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Spine Split
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5 posts in this topic

I was reading the CGC Grader Notes for a comic book and the notes stated that the book had a "medium split bottom of spine."  How many inches does a spine split need to be in order to be classified as medium spine split?  How much does a spine split like this affect the overall grade of a book?

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2 hours ago, drjmd3426 said:

I was reading the CGC Grader Notes for a comic book and the notes stated that the book had a "medium split bottom of spine."  How many inches does a spine split need to be in order to be classified as medium spine split?  How much does a spine split like this affect the overall grade of a book?

With no pics, no idea as to the size of the split, no idea as to the condition of the book, how can we possibly answer this question ? As with all flaws, there is no formula as to how much it affects the grade, it all depends on other factors.  I would suspect that the term 'medium', when used by CGC, is probably bigger than one would think but who knows ? 

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Bomber-Bob,

Thank you for your input. 

Quote

I would suspect that the term 'medium', when used by CGC, is probably bigger than one would think but who knows ?

Exactly! One man's medium is another man's large.  You would think that CGC would be a little more precise, especially with a spine split.  The book is already graded so there is no way to tell how medium the split is.

Once again thanks for your response.

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17 hours ago, drjmd3426 said:

How much does a spine split like this affect the overall grade of a book?

The "how much does Defect-X effect the grade" question is a common one around these parts.  It reflects a lack of familiarity with comic grading.  Specific defects do not have specific point deductions.  A "blown staple" (that causes the cover to detach from the interior at a single staple) may result in an otherwise 9.6 NM+ book being downgraded to 7.0 FN/VF.  The exact same blown staple on an otherwise 3.0 GD/VG book may not justify a further reduction in grade.  That's the way it is with all defects.  Here's a rule of thumb: the more otherwise perfect the book, the greater the impact of a particular flaw.

The language used above is precise (so please read carefully lol ).  So far, I've spoken of point (or grade increment) deductions. Certain defects do lead to certain generally accepted (but not universally accepted) grades.  A book with a missing story page is generally regarded as POOR by virtue of being incomplete (irrespective of whether the covers are perfect or beat).  A book with a detached and fully split cover is generally regarded as no better than FAIR (unless the book is a Golden Age mega-key and CGC is doing the grading, in which case it may receive a grade of 1.5 FR/GD :facepalm: ).

The bottom line?  "How much does Defect-X effect the grade" shouldn't be asked because it can't be answered . . . . . . without a knowledge of each and every flaw.  And you don't get that from a high-resolution front cover scan alone (or from front and back cover scans alone).  I hope this helps.  :foryou:

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