellow-label SS prices and some other green labeled signed books sell for 1/2 the equivalent raw price. Really depends on the buyer at the time)

 

Worst case is you could always crack the slab when it came time to sell if you're having no luck selling it with the green label.

[joeypost]

Was it signed in front of a CGC Witness?

 

If it were, wouldn't it already be on its way to Florida?

 

Not always, but the majority of the time.

[rodan57]

Encapsulation will certainly help protect the book & help preserve it to a degree ....

 

So for preservation & protection, grading is just fine.

 

Putting the restoration check to one side, I think a strong argument could be made that mylar with a fullback is a very safe way to store a book. Shaken comic syndrome is not as rare as one would wish it to be.

[Doktor]

Encapsulation will certainly help protect the book & help preserve it to a degree ....

 

So for preservation & protection, grading is just fine.

 

Putting the restoration check to one side, I think a strong argument could be made that mylar with a fullback is a very safe way to store a book. Shaken comic syndrome is not as rare as one would wish it to be.

 

Totally agree, but as I said though: "to a degree". It's far from foolproof or error resistant, but it can certainly help.