Worth Pressing?

[Tnerb]

I have an Amazing Spider-Man, #129 graded by CGC. You would think the really cool thing about this comic book is, that it has the first appearance of not only the Punisher, but the Jackal as well, and although true, wrong. The special thing about this specific book is that I bought it in the late eighties as a teen and kept it in the condition I got it in. I used the onsite grading service CGC has at Wizard World Philadelphia back when it was same day. They originally graded the comic a 9.2 with white pages before I decided this was a book I desired to have signed by the man who created the title character. It was returned with a yellow label, highlighted by becoming a 9.4 but dimmed by the off-white to white pages denomination. I was curious as to why it changed and as I conversed with someone about it, he sensibly mentioned (whether it’s true or not) that the time spent encapsulated caused any imperfections to be pressed out; nothing was mentioned about the pages. Another signing allowed me to have John Romita’s signature added to Stan Lee’s. Having multiple signatures on a book does not increase any registry points, but could increase any potential financial value. I would like to add Gerry Conway, Ross Andru, or Gil Kane to make it a trifecta but unsure if any of that is remotely possible. I also wonder if this book could be professionally pressed into a 9.6 or a 9.8? And if that could increase, my registry points would increase as well. Another book I had pressed was a gift. It was previously pressed but I was curious. I have written about pressing before and am still questioning why this service is not considered restoration. I thought it would be amusing to see if it could be detected by a professional. I brought it to Wizard World Philadelphia to be pressed and graded. It was looked over and confirmed (not a guarantee) that the book could be pressed into a 9.8. Not once was I asked if this book was already pressed. Does this mean that restoration isn’t considered a restorative technique not because it isn’t, but because it cannot be detected as one.Thanks for ReadingTnerb

 

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[GamingEtc-migration]

Pressing isn't considered restoration because nothing foreign is added to the book, and I agree with this definition. There are some areas of restoration I don't understand though. For instance, if you were to tape a tear, it would not be restoration, but if you glue it, it is.

[asteroid-comix]

There is not a simple answer to the question. Some consider pressing to be restoration and some do not. CGC has not declared it to be restoration, hence the blue/yellow labels. Make up your own mind, letting your conscious be your guide, but always disclose so that others can as well.

 

As for the dealer that told you that the book was pressed into the plastic case and that's what caused the grade bump on the resubmission, that's not true.

 

Grades given by CGC are point in time and subjective opinion of the person grading the book at that moment. While they are fairly close (plus or minus a grade in most instances), grades can change on the same book, depending on the time of year and where (onsite/offsite) the book was submitted.

 

 

 

 

[jackowick-migration]

In a standard book, I think there's a lot of amateur pressing techniques that people could use, but I wonder (on a side tangent) if there's a way to press out/realign squarebounds? Some of these seem to get a little pull or twist to the alignment and the CGC holders don't seem to fix this all the time (I love when a squarebound comes in a standard holder, then another copy is in the "thick" slab holder... why???)

 

Tnerb, you're making me think I should resubmit one of my CGC SS Captain Americas now...

[Bomber-Bob]

Regarding the squarebounds, didn't the original bindery process use glue to attach the cover to the insides ? Other than flattening it out, not sure what effect pressing has on squarebound spines. I think a good press will make a book look better but I don't like the flattened out look I've seen on some squarebounds.

[Ronnylama]

I finally got this chat board working...yay. I know of some people who have even placed a book between two duct tape bound slabs of 12 by 12 granite tiles for a month or so and placed under their bed mattress and have found considerable success with this. I do think, though, a bit of heat pressing does not affect a book as far as I have heard. Creases diminish but any white marks will remain

[Ronnylama]

PS GO CHEWY

[asteroid-comix]

I finally got this chat board working...yay. I know of some people who have even placed a book between two duct tape bound slabs of 12 by 12 granite tiles for a month or so and placed under their bed mattress and have found considerable success with this. I do think, though, a bit of heat pressing does not affect a book as far as I have heard. Creases diminish but any white marks will remain

[bagofleas]

I will freely admit to to being un-knowledgeable on the whole pressing issue, but is there any possibility that the heat from pressing a comic might just cause page quality to decrease to some degree, especially if it's an older comic or if it's borderline between one level or another in page quality? Even if it might just be to the first page or last page or so? Just curious.