dm3

"I basically assume if you send 100 definite 9.8 copies of a single issue for grading, they'll gift you a 9.9 or two. This is why you'll see store exclusive sellers like JSC get 9.9 copies, but not your average pleeb. If they actually followed the rules, we'd be seeing a lot more 9.9s and 10s. Too many dilute the brand so to speak." Now this makes sense ;) Too bad. As a part time seller it would be nice to be able to sell raw copies that are actually 9.9s by the rules, but one can't do that because we know they won't get the 9.9. And a seller that states that they are 9.9s, even if telling the truth, is not selling what the buyer will get, if that makes sense ..... Making sense out of nonsense?

I see the actual 9.9 has an old label on it and it was sold in 2011 for 150k. That is over 10 years ago and perhaps the comic would be graded a bit differently now. I don't know if that book with a color breaking spine tick (stress line at mid-spine) and slight wear on top and bottom spine corners would get a 9.9. As the other comment stated it would be a coin toss depending on the grader, etc..... https://www.cgccomics.com/news/article/2049/

Yes a few. But worse there is a 1/3" scratch on the front cover. I would be lucky to get a 9.8 on this. No chance a 9.9.

Great Point. I need to get mine out of the box and take a look. I remember it being very clean but don't remember if it was scratched.

The CGC book does state this which fits into your analysis:) "....The print run for this issue [ASM #300] was much higher than Walking Dead #1, of which only 7,000 copies were printed nearly 15 years later. But because of its thicker cover, high quality printing and newer age, 21 copies have been given 9.9 out of over 3,000 submitted [This compared to ASM with only 10 9.9s out of 20,000 submitted]" They also mention Batman:Damned #1 in 2018, squarebound, that has over 600 9.9s out of a total of 3,000. So ratio of 1:5. I first noticed this with the Batman Killing Joke squarebound. The squarebounds are always clean and I assume just need to be centered well to get a 9.9 So you are on target, and it is a mystery why you did not get any 9.9s assuming the books are otherwise clean.....

Thanks for your reply. Ok. That is what I thought. They do mention the cover centering ("The cover must still [as a 10.0] be perfectly cut and well centered....") In the cover shot examples of 9.9 vs. 9.8 I see a difference but I am not sure if one is worse than the other. The 9.9: There is much less space between the upper edge and the Marvel Comics Group yellow banner on the top, when comparing to the 9.8. But ironically the 9.9 Marvel Comics Group banner looks a bit crooked relative to the top edge (less space on right edge vs. left edge) and I would say this is less well centered than the 9.8 example The 9.9s 25c price is a bit too far into the spine area and the 9.8 actually looks better. The problems with the 9.9 are listed as "very slight wear top and bottom and one small color breaking stress line mid spine" Since it has a color breaker that should have excluded this from 9.9 but I assume since there were no other bends or stress lines, they substituted the single color breaker for that. The problems with the 9.8 are "two very small color breaking stress lines. Very slight wear beginning to show at corner tips." So the two stress lines threw this copy out of 9.9 which I can understand. The 10.0 criteria does mention that printing defects will exclude a comic from this grade, so I can understand the lack of 10.0s. I do think the centering issue on the 9.9 is quite obvious and should have knocked that copy down to 9.8 according to these grading standards. It is not "perfectly cut" IMHO The example copy is Incredible Hulk 181. As you know there a no 10.0s and only 1 9.9 in the census. (the 10.0 that they picture I assume is photoshopped and it does look perfect) I suppose this is all a moot point because at these grades things are so subjective....

hi all I just received my copy and I like the book but have a very basic question. Like many here, I was interested in learning about the differences between a 9.8, 9.9 and 10.0 relative to CGC grading standards (not overstreet, etc....) In the area of spine stress, on page 274 it states that a 9.9 can have one small non-color breaking bend (not crease) in the cover, as well as one non-color breaking spine stress line This was surprising news to me in terms of CGC grading standards (not overstreet, etc.) On page 228 on the topic of stress lines it states that a 9.9 can exhibit only a couple of tiny non-color breaking stress lines (and I assume these can only be seen under a high glare raking light, and they mention this. I always use a raking light.) On the same page it states that a 9.8 can have one or two (it is inferred they are tiny) stress lines that break color. I have seen many 9.6s that have this. My question pertains to the 9.9s and 10.0s: We have all had comics that even under a raking light show no stress lines at all along the spine (and no apparent other defects as well) that get a 9.8 and it is often a mystery which defect(s) knock it down from the 9.9 (or even 10.0) grades. Does anyone have any comments on this ? I would think that many of my comics as well as others on this forum would be getting at least some 9.9s given the looser than expected grading standards above. Is it because the modern comics are held to a much higher standard (and if so why not state that)? Also the same page 228 mentions that these non-color breaking tiny stress lines can be pressed out (which they can), which makes the lack of 9.9s and 10.0s even harder to understand. Most of us get these pressed out. There is one GA 10.0 comic out there. There is a thread on that comic below. It is an interesting 2018 thread in which the same question is posed "Has CGC ever given a useful explanation of what qualifies a 10.0 above a 9.9 or quite frankly why either is better than 9.8?" It is also interesting that there are 19 9.9s from GA (and perhaps a few more since 2018).

Thanks @newshane The ozone machine doesn’t ship to my area. I guess it’s state regulation. Regarding the odor absorbing bag, I might try this. I’m going to try leaving the book outside in the sun for a while (not something you’d want to do with a comic book )

We contacted the publisher and will let you know.

Eureka.....they have a digital version that’s close enough!

Thanks. I’m going to find out if they have digital. The only comic I’ve ever had a similar issue with was Black Hole hardcover by Charles Burns. Heavy black accents in his artwork throughout.

Hi All This is a bit off topic. I am a long time comic book collector but this has to do with a non-comic book. The book is a reference book and i ordered it new from the publisher but has a very very intense ink smell that i am allergic to (stuffy nose, red eyes, headache, etc). Is there any way to rid the book of this smell?. I have read that baking soda can get rid of a mold smell (put it in an enclosed box with a lot of baking soda for a few days or a week) but this is the ink in the text, and it is entirely black ink and very very dense text. And i am not sure even if the smell is gone that the allergic reaction will be any better, because it is the ink itself. The book is indispensable as a reference. I don’t think i can find a replacement from another publisher with the same quality of content. It is far more intense than a newspaper ink smell. Are there any restoration experts that have been able to rid books of the intense new published book ink smell? Any services available for this type of thing? thanks for any assistance.