ExNihilo Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 (edited) Hi All, So I know I brought this up back when there was an active thread about the Oakland variant. But after I found out that Jamal Campbell will be signing at Fan Expo in Canada, I decided to stop by Cape & Cowl and try to find a better copy. I went through at least 20 books and all of them had some sort of spine tick. Below are two copies: Copy A (c/b spine crease on back of hover bike) and Copy B (c/b spine crease mid spine on white cloud). All other aspects of the books are sharp so I only have pictures of the ticks in question (though, I can provide additional pictures if you feel that will help aid in a decision). Full cover photos to show how covers look to the naked eye. Which do you think has the best shot at a 9.8? Or do you think I should resign myself to the fact that a 9.6 is the best I can hope for? Copy A: iPhone camera wouldn't focus well, but you can make out the c/b crease in the 2nd, 3rd, and 4th photos. You can notice a difference in how extreme the color break appears when viewed top-down (2nd pic) versus at an angle (3rd pic). The 4th pic shows the light bouncing off the gloss of the cover. I'm wondering if a press will at least help by smoothing it all out so that the only defect would be the c/b. Spoiler Cover B: again, top-down look at the book to give a general idea of its overall appearance. The crease, which I'm guessing is c/b is about halfway down the spine where the pink cloud meets the white/cream clouds (literally where the two colors meet). As with the previous photos, the 2nd and 3rd pic are a close up from top down and one at an angle viewed from the spine. You can faintly make out what might be a c/b (if not for the crappy iPhone focusing.) The 4th picture is again an angled pic to attempt to capture the light bouncing off the gloss of the cover. As you can see, it's mostly flat. Spoiler Overall, I think copy A looks like a 9.6 candidate. I think with a press, it might achieve a 9.8 (since I think a 9.8 is allowed 2 minor defects?). I think copy B looks like a stronger 9.8 candidate. From the looks of it, it doesn't appear a press would help much and I think the fact that the color break occurs on a whiter section of the cover is better than in Copy A where it occurs on a black section of the cover. What are your thoughts? Would you still send Copy B in for a press to strengthen its case or is that a waste of some $20+? Thanks in advance for the opinions. Edited August 5, 2018 by ExNihilo Edit: Meant to use "Spoiler" to save space instead of "Quote" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not A Clone Posted August 5, 2018 Share Posted August 5, 2018 Looks minor to me. They are being brutally tough right now on moderns though. Seems like they are counting a single minor non color-break as a major flaw. My paranoia is high right now lol. I'm not sure what the 9.6's sell for, so it's a matter of is it worth the cost vs selling raw? ExNihilo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashlites Posted August 6, 2018 Share Posted August 6, 2018 I agree with not a clone. I'd question my motives for submitting the book, because its just too close to call. Either one could come back as 9.6 or 9.4 even and what would that mean to you. If you just want to seal and preserve the book then the grade won't matter. If your looking for something else it will be a gamble. Just my 2 cents. Lets hear what a more experienced boardie has to say. ExNihilo 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExNihilo Posted August 6, 2018 Author Share Posted August 6, 2018 4 hours ago, flashlites said: I agree with not a clone. I'd question my motives for submitting the book, because its just too close to call. Either one could come back as 9.6 or 9.4 even and what would that mean to you. If you just want to seal and preserve the book then the grade won't matter. If your looking for something else it will be a gamble. Just my 2 cents. Lets hear what a more experienced boardie has to say. There are 2 printings of this book, one with trade dress, one virgin cover. When the trade dress came out, it was all over the local news since part of the movie was set in Oakland. Needless to say the 1st print sold out pretty quickly. My dad knows I've taken a new interest in collecting in the last year and unbeknownst to me had pre-ordered two copies of the 1st print (trade dress) and presented them to me as a birthday present. When the 2nd print came out, we went to the store and picked up two copies of the virgin as well. Why did he get me 2 copies though? Well, he said I could sell one if it ever got hot, but it feels wrong to sell a birthday present. So I told him that I would hang on to both copies of each the trade dress/virgin and see if I could get them signed. This way I would have one signed copy and one raw/unsigned of both trade dress and virgin. TL;DR - books were birthday presents from my dad which I would like to get signed and I like all my signed books authenticated (which necessitates the use of CGC/Grading). All that said, as you mentioned the grade is secondary to the sentimental value the book holds (these are 100% for PC). But it'd still be nice to at least have a 9.8. 18 hours ago, Not A Clone said: They are being brutally tough right now on moderns though. Yeah, this is a concern of mine as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
flashlites Posted August 6, 2018 Share Posted August 6, 2018 It is an awesome book, now I'm thinking I need to get one, especially with that welcome to Oakland sign!!! I lived in Oakland for many years. If I were grading them (just me here) I give "A" a 9.8 and "B" 9.6. Because "B" looks like it may have some spine wear on the top. Keep in mind both books have a ever so slight bottom left corner issue where the book was trimmed at the bindery. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Not A Clone Posted August 6, 2018 Share Posted August 6, 2018 Go Raiders! Go A's! flashlites 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
