Digital Reader Seeking Tips On Making CGC Picks

[Immortal Hulk]

So I read all my comics digitally, but there are some comic runs where I absolutely love the author/artist that I would like to have a preserved physical copy of.

 

Besides the obvious of buying an issue already graded, can you share your best strategies of getting a good candidate for CGC grading?

 

I have thought of maybe doing a pull list on my favorite comics, and since I digitally read them just send the physical comics bagged and boarded from a pull list out to CGC.

 

Hand picking from a bundle that may have been standing on a shelf for a while and probably handled by curious customers didn't seem like a good choice (plus it might be weird assessing comics on a shelf one by one in a store).

 

Let me know your experiences, what your best ideas for my situation are, and how you guys do it, thanks!

[TheLiamSturgess]

So I read all my comics digitally, but there are some comic runs where I absolutely love the author/artist that I would like to have a preserved physical copy of.

 

Besides the obvious of buying an issue already graded, can you share your best strategies of getting a good candidate for CGC grading?

 

I have thought of maybe doing a pull list on my favorite comics, and since I digitally read them just send the physical comics bagged and boarded from a pull list out to CGC.

 

Hand picking from a bundle that may have been standing on a shelf for a while and probably handled by curious customers didn't seem like a good choice (plus it might be weird assessing comics on a shelf one by one in a store).

 

Let me know your experiences, what your best ideas for my situation are, and how you guys do it, thanks!

 

Welcome to the Boards!

 

There are several individuals that offer this sort of things as a service. I recommend reaching out to ComicBum (might be BeachBum) - I believe this is something he does

[Immortal Hulk]

what do you mean as a service?

[BarryAllen]

This will be an expensive and frustrating hobby if you are not a very tight grader and have access to multiple copies of desired issues before purchasing.

 

Always easier to buy a comic already graded.

[Immortal Hulk]

So I'm guessing having a pull list is too dicey for good grades?

[IntoAnother]

So I read all my comics digitally, but there are some comic runs where I absolutely love the author/artist that I would like to have a preserved physical copy of.

 

Besides the obvious of buying an issue already graded, can you share your best strategies of getting a good candidate for CGC grading?

 

I have thought of maybe doing a pull list on my favorite comics, and since I digitally read them just send the physical comics bagged and boarded from a pull list out to CGC.

 

Hand picking from a bundle that may have been standing on a shelf for a while and probably handled by curious customers didn't seem like a good choice (plus it might be weird assessing comics on a shelf one by one in a store).

 

Let me know your experiences, what your best ideas for my situation are, and how you guys do it, thanks!

 

Welcome to the Boards!

 

There are several individuals that offer this sort of things as a service. I recommend reaching out to ComicBum (might be BeachBum) - I believe this is something he does

 

+1

 

If you do not have the experience of knowing what to look for etc (assuming you are looking for 9.8 copies) then a monthly service is the way to go. If only for a short while until you are comfortable grading. You will be happier with the guaranteed results from the service and the money saved if you did it on your own and decided to submit more books to land a 9.8 on your own.

 

Welcome to the boards and good luck on your run building!

[Immortal Hulk]

When you say monthly service you mean the pull list, or hiring someone to shop for comics for you?

[IntoAnother]

When you say monthly service you mean the pull list, or hiring someone to shop for comics for you?

 

A few individuals offer a service of monthly 9.8 slabs. You arrange payment, titles selected, etc and each month they send you the books you picked and paid for already graded by CGC.

 

I personally have not used this service. If I knew it was an option as I was getting into slabs I most likely would have utilized it and saved money in the process as I prefer my modern runs to all be 9.8's.

 

I am sure a few options of services will be provided in here. I do know a few people use BeachBum (board name if I'm not mistaken) and are happy with his services.

[dupont2005]

So I'm guessing having a pull list is too dicey for good grades?

Yeah, there's no telling how the comic shop will handle the comic, or how it will arrive before the comic shop even touches it. The people who submit moderns successfully not only know how to grade, but they get to the LCS early on Wednesday and cherry pick the best copies they can from the inventory, sometimes hitting multiple shops because shop A didn't have any copies nice enough.

[loadstone]

The problem with cherry picking on your own is needing to use multiple sources. Often comics will come damaged even ever so slightly to a shop. If enough of them are severely damaged the shop may return them. If the damages are minimal the shop may decide to sell them and they may include defects that are minor but unpressable preventing them from ever achieving a 9.8 even on a good day. So if guaranteed 9.8s are your thing, check out Beachbum or one of the other guys. Beware that he may have closed some popular titles to new customers due to the high demand. Not sure if he still does but he used to offer 9.9s for a higher fee.

 

Those services cost more than doing it on your own but saves you time and headache so it just depends what you value more: time and effort or money.

[Immortal Hulk]

Thanks for all the responses. If they are going from comic shop to comic shop hand picking comics I'm assuming then it's a skill that they just practice and then go in.

 

I'm not really phased by learning how to have a keen eye, I mean you learn what CGC wants and patiently look for a tell of a great candidate. I'm not undermining that ability, I just don't like taking the naive approach of thinking it's magic and handing off a doable job to someone else due to laziness and being uncommitted.

 

I'm wondering though is their process really hopping around store to store searching through comic book bundles? I would think that's awkward to do. Perhaps though it's pretty quick and the approach is actually much swifter, for example a quick scan through a comic bundle for a perfect perimeter and only then would they single one out and give a quick look at the cover for pressure points and quick look over the pages for defects for example.

 

If it's a skill it's a skill, there's not secrets to be had, I'm just wondering what the overview of the process is, maybe it could even be a fun thing to try out as long as it's in a respectable manner to the comic shops.

 

 

[BarryAllen]

Thanks for all the responses. If they are going from comic shop to comic shop hand picking comics I'm assuming then it's a skill that they just practice and then go in.

 

I'm not really phased by learning how to have a keen eye, I mean you learn what CGC wants and patiently look for a tell of a great candidate. I'm not undermining that ability, I just don't like taking the naive approach of thinking it's magic and handing off a doable job to someone else due to laziness and being uncommitted.

 

I'm wondering though is their process really hopping around store to store searching through comic book bundles? I would think that's awkward to do. Perhaps though it's pretty quick and the approach is actually much swifter, for example a quick scan through a comic bundle for a perfect perimeter and only then would they single one out and give a quick look at the cover for pressure points and quick look over the pages for defects for example.

 

If it's a skill it's a skill, there's not secrets to be had, I'm just wondering what the overview of the process is, maybe it could even be a fun thing to try out as long as it's in a respectable manner to the comic shops.

 

 

There are plenty of grading guides and tutorials online to help you generally understand comic grading. There is also a "grading forum" on these boards where you can practice and learn from others and annual contests to participate in. However, CGC grading is a bit of a trade secret and those that have mastered it are unlikely to transfer those skills to you because they have made businesses out of it (particularly those who are well versed in modern submissions).

 

Just because you see someone hit a golf ball 300 yards and then go to a golf pro for lessons and practice every day for a year doesn't guarantee you will be able to hit one 300 yards yourself. Now, obviously this is an analogy and the skill required is not identical to grading a comic, but I am illustrating a point: assuming skills are universally learnable and equally attainable is simply untrue. It is also naive and potentially insulting to some people here.

 

Good luck though.

[Immortal Hulk]

Thanks for all the responses. If they are going from comic shop to comic shop hand picking comics I'm assuming then it's a skill that they just practice and then go in.

 

I'm not really phased by learning how to have a keen eye, I mean you learn what CGC wants and patiently look for a tell of a great candidate. I'm not undermining that ability, I just don't like taking the naive approach of thinking it's magic and handing off a doable job to someone else due to laziness and being uncommitted.

 

I'm wondering though is their process really hopping around store to store searching through comic book bundles? I would think that's awkward to do. Perhaps though it's pretty quick and the approach is actually much swifter, for example a quick scan through a comic bundle for a perfect perimeter and only then would they single one out and give a quick look at the cover for pressure points and quick look over the pages for defects for example.

 

If it's a skill it's a skill, there's not secrets to be had, I'm just wondering what the overview of the process is, maybe it could even be a fun thing to try out as long as it's in a respectable manner to the comic shops.

 

 

There are plenty of grading guides and tutorials online to help you generally understand comic grading. There is also a "grading forum" on these boards where you can practice and learn from others and annual contests to participate in. However, CGC grading is a bit of a trade secret and those that have mastered it are unlikely to transfer those skills to you because they have made businesses out of it (particularly those who are well versed in modern submissions).

 

Just because you see someone hit a golf ball 300 yards and then go to a golf pro for lessons and practice every day for a year doesn't guarantee you will be able to hit one 300 yards yourself. Now, obviously this is an analogy and the skill required is not identical to grading a comic, but I am illustrating a point: assuming skills are universally learnable and equally attainable is simply untrue. It is also naive and potentially insulting to some people here.

 

Good luck though.

 

Thanks for your reply, allow me to clarify. I know there are plenty of tutorials to CGC grading, so theoretically that's not part of the "secret" of the trade. What I'm asking more plainly is the way they are acquiring their books; if it's by going store to store on release dates going through comics fine. If there is some other obstacle like telling a store owner put aside a box of shipped comics for them to search through before going on the shelves, well obviously that puts the regular joe at a disadvantage.

 

I'm not asking for their grading strategy, such as how their check point system is set up while looking at each comic to discern quickly what is a quality candidate, dare I ask for such coveted mastery . What I'm curious about is if their acquisition normally is to go into a comic book shop and go through bundles, if it is well fair game, it would be exciting for someone like myself to go ahead and try it out for fun. I just wanted to make sure that was common practice against for example getting a pull list delivery\picked up.

[IntoAnother]

It's no secret, 9.8 candidates are pulled off shelves everyday. It's not difficult to find a 9.8 candidate on a modern book each week if you have an eye for it.

 

Having a stack of comics to look through on Wednesday helps but stacks are not needed to be set to the side for someone who is only looking for 9.8 candidates. Especially if you have a shop that bags and boards comics that hit the shelves or for those who have a pull list.

[Immortal Hulk]

It's no secret, 9.8 candidates are pulled off shelves everyday. It's not difficult to find a 9.8 candidate on a modern book each week if you have an eye for it.

 

Having a stack of comics to look through on Wednesday helps but stacks are not needed to be set to the side for someone who is only looking for 9.8 candidates. Especially if you have a shop that bags and boards comics that hit the shelves or for those who have a pull list.

 

Wow thank you so much, it was a secret to me . So it is possible to obtain a 9.8 from a pull list or off the shelves with a keen eye. This is very insightful, appreciate the response!

[loadstone]

Thanks for your reply, allow me to clarify. I know there are plenty of tutorials to CGC grading, so theoretically that's not part of the "secret" of the trade. What I'm asking more plainly is the way they are acquiring their books; if it's by going store to store on release dates going through comics fine. If there is some other obstacle like telling a store owner put aside a box of shipped comics for them to search through before going on the shelves, well obviously that puts the regular joe at a disadvantage.

 

I'm not asking for their grading strategy, such as how their check point system is set up while looking at each comic to discern quickly what is a quality candidate, dare I ask for such coveted mastery . What I'm curious about is if their acquisition normally is to go into a comic book shop and go through bundles, if it is well fair game, it would be exciting for someone like myself to go ahead and try it out for fun. I just wanted to make sure that was common practice against for example getting a pull list delivery\picked up.

 

I suspect the guys that run the 9.8 service order their comics directly from diamond distributors but they could have a special relationship with other big online dealers like DCBS.

[Immortal Hulk]

I suspect the guys that run the 9.8 service order their comics directly from diamond distributors but they could have a special relationship with other big online dealers like DCBS.

 

This is what I suspected as well, although it seems as though everyone is making it seem like they only cherry pick them from the LCSs on a Wednesday.

[chrisco37]

I suspect the guys that run the 9.8 service order their comics directly from diamond distributors but they could have a special relationship with other big online dealers like DCBS.

 

This is what I suspected as well, although it seems as though everyone is making it seem like they only cherry pick them from the LCSs on a Wednesday.

 

Yeah, they most likely order by the case and send the case in under pre-screen.

[techtre2003]

If I were trying to hit 9.8s, I think my strategy would just be to order 3 or 4 copies of a book from DCBS and have them shipped bagged and boarded. I haven't ordered from them for a while, but when I did all my books came in mint condition.