Raw Or Slabbed 3 3

[bob jr]

Edited

Edited August 24, 2021 by bob jr

[Qalyar]

For books I don't intend to own forever, whatever is optimal for market value and liquidity.

For my personal collection, I prefer slabbed books. I've got the room to keep them, so that's not a problem. I like how they look, both individually and in that they give the collection a unified appearance. Not all the books I collect are, strictly speaking, worth slabbing, but I'm not ever selling them, so that's an issue just between me and my purchase fund.

[BigLeagueCHEW]

On 8/24/2021 at 8:03 AM, oakman29 said:

Yes you can.

I know you can, yo da man! 

[boppy99]

I don't have any slabs, nor do I want them.

I like books you can read every now and then....

[spracknetch23]

Ideally, I prefer raw. In a slab, it’s like you just have a picture of the book. I’ve owned 3 copies of ASM 3, all slabbed.. so I’ve never actually looked through the book. 
I do like slabs for their protection and ease of resale. Basically if it’s worth over $1k I feel better with it in a slab (the recent price hike makes me think about slabbing some of my raws which have gone crazy..ASM 14, 50, DD1, etc.. especially with a kid/pets in the house). 

[D84]

I have bought slabs because in some cases, that's the only way to find some golden age books.

Once they are in my home, it's cracked out and put in a mylar.

There is something about the tactile experience of thumbing through an 80 year old comic that no reprint can replicate.

And since I don't care about the value of a book after I've bought it, a slab is no better than a framed picture of the cover.

[piper]

Slabs for books over $500

[alwaysbronze]

for slabs i look for the old old labels or the old new labels. with ccs and the relative ease and affordability of pressing, i feel like most slabbed books these days in the new new labels have been pressed.

[jas1vans]

 

[Amazing Cider-Man]

I do prefer slabs for Bronze and Modern books that have potential to rise in value unless they're already crazy priced. I'll buy the occasional Silver slab if I don't already have it and it presents well in a lower grade. BUT when it comes to the majority of Silver I prefer raw. I have a lot of F/VF Silver that looks great especially to the average person. I think it's human nature to look at a comic over 50 years old with very forgiving eyes, especially my friends and family who don't collect and think they're all mint because they're so old and not mangled. I also like not having the stigma of a grade possibly limiting my enjoyment because some company dissected every single nuance and found something under a microscope.

[kav]

Slaw

[valiantman]

On 8/24/2021 at 2:35 PM, boppy99 said:

I don't have any slabs, nor do I want them.

I like books you can read every now and then....

Slabbed copy, plus reader copy.

Problem solved.

[Tony S]

On 8/24/2021 at 7:22 AM, BigLeagueCHEW said:

Only thing with Raw is you can't tell if it is restored and page quality.

 

On 8/24/2021 at 10:03 AM, oakman29 said:

Yes you can.

I do not believe "yes you can" applies to many collectors.  I CPR a lot of books and apparently - based on the results - page quality is a guestimate by CGC that varies widely.  As for restoration, small amounts of professional restoration is beyond the abilities of most of us to detect.  I have a lot of experience in the hobby and detecting trimming is way beyond my skill set. I send in books I suspect trimming and all is good. I send in books that look fine only to learn the top edge of the cover has been trimmed. 

There is a reason that "I like my high dollar books to be professionally graded and encapsulated" is the most common answer. Most of us need a bit of help...