At this point, should I just crack them out of the case? 3 3

[NoMan]

Trying to put a raw, upressed HG X-men run together. I'm not anti-CGC case I wanna read 'em is all in their original form. It's becoming a major headache to find the keys in HG that aren't already slabbed. I'm ready to cave and just get 'em in the case and break 'em out, which probably means they've been pressed. 

Edited November 30, 2018 by NoMan

[lizards2]

I don't see any downside.

[NoMan]

perhaps i need to change my attitude. 

[theCapraAegagrus]

What's the draw to having unpressed books? Does CGC notate pressing in their grading notes?

[NoMan]

Just now, TwoPiece said:

What's the draw to having unpressed books? Does CGC notate pressing in their grading notes?

it's just my personal preference to have books non-pressed. in my opinion there's more $ to be squeezed out of a book if it's pressed which is why it's difficult to find keys non-pressed. people have hard feelings about if pressing is restoration or not, so again, it's just my personal preference to have a non-pressed book. If you dig pressed books, that's cool. No CGC does not notate pressing in any way, shape or form. 

While putting my xmen run together I found a large well know online comic store (not MCS) and they had a bunch of xmen books I wanted. I asked if they were pressed and the answer was they press every single book from a 50k book to a 5 dollar book. Some people like how books look pressed, I don't. 

I don't want to start a big ugly debate thread about pressing it's just that when it becomes difficult to find any key that's not pressed I just get bummed is all. I have to change my attitude and it bugs. 

Edited November 30, 2018 by NoMan

[theCapraAegagrus]

Just now, NoMan said:

it's just my personal preference to have books non-pressed. in my opinion there's more $ to be squeezed out of a book if it's pressed which is why it's difficult to find keys non-pressed. people have hard feelings about if pressing is restoration or not, so again, it's just my personal preference to have a non-pressed book. If you dig pressed books, that's cool. No CGC does not notate pressing in any way, shape or form. 

While putting my xmen run together I found a large well know online comic store (not MCS) and they had a bunch of xmen books I wanted. I asked if they were pressed and the answer was they press every single book from a 50k book to a 5 dollar book. Some people like how books look pressed, I don't. 

I don't want to start a big ugly debate thread about pressing it's just that when it becomes difficult to find any key that's not pressed I just get bummed is all. I have to change my attitude and it bugs. 

Makes sense. No debate here - I don't have a preference. Just wanted to understand why you're looking specifically for unpressed books. I guess Idk the difference between the two. I know that my small collection of graded books are all unpressed, and all of my raw books are also unpressed.

[NoMan]

I know a collector that's fairly well-versed in the hobby and he claims he can tell when a book is pressed or not 100% of the time and I believe him. I can't always tell. I did have an xmen 94 CGC 9.4 and it was so flat it looked freakish and ugly. But hey, it's a 9.4 so....

When you can't find books that haven't been pressed seems, to me, sad. 

Edited November 30, 2018 by NoMan

[newshane]

3 hours ago, NoMan said:

I know a collector that's fairly well-versed in the hobby and he claims he can tell when a book is pressed or not 100% of the time and I believe him.

I'm not sure that I would believe him, but if you do...

EDIT - your collector may be able to spot badly pressed books 100% of the time, but the work of a professional isn't always that simple to spot. 

Edited November 30, 2018 by newshane

[newshane]

3 hours ago, NoMan said:

While putting my xmen run together I found a large well know online comic store (not MCS) and they had a bunch of xmen books I wanted. I asked if they were pressed and the answer was they press every single book from a 50k book to a 5 dollar book. Some people like how books look pressed, I don't. 

 

I can tell you for a fact that almost all of the online big boys press almost everything. I won't call anyone out, but it's just the way of things in the hobby now. 

[shadroch]

1 hour ago, newshane said:

I can tell you for a fact that almost all of the online big boys press almost everything. I won't call anyone out, but it's just the way of things in the hobby now. 

Didn't Metropolis announce several years ago that they would not press books and disclose any they knew about?

[dfx1]

Comic books are made on a press. That's your HOME! Are you too good for your HOME comic! Wait ..that’s a different type of press. 

Now I have to worry to decide if I like pressed books or not.

[Karl Liebl]

So far I have sent in 6 books and pressed them all.  The books that were purchased as back issues in 1978 or so all have what I would describe as lumpy covers.  The newsstand books books I bought still have smooth covers.  I have been very pleased with the results from CCS although I don't think they affected the grades in my submissions , yet.  It is possible the older style bags did this.

[vaillant]

6 hours ago, NoMan said:

Trying to put a raw, upressed HG X-men run together. I'm not anti-CGC case I wanna read 'em is all in their original form. It's becoming a major headache to find the keys in HG that aren't already slabbed. I'm ready to cave and just get 'em in the case and break 'em out, which probably means they've been pressed. 

I’m the same as you, but as Lizard says, let’s not see any downside.
I appreciate the CGC service, as you are reassured when buying a costly book.
Pressing, by the way, makes sense to speculators on certain grades/books alone. Buy these raw from reputable sellers and you are done.

I am 100% sure my FF#2 (just deslabbed) has not been pressed:

Edited November 30, 2018 by vaillant

[newshane]

2 hours ago, Knucklehead McSpazatron said:

I would love to know the name of this store so I can also avoid them  Anyone who presses "all books regardless" is scum in my book 

Well, you're going to have to avoid half the market then. Good luck. 

[SECollector]

When did pressing became chronologically a thing? Does having a book in an old-old CGC slab suggests or guarantees that is not pressed?

[grebal]

I'm with Noman in attaching more value to a unpressed book, partly emotional, party money (may be able to bump up future value if pressable defects).

For a while I noticed more sellers would more frequently grade a book theoretically - "if pressed would probably grade a __" kind of thing and maybe price it accordingly or grade it higher than it deserves subconsciously. A bit like grading from a scan instead of a picture that show some cover texture, etc.

 

As to de-valuation from cracking a book, of course it's at least a little less valuable.  Otherwise slabbing would have no value.  Until we can transplant brains into robots, we're only renting these things.  When it comes time to sell, you can get easier sale and/or higher price with slabbed copy. 

And advertising the old CGC grade and including the label doesn't always provide the same perception of value in all buyers, but it sure helps with many.  Then also there is some measure of better protection from damage in the case, too, although that's mostly a question of care.

[The Lions Den]

1 minute ago, SECollector said:

When did pressing became chronologically a thing? Does having a book in an old-old CGC slab suggests or guarantees that is not pressed?

I wouldn't say it guarantees anything, but pressing has certainly become extremely common in the last few years...

[NoMan]

1 minute ago, grebal said:

I'm with Noman in attaching more value to a unpressed book, partly emotional, party money (may be able to bump up future value if pressable defects).

For a while I noticed more sellers would more frequently grade a book theoretically - "if pressed would probably grade a __" kind of thing and maybe price it accordingly or grade it higher than it deserves subconsciously. A bit like grading from a scan instead of a picture that show some cover texture, etc.

 

As to de-valuation from cracking a book, of course it's at least a little less valuable.  Otherwise slabbing would have no value.  Until we can transplant brains into robots, we're only renting these things.  When it comes time to sell, you can get easier sale and/or higher price with slabbed copy. 

And advertising the old CGC grade and including the label doesn't always provide the same perception of value in all buyers, but it sure helps with many.  Then also there is some measure of better protection from damage in the case, too, although that's mostly a question of care.

You're a smart guy, Grebal. I've always thought that. I was a little worried when you disappeared for a couple of months around here. I even Googled your name to see if you had died because, well, I care and I know your really, really valuable books are in that glass dinning room cabinet and I just wanted to make sure those books were safe.

Edited November 30, 2018 by NoMan

[grebal]

3 hours ago, NoMan said:

I was a little worried when you disappeared for a couple of months around here. I even Googled your name to see if you had died because, well, I care and I know your really, really valuable books are in that glass dinning room cabinet and I just wanted to make sure those books were safe.

I never did clarify that time that my 'comic room' had since been taken from me for other purposes, and that cabinet sits in the garage housing some boxes of knick-knacks or something.

Funny thing - I have a buddy who didn't return a couple of voice-mails I left around Thanksgiving and resorted to the same method of doing a quick "is he alive" check.

Anyway, here's what I'm relegated to now for most of my collection- a closet with a couple of shelves and lots of boxes on the floor, although most of the 'grails' are appropriately buried in boxes.  As you might have heard, ; ) there are many people with greater value in a single book in their collection than the sum total of my entire stash (which includes runs like ASM 2-700, FF 2-200, Hulk 1-6).    Psst: btw, those two big keys are GRRs.

[VintageComics]

On 11/30/2018 at 10:25 AM, NoMan said:

Some people like how books look pressed, I don't.

I don't want to open the discussion either but this is a fallacy much of the time.

Books that are quickly pressed (ie. smashed) you can tell because they sit flat as a pancake.

Properly pressed books are much more difficult to tell and many you have no way of knowing, especially if they are proper candidates to start with and done properly.