CGC 9.8 grades notes 2 2

[marmat]

Do you have any?

[Lightning55]

On 3/15/2023 at 5:33 PM, marmat said:

Do you have any?

I haven't had grader notes on 9.8's, but I have seen people mention that they had notes on some. Usually noting some manufacturing defect that was to be allowed for.

[Axe Elf]

• severe awesomeness to front cover
• 3mm sparkle on top staple
• negligible stuff back cover

[Tom789]

I have one 9.8 I got back that has a grader note.  Paraphrasing - "very light spine stress lines".

[JRTownsend]

What I really hate is no notes on lower grades. In the 80s I bought a lot of comics, bagged and boarded them and never read them. Never touched them until recently sending them off and for example I got a 9.2 on one recently. The comic had never even been opened to look at until the grader did. How on earth is it a 9.2? I admit I am not a grader but I have been in the comic book collecting for about 40 years. I've sent other similar books off and gotten 9.8s. Why can't they explain what they see that drops a book several grades? I personally saw nothing and thats why I picked it to send off, pages where white, corners crisp, nothing missing, no creases of any kind, not misaligned, not rolled, not bent, not dirty, nothing. Is that why there are no notes? They don't see anything either?

I've sent off I think about 25 to 30 books. None have notes. Ranging from 9.2 to 9.8. 

Edited March 28, 2023 by JRTownsend

[Axe Elf]

On 3/28/2023 at 2:58 PM, JRTownsend said:

I personally saw nothing and thats why I picked it to send off, pages where white, corners crisp, nothing missing, no creases of any kind, not misaligned, not rolled, not bent, not dirty, nothing.

That was probably before it went through the Finger Bender and the Spine Ticker.  Maybe you accidentally added Water Spritzing to your order?

[revat]

its rare but happens.

hope that helps?

[BigLou2]

On 3/28/2023 at 2:58 PM, JRTownsend said:

What I really hate is no notes on lower grades. In the 80s I bought a lot of comics, bagged and boarded them and never read them. Never touched them until recently sending them off and for example I got a 9.2 on one recently. The comic had never even been opened to look at until the grader did. How on earth is it a 9.2? I admit I am not a grader but I have been in the comic book collecting for about 40 years. I've sent other similar books off and gotten 9.8s. Why can't they explain what they see that drops a book several grades? I personally saw nothing and thats why I picked it to send off, pages where white, corners crisp, nothing missing, no creases of any kind, not misaligned, not rolled, not bent, not dirty, nothing. Is that why there are no notes? They don't see anything either?

I've sent off I think about 25 to 30 books. None have notes. Ranging from 9.2 to 9.8. 

same with me no graders notes! and never been cracked open I often buy 2 copies of everything so I can read 1 and the other I save to send off later Ive done that since i started collecting in the 90s.

[Mgc015]

 

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by Mgc015

[Lightning55]

They DO exist!!!

[Mgc015]

I had another one earlier too. 

 

Edited April 11, 2023 by Mgc015

[rexinnih]

Interesting. I've never received grader notes on 9.8's. 

[MAR1979]

seems to me with content of those graders notes the book's are 9.6's mislabeled as 9.8

 

[Axe Elf]

On 4/10/2023 at 6:29 AM, MAR1979 said:

seems to me with content of those graders notes the book's are 9.6's mislabeled as 9.8

 

9.6s would be the same, but with all the "very"s removed.

[Tec-Tac-Toe]

I once received CGC 9.8 grade notes. If I correctly recall, they read "this book sucks."

[Lightning55]

If I see the term "breaks color ", there's no way to give it a 9.8. To break color, something had to crease enough to crack the ink or weaken the paper fibers, and then fold back to its original position. Another word for color breaks - damage.

I don't want a damaged 9.8.

[Axe Elf]

On 4/10/2023 at 4:57 PM, Lightning55 said:

I don't want a damaged 9.8.

If it wasn't damaged, wouldn't it be a 10.0?

[Lightning55]

On 4/10/2023 at 10:35 PM, Axe Elf said:

If it wasn't damaged, wouldn't it be a 10.0?

No.  Not everything wrong with a comic is damage.  Paper is a fragile thing, so some almost-invisible spine tics, manufacturing defects like fluffy corners due to poor cutting, etc. keep it out of 9.9 or 10.0 without being actual damage that occurred post-production from handling.  Color-breaking creases, not a 9.8 or higher.

We're apparently already giving a pass to "very light spine stress lines" and "light wear to cover", or both on the same book, to still arrive at a 9.8.  My point is that if something breaks color, it is from active wear or an "accident".  That should keep it out of 9.8. 

If there are non-color breaking defects, like faint spine tics, that could be allowable in 9.8, if not too obvious, or not an entire herd of them.  I could see a comic out of the stapling and folding operation like that, no one's fault, luck of the draw, give it a 9.8.  Bigger stuff, no.

[Axe Elf]

On 4/10/2023 at 11:22 PM, Lightning55 said:

No.  Not everything wrong with a comic is damage.  Paper is a fragile thing, so some almost-invisible spine tics, manufacturing defects like fluffy corners due to poor cutting, etc. keep it out of 9.9 or 10.0 without being actual damage that occurred post-production from handling.  Color-breaking creases, not a 9.8 or higher.

We're apparently already giving a pass to "very light spine stress lines" and "light wear to cover", or both on the same book, to still arrive at a 9.8.  My point is that if something breaks color, it is from active wear or an "accident".  That should keep it out of 9.8. 

If there are non-color breaking defects, like faint spine tics, that could be allowable in 9.8, if not too obvious, or not an entire herd of them.  I could see a comic out of the stapling and folding operation like that, no one's fault, luck of the draw, give it a 9.8.  Bigger stuff, no.

Just feels like CGC isn't making that kind of a fine distinction between when the imperfections occurred.

If there are no imperfections, it's a 10.0.  If there is the tiniest noticeable imperfection possible, then it's a 9.9.  Another slight imperfection, 9.8.  Etc.

I may be wrong, but you seem to be drawing a distinction that (while perhaps reasonable) CGC does not observe in practice.

[Lightning55]

The key is how you define "slight imperfection". 

A defect that breaks color is not slight.  There are things that are slight imperfections.  You can bend a cover page, which is a bad thing, and have it definitely show as a bend, and not break color.  It's a noticeable imperfection.  If it's a 1/4" bend, that's pretty slight.  If it's a 3" mild bend, and still without a color break, not so slight, more like a moderate defect.  And these will likely press out.  If it breaks color at all, it got bent hard, no pass on that.  It's genuine wear and tear, and shouldn't be allowed in a 9.8.  Just my opinion, but I am sure many share that standard, or employ an even higher standard for 9.8's.

Same with spine tics.  Some are discreet, some are glaring.  Some are very tiny, less than 1/8", non-color-breaking.  You might even miss them at first inspection.  Some are severe, like you grabbed the top of the book and folded it down momentarily, cracking it right in the middle of the spine, bright white line showing.  It's a matter of degrees.

You do not expect to see a glaring defect, something that almost immediately catches your eye, in a 9.8.  Vague tiny defects, ok (or even maybe ok, maybe not, depends who you ask).  Color breaks are NOT that.

Edited April 11, 2023 by Lightning55