Anyone with any exp. with comickeys?

[OldGuy]

find some hard evidence and maybe someone will want to listen.

 

I've wanted to listen for the last year, but all I hear is the same stuff over and over. "I know someone...", "I heard someone....", "A little bird told me...", My brothers uncles mothers aunts sisters best friend said...".

[fantastic_four]

Three of those people have already posted in these forums documenting the books they bought and the CGC grades they got in the past. Heck, one of them (comicparadox) posted in that newbie thread tacked to the top of this forum; that one's easy to find. Shuley was another, as was some guy with a forum name of "e1king" or something. That last guy I didn't talk to, he just posted about a Spidey 80 he got back from CGC restored, sent back for a refund, and saw up for sale on E-Bay less than 2 weeks later outside of the slab. He pasted a ton of e-mails from comic-keys where comic-keys said he had sent the Spidey 80 to some art restoration company who had told him the comic was unrestored, and that was the reason he broke it out of the slab and reposted it for sale on E-Bay. The other six people I'd have to ask permission to post their names and emails.

 

This has always been my posting style...I think you're getting caught up in Hammer's heated posts in response to mine.

[OldGuy]

I'm just curious to see if some of the people supporting Comic-Keys have bought from him?

 

Who's supporting him? Who here has recommended buying a comic from him? Now who has recommended not buying from him?

 

I don't need facts to support where I stand on this issue. The problem is that people that are saying what we should (or should not) do aren't providing facts.

[Illiterati-migration]

I love how you're not addressing Surgeon Richard's position. Don't you find it odd that never ONCE did he say they weren't restored? He just kept harping on if IF they come back with a purple label he'll give THOUSANDS OF DOLLARS back. He was willing to roll the dice with MY MONEY.

 

EXACTLY. He offered you a FULL REFUND. If some looney started backing out of a deal with me and started ranting the way you did, I would do the same thing: offer a refund. What else was he supposed to do?

 

"He was willing to roll the dice with MY MONEY." What the hell does that mean? Of course it's a gamble! Do you think he bought all the books he sells off the newsstands?? He buys books, he flips them. Why should HE pay for a resto check that YOU demand?? Do you demand this of all your sellers? This is too ridiculous and asinine for words.

[PovertyRow]

Two things, first of all.. on some of those nicknames for the East Coast guys

Second, I'm just curious to see if some of the people supporting Comic-Keys have bought from him? If not, their opinion bares just about as much weight as all the ppl claiming negative things about Comic-Keys. Either way this thread is very dumb, until someone who actually has BOUGHT a book from Comic-Keys and sent it in to be graded makes a post this is all heresay..

 

Brian

 

Have not bought from him but all I am supporting is Truth, Justice and a post McCarthy American Way.

[Illiterati-migration]

I'm just curious to see if some of the people supporting Comic-Keys have bought from him? If not, their opinion bares just about as much weight as all the ppl claiming negative things about Comic-Keys. Either way this thread is very dumb, until someone who actually has BOUGHT a book from Comic-Keys and sent it in to be graded makes a post this is all heresay..

 

Indeed, Murph. I'm just sick of these who pop on under several IDs and bash on Hammer and simply evaporate. They seem to think they're doing some sort of public service by trashing him, but it's really more annoying than anything. I mean, come on, who DIDN'T know that was a shill ID that started this thread?

[kellian1]

For the Record this isnt a shill ID, I am a legit newbie to this forum with a ebay track record of about 215 + and no negs, I just have nothing relevent to add to the conversation since I was directed to the past threads regarding the subject.

[murph0]

I'll see if I can win a book from him. We'll see what happens

 

Brian

[Foolkiller]

ugh... I don't know how comic-keys is such a discussed topic. I agree with everyone here who has asked for proof... now fantastic four has provided some marginal proof, and others here have rejected it. It sounds like the only way anyone will get sufficient proof is to get an actual person who bought a book on the board, have him say it was restored and that comic keys wouldn't make good on the refund. Otherwise, how why are we arguing about what is sufficient proof? As someone else noted, that would shut the door to this discussion.

[HooDeeDoo]

I've wanted to listen for the last year, but all I hear is the same stuff over and over. "I know someone...", "I heard someone....", "A little bird told me...", My brothers uncles mothers aunts sisters best friend said...".

 

There's one little problem, Surgeon Richard doesn't WANT you to know who he's selling to - THAT'S why he has private feedback. What other RATIONAL reason would there be for him to keep his buyers' identities a secret.

 

There are many of you who are tired of this topic. However, there are many of us who are tired of Surgeon Richard's business practices. Often, as people (as oppossed to other vertebrates) we just want a problem to go away rather than actually getting to the bottom of it and fixing the problem. That's what going on here. "Oh, we've talked it to death! Can we PLEASE change the subject?!?" Talk talk talk. It's like the UN for heaven's sake! If we TALK about Saddam long enough maybe he'll just go away.

 

Whether you like it or not, there ARE people who would like to get to the bottom of this yet the French among us just want the topic to go away and let Surgeon Richard continue with his shenanigans.

 

Out of curiosity, just how many DOCUMENTED books must come back restored before Surgeon Richard is banished to the hinterlands? Or is it that he sells restored books, and when caught, refunds the money that makes it ok with you?

[Lofwyr]

I don't see what all the bashing is about. If Hammer (comic-keys) allows refunds then noone should be getting their panties all up in a wad. I'd say the criticism is completely justified if he was using several fly-by-night accounts on ebay to pawn off his wares or if he was selling "hi-grade" out of the back of a pickup ;p. The fact is he maintains an ebay account with a lot more positive than negs. He also has a presence here to reply with his detractors.

 

Just my 2 cents as a casual observer.

 

[aardvark88]

I thought Supapimp's angry post from week's ago would have helped solve the controversy.

[fantastic_four]

It sounds like the only way anyone will get sufficient proof is to get an actual person who bought a book on the board, have him say it was restored and that comic keys wouldn't make good on the refund.

Every single one of those nine people I referred to with the restored books got a refund from him if they asked for it. He wouldn't have lasted long on E-Bay by not giving refunds. I'm not sure whether they all asked for refunds or not, but I remember most of them did.

 

The problem is the 90% of people who don't get a professional restoration check. Of those 90%, I'd say far less than 1% of them can detect restoration.

[lighthouse]

I swore I wouldn't post in this thread again, though I was quick to mark it as a 'favorite' just for the entertainment value...

 

But as far as folks looking at small pieces of evidence and thinking they have the ability to extrapolate the big picture, think about this:

 

You buy a supposedly NM ASM 18 from comic-keys. You get the book in, you're happy with it. You send it to CGC and it comes back 9.2 Blue Label. You figure 0.2 is well within the margin of grading error. You are ecstatic about your purchase. You decide to bid on a NM- FF 6 comic-keys has listed. You get the book in, it looks beautiful, you send it to CGC. It comes back 9.4 Blue Label. You practically soil your drawers you are so happy. You decide to bid on a NM- ASM 12 he has listed. You win, get the book, and send it to CGC. It comes back PLOD. You frantically email comic-keys. He gives you a refund in less than a week. No hassles. You bid on a NM X-Men 3 he has listed. You win, it comes back 9.2 Blue Label.

 

You hear these rumors that comic-keys is cooking his books... You see random people warning you to stay away from his auctions. Do step up to refute the claims? I don't think so... I think you keep your mouth shut and be happy that there is less competition for the books you are bidding on. You don't tell your friends you buy from him. You don't talk about it on online forums. You sit back and be happy with the great books you are getting...

 

I'm not suggesting this story is my own personal experience, or anyone elses for that matter... but it fits the facts just as well as any other story I have seen on this forum... People wonder why comic-keys doesn't have all these great testimonials... Yeah, whatever... Does Donut reveal his sources for 30c variants? Does silverandbronze reveal his recent source for 35c variants? Do I point everyone toward my source for HG Bronze romance books? NO... NO... and NO.... When you find a good thing you keep it to yourself. That's human nature... You find the hot girl down the street that wants to play doctor, you don't tell ANYONE...

 

If I'm one of comic-keys best customers, and I am getting gorgeous books at great prices, I am keeping my mouth shut... it's that simple... I think we've got four blind men describing an elephant here. And while I don't doubt that each opinion is valid, it's foolish to think that your conclusions are the only ones that fit the evidence...

 

And I gotta tell you... a thread has degenerated to a whole new level when MajorKhaos is the voice of reason...

[Illiterati-migration]

Out of curiosity, just how many DOCUMENTED books must come back restored before Surgeon Richard is banished to the hinterlands? Or is it that he sells restored books, and when caught, refunds the money that makes it ok with you?

 

Two things:

 

1) How many books have you purchased from him? Zero? Shut yer whinehole.

 

2) He REFUNDS THE MONEY. That's FINE by me. He deals a LOT of hard-to-find books. If a few of them are restored, that's pretty much par for the course, in my opinion. Like I said, he didn't buy them off the rack, how is he going to know if they're restored? At least he has a refund policy.

 

And comparing Koos to Saddam? Are you really that dim? Best to quit while you're... wherever you are.

[clobberintime]

The funny thing about this argument mr. newbie is that you have been hearing from/arguing with some of the most thick-headed and stupid people you could find anywhere on this planet. So forget it! The other funny thing is that none of them including and especially major could afford to or even try to buy the types of books in question. I enjoy Meth/Hammer on these boards and have done biz with him and this is in no way meant to address the validity of accusations against or about him - how is that for a legal disclaimer?

[Illiterati-migration]

The other funny thing is that none of them including and especially major could afford to or even try to buy the types of books in question.

 

ROFL and you would know this how? Please Clob, enlighten us. We could all use a good laugh.

[lighthouse]

There's one little problem, Surgeon Richard doesn't WANT you to know who he's selling to - THAT'S why he has private feedback. What other RATIONAL reason would there be for him to keep his buyers' identities a secret.

 

Sir, Steve Borock has vouched for you, so I feel obligated to give you substantially more respect than I would a random newbie, but this statement is asinine...

 

EVERY serious dealer keeps his buyer's identities a secret as much as humanly possible. Metropolis didn't go around telling the world which books they sold to Nic Cage, or they wouldn't have sold him many books at all. Yes, a certain amount of information winds up being public. But if I spend $3K on a book from you tomorrow, I both expect and demand that you do your best to protect my privacy. And if you choose to ignore that, it will be the last business we do.

 

I am not commenting directly on comic-keys feedback profile here, just your general statement... Maintaining customer privacy is a paramount goal for any serious antiquities dealer...

[kellian1]

Is there anyway to close this pandora's box I unwittingly opened?

 

Maybe the magic sumo will work

[murph0]

Wow...the words "magic" and "sumo" together in one sentence.. Never thought I'd hear that one.

 

Brian