Newbies that use Wizard as a grading scale for comics!

[Rickdogg]

I received a comic today that was supposedly a NM+ today in the mail. I of course contacted the seller since there were a few stress marks with one being a big one I am usually very lenient on low priced raw books but I felt that I had to say something in this case so that this seller could avoid future negative feedbacks for being misinformed.

 

Here's his reply to my email:

 

 

I'm glad to hear that your girlfriend is happy with it. By no means am I

a professional grader. I used the Wizard comic book price guide grade

chart. First is Mint, Then NM/MT, and third is NM+ which is defined as appearing

almost mint, but with 2 minor flaws (minor flaws are described as a small

ding or stress lines). Are you saying the spine was creased???

 

John

 

 

[comicinvestor-migration]

Ricky, if you're looking for pure NM+ raw comics, then I would recommend sticking with CGC. Even the act of shipping a comic without proper packaging can lower a 9.8 to a 9.6 or 9.4.

 

Basically, the best you can hope for on EBay is a 9.4, maybe a 9.6 on the outside for raw comics, and anything you do get is just rolling the dice.

[Rickdogg]

Yeah, I definitely follow that rule, but it was Herobear & the kid for my girlfriend & there is no point to buy a slabbed version of that thing HEHEHE.

[chrisfuccione]

another reason why the comic industry should have a grading standard like the coin industry has with the ANA grades. Every one know the basics of the diffrence between an AU58,Ms60 and and, MS63. with comics oyu need to know id it is the Overstrret wizard or CGC scale the grader is dealing with. CHRIS

[blowout]

,,,,,if it is a book for your girlfriend why did you want a NM+..............

.................surely a VF would have done...............

 

........or is she gonna bag and board it after she's read it..............

[blowout]

..........i'll think you'll find it is much harder to grade a comic than a coin, far more variables to consider......................a standard across the board grading guide is a tough nut to crack.....................

[Rickdogg]

I wouldn't mind if the flaws were noted & if the correct grade was stated. I just wanted to let the guy know what was up so he would avoid selling as a NM again

[blowout]

..........well done........5 stars for you............

[greggy]

Come on Ricky! That books stays in your personal collection!

[chrisfuccione]

What I meant is there should be one grading standard for comics so there will be noconfusion one what standard that you are using. is the person using Wizard, Overstreet, or CGC standard? I am a coin guy so I do not know any thing about grading comics. how much diffrence is there between the grading standards? CHRIS

[blowout]

......the problem with grading comics is that there are so many differences of opinion on how much certain defects lower a given grade............for example a date/ store stamp on a book for some does not lower grade for others is considered a defect............

 

...threre is as much art as science involved in grading a comic book as asthetics are heavily involved, these factors and others, too many to mention here, mean that the 'industry' has been arguing over a standard system for decades....................

 

....it hasn't helped that cgc won't release their grading criteria, so a lot of their reasons for assigning one grade or another is anyone's guess...........

 

...the closest to an industry standard is that presented by overstreet, it is the most established system and the one most collectors use...............although the advent of cgc has confused the issue somewhat............

 

.....suffice to say, the guide presented in wizard is woefully inadequate...........

[chrisfuccione]

What is CGCs reasoning for not releasing thier standards? You then don't know what they mean when they say 9.0 or 9.2. CHRIS

[Guest]

Wizard isn't widely used by most serious collectors and dealers, Chris. When I negotiate and a 'guide price' is discussed, I assume it to be Overstreet.

 

And ricky, I think what blowout was asking was...

 

Did you bag it before you gave it to your girlfriend? We all need to promote safe collecting.

[blowout]

......the only way to figure it out is to compare books in the same grade and try to form a list of the number of defects allowable in each grade, this is not infalible.........even the most experienced graders cannot always predict what grade they will receive from cgc..............

 

....as to why they won't release their criteria..............you'll have to ask them that..........

[chrisfuccione]

I think I will on the ask CGC section.

[chrisfuccione]

I just gave them some backround on this post and asked them three questions.

 

1) why are Overstreet and wizard grading demands are listed and CGC's are not

2) whatare their grades

3) would it be esayer to have one standard like on the coin side.

CHRIS

 

[comicinvestor-migration]

I wouldn't hold your breath waiting for an answer.

[chrisfuccione]

But I asked!!!

[comicinvestor-migration]

If they do reply, here is the generic answer I predict:

 

We don't list them for competitive reasons, so a new comic grading company can't steal them and state they grade to CGC standards.

 

Here's the real reasons:

 

1) Their grading standards have evolved over time, and will continue to in the future. So what's written down today may well change tomorrow.

 

2) Lawsuits. A big-money collector may not like the CGC 8.5 his valuable book received, so armed with a set of grading standards, off to court he goes.

 

3) CGC doesn't have hard-and-fast standards that are adopted by 100% of graders. This would fit well with how experienced pros grade books.

[Rickdogg]

It surely did get a fresh bag n board To top it off I even put in one of the thick plastic holders