Popular Post badback83 Posted January 13, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted January 13, 2023 I bought my first copy of Hulk 1 from them back in around 2010. Raw. Advertised as a 3.0, came back 1.8. My grading skills weren’t quite up to par at that point, so I relied heavily on whoever I was buying from. But, all things considered and as time passed, I did alright with the purchase. On an unrelated note as I think back about the Hulk 1, that was a fun week. Bought a Hulk 1 and Showcase 4 in the same week. Sold off a massive DVD and CD collection to fund them. WolverineX, batman_fan, jimjum12 and 8 others 10 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Popular Post ThothAmon Posted January 13, 2023 Popular Post Share Posted January 13, 2023 Bought as a VF raw. No complaints on this one either. Artboy99, Ken Aldred, Larryw7 and 4 others 7 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tec-Tac-Toe Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) I purchased a GA Batman 25 from MC perhaps 15 years ago and MC graded it 8.0 WP. Upon receiving and grading it, I assigned a grade of 7.5 WP. I submitted it to CGC in 2013 and CGC graded it 7.5 WP. The comic book was not pressed by me or, I was informed, MC. I am not complaining about the grade as a 7.5 for this issue is nice. Batman 25 0222273001 7.5 Other than that, MC has, unfortunately, been more hit than miss (correction) miss than hit as my grades are lower on, if I recall correctly, all the other raw comic books I have purchased from them. I have not graded any of these others but eventually may since almost all currently sell for substantial amounts in CGC slabs. I have not purchased raw comic books from MC in approximately 10 years. Edited January 13, 2023 by Tec-Tac-Toe hit than miss (correction) miss than hit batman_fan 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadroch Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 (edited) I used to bottom feed off their SA Marvels at auction, so I ended up with dozens of FFs and Thors. I learned quickly a Metro fine is a VG ,at best and a book they call 2.0 is most likely poor. These books were highly out of fashion when I was buying, so the prices were ridiculous, but so is their grading. One book was missing the two center wraps but they called it a 3.0. They seem to do a one second glance at the cover and little else. Amazing as Metro claims to have invented the 100 point grading system. Edited January 13, 2023 by shadroch TheGeneral, Tec-Tac-Toe, Larryw7 and 1 other 4 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Yorick Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 Already mentioned a few times; they grade INCOMPLETE books above 0.5. Always read all of the notes available for a particular book. The incomplete I bought was a coupon clipped "3.0". Larryw7 and KCOComics 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sigur Ros Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 1/13/2023 at 4:58 AM, Gaard said: Yep. Sadly, I don't have much confidence in the grades that CGC gives out. Now why wouldn't you trust CGC grading ?! I have to admit, based on my experience and a lot of pictures from others over the years... if I got books pressed and cleaned by CGC and they came back graded lower than expected, my first thought wouldn't be about the retailer I bought them from. mtracy64 and ThothAmon 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheGeneral Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 I bought a few raw books from Metro last year and have had the same overgraded experience many of you are describing. A couple of the books also had tape pulls and other damage that wasn't shown in the scans and all they told me was to return the books at my expense if I'm not happy. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumantorch Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 @Artboy99 Tec-Tac-Toe 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artboy99 Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 1/13/2023 at 10:33 AM, thehumantorch said: @Artboy99 greggy 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaylam Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 I'd say my experience with Metropolis/ComicConnect as far as grading is concerned is about 50/50. You must also understand, they sell raw books that the seller lists and sets the grade and price on those books themselves just as a seller would on ebay. My only suggestion to them would be to disclose on the site if a raw book has been directly listed by a seller or if it's one of their books that they have screened and graded themselves. ttfitz, jimjum12, GWO and 1 other 2 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern cross Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 I've bought quite a few books off metro This FF 4 was raw grade 4.0 These Big Apples were graded as 8.5s This Boston was graded 9.2 I bought a clairvoyant 3 as a raw 6.0 and it came back as a CBCS 4.5 A crime does not pay 42 as a raw 6.0 came back a CBCS 4.5 I bought this as a 8.5 raw F For Fake, Artboy99 and jimjum12 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
THE_BEYONDER Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 1/13/2023 at 4:17 PM, Jaylam said: I'd say my experience with Metropolis/ComicConnect as far as grading is concerned is about 50/50. You must also understand, they sell raw books that the seller lists and sets the grade and price on those books themselves just as a seller would on ebay. My only suggestion to them would be to disclose on the site if a raw book has been directly listed by a seller or if it's one of their books that they have screened and graded themselves. There’s no way to distinguish between books graded by Metro & random consignors? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shadow Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 I tried them a number of years ago. Grading wasn't consistent. Don't need that aggravation in my life so I moved on. Maybe a graded book in the future? Plus I find their site a bit clunky. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Larryw7 Posted January 13, 2023 Share Posted January 13, 2023 On 1/13/2023 at 4:56 PM, THE_BEYONDER said: There’s no way to distinguish between books graded by Metro & random consignors? The consigned books are mainly on the Comic Connect site, the regular Metro site is mostly their inventory. THE_BEYONDER and GWO 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjum12 Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 On 1/13/2023 at 4:56 PM, THE_BEYONDER said: There’s no way to distinguish between books graded by Metro & random consignors? Consignor books used to be left in their own bags and boards ... not with the Metro barcode label. GOD BLESS... -jimbo(a friend of jesus) THE_BEYONDER 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
whomerjay Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 On 1/14/2023 at 1:17 AM, jimjum12 said: Consignor books used to be left in their own bags and boards ... not with the Metro barcode label. GOD BLESS... -jimbo(a friend of jesus) I assumed any book on either site was graded my Metro whether consigned or not. If consigned and not graded by Metro, is this disclosed on the site? Whether disclosed or not, seems like a bad business model, attracting consignors prone to overgrade and often rewarded for it. Conversely, is it MCS who has consignor books in hand and grade them themselves, and conservatively? Not inclined to buy from either company, but if I did, it’s a no-brained whom I’d choose. The ability to return is not enough to suffer bad grading. If consignors have books with difficult-to-detect resto or other flaws, Metro would be the place to consign. Have never bought directly from Metro. However, I once submitted a Big Apple copy of a TTA book graded 8.5 (Metro label); came back 7.0. southern cross 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
jimjum12 Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 (edited) Metro has their OWN Metropolis Grading Guide listed under the header "FAQ". It is their own take and philosophy of one of the most argued aspects of comic collecting, GRADING. The CGC era has created a system that hammers fingerprints, light stains, and gives a green light to books with diminished gloss, interior cover tanning, and extreme production defects. Not all dealers agree with those and other differences. It IS subjective, at least at this point. To me, as a long time customer of Metro, their grading, which is decent, is offset by their fair pricing.... a similar book on eBoy @ $1000 will often be found on Metro for $ 450. Metro also has a variety of selection that is at the very top of the industry. I've returned a couple, with absolutely NO trouble from them on the refund or credit. GOD BLESS... -jimbo(a friend of jesus) Edited January 14, 2023 by jimjum12 Yorick and ttfitz 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gunsmokin Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 (edited) I bought the White mountain TOS 20 from MC raw as a VF and it graded an 8.0 from cgc. I also bought a MMC 17 that was woefully over graded. Bought as a VG that was a 2.5 at best. Both transactions were at least 10 years ago. Edited January 14, 2023 by gunsmokin jimjum12 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shadroch Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 On 1/14/2023 at 7:18 AM, gunsmokin said: I bought the White mountain TOS 20 from MC raw as a VF and it graded an 8.0 from cgc. I also bought a MMC 17 that was woefully over graded. Bought as a VG that was a 2.5 at best. Both transactions were at least 10 years ago. Half the graders at Metro may not have been born when you had those transactions. gunsmokin and TheGeneral 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
southern cross Posted January 14, 2023 Share Posted January 14, 2023 You have to also look at their pricing. If a book is graded f/vf and is at a 20% off sale it maybe priced as a vg/f so if it grades at that or higher then no problem. You get what you pay for. I did buy this book as a vf It's hard to see the color breaking crease that's way too long to be a vf I rang them and they asked me what I thought the grade was and I said a f/vf so they gave me $10 credit. Another time I bought a gd Avengers 4 that was unrestored and I found color touching on it so I returned it and they re sent a Avengers 4 raw graded 4.0 I sent that in to CGC and it came back 3.5 but the pages was tan/off white so I sold it. Hindsight I should of kept it. So I like their customer service, I thought it was great at the time when I was regularly buying off them. 👍 greggy, speedcake and jimjum12 2 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
