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Stan Lee signed comic books should I get them graded?
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9 posts in this topic

Hello: Very new here. Don't know anything about this. I have 10 Marvel comic books from the 1970s. Stan Lee signed them for me at San Diego Comic Con one year.

Condition is fair. Should I even bother to go the expense of getting them graded and encased?

Would I be able to get that cool looking, CGC Signature series Stan Lee log on them?   I bet not. But it doesn't hurt to ask.

Just looking for some guidance from folks who are in the hobby, as I am not. Thanks

 

 

 

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Hello, and welcome to the boards.

First, the easy question. Would you be able to get A CGC signature series label for your books? The answer there is no. That label is only for comics that CGC has witnessed being signed.  A comic with an unwitnessed signature is treated as a comic with writing on it. If the books are already low grade, only in fair condition, and have writing on the interior, it is unlikely that the writing would affect the grade.  So you would most likely end up with a notation on a blue label that says something like “Stan Lee written on the first page in pen.“

As for the general question about whether you should get the books slabbed, that depends on what they are and your motivation for slabbing them. Are you hoping to sell them?  Or do you just want a slab to protect them and make it easy to display them? Are they high dollar key issues, such as Amazing Fantasy #15 and Incredible Hulk #1? Or are they run-of-the-mill comics without a large collectible value in fair condition, such as Master of Kung Fu #32 or Marvel Triple Action #3?  If they are expensive key issues and you want to sell, getting them graded would probably be wise.  If you want to grade them just so you can handle them and display them without fear of damage, then by all means go for it. But if you provide more information about what they are and why you want to slab, this community could probably provide more information about whether it makes sense to slab them.

Edited by SOTIcollector
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Enjoy them as is...in a mylar bag with an acid-free board.  Slabs will keep them protected for a long time, if you want them in your permanent collection.  Question is, do you want to spend the money to do that, then probably end up with a bunch of green label slabs?  They display just fine with a bag and board.

Then again, if you're looking to sell them slabbed...again, I'd sell them bagged and boarded.  A lot of collector's are turned off by green 'Qualified' labels.  I know, I have one I tried to sell and no takers.  It was my first, and hopefully last, green label. lol  Good luck and welcome to the boards!!! :download:

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I know some folks are giving you friendly but blanket advice, and it’s true you won’t get Cgc SS, and the green label sucks.  

it is true that in the vast majority of situations it probably doesn’t make sense to submit the books, but there are still plenty of situations where it makes some sense.  But submission would almost certainly be for blue universal label, where the signature is counted as a defect.
 

if you want to provide more specifics, people can give you answers more specific to your circumstances.  


good luck

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I have a couple signed by Stan Lee at the San Diego Comic Con back in the day also. Since these were signed on the inside and not the cover, there's a note "Stan Lee '88 written on 1st page in pen" 

As stated, you won't get yellow signature series but I believe if it's not on the front cover, you would still get Blue Universal with the note. You can send a question to CGC in the Ask CGC section. 

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On 6/23/2021 at 5:41 PM, jefftoons said:

Hello: Very new here. Don't know anything about this. I have 10 Marvel comic books from the 1970s. Stan Lee signed them for me at San Diego Comic Con one year.

Condition is fair. Should I even bother to go the expense of getting them graded and encased?

Would I be able to get that cool looking, CGC Signature series Stan Lee log on them?   I bet not. But it doesn't hurt to ask.

Just looking for some guidance from folks who are in the hobby, as I am not. Thanks

 

 

 

your intuition was right, you wouldnt get Signature series with them. Just keep them raw.

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Just one point about terminology: The term 'fair' as applied to a comic book's condition is almost the lowest possible grade. Only poor is lower. I suspect you mean the condition of the comics is actually quite good. I hope you see your rather neat mini collection of Stan Lee signed book's as a potential  cornerstone of a collection. I'd certainly be very pleased with them! Welcome to the boards!

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