I don't get the CGC grading tiers

[sundrycollect]

I have been a vocal defender of CGC to the many detractors in various gold and silver groups online. But there is one thing that makes no sense to me. The CGC tiers for grading.

 

The problem is that they create a dilemma for mid value books...especially ones printed prior to 1975. I was just looking at sending in a couple copies of Doctor Strange #1 from 1974 that I have. I figure they are probably 9.4...but maybe 9.6...so on the cusp of $300. The modern tiers are out since the book is from 1974..and with the book likely more than $300, I am left with the standard tier. Shipping is around $30...so when all is said and done, at around $90 I am over 25% of the value of the book to get it graded.

 

For higher value books...it makes perfect sense. The walk-thru rate of 3% makes perfect sense. 3% is a lot less than 25%!

 

Anyway....this post may get deleted...but I really think CGC needs to figure out a way to make grading mid value books more attractive.

 

My two-cents.

[thunsicker]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

[Bomber-Bob]

What would you suggest they do ? There is the Value tier. I have never heard of CGC rejecting a submission because it's value was too high for the tier. After the grading is complete, they will sometimes bump you to a higher tier but they will never reject you.

[sundrycollect]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Doesn't economy have a maximum value of $300?

 

[Awax]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Doesn't economy have a maximum value of $300?

 

Yes

[thunsicker]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Doesn't economy have a maximum value of $300?

 

Yes

 

Yes, but value (like grade) is a little subjective. If the value is in the $300 range they won't upcharge you. I sent a Daredevil #1 in under standard tier and it got a 6.5. A 6.5 was worth around $1400 at the time. But was close enough that they didn't give me a hassle about it.

[Meeklo]

My problem is Value requires at least 15 books to be submitted. I don't ever have 15 books to submit. Plus, even if I did, at $25 a piece, that is $375 just for the grading alone…not including shipping. For someone like me, that is WAY too much. So I'm stuck with another tier.

[r100comics]

 

That's a phone call you want to be getting - that you'll have to pay a few $$$ more for the grading tier as your book has aced it.

 

 

[Buzzetta]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Pretty sure you are correct in that it covers part of the insurance cost.

[cloud cloddie]

That's a phone call you want to be getting - that you'll have to pay a few $$$ more for the grading tier as your book has aced it.

 

 

This. If I get a phone call that a book graded beyond my expectations and I owe a little more, I'm not gonna be upset.

[media_junkie]

Where do the values come from?

 

What I mean is if you send an Avengers #1 in for grading that is a 4.0 do they pull the value of the book from OSPG or GPA?

[sundrycollect]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Doesn't economy have a maximum value of $300?

 

Yes

 

I get the insurance part. That makes sense. But I still struggle with the percentages.

 

I just did the paper to submit a high value book last night. It's going to be $177 for walk through...the book might be less than $3k but I doubt it. So...no problem. If I am right, $177 is a small percentage of anything north of $3K.

 

I was going to submit a Batman Adventures 12 at the same time. It is probably a 9.0...maybe a little higher. So around $500-$600 in todays market. The only tier that fits is "Standard" because the value is too high for the Modern tier. With shipping and tax etc. it came to $91 (that included the 10% discount, $31 for shipping and some tax, I think). That's 18% of $500. No...not gonna do that.

 

I think the pricing should be more effort based. A book from 1974 worth $500 should cost no more to grade than a book from 1975. A modern book that's worth $500 should cost the same to grade as a modern book that is worth $40 with maybe a tiny bump for insurance.

 

Anyway...bottom line...Books in the $200-$1000 range are a dilemma. I want to sell them, don't want to sell them unslabbed, but refuse to pay 20% of the value to have them graded.

 

The "reasonable" % to me is something below 10%.

 

Can anyone from CGC comment here??

 

[Bomber-Bob]

Where do the values come from?

 

What I mean is if you send an Avengers #1 in for grading that is a 4.0 do they pull the value of the book from OSPG or GPA?

 

You are taking the assessment of the value much too seriously. It really is a loose assessment. Also, CGC does not pull the value for submission, the submitter assigns the value. If, after grading, your book is a no doubt about it jackpot, you will get a phone call from CGC for a tier bump. Another thing to keep in mind, the value you use when submitting is what CGC uses to insure your book for return shipping. If you severely under assessed the value and something happens to your return shipment, it's on you.

[Action252Kid]

 

I was going to submit a Batman Adventures 12 at the same time. It is probably a 9.0...maybe a little higher. So around $500-$600 in todays market. The only tier that fits is "Standard" because the value is too high for the Modern tier. With shipping and tax etc. it came to $91 (that included the 10% discount, $31 for shipping and some tax, I think). That's 18% of $500. No...not gonna do that.

 

 

Pretty sure you can submit the BA 12 under Modern and CGC isn't going to call you out on it. Just put $200 on the submission form and go with that. Like others have said, worst case is they bump you to the next tier. I think as long as you don't try to abuse the system, they aren't going to give you a hard time -- if you try to submit a $10,000 book as being worth $300, they are probably going to bump you; if you submit a $500 book and say it's only worth $300, I seriously doubt they are going to care.

 

If you have private insurance, you can have CGC return ship using your FedEx account, instead of paying a fortune for Registered shipping/insurance. That will cut your costs down a bit.

[Bills Comics]

I believe the price should be the same per each book they grade and encapsulate . $10-20 each submission. Maybe charge more for older books . Or a Tier based on if they are Golden , Silver, etc . The value of the end product should have no bearing on the price charged for the service .

If they do the same work on each submission then why charge more?

Its in their best interest to grade books higher because they make more money on them .

Thats an immediate conflict of interest in my opinion.

And yet another reason im not in favor of encapsulating comics .

[mschmidt]

Where do the values come from?

 

What I mean is if you send an Avengers #1 in for grading that is a 4.0 do they pull the value of the book from OSPG or GPA?

 

You are taking the assessment of the value much too seriously. It really is a loose assessment. Also, CGC does not pull the value for submission, the submitter assigns the value. If, after grading, your book is a no doubt about it jackpot, you will get a phone call from CGC for a tier bump. Another thing to keep in mind, the value you use when submitting is what CGC uses to insure your book for return shipping. If you severely under assessed the value and something happens to your return shipment, it's on you.

 

:winnah:

[mschmidt]

I have been a vocal defender of CGC to the many detractors in various gold and silver groups online. But there is one thing that makes no sense to me. The CGC tiers for grading.

 

The problem is that they create a dilemma for mid value books...especially ones printed prior to 1975. I was just looking at sending in a couple copies of Doctor Strange #1 from 1974 that I have. I figure they are probably 9.4...but maybe 9.6...so on the cusp of $300. The modern tiers are out since the book is from 1974..and with the book likely more than $300, I am left with the standard tier. Shipping is around $30...so when all is said and done, at around $90 I am over 25% of the value of the book to get it graded.

 

For higher value books...it makes perfect sense. The walk-thru rate of 3% makes perfect sense. 3% is a lot less than 25%!

 

Anyway....this post may get deleted...but I really think CGC needs to figure out a way to make grading mid value books more attractive.

 

My two-cents.

 

There's no reason to submit a $300 book under the Standard tier.

 

USPS registered mail is crazy expensive for a single book because you pay the USPS registered fee on top of the regular USPS priority postage. Which is probably why CGC offers UPS shipping which costs $10 for the first book, $2 each additional.

 

Alternatively, you can set up your own free Fedex or UPS account and use that to ship the book - which means CGC won't charge you anything for shipping.

 

 

[lou_fine]

 

The problem is that they create a dilemma for mid value books...especially ones printed prior to 1975. I was just looking at sending in a couple copies of Doctor Strange #1 from 1974 that I have. I figure they are probably 9.4...but maybe 9.6...so on the cusp of $300. The modern tiers are out since the book is from 1974..and with the book likely more than $300, I am left with the standard tier. Shipping is around $30...so when all is said and done, at around $90 I am over 25% of the value of the book to get it graded.

 

 

Now I understand why hardly anybody ever gets their books graded as 99.9% of all books sold at comic conventions are sold unslabbed.

 

It pretty much makes no economic sense to add a further $90 onto a book that had originally only cost you $0.25 or $0.30 to buy in the first place.

[mschmidt]

 

The problem is that they create a dilemma for mid value books...especially ones printed prior to 1975. I was just looking at sending in a couple copies of Doctor Strange #1 from 1974 that I have. I figure they are probably 9.4...but maybe 9.6...so on the cusp of $300. The modern tiers are out since the book is from 1974..and with the book likely more than $300, I am left with the standard tier. Shipping is around $30...so when all is said and done, at around $90 I am over 25% of the value of the book to get it graded.

 

 

Now I understand why hardly anybody ever gets their books graded as 99.9% of all books sold at comic conventions are sold unslabbed.

 

It pretty much makes no economic sense to add a further $90 onto a book that had originally only cost you $0.25 or $0.30 to buy in the first place.

 

Nobody's spending $90 to get a $300 book slabbed.

[N/A]

Just send them in Economy.

 

Edit: that said I've never understood why it costs more to grade a more expensive comic than it costs to grade a cheap comic. Maybe a tiny bit more for the insurance to cover themselves.

 

Pretty sure you are correct in that it covers part of the insurance cost.

 

I used to think this but have since changed my mind. If it was simply insurance then CGC would strictly go by the declared/insured value on the form. They do not. There shouldn't be tiers based on value in any way. Don't even get started on CCS who charges based on the value of a graded book.