Some needed advice ladies and gentlemen! 1 1

[SushiX]

Some needed advice ladies and gentlemen!

What would you do in this case? A high grade book of your most wanted book or a lesser grade of most wanted book and one other book from your top 5? Any suggestions are appreciated ?

Edited May 26, 2017 by SushiX

[rjpb]

Need more information - relative grades and eye-appeal, difficulty of finding copies in general, and how good a deal each one is.

[SushiX]

Eye appeal is very good and all copies are very hard to find....grades I would like to keep secret because I'm sure others will know exactly what books they are and currently bidding on.

[telerites]

44 minutes ago, SushiX said:

Some needed advice great sirs!

What would you do in this case? A high grade book of your most wanted book or a lesser grade of most wanted book and one other book from your top 5? Any suggestions are appreciated ?

My tendency is go for more books as I am a completionist and work toward upgrades later.  There would be considerations though like brittle pages, trimming, some other restoration.  

And by the way, I am a sir but I think there are some pretty great females on the boards and some that frequent the GA forum.    I am an ERA supporter as you can probably tell. 

[SushiX]

15 minutes ago, telerites said:

My tendency is go for more books as I am a completionist and work toward upgrades later.  There would be considerations though like brittle pages, trimming, some other restoration.  

And by the way, I am a sir but I think there are some pretty great females on the boards and some that frequent the GA forum.    I am an ERA supporter as you can probably tell. 

It's fixed!  No brittle pages ow pages on all? I apologize to all the ladies! 

Edited May 26, 2017 by SushiX

[Pickie]

While the great sirs are out having drinks I'll chime in with my .

15 minutes ago, rjpb said:

Need more information - relative grades and eye-appeal, difficulty of finding copies in general, and how good a deal each one is.

These would be important factors for me too, especially the scarcity index, but if you'd like to go without, my answer is to scratch the two books off of your list. Here's why:

- One will never have the perfect collection in terms of condition so you might as well settle with a good/fine book.

- Some flaws are easily acceptable on books. One will see that when one's got them.

- It's much, much cooler to scratch the no. 1 off of your list AND another book from your top 5 than only the no. 1.

Good luck with your choice!

 

[Cat-Man_America]

1 hour ago, SushiX said:

Some needed advice ladies and gentlemen!

What would you do in this case? A high grade book of your most wanted book or a lesser grade of most wanted book and one other book from your top 5? Any suggestions are appreciated ?

That's easy, always go for the higher grade of a most wanted grail, otherwise you may regret the choice later.

If you think of it like a missed date and wondering what it would've been like with the one that got away, it's a much easier choice.  

Edited May 26, 2017 by Cat-Man_America
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[Sqeggs]

1 hour ago, SushiX said:

Some needed advice ladies and gentlemen!

What would you do in this case? A high grade book of your most wanted book or a lesser grade of most wanted book and one other book from your top 5? Any suggestions are appreciated ?

Knowing the details might sway me in the other direction, but from the info you've given, I would go with the high-grade copy rather than two lower-grade copies. 

[SushiX]

1 minute ago, Sqeggs said:

Knowing the details might sway me in the other direction, but from the info you've given, I would go with the high-grade copy rather than two lower-grade copies. 

Both books you can say are very hard to find and is getting up there in price.

[Sqeggs]

Just now, SushiX said:

2 minutes ago, Sqeggs said:

Knowing the details might sway me in the other direction, but from the info you've given, I would go with the high-grade copy rather than two lower-grade copies. 

Both books you can say are very hard to find and is getting up there in price.

That would probably reinforce my advice to buy the high-grade copy and wait to find another copy of the other book.

[Junkdrawer]

The first one that comes up, make a serious attempt at it. If you fall short then go like a mofo at that other one. Coming away empty will leave you much less dignified 

 

edit: sorry you said gentlemen. My bad. Sqeggs posting threw me off.

Edited May 26, 2017 by Junkdrawer

[Ricksneatstuff]

My decision would be completely based on the frequency of availability. The less the book comes around the more likely it would be at the top of my list.  

[gino2paulus2]

20 minutes ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

My decision would be completely based on the frequency of availability. The less the book comes around the more likely it would be at the top of my list.  

Exactly this 

[Cat-Man_America]

18 hours ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

My decision would be completely based on the frequency of availability. The less the book comes around the more likely it would be at the top of my list.  

I'd concur with this adding one caveat: high grade condition should be factored into the equation.

If his grail-book pops-up often in high grade, then it probably won't be an issue.  OTOH, if high grade copies rarely come up, then the seeker is left with this option: forgo acquisition of a high grade grail-book now or potentially pay more later on, ...assuming a higher grade copy becomes available again.  Also, if the lower grade copy is purchased instead, the buyer then has to decide whether to keep the lower grade undercopy or sell it based on unpredictable market considerations.

Food for thought. 

 

[Ricksneatstuff]

1 minute ago, Cat-Man_America said:

I'd concur with this adding one caveat: high grade condition should be factored into the equation.

If his grail-book pops-up often in high grade, then it probably won't be an issue.  OTOH, if high grade copies rarely come up, then the seeker is left with this option: forgo acquisition of a high grade grail-book now or potentially pay more later on, ...assuming a higher grade copy becomes available again.  Also, if the lower grade copy is purchased instead, the buyer then has to decide whether to keep the lower grade undercopy or sell it based on unpredictable market considerations.

Food for thought. 

 

I am in this EXACT conundrum right now. Good caveat because I find myself leaning towards the high grade book myself. We will see. Final hammer price will likely dictate the decision and then I will console myself by saying what I bought was the better choice.  

[rjpb]

On 5/26/2017 at 1:07 PM, SushiX said:

Eye appeal is very good and all copies are very hard to find....grades I would like to keep secret because I'm sure others will know exactly what books they are and currently bidding on.

I can understand the reluctance to share more information, but it does make it hard to give advice. We all have different grade ranges were comfortable with, and for different books, depending on price and scarcity. For some settling for a nice 6.0, when they think they could have had a 7.5 for twice as much, will haunt them, and they will still be on the lookout for an upgrade, for others, they'd happily sell a 7.5  to buy a nice 6.0 and other books they'd been looking for. Some aren't happy until they have 9.x pedigree copies, and constantly look to trade upwards, others stop looking once they have a complete low grade copy that isn't falling apart. 

I know for myself, even if money were no object, i'd probably be satisfied with 6.0-8.0 copies of most everything, rather than wait for something nicer, or search to upgrade to higher grade ones. 

If the two books fit your collecting criteria, and you'll be satisfied with the #1 grail book in the lesser condition, that's the way to go. If you're a grade hound, and getting the nicest copy you can matters a lot to you, then you might consider sacrificing a shot at another top 5 book, if that's what it takes to get your grail in the condition you really want. 

 

[CKinTO]

I'm in the camp of getting the single higher grade copy. A similar analogy for me is i'm really into high end audio equipment. In the past, especially with more limited budget, I would buy a mid-range DAC or amp and/or multiple mid-tier headphones or speakers, rather than bite the bullet and spend up for what I really wanted (higher end, but a stretch monetarily). In the end, the knowledge that there was something better out there would gnaw at me, and I'd end up upgrading to the higher end one anyways. 

This resulted in: 1) costing me much more than if I had just bought the higher end one first (friction / transaction costs of selling the mid-range one plus often the higher end one is now even more expensive), 2) All the time I spent with the mid-range one, I could've been enjoying the higher-end one. 

A bit different of course, but I think some relatable takeaways. 

[Cat-Man_America]

40 minutes ago, rjpb said:

I can understand the reluctance to share more information, but it does make it hard to give advice. We all have different grade ranges were comfortable with, and for different books, depending on price and scarcity. For some settling for a nice 6.0, when they think they could have had a 7.5 for twice as much, will haunt them, and they will still be on the lookout for an upgrade, for others, they'd happily sell a 7.5  to buy a nice 6.0 and other books they'd been looking for. Some aren't happy until they have 9.x pedigree copies, and constantly look to trade upwards, others stop looking once they have a complete low grade copy that isn't falling apart. 

I know for myself, even if money were no object, i'd probably be satisfied with 6.0-8.0 copies of most everything, rather than wait for something nicer, or search to upgrade to higher grade ones. 

If the two books fit your collecting criteria, and you'll be satisfied with the #1 grail book in the lesser condition, that's the way to go. If you're a grade hound, and getting the nicest copy you can matters a lot to you, then you might consider sacrificing a shot at another top 5 book, if that's what it takes to get your grail in the condition you really want. 

 

I'm going to share another perspective bearing in mind my own biases.  Hopefully this will be helpful to someone.

Over the past couple of years I've become disillusioned with the "joy" of collecting graded books due to factors which go beyond acquiring high grade copies which are in my proverbial wheel-house.  It isn't auction bidding or impatience with the search which disappoints me, it has more to do with grading, slab/label marketing and a process where collectors are pawns in a much bigger game.

Please understand, in no way am I trying to throw cold water on anyone's desire to collect.  My passion remains with the hobby and friends, those dealers and collectors who love this wonderful pastime; that has not changed.

My disillusionment comes from a growing perception that grades on the high end are becoming more arbitrary, pedigree status being given too much weight in lieu of condition guidelines.  This impression was compounded by last year's encapsulation debacle and issues with the cobbled together correction that make book removal a riskier process.  As a result, I've decided to no longer purchase, trade or sell any books bearing the new label.  This decision will inform all of my future purchases.

I have absolutely no animosity toward our hosts here at CGC.  It has always been assumed that they're doing the best they can under constant pressure with strong competition nipping at their heels.  Sure, they've made mistakes and some of those are mind-boggingly frustrating, but I have to believe that their intentions are fair and honorable.

No, my decisions are mine alone, based on perception and a love of comics and the hobby in general, the production chips falling where they may.

So, to pull this back to your observations, grade perception should come down to eye of the beholder with less emphasis on label grade.  That statement has always been true, but perhaps never more true than in today's market.  (inflation adjusted)

[SushiX]

Thank you guys for all the wonderful suggestions and all! One thing I can say is that my top book high grade  and lesser grade book are off by 2 points with same PQ. This is really an important decision for me and is going to be the biggest purchase ever so I really don't want to regret anything.? 

 

[IngelsFan]

I'd go for the single high grade copy of your top want.

Here's my rationale: When I started collecting, I was a hole filler. Once I got a copy, it was checked off and I moved in to the next one. There are scarce books that I passed up over the years that would have been great upgrades, but since I already had one I thought why bother. Now I look back and I'm kicking myself for not picking up better copies when they were cheaper and not in "black hole" collections. 

The market is on fire now for GA, and since it's on your top 5 then it's one you want really bad. 

Just my 2c.