The 2 reputable thirdparty professional grading services both begin with c use the same scale, but not exactly the same criteria, but overstreet has collaborated with them for their newest grading guide. Vault grading provides grading, pressing, encapsulation, valuation, and screening services to comic book collectors. The company was founded by alec born and steve borock, the latter earning a reputation in the community while working many years at. Comic book grades are given to a book reflecting the quality of printing, storage, and upkeep of a particular book. The newest and second most popular comic book grading company. In this installment we will take a look at comic book certification services cbcs. Understandably, a high grade book is the most desirable book for any collector. Certified guaranty company, also known as cgc, is a sarasota, florida comic book grading service. Discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor to moderate soiling is allowed. Professional comic book grading eliminates concerns about grade misrepresentations by providing a professional assessment of condition and quality. Comic book submission cbgc provides the only easy to use, online comic submission form. Books that have been encapsulated and certified by an objective thirdparty grading service take the guesswork out of the grading process for both collectors and dealers. Ill post part 2 to show what these come back evaluated as.
A spine split of up to 23 the length of the book, a missing back cover provided the front cover is still attached, severe water damage or residue damage. Comic book grading basics what you need to know by admin on thursday, october 15th, 2009 4 comments the grade or condition of a comic book is the most important determination of value outside of the actual title and issue number. Comic book grading labels collectors condition comic. Comic book hot picks for 3420, cgc comment and some new vintage pick ups duration. Who is the most reputable to help get the most value. Our company has sat well over 600 world record prices selling vintage comic books at auction. One area we focused on is the way you submit comics and access your account information. Comic book grading company the affordable and reliable. Comic book grading learn the scale and how to apply it. A couple of minor flaws might be allowable, but no more. It is the first independent and impartial third party grading service for comic books the company was launched in early 2000 and has since gone on to become a notable part of the comic book collecting community. Comic book grading has evolved over the past several decades from a much looser interpretation of standards in the beginning to the very tight professional scrutiny in use by the market today.
Comic grading company has a simple and affordable pricing structure without any clubs to join. Grading is an inherently subjective process and there will always be small differences in opinion. We need to emphasize, however, that not more than two of the above mentioned flaws can appear in the same comic. A brief video showing the 4 comic books im going to send off to cgc to have graded. Preventative restoration, widely used and accepted by collectors, consists of nonadditive restoration on a book with one or two major defects. Cover shows significant wear, and may be loose or even detached at one staple. A comic book in fr condition may have nonstory elements such as coupons, ad pages, or marvel value stamps cut or torn out of the book. Its only been within the last 15 years or so that the problem of bias in comic grading was amended, and it took the form of commercial grading. Dealers and graders may often disagree with some grading classifications.
We are a comic seller, comic buyer, grader and advisor and locator of rare comics. Useful for when you are unsure of the grade of a book or do not wish to grade the comic. With new expanded information, it remains the definitive reference for. Furthermore, every cgccertified comic book undergoes a thorough restoration check by leading professionals during the certification process. The primary reason to grade a comic is that there is a direct correlation between the condition of the comic and the value of the book. To my mind, the gap between your grading and cgcs grading is the biggest obstacle to the growth of your company. I think its fair to grade a book as if a mark like that is not there, then state the condition, but also state something like comic in vf condition, however there is a pen mark vc 15 front cover below hobgoblin, then the potential buyer can make up there own mind. Cream to offwhite paper that appears white or offwhite in the middle with aged outer edges, or exhibits an overall aged color that is more close to brown than white. Grading from australia cgc registry cgc comic book. Numerous collectors and comic fans will purchase coverless comics to either read or to obtain a filler copy of a book for their collection. A guide to grading the comic book price guide for great. I just want to get the most out of what is probably my best comic. With rare exception, comic books considered for the grade of 9. We are currently migrating data to our new system and conducting tests, and we are really excited for you to try it out.
When restoration is detected, it is fully noted on the certification. You then hand the book over to them, and it gets sent off to be graded. Pgx was created to meet the growing demand for professional, thirdparty comic book grading. We are proud to provide certification and grading services for collectors and hobbyist in the comic book industry. This book may range anywhere from poor to near mint and there is no obligation to clarify its condition. In recent years, grading criteria have become even tighter, especially in silver and bronze age books, due to their higher survival rate. Special thanks to our comic grading advisor steve borock, president of cbsc comic book certification service, former heritage auctions consignment director and former cgc presidentprimary grader. A highly consistent, descriptive and illustrated extensively grading guide on the web which will be a free service to the collecting community. When grading a comic book, the first thing youll see is the cover. Even professional grading services like cgc, cbcs, and pgx acknowledge that the same book may not always receive the same grade if it is. Comic book grading is the process of determining the grade or condition of a book, which directly influences its value.
These records are from an impartial 3rd party source gp analysis. Were sorry but doesnt work properly without javascript enabled. How to grade your comics comic book grading labels. As longtime users of nostomania know, the value of a comic depends strongly on grade. Types of damage that place a comic in fr range include.
Grading standards are based on the standards laid out in the overstreet grading guide with additional experience gained from our years in the comic industry. Hey russ, some of the information you posted is incorrect. Some comic book stores even have authorized vendors who can send your books in for you. As with grading all collectibles, there is a degree of subjectivity as there are many factors to consider and all of them must be weighed to determine an overall grade. You can ship it to them or take it to a convention where they will be at and they will tell you what grade it is considered to be. The most difficult, contentious and eternally frustrating aspect of comic collecting is grading.
Books that are coverless, but are otherwise complete, will receive a grade of 0. Therefore being able to correctly determine the grade of a comic is an important skill for buyers and sellers alike. There are grades in between these basic grades such as finevery fine, but we want this to be a general easytofollow comic grading guide for the novice. Grading is the term used for the assessment of the condition of a particular comic book. Gp analysis lists us as a cgc the comic book grading authority online auction firm. I have been a comic book fan, collector, publisher pocket comicsmars attacks 1988 and graphic artist for years necessity is the mother of invention.
Cgc comics guaranty company is a business that will grade your comic book for you, for a price. We closely monitor and calibrate our staff to maintain adherence to our established standards. The two main methods of describing an overall grade are numerical, and symbol. Cgc is an independent member of the certified collectibles group of companies. The higher the grade of a comic book the higher the value. That way, anyone can compare their raw or slabbed books to consistent grading standards. Then, they will put in a protective sleeve and seal it. Therefore, mcg is acting both as a grading unit for mcb and trying to fill a void in both affordability and availability in the world of comic book grading.
Egs european grading service halo certification pgx professional grading experts vault 60 day comic grading mcg midwest comic grading. Specialising in back issues and finding that sought after comic, we have a large world wide base of customers and contacts through being in the comic. Pgx also offers a comparable service and directly competes with cgc in the comic book grading market. Theres a widespread belief that cbcs consistently grades higher than cgc. We accept payment made by credit card, personal check, money order or we can send you an invoice via paypal using your paypal email address. Grading of comics can be subjective, although there are basic agreed upon standards within the industry. To grade a comic, you need to take in to consideration a number of factors before being able to assess the correct grade. One of our goals for the new website is to offer an easier online experience for our customers. A european agent for cgc comics with full advice on submitting your comics and handling the complete service. Every comic book certified by cgc is graded by the most experienced and trusted team, according to wellestablished grading standards.
There is a numeric system which corresponds to a titled grading system. Every comic book certified by cgc is graded by the hobbys most experienced and trusted team, according to wellestablished grading standards. While a casual collector might not need to bother, its vitally important to have your comics graded if you ever plan to sell them, because the value of a comic varies widely depending on the grade it receives. Take a close look, ideally with a magnifying glass, and make careful notes of any apparent damage, including. When you are searching for a comic book, you need to know how to spot a high grade book. The online form will allow you to easily submit any number of comics, and then you can print a copy of the form to be included in your shipment. The comic book grading companies will offer witnesses, so a representative from the grading company will stand with you as you get a book signed. For books that have a signature witness, they are sealed with a special label. All professional graders, whether grading coins, currency, or comics are charged with placing your items under a microscope see logo to determine their condition and therefore value. In this part two of four in the graders notes article series, we will explore high grade comic books and the graders notes from cbcs for those books. And in some instances even a second flaw can drop a. Our staff of friendly and dedicated employees offer over 250 years of experience in the comic book market place, and look forward to assisting you.
For collector and dealer alike, it is essential to grade the condition of a comic fairly and accurately in order to determine its true value and worth. When grading gets to fine, you start operating on a point system. Grading your comic books guide revel in the detail. This is intended to be a basic guide so that you have a general idea of the grade of your books for pricing purposes. This collectibles shop page has the standard 10 point grading scale and definitions, as used in the overstreet guide. The ultimate upside to getting your comics cgc graded is that it greatly enhances the value of your comics if they are in really good condition. A comic must be relatively complete to be successfully restored.
Originally produced in conjunction with the first edition of the overstreet comic book grading guide, the owl or overstreets whiteness level card is a comic book grading tool used to evaluate paper color on the reverse side is the one or overstreets numerical equivalent card, which translates the traditional letter grades into their equivalent values on a 100point numerical. I got tired of using standard labels, cutting, taping, searching, and wasting time. Effective with the 4th edition, published in 2014, the overstreet comic book grading guide has been retitled as the overstreet guide to grading comics, and has been published in a new larger format. Of course it would depend on the overall condition of the book as well.
243 522 1060 137 1398 39 443 1532 512 112 1465 920 530 1080 145 539 145 1540 693 649 276 235 95 397 790 965 329 1434 1522 848 43 1397 175 151 703 156 94 419 61 1485 65 1241 1031 783 1237