RockMyAmadeus

Those are both fantastic. Congratulations on finding two oddball rarities in one of the most celebrated series of all time.

I don't know how I forgot them...too many far more important things on my mind at the moment. I had them all ready to de-list on Monday, and blammo...right out of my head by yesterday, when they got relisted. I've ended about 400 "listings" so far, but they caught me with 76. Yay for eBay, making it that much more difficult for sellers!

In other words...the Qualified designation is not about telling which book is nicer than the other...it is about telling how much nicer it is.

You've misunderstood the point. Allow me to clarify: my examples were only to illustrate the principle; it wasn't (necessarily) about direct comparison of two (or more) copies to see which one has more eye appeal. In my examples, the answer is obvious (at least on the surface.) Yes, when you compare the two side-by-side, the difference in eye appeal is obvious...but HOW MUCH of a difference is not, and that's the point. The point is that I want to know that that 3.0 copy is in 3.0 shape, other than the clipped coupon. You're not comparing two books to see which has more eye appeal...you're looking for an estimate of the condition of the Qualified copy without the flaw. Without the Qualified designation, both of those copies grade .5, which tells me absolutely nothing about the general condition of the Qualified copy. Is it otherwise a 3.0? 5.0? 6.5? 2.0? Merely "looking" at the comic, especially in a picture, only gives me a broad assessment of the book's overall condition, aside from that one flaw. As has been said for nearly two decades here: you can't grade from a scan.

Ha! eBay got me. Wasn't paying attention, and they got 76 automatic relists out of me with their new "good til cancelled" policy on ALL BIN listings. How charming of them.

Where's the fun in that...?

If you change your avatar, people don't recognize you........

Was very pleased with these recent returns: Have a #14 6.0 I haven't scanned, and am looking to get #12, #19, and #20 to get the complete set. Thought the #15 was a touch better, but thrilled about #18. If I could get Wood and Everett Sig Series, I totally would...

That it's a scratch. Nothing can be done about color breaks, unless you want to go the restoration route.

The Punisher issues were smoking hot when I first started collecting. I have a special place in my heart for all of them.

Here's a good test for determining whether a printer's crease...especially for Silver, Bronze, and early Copper...existed before the press: Take a look at the back cover, in the exact same corresponding area. I mean the EXACT same area. Do you see a "mirror image" of that crease on the back cover? If so, then it happened in production. Now...that does not mean that,with such creases cannot exist on one side only. They can, and do, and are quite common that way. BUT...if you find it's "mirror twin" on the back cover, same size, same shape, same length...you can rest assured that it's a result of production. And yes...improper pressing can introduce what look like "printer's creases" onto the cover, but here's the interesting thing: due to the anatomy of most books (at least for books that aren't disassembled), such "introduced" creases are usually vertical, rather than horizontal. This paper is old and delicate. It cannot be forced into doing what some people try to do. Even paper will follow the path of least resistance, and you can create these creases very easily under the right conditions. Also a good idea to have before scans of everything that is worth something to you.

The old thread merely needs the derogatory comments deleted, and then be opened back up. Quick to lock...slow to delete. For the record, I don't live in my mommy's house, and haven't for 30 years. Neither her house nor mine are crumbling, and my two pups in my avatar have sadly been gone for 10 and 6 years, respectively. And that's about as accurate as all the other "accusations", from whomever. I'd like to know where this seller got all these copies of this book. None of the other books have shown up so concentrated like this, nearly 30 years after publication.

Added a whole bunch more. Some ending Tuesday! Thanks for looking!

X-Men #143, oddly enough, is a wonderful single issue story.