To press or not to press ??? 0

[DaveProsch]

Hi guys CGC absolute noob here. Question I'm submitting is  I submitted all modern books within the last year of collecting and wanted to get a quick press and a grade for prescreening 25 books for a grade of 9.8s However I was told over the phone from cgc that prescreened books that are graded for 9.8s are either accepted or rejected with the $5 rejection fee and then quick pressed AFTER !  I feel like i hit a road sign at 100mph.  Im still not confident in my ability to grade a 9.8 and suppose there is an elusive 9.9 in my prescreen of 9.8! Am i doing myself a disservice. Also is there a way my books can get pressed before a grade......sorry in advance for the run on sentences  

[theCapraAegagrus]

9 hours ago, DaveProsch said:

Hi guys CGC absolute noob here. Question I'm submitting is  I submitted all modern books within the last year of collecting and wanted to get a quick press and a grade for prescreening 25 books for a grade of 9.8s However I was told over the phone from cgc that prescreened books that are graded for 9.8s are either accepted or rejected with the $5 rejection fee and then quick pressed AFTER !  I feel like i hit a road sign at 100mph.  Im still not confident in my ability to grade a 9.8 and suppose there is an elusive 9.9 in my prescreen of 9.8! Am i doing myself a disservice. Also is there a way my books can get pressed before a grade......sorry in advance for the run on sentences  

You would have to either:

1. Have someone other than CCS press your books prior to sending in to CGC.
2. Not pre-screen. Just have CCS quick press them all.

[comicginger1789]

It’s best not to chase 9.8 or 9.9. Could you be missing out? Sure. Could you be paying extra for no real gain? Sure.

Ive yet to meet anyone who can spot a 9.9 or 10. I’ve seen people do very well in spotting 9.8s and also seen them do only relatively well (say 13 out of 20 submissions). It’s a gamble that only you can assess the risk of. If you have the funds to do it then always press for the best chance. Otherwise become familiar with pressable defects and if you don’t see them, chances are money would be wasted on a press.

[CHASEnBLUE]

I'll add that in my time selling as a side hobby, I have learned through my own pre-screening successes and failures enough to bump the probability of when I think I have a 9.8 candidate, I'm personally at a 70-80% accuracy rate (7 or 8 out of every 10). That being said, I'm batting less than 100 when I think I have a 9.9 - so I don't even hold expectations for hopes for that, but when it happens it is great. I don't even think about a 10. I have had several 9.9's though and one 10, but feel that luck was on my side. Mainly these were  Zenescope comics and Batman Damned issues, which by design have a greater likelihood of a higher grade in my experience.

I look over every comic that I order when they come in using various lighting, holding at different angles, magnifying glass, etc., and try to find a reason for a comic to be 9.6 or less. I don't refer to it much anymore for newer comics, but I don't hesitate to look at the Overstreet grading definitions/scale if needed for reference. I set 9.6 and lower in one stack and anything I believe could be 9.8 or higher goes in another stack. I set aside what I want for my pc, and then go back through what I think is 9.8 or higher and start eliminating from there. Once you go through enough comics on your own prescreen and are successful (or not) when they get graded, the confidence will come. If it is on the line for a 9.8 and it is worth it to clean and press (C&P) then I will have that done first. I've always used CCS and have had excellent results.  

There are always outliers though such as something you don't catch on the outside or inside of the comic that will bump the grade down. But the more you put into the prescreen yourself, the less money you will waste and the more success you will have attaining higher grades. 

[William-James88]

On 3/10/2021 at 9:14 PM, DaveProsch said:

Hi guys CGC absolute noob here. Question I'm submitting is  I submitted all modern books within the last year of collecting and wanted to get a quick press and a grade for prescreening 25 books for a grade of 9.8s However I was told over the phone from cgc that prescreened books that are graded for 9.8s are either accepted or rejected with the $5 rejection fee and then quick pressed AFTER !  I feel like i hit a road sign at 100mph.  Im still not confident in my ability to grade a 9.8 and suppose there is an elusive 9.9 in my prescreen of 9.8! Am i doing myself a disservice. Also is there a way my books can get pressed before a grade......sorry in advance for the run on sentences  

Yeah, I can see your dilema and for a noob question, this is a real good one. 

Indeed a quick press after being screened for a 9.8 is USELESS

A 9.8 can never be pressed into a 9.9 because both a 9.8 and 9.9 have no wear, meaning nothing that can be pressed out to improve the grade. 

And yes, there is a way to get a book pressed before  grading. That's what I do. I sent my books to a reputable professional who then presses the book (and checks for restoration, which is always good for non modern books) and then handles the CGC submission for me. You even get a dealer discount. Feel free to send me a PM if you want the contact info.

[DaveProsch]

OMG THANK YOU !! I thought i was going CRAZY! No one understood my dilemma and it was my 1st submission ever! Why Oh why wouldnt CGC press a book before screening it for a 9.8 or any grade. I understand that you need a minimum of 25 books and i expect very FEW if any 9.8s for my 1st submission, but my next question i was going to call up and ask is if i do the 15 book quick press option will my books be pressed BEFORE they are graded??? Thank you SO SO SO much for getting back to me. Also would you happen to know if 25 books being screened for 9.8 and an elusive 9.9 was present....would they grade it accordingly????   signed The Noob

[DaveProsch]

4 minutes ago, Call The Cops said:

Like he said, just do it yourself with another presser 

They're screening for 9.8s not 9.9s.

 

[DaveProsch]

Brutal absolutely Brutal ! Now i feel like i might have done myself a disservice.  I had a copy that i felt for sure was a 9.9 but live and learn for sure. I learned a very valuable lesson about 15 book minimum quick press versus 25 book minimum grading and THEN pressing (Useless) Thank U 

[xvipah]

It's tough to trust people with your valuable property, totally understand. But, this IS their business (reputable ones obviously). You'd give a watch repair guy your Rolex if it was broken, a shop your car. No different here.

8 minutes ago, DaveProsch said:

I know , know , KNOW  there are reputable pressers out there.... BUT given my former profession I find it SO dam difficult to mail a 1k - 3k book to someone who is going to press it for $12 ? and then either return it to me or submit it to me on my behalf . Im probably being paranoid no doubt about it but in the words of Stone Cold Steve Austin.... DTA !!!!         ( Don't Trust ANYONE ) 

 

[DaveProsch]

On 3/12/2021 at 12:56 AM, William-James88 said:

Yeah, I can see your dilema and for a noob question, this is a real good one. 

Indeed a quick press after being screened for a 9.8 is USELESS

A 9.8 can never be pressed into a 9.9 because both a 9.8 and 9.9 have no wear, meaning nothing that can be pressed out to improve the grade. 

And yes, there is a way to get a book pressed before  grading. That's what I do. I sent my books to a reputable professional who then presses the book (and checks for restoration, which is always good for non modern books) and then handles the CGC submission for me. You even get a dealer discount. Feel free to send me a PM if you want the contact info.

I dont think at this stage of the game i would be able to sleep sending out someone to press a 3k book or more and expect to get it back or have them submit it on my behalf.  I'm a retired NYPD officer and while i havent seen it all I have seen ALOT ! What would happen if this person just up and one day disappeared with your books ????

[DaveProsch]

2 minutes ago, xvipah said:

It's tough to trust people with your valuable property, totally understand. But, this IS their business (reputable ones obviously). You'd give a watch repair guy your Rolex if it was broken, a shop your car. No different here.

 

Im sure as a retired NYPD officer ive eaten ALOT of spit in my food but i will be damned if someone in Tennessee is  gonna take off with my Hulk 181 or DD #1  !!!

[DaveProsch]

1 minute ago, DaveProsch said:

Im sure as a retired NYPD officer ive eaten ALOT of spit in my food but i will be damned if someone in Tennessee is  gonna take off with my Hulk 181 or DD #1  !!!

By no means am i attempting to insult anyone in Tennessee I was just using it as an example

 

[DaveProsch]

On 3/12/2021 at 12:56 AM, William-James88 said:

Yeah, I can see your dilema and for a noob question, this is a real good one. 

Indeed a quick press after being screened for a 9.8 is USELESS

A 9.8 can never be pressed into a 9.9 because both a 9.8 and 9.9 have no wear, meaning nothing that can be pressed out to improve the grade. 

And yes, there is a way to get a book pressed before  grading. That's what I do. I sent my books to a reputable professional who then presses the book (and checks for restoration, which is always good for non modern books) and then handles the CGC submission for me. You even get a dealer discount. Feel free to send me a PM if you want the contact info.

For my 1st submission i should have been more careful.  I submitted a copy of the walking dead #1 gold foil addition only 1 per LCS and it was absolutely flawless. It never even made it to the sales shelf and i prescreened it for a 9.8 when really i believe (of course) it was a 9.9.  The paper it was printed on was much thicker then the average books and it just "felt different" The only copy i saw on ebay was a 9.9. I never should have prescreened this book for a 9.8.... live and learn ..............

[William-James88]

3 hours ago, DaveProsch said:

For my 1st submission i should have been more careful.  I submitted a copy of the walking dead #1 gold foil addition only 1 per LCS and it was absolutely flawless. It never even made it to the sales shelf and i prescreened it for a 9.8 when really i believe (of course) it was a 9.9.  The paper it was printed on was much thicker then the average books and it just "felt different" The only copy i saw on ebay was a 9.9. I never should have prescreened this book for a 9.8.... live and learn ..............

Well then you'll be glad to know you did nothing wrong. Firstly, you can't prescreen for a 9.9 and prescreening for a 9.8 does not mean it can't get a 9.9 either. Prescreen means they only slab it if it is "at least" whatever grade you inscribe.

So you did nothing wrong there. If your book is a 9.9, you'll get a 9.9. Also, I didn't understand. So you did send in 25 books with 9.8 prescreens? And opted not to have them pressed?

Also, as for you question of being scared for an outside party to handle your books incase they lose them, your book has as much chance, if not more, of being lost at CGC or CCS (the company CGC uses for pressing). That's why they ask for the value your comic is insured under. And you can look it up, books have been lost and that insurance money had to be paid out. So if you were ok with CGC, then you'd be ok with an outside presser who has a lot more riding on their trust/reputation than CGC does. If CGC loses your book, big woop, they wont go out of business. But someone who presses for a living has a lot more at stake. There are a bunch of competitors, at similar costs. All they need is some bad reviews to go down and never be used for pressing again. 

So yeah, reputation is their bread and butter, hence why I was perfectly fine sending in a $900 book to be pressed (among many other books). If you want more info on my presser, send me a PM, I will be glad to recommend.