PGM Giant Size X-Men 1 2 2

[FSQIV]

Thanks for taking a look and sharing your thoughts on a grade. The waves on the front/back cover really show up in the images. There's no sign of discoloration or obvious staining to cause the waves, so perhaps this is a good C&P candidate? And what's going on at the bottom of the binding?

[scburdet]

Square bound books are harder to press as I've been told. My guess is the location of the waviness is going to increase the challenge b/c the issue is not wanting to crush the binding, which is pretty delicate. I think the technique is to put some kind of space at the binding to protect it. I think 5.0 as is, a 7.0 as the upper limit if all pressable defects disappeared. 

[zzutak]

Doesn't this shot make it appear that some of the innermost leaves/wraps don't extend all the way to the spine?  Weird.

[KCOComics]

I think a good presser could help out that book allot. 

I'm going to say 5.0, but improvable. 

I would be curious to see if the pages at all attached at the staple? Or if they've been pulled out? 

[grendelbo]

About a 6.0 as is.

I don't want to speculate on what it'd be after a C&P. I'm not sure if all that waviness could be improved. If you do please update your photos and I'll take another look.

Thanks for posting.

[FSQIV]

Thanks, everyone, for your comments. The binding at the top looks much better and more like what you'd expect. The bottom staple caught every page, so at least nothing is loose, but yeah, not the best binding finish off the press.

[FSQIV]

I finally decided to have it graded, and it's back...........

I don't know if my photo lighting was especially unforgiving, or my defect close-ups were too close, or what, but needless to say I'm very happy it came back a 9.2 since I wasn't expecting that.

[scburdet]

Pressed I assume, but whom? and do you have photos of the book pressed before it was slabbed?

[FSQIV]

Of course, I neglected to mention that I did not go the C&P route.

[FSQIV]

I was reviewing C&P options, but didn't want to take the risk of the book being damaged and having its condition lowered.

[redgar-red]

Nice book and nice grade given the pictures that I see.  Seems very surprising -- the raw pictures and the slabbed pictures indicate some pressing.  The "blam" -- the crease at the top is definitely softer and the creases above and to the left of the Angel seem to be gone.  Not sure how the slight rip on the lower left corner didn't get picked up.  Super nice book!  Congrats on the grade, I just don't understand the grade and the pictures if you did not clean and press it.  

[FSQIV]

Here's the fascinating thing about the lower left rip.......I've seen another 9.2 with the same lower left issue of the cover tearing/ripping, so if that's an identified problem coming off the press, maybe the graders go easier on that as a defect, when considering the overall grade?

[ChiGuy65]

Seems very hard to believe the book in the pictures was submitted without a C/P and got a 9.2 tbh.

[scburdet]

These don't read like the Grader Notes of a 9.2. 

 

Grader Notes

fingerprints top of front cover
foxing full bottom of front cover
light indents, indent lines cover

[Hulksdaddy1]

[10centcomics]

I audibly gasped when I saw the grade. This was the furthest I've ever been off!

[Haljordanfan]

At least I now know the one I’m going to submit is a 9.9 or 10 candidate. 

[FSQIV]

Thanks, everyone, for your comments. Here's the back cover spine, post-encapsulation, which I think plainly shows the waves that were also there before sending it off. On the foxing, I've seen a lot of books with blatant foxing, but never caught it at the very bottom of this front cover. From what I've found on grading, the highest grade one could ever expect from an otherwise perfect book with the most minute foxing is a 9.4, so this as a 9.2 is certainly within the realm of possibility. Considering there are 200+ 9.2 GS X-Men out there, I'm still happy if mine ranks toward the bottom of the 9.2 grading class.