KIller grading flaws? 0

[Glassman10]

I find the single most difficult thing I'm finding in grading is a book that looks absolutely perfect, or is at least an 8.0 in every way save one. 

The question is about the "one".

As an example is an ASM I was raw grading yesterday evening.  It had square corners, well centered, bright staples, glossy covers, one small spine tick, off white pages and no color breaks. I would normally be inclined to push this book- about 48 years old to at least an 8.5, possibly more with one huge exception. The centerfold is detached from one staple. The centerfold page has no wrinkles, no tears.  But that's a serious flaw.

 I have another which presents incredibly well, about the same age and it has only one flaw- what looks like a deep crease that does not go through the book on the  back page and is about 1.5 inches long.

Clearly trimming is viewed as a serious downgrading flaw in any book. Tears are a serious downgrade flaw, So are ticks , rusty staples, color breaks but where does one start the downgrade in a beautiful book?  In a book like the one I just mentioned, are there features that bring a book back up in grade when it has such a flaw as well as the one that brought it down. I think of the ASM 129 that is plastered with blue ink but is otherwise in great shape.  This is the type of book that gives me fits when I'm trying to decide what grading is going to be. 

So what constitutes fatal flaws?

[mrc]

the centrefold detached from one staple would probably get a Qualified label

[Glassman10]

1 hour ago, mrc said:

the centrefold detached from one staple would probably get a Qualified label

Can you be more specific?

[Tbone911t]

According to the overstreet grading guide the highest the book could get is 4.5 with a detached staple. The qualified label (green) could rate higher with the notation of the detached staple. You seem to see it a lot with the missing values stamps. 

[ADAMANTIUM]

8 minutes ago, Tbone911t said:

According to the overstreet grading guide the highest the book could get is 4.5 with a detached staple. The qualified label (green) could rate higher with the notation of the detached staple. You seem to see it a lot with the missing values stamps. 

I think that Qualified only applies if there is an Unwitnessed Sig or if the book is Incomplete??

If he still has the centerfold it might acutely affect a grade for it to be detatched, but I don't think that it would get Qualified

Edited June 24, 2017 by ADAMANTIUM

[Tbone911t]

1 minute ago, ADAMANTIUM said:

I think that Qualified only applies if there is an Unwitnessed Sig or if the book is Incomplete??

If he still has the centerfold it might acutely affect a grade, for it to be detatched but I don't think that it would get Qualified

You are probably right. Not sure I've seen a green label due to staples?

[Tbone911t]

Found this on Ebay so guess it depends on the book.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Avengers-59-CGC-7-5-Qualified-staple-detached-Free-Shipping-1st-Yellowjacket-/322130462654?hash=item4b0078c7be:g:TE8AAOSwHnFVsv4l

[marvelmaniac]

9 minutes ago, Tbone911t said:

According to the overstreet grading guide the highest the book could get is 4.5 with a detached staple. The qualified label (green) could rate higher with the notation of the detached staple. You seem to see it a lot with the missing values stamps. 

Well , then me and CGC have something in common, I had/have no idea about different labels from CGC, however...

When I re-graded all of my books in 2015 I graded by the "worst" defect and if the book would have been a much higher grade without the one defect I made a note on the grading sheet for myself for future reference about the defect and condition without the defect.

For instance, (just a hypothetical) a book that would have been a VF 8.0 but has a "small" piece of tape at a staple or "small"spine split would have gotten a grade no higher than a  VG- 3.5/VG 4.0 with a note about the tape or split.

 

[ADAMANTIUM]

9 minutes ago, Tbone911t said:

Found this on Ebay so guess it depends on the book.

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Avengers-59-CGC-7-5-Qualified-staple-detached-Free-Shipping-1st-Yellowjacket-/322130462654?hash=item4b0078c7be:g:TE8AAOSwHnFVsv4l

I think that your right it depends  I've also "heard" that if you get a Qualified label then it doesn't affect the grade, or you could get blue universal label and the grade affected....

How they choose which one idk but I've "heard" that they can do either/or, and I've heard it on the boards so maybe someone will chime in with clarification  

[Glassman10]

let me display some ignorance here. Is a qualified label a label where there is a notation made on the slab material, such as "Tan pages", or something along that line? It's the single defect books which make me a little crazy.  Can anyone show me a qualified label?

[BlowUpTheMoon]

3 minutes ago, Glassman10 said:

 Can anyone show me a qualified label?

Google is your friend.

[Tbone911t]

13 minutes ago, Glassman10 said:

let me display some ignorance here. Is a qualified label a label where there is a notation made on the slab material, such as "Tan pages", or something along that line? It's the single defect books which make me a little crazy.  Can anyone show me a qualified label?

Click on the Ebay link above. It's a qualified 7.5 with a detached staple

[ADAMANTIUM]

57 minutes ago, Glassman10 said:

let me display some ignorance here. Is a qualified label a label where there is a notation made on the slab material, such as "Tan pages", or something along that line? It's the single defect books which make me a little crazy.  Can anyone show me a qualified label?

Ya check the link above, the Qualified label is GREEN, rather than blue or yellow. You might have never noticed on a blue label it says "Universal" and on a green label it says "Qualified", and on a yellow label it says CGC Signature Series.....oh and a purple label says "Restored"

Edited June 24, 2017 by ADAMANTIUM

[Dr. Love]

1 hour ago, Glassman10 said:

let me display some ignorance here. Is a qualified label a label where there is a notation made on the slab material, such as "Tan pages", or something along that line? It's the single defect books which make me a little crazy.  Can anyone show me a qualified label?

 

 

[Glassman10]

I appreciate the insight. I think in asking the question, which may seem really dumb to some is probably a great help to many of the people on the board. Absorbing information is a full time job.  There is still a part of the question that remains, namely what single defects kill the rating of an otherwise very nice book. I had two copies of ASM 129 and both appeared to be identical and I indeed did buy them both off the rack in 1974. One got a 9.4 and the other an 8.5. The 8.5 had quite a small stain on the back cover but otherwise was an extremely nice book. What other issues kill the grade of a book even more than dropping just to an 8.5? 

[Tbone911t]

5 hours ago, Glassman10 said:

I appreciate the insight. I think in asking the question, which may seem really dumb to some is probably a great help to many of the people on the board. Absorbing information is a full time job.  There is still a part of the question that remains, namely what single defects kill the rating of an otherwise very nice book. I had two copies of ASM 129 and both appeared to be identical and I indeed did buy them both off the rack in 1974. One got a 9.4 and the other an 8.5. The 8.5 had quite a small stain on the back cover but otherwise was an extremely nice book. What other issues kill the grade of a book even more than dropping just to an 8.5? 

Tanning is currently getting hammered. I have a HOS 92 that the board consensus was 8.5+. Came back 7.0, one small crease and BC tanning.

[Glassman10]

I have an iron man 55 which is flawless , except that it isn't flawless.It has tan pages. I bought it on the news stand, put it away and curiously it has tanned where other books from the same period have not.  Why, I don't know but it is what it is. Perfect but for that. It has yet to be slabbed.  I will be fascinated to see what becomes of it. I won't sell it raw without the judgement of the amused gods. 

[Guardian Comics]

11 hours ago, Glassman10 said:

I find the single most difficult thing I'm finding in grading is a book that looks absolutely perfect, or is at least an 8.0 in every way save one. 

The question is about the "one".

As an example is an ASM I was raw grading yesterday evening.  It had square corners, well centered, bright staples, glossy covers, one small spine tick, off white pages and no color breaks. I would normally be inclined to push this book- about 48 years old to at least an 8.5 

As typed, it's still a 9.8, so there must be a lot more else going on with it to be graded an 8.5 in the description.

Jim

[FineCollector]

Simply, the qualified label is a marketing ploy.  If you had a NM looking comic, but a story page was missing, it's more appealing for most to get a big 9.4 printed on a green label, than 0.5 incomplete on a blue label, which is what it really should be.

[Philflound]

I believe the choice is the owner of the book as to whether or not they would rather receive a qualified or blue label. In the case of the detached staple, that was probably requested by the owner as a detached staple would be lower than the 7.5, maybe somewhat lower since it received a 7.5. Qualified 7.5 would be what the book would grade in if the staple was attached. Probably would have gotten a 5-5.5, but I didn't really look at the photos.

Sometimes with missing value stamp, the person would rather have a blue low grade rather than a mid to higher grade qualified. Again, that is the choice of the owner, not CGC to my knowledge. That also goes with signatures. If the book looks 9.8 with an unwitnessed sig, then that would probably get qualified 9.8. If the person doesn't want a qualified grade, it will grade as if there was writing on the cover and it depends on whether the sig is small or big, or using marker or pen, etc.