Is anyone else getting books back with warped inner wells? 25 25

[lollyclown]

On 9/18/2024 at 6:42 PM, 0r0d said:

You know what, this is why I felt safe sending my books there in the first place.  I've never graded books before in my life, not before this last year.  But I watch a lot of comic book YouTube channels and almost always I saw that when people made a video about damaged books, they also said that CGC ended up making it right by paying them for the damages or buying them a new book of the same grade.  So I felt that even though there's always a risk with sending books out to someone else to handle, grade, and ship back and forth, I wasnt worried.  That carried on to when I submitted and didnt feel the need to take "before" photos, and didnt inspect that closely when they came back.

So this is kind of my first and only experience with this company, and I certainly cant say much good about them since they just kind of screwed me by ignoring my claims that they damaged my books and then gaslighted me by saying that the bends are "acceptable" and my 1/4" color-breaking bend is ok in a 9.8.  

This is about how it was for me. This was the first year I submitted things to them and it was nothing but a nightmare aside for my first book. But that book guess what, it has the bends and spine ticks  so yeah four for four screw-ups. I only got monetary compensation after threatening to initiate a chargeback with my bank. Even had them tell me they processed a refund and I kept waiting for it to show up. After 5 days contacted the bank and they said nothing had been submitted that they could see on there end, and that 72 hours was the absolute most it would take. This came from a senior director. Contacted a regular CSR and they said there was nothing in the notes about my case about a refund, and they checked with their billing department would handle that sort of thing and there was no information that there had been any attempt or failure at sending one.

I sent her screenshots of the email to where it was promised to me, and based on that she processed the refund and I got it in about 30 hours.  I can only surmise that I was lied too, because immediately after she said she was giving me that refund she ceased communicating with me about any of my other problems, which is why I had to reach out to a standard CSR.

I think some of the big collectors who say they've had problems and have always been treated right may not be being quite honest about it, but since their business relies on cgc saying nice things about their customer service is in their best interest literally. When my book was lost I reached out to one of the larger resellers who has a weekly episode on YouTube and I was curious to see what kind of treatment they got and he said the exact opposite. He said he submits about 100 books a month or more and at this point he expects at least two damaged books and a lost book. Grade drops on books etc etc

That's what the average has been for him over the past 8 months. So he sends high ticket books in individually with max insurance on them. Imagine running a business and submitting your property to another business and just having to accept that you're going to lose money. People need to start switching elsewhere, that's the only way they will pay attention.

[electricprune]

On 9/18/2024 at 8:44 PM, Jibber82 said:

How is this still happening? Totally unacceptable. 😡 Just got the shipping notification for 2 books today. Checked the scans and sure enough two nice dents center spine. I took so much care in shipping my books 😪 and for what? The statement that this doesn't damage the book and thus affect resale value is insulting. 

 

 

Sorry this happened, and I agree with your last statement.

[mikenyc]

Not sure why people who are aware of the problem continue to submit books and then are shocked when the problem arises. 
 

If it’s a signature, which I assume is the only time or opportunity sensitive item, can’t you get it signed and then eventually have the signature verified and slabbed when this nonsense is corrected?

[ExNihilo]

On 9/18/2024 at 8:54 PM, mikenyc said:

can’t you get it signed and then eventually have the signature verified and slabbed when this nonsense is corrected?

Some people (like myself) don't like verified slabs.  We want true witnessed yellow slabs.  If you had a book signed and witnessed, it has to be submitted.

[RockMyAmadeus]

On 9/18/2024 at 9:39 PM, ExNihilo said:

Some people (like myself) don't like verified slabs.  We want true witnessed yellow slabs.  If you had a book signed and witnessed, it has to be submitted.

 

[RC64Buck_Comics]

Hi All,

Made an account to contribute to this discussion after I spent the entire year accumulating numerous ASM keys only to check last week and realize ALL of them have the banana bend, with a few of them developing spine ticks that weren't previously present. I bought them all secondhand and did not submit them, feeling really defeated and lost about how to proceed as I’m only noticing the issue a few months later. For now I am going to wait for solid confirmation that the issue has been fixed (surprisingly doesn't seem to be the case yet) before I even begin the uphill battle of fighting CGC on it.

 

Anyways, I want to share these pics to raise awareness because most people seem to believe this issue started late 2023 or even early/mid 2024. Here is a book graded way back in 2022 with a huge banana bend and corresponding spine ticks as well!! Clearly this is not a recent issue nor is it related to changes after the reholdergate scandal as many have previously implied. Cert # is 4167866012 for those who want to verify the grade date. Note that this cert number is way lower than previous estimates in this thread of affected slabs.

 

Edited 12 hours ago by RC64Buck_Comics
Pics in wrong order

[Stefan_W]

On 9/18/2024 at 11:54 PM, mikenyc said:

Not sure why people who are aware of the problem continue to submit books and then are shocked when the problem arises. 

Based on people I have spoken to in my area some dont care and others arent aware of the problem.

Those that do care stopped submitting until CGC irons it all out, which may have already happened. The outcome at the end, in my estimation, is there will be a backlog of books already as CGC figured stuff out that will be made much worse as a glut of submissions hits when people send in books they were holding. CGC will be a very busy place for a while. 

[Jibber82]

On 9/18/2024 at 11:54 PM, mikenyc said:

Not sure why people who are aware of the problem continue to submit books and then are shocked when the problem arises. 
 

If it’s a signature, which I assume is the only time or opportunity sensitive item, can’t you get it signed and then eventually have the signature verified and slabbed when this nonsense is corrected?

For CGC private signings you have to send the books to CGC by a specific date. They are then signed at CGC or another location, graded and mailed back. It's not a situation where you get it signed in person and can hold onto the book before submitting. 

[lollyclown]

On 9/18/2024 at 11:39 PM, ExNihilo said:

Some people (like myself) don't like verified slabs.  We want true witnessed yellow slabs.  If you had a book signed and witnessed, it has to be submitted.

Well I hope you don't end up wanting further signatures on a book that has this issue, because it's going to get a lower grade. Just like mine did, which I ended up selling because that damage bothered me so much.

[lollyclown]

On 9/19/2024 at 8:15 AM, Stefan_W said:

Based on people I have spoken to in my area some dont care and others arent aware of the problem.

Those that do care stopped submitting until CGC irons it all out, which may have already happened. The outcome at the end, in my estimation, is there will be a backlog of books already as CGC figured stuff out that will be made much worse as a glut of submissions hits when people send in books they were holding. CGC will be a very busy place for a while. 

The lame part is people are just waiting and are going to continue using this service. When the next thing happens, and it will, then everyone's going to be pissed and stop submitting for a few months and then start up again which is exactly what cgc relies on. The biggest reason is because competitors grades don't command the same market price, but that's a catch-22 because they don't command the same market price because people don't use them because they don't command the same market price because people don't use them etc etc etc. If people started using them and posting pictures of them on social media it would cause a shift. If people didn't put them up for sale at a couple hundred bucks or whatever lower by default because they assume it won't sell as much, that would help. People put up competitor slabs and just immediately put a lower price on because they assume that's all that's going to work. Maybe they should try not doing that.

[lollyclown]

So I found a fix for stopping the bending issue for recently slapped books before it starts the spine ticks. This got reholdered a few weeks ago and has the bend but the ticks hadn't begun. You could see the stress starting around the staples though. I really wanted to figure out a way to stop it because this book could actually grade a 9.8. it just has some minor indentations on the back that could be pressed out, but the person who owned it before me didn't pony up the extra 15 or 20 bucks for a pressing when they submitted it. Anyway the fix is pretty simple and you just need a few tools and watch a minute and a half long tutorial on YouTube if you've never done it before. The tools are basic. A screwdriver and a scissors. I also used a hammer to give the screwdriver a little tap in. But here's how it looks basically. It's a revolutionary fix for a common problem!

 

Vintage yellow table not required, but recommended.

Edited 7 hours ago by lollyclown

[Stefan_W]

On 9/19/2024 at 10:19 AM, lollyclown said:

The lame part is people are just waiting and are going to continue using this service. When the next thing happens, and it will, then everyone's going to be pissed and stop submitting for a few months and then start up again which is exactly what cgc relies on. The biggest reason is because competitors grades don't command the same market price, but that's a catch-22 because they don't command the same market price because people don't use them because they don't command the same market price because people don't use them etc etc etc. If people started using them and posting pictures of them on social media it would cause a shift. If people didn't put them up for sale at a couple hundred bucks or whatever lower by default because they assume it won't sell as much, that would help. People put up competitor slabs and just immediately put a lower price on because they assume that's all that's going to work. Maybe they should try not doing that.

I think it may be helpful to shift perspectives a bit. Yes, CGC slabs sell for more and that is a factor. The fact that people like to maximize investments is not a shocker. But in terms of why many people are hanging on, it is also useful to consider that those people would already be using the other existing grading services if they wanted to do so. Those companies have been up and running for a while. So the reasons why a lot of collectors were not using the existing competition to begin with have not gone away. 

My own feel based on the circle of people that I speak directly to is that if PSA was up and running more people would have jumped ship there to give them a try. It makes sense since I suspect a lot of people will try them out either way. But waiting for a half year, or year, or whatever after any delays they encounter, is not appealing. They will get their shot but it wont be free business like it would be now if the comic grading part was already operational. 

[miraclemet]

two books back from CGC today... both with the bends. 
I've got another 30 at Grading and Encapsulation... will they all end up getting sent back? Lets see!

[ExNihilo]

On 9/19/2024 at 7:17 AM, lollyclown said:

Well I hope you don't end up wanting further signatures on a book that has this issue, because it's going to get a lower grade. Just like mine did, which I ended up selling because that damage bothered me so much.

For better or for worst, the books I've submitted (three) in this period are all sketch covers.  At least they're white covers so that should eliminate the possibility of color breaking.  Also, they're books going into my personal collection and I got them slabbed for the witnessed designation, not so much for the grade.  Obviously, the OCD in me would prefer a 9.8, but if it comes back a 9.6 it doesn't really matter.

[ExNihilo]

On 9/19/2024 at 7:19 AM, lollyclown said:

The lame part is people are just waiting and are going to continue using this service. When the next thing happens, and it will, then everyone's going to be pissed and stop submitting for a few months and then start up again which is exactly what cgc relies on.

People didn't stop submitting books when "paid grades" for retailers became a thing.

People didn't stop submitting books when AcetateGate happened.

People didn't stop submitting books when QC became non-existent.

People won't stop submitting books now.

It's honestly remarkable and mind boggling how resilient CGC's business has been given all the issues that have cropped up the last few years.  I haven't submitted for a blue label in years.  Now-a-days, the only thing I submit is for Signature Series and that's because I don't really have a choice otherwise.

[0r0d]

[lostboys]

I remember back in 2022 I bought a book that was bent in the slab.

It was a Ebay purchase and the seller argued with me for days about it.

Finally, I just escalated it and Ebay forced him to take the return.

 

Books should be flat in the slab.

 

[Richard Wysong]

On 9/18/2024 at 9:54 PM, mikenyc said:

Not sure why people who are aware of the problem continue to submit books and then are shocked when the problem arises. 

I submitted a book for a facilitated signature back in April... hopefully they don't slab it any time soon, but it's SFG so I doubt that 😔

[Yorick]

Updated label.  Sticker is a perfect fit!

[RockMyAmadeus]

On 9/19/2024 at 9:31 AM, ExNihilo said:

Now-a-days, the only thing I submit is for Signature Series and that's because I don't really have a choice otherwise.