CGC- Explain how Black Flag unreleased books already have identical census and only 10s? 3 3

[OJ Pimpson]

The implication of this so incredibly damning. On a fundamental level it completely undermines any credibility this company has. Don’t think I’m going to renew next month and I’m strongly considering a request to send back my books for the Lee signing if it’s possible. 

[Gatsby77]

Is it possible to do 9.9 pre-screens?

[JJ-4]

On 8/11/2022 at 3:32 PM, Gatsby77 said:

Is it possible to do 9.9 pre-screens?

Why not send in ten comics and get the guarantee package deal of one 10, three 9.9's, and six 9.8s?

[Dr. Balls]

The real answer is much too sophisticated and advanced for our pea-brains to comprehend - it would blow our minds to hear how it actually works.

[thehumantorch]

On 8/11/2022 at 3:47 PM, jaybuck43 said:

Mycomicshop doesn’t grade comics. There is no “guarantee”. Once it leaves their hands the grade is meaningless. But I do trust buying from them because if they sell you a VF+ that book is actually a vf+.

mycomicshop grades comics, they just don't encapsulate them.

[Dr. Balls]

On 8/11/2022 at 6:53 PM, thehumantorch said:

mycomicshop grades comics, they just don't encapsulate them.

And from my limited experience - they are generously conservative. They do have listings that say they graded the book, and some listing that do not say that. I actually look for MCS graded books only because I feel they have been at least looked at when placed on consignment.

Edited August 12, 2022 by Dr. Balls

[KPR Comics]

Where did you get the submission numbers from?

[jaybuck43]

On 8/11/2022 at 9:28 PM, KPR Comics said:

Where did you get the submission numbers from?

Census. They tally them up. Just took me a few minutes to add everything up.

[THE_BEYONDER]

On 8/11/2022 at 5:42 PM, Black_Adam said:

 

CGC and their current competition all seem to be going sideways. Maybe this will open the door for a new player to emerge...

Waitaminnit! Didn't Steve Borock just partner up with a company that currently grades thousands of comics and is renowned for their tight grading!? 

I’ve been thinking that SB knows more about the industry than anyone, and his exit from Voldy to MCS is a sign that the encapsulation market is in trouble.  I don’t see them opening a grading/encapsulation company.  I see them ushering in the return of raw books.

[jaybuck43]

On 8/11/2022 at 9:34 PM, THE_BEYONDER said:

I’ve been thinking that SB knows more about the industry than anyone, and his exit from Voldy to MCS is a sign that the encapsulation market is in trouble.  I don’t see them opening a grading/encapsulation company.  I see them ushering in the return of raw books.

I used to like Cgc because I knew what I was getting when buying online. If you go on eBay looking for a book no idea what you’re actually getting (heck I’ll admit I once sold a book missing a centerfold, my mistake, I missed it. Immediately refunded the buyer full amount plus return shipping). The beauty of what Cgc used to offer was great. I looked at the book and the label and I knew exactly what I’m getting. Now, who the heck knows! Hey it’s a blue label, just gotta run the cert number to find out if there’s any restoration they decided you only include in the locked behind registration grader notes (you can only access so many per hour!)

I know for me I’m looking for old label goodness now and only buying raws in person where I have a chance to inspect. Shame.

[awakeintheashes]

There are so many aspects of this drama that it’s going to need its own section of the boards before the weekend ends 

Edited August 12, 2022 by awakeintheashes

[wiparker824]

Very simple. 

step 1. Assemble pile of 10 frankenbooks

step 2. Grab 10 post it notes and a pen you’ll need these for step 3

step 3. Write 10 on one post it, 9.9 on 3 and 9.8 on 6 and put them randomly on the 10 books.

step 4. Go to ATM and withdrawal amount needed for choose your own grade tier at CGC

step 5. Package everything from steps 3 and 4 and drop off at CGC.

The idea is to make the 10 be a 1/1 ultra rare variant. A 9.9 be a 1/3 pretty rare variant, and make the 9.8’s the baseline. Make sure you get them all done ahead of release to the public this way it ensures you can sell your graded copies for maximum profit. 

[shadroch]

On 8/11/2022 at 5:57 PM, Dr. Balls said:

And from my limited experience - they are generously conservative. They do have listings that say they graded the book, and some listing that do not say that. I actually look for MCS graded books only because I feel they have been at least looked at when placed on consignment.

As far as I know, any raw book MCS offers has been graded by them. They don't allow consigners to assign a grade. It's either CGC, CBGS or MCS graded.

[Black_Adam]

On 8/11/2022 at 5:57 PM, Dr. Balls said:

And from my limited experience - they are generously conservative. They do have listings that say they graded the book, and some listing that do not say that. I actually look for MCS graded books only because I feel they have been at least looked at when placed on consignment.

I consign raws and every one is graded by MCS before being listed as a consignment. If you disagree with their grade you can have the comic returned or have it sent by them to CGC for grading and consignment upon return.

[KirbyTown]

On 8/11/2022 at 7:57 PM, Dr. Balls said:

And from my limited experience - they are generously conservative. They do have listings that say they graded the book, and some listing that do not say that. I actually look for MCS graded books only because I feel they have been at least looked at when placed on consignment.

All raw inventory and every raw consignment is graded in-house. Each category is handled by its own department and has its own grading track.

All consignment books are imaged, examined more than once, and assigned a number grade. Certain inventory comics might get similar treatment, but the bulk skip the scanning bed and receive a letter grade representing a range, like FN.

The MCS number-grading system is indeed conservative and is frighteningly consistent. Unlike CGC, you can actually discern a coherent grading system after submitting a few times. MCS scarcely assigns anything over a 9.4, and by scarcely I truly mean "almost never." Their grading competency is the reason that raw MCS hammer prices can match or beat the equivalent slabbed grade.

On 8/11/2022 at 8:34 PM, THE_BEYONDER said:

I’ve been thinking that SB knows more about the industry than anyone, and his exit from Voldy to MCS is a sign that the encapsulation market is in trouble.  I don’t see them opening a grading/encapsulation company.  I see them ushering in the return of raw books.

His departure was more about what MCS had to offer rather than what he was leaving behind. It's a pretty tight comic community in that city and SB wanted to wrap up his career on his terms, namely by working amongst friends while schmoozing with the community and brokering collections. He is certainly the best grading resource one could have on hand, but his realm is Consignments. Este is still there doing her masterful work while SB serves more as an outreach and convention guy.

On 8/11/2022 at 8:28 PM, KPR Comics said:

Where did you get the submission numbers from?

Check out cgcdata.com by ValiantMan. You can do research on individual books and check out various hot sheets. The coolest part to me is how you can compare data from two census dates and learn how many copies of any issue were slabbed during that interval. Seeing the throughput can change your perception of scarcity pretty quickly!

The census info also confirms a supply glut that will be affecting comics for as long as CGC is slabbing. Over eight million comics have been slabbed, and every passing week sees 40,000 comics arrive and 40,000 slabs ship out..

Edited August 12, 2022 by KirbyTown

[Ryan.]

On 8/11/2022 at 9:45 PM, awakeintheashes said:

There are so many aspects of this drama that it’s going to need its own section of the boards before the weekend ends 

There are many layers to this acetate comic drama, from the pull of YouTube personalities in the community to CGC grading bootleg comics as blue labels; however, to me, the biggest concern by far is the possibility that CGC is selling grades. If there's even a hint of that possibility it immediately invalidates their entire business model.

[jsilverjanet]

None of this is new

some people have been asking these questions for years 

also many people brought this up in the c2e2 drama thread as social media had posted those grades for the books previously asking the same questions the op is asking 

 

[Ryan.]

On 8/12/2022 at 6:51 AM, jsilverjanet said:

some people have been asking these questions for years 

No doubt but this is by far the most high profile and, potentially, the most damning.

[jsilverjanet]

On 8/12/2022 at 6:13 AM, Ryan. said:

No doubt but this is by far the most high profile and, potentially, the most damning.

Cheer up, the board white knights are going to save us 

[Ryan.]

On 8/12/2022 at 7:16 AM, jsilverjanet said:

Cheer up, the board white knights are going to save us 

I'll be at the Boston show today. If anyone wants to discuss life, philosophy and the meaning of acetate in today's society, come find me. I'll be the one in a t-shirt and wearing a backpack. Can't miss me.

Edited August 12, 2022 by Ryan.