• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

Grading comics on eBay
3 3

47 posts in this topic

10 hours ago, jcjames said:

What are those CGC standards? Where can you find them posted? I know and use OGG, but one can often see CGC graded books that do not align with OGG.

So where does one find the grading standards used by CGC? (shrug)

https://www.cgccomics.com/comic-grading/grading-scale/ They do not go into large detail. Bob's grading standards guide goes into much more detail.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/16/2019 at 4:25 PM, Redbeard said:

https://www.cgccomics.com/comic-grading/grading-scale/ They do not go into large detail. Bob's grading standards guide goes into much more detail.

Thanks for the CGC scale Redbeard. I think I may have purchased from you before. Please PM me your website or store.

Yes, Ebay is a source of entertainment for the amateur grading. and also major disappointment due to bad grading and undisclosed defects. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Thanks for all the great info everybody!

I'm working it into a new selling template as much as possible. 

Given my lack of grading experience, my goal is to arm the buyer with as much relevant data, visual and otherwise, to make an informed decision, while still adding my opinion/grade estimate.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

26 minutes ago, alewario said:

Thanks for all the great info everybody!

I'm working it into a new selling template as much as possible. 

Given my lack of grading experience, my goal is to arm the buyer with as much relevant data, visual and otherwise, to make an informed decision, while still adding my opinion/grade estimate.

I also have some grading info on CGC graded books; I hope this helps:

9.9 or 10.0  (Near perfect copy. I believe books in these grades must have white pages...I certainly hope so)

9.8  (Off-White pages allowed)  

9.6 (Cream to Off-White pages allowed, a couple of tiny spine stress lines allowed)

9.4 (Slight foxing is allowed, slight rounding of corners is allowed, a few tiny spine stress lines are allowed)

9.2 (Beautiful copy with slight wear and a tiny defect such as a tiny tear, chip or crease)

9.0 (Looks 9.4 or 9.2, but because of wear or defects is technically an 8.5)

I hope this helps the high grade collectors a bit. I'll update this if anyone has any additional info...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Unless there's a high resolution scan like Heritage offers it's of no use to try and confirm whatever grade the seller is alleging. I'm not even sure eBay would accept a high quality scan even if the seller wanted to provide it? The image quality for eBay listings is usually less than stellar to put it kindly.

Most sellers on eBay selling raws just offer a couple of pictures and that's it. A few to their credit actually go through the trouble of taking several pictures from different angles which is helpful in determining a grade range. 

I bought 1 raw book on eBay thinking it was going to be a 9.6 judging by the images but it turned out to have some tanning on bottom edge of back cover which was a white cover. This wasn't entirely clear from the images. It turned out to be a 9.4 after submitting. The tanning was notated on the grader notes so I'm pretty sure it factored in. I didn't mind in this case since I didn't pay that much for it and still presents like a 9.6 on the front cover at least.

The only way to really judge is by holding a book in front of you and seeing for yourself. Trying to pinpoint a grade from a few pictures on the internet is foolish

Link to comment
Share on other sites

CGC vs. old school grading

9.0 - VF/NM

9.2 - what sellers would call NM and buyers VF/NM

9.4 - NM for everyone but the most picky buyers

9.6 - NM for the picky, NM/M for everyone else.

9.8/9.9/10 - Mint

Link to comment
Share on other sites

29 minutes ago, Ride the Tiger said:

Sometimes you just look at grading standards and are speechless.

 

asm 105.PNG

What are you talking about?  I mean come on you don't think a quick press would bring this up to at least a 9.9?:roflmao:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

14 hours ago, onlyweaknesskryptonite said:

What are you talking about?  I mean come on you don't think a quick press would bring this up to at least a 9.9?:roflmao:

lol I was just about to say this too. I am assuming the seller is grading it as that the buyer has to press it to get VF+ and some how the spine will magically go back together. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Well for the spine you need only colored duct tape , some white out and crayons, but that would get a conserved 10 Gem.. Truly One of a Kind ! Just remember  when  looking through  Ebay for items and believe "some" of these sellers grades , go ahead and  buy some lube for the futt bucking you will receive complimentary with VF+ ATM ASM.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 6/3/2019 at 10:00 AM, The Lions Den said:

I also have some grading info on CGC graded books; I hope this helps:

9.9 or 10.0  (Near perfect copy. I believe books in these grades must have white pages...I certainly hope so)

9.8  (Off-White pages allowed)  

9.6 (Cream to Off-White pages allowed, a couple of tiny spine stress lines allowed)

9.4 (Slight foxing is allowed, slight rounding of corners is allowed, a few tiny spine stress lines are allowed)

9.2 (Beautiful copy with slight wear and a tiny defect such as a tiny tear, chip or crease)

9.0 (Looks 9.4 or 9.2, but because of wear or defects is technically an 8.5)

I hope this helps the high grade collectors a bit. I'll update this if anyone has any additional info...

Sorry to say, but that CGC grading descriptions are very, very loose. Your 9.4 sounds like a solid 7.0, not a 9.4. You're 9.6 sounds like what we consider a 9.2. After making many, many purchases of raw books on eBay, I find that if I buy a 9.4 graded book, I'm happy if it is actually a 8.0. Just got one in graded 8.5 that would be a 7.0 except that it has residual glue on the front cover over the cover price. Overall grade given this is a 4.0.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

22 hours ago, Redbeard said:

Sorry to say, but that CGC grading descriptions are very, very loose. Your 9.4 sounds like a solid 7.0, not a 9.4. You're 9.6 sounds like what we consider a 9.2. After making many, many purchases of raw books on eBay, I find that if I buy a 9.4 graded book, I'm happy if it is actually a 8.0. Just got one in graded 8.5 that would be a 7.0 except that it has residual glue on the front cover over the cover price. Overall grade given this is a 4.0.

 This is just information I've gathered from a variety of sources over the years, including many of my own purchases that I've cracked out, or books that I've graded myself prior to sending in for encapsulation (I take my own notes and grade the books myself, then send them in to CGC for comparison).

To be honest, I have seen some occasional surprises, but the majority of the time CGC's grades will be close to my own (but that could be because I'm familiar with how they grade). I also keep in mind that since there are numerous graders working there now, my opinion may not always match up perfectly with theirs... :) 

I hope this information helps the collecting community on these boards make informed decisions when they decide to purchase encapsulated books... 

Edited by The Lions Den
Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 5/9/2019 at 9:52 AM, alewario said:

Very interested in this topic. Thanks for the helpful info thus far.

I've switched from photos to high res scans of both sides of book, out of bag.

My specific questions:

1. I truly am not a pro grader but want to give my customers as honest and clear a picture as possible. I feel the whole disclaimer of not being a pro grader now detracts from my listings, even though it's the truth! Should I leave this in or remove it from my listings?

2. Numerical grading or Letter Grading? The most common grade I see on Ebay is NM. As this can conceivably mean 9.2, 9.4, 9.6 I see this as a double edged sword. Being an amateur, I am likely to only be within a 9.2 to 9.6 (4-point) range anyway (if I'm lucky).

3. To grade or not to grade?I've only ever had 2 books returned out of a few hundred. One was a legitimate return - my scans truly did not show a wavy defect, however I did NOT grade this book in the listing as it was shortly after FIRST return in which the buyer said the book was not the grade I'd given in the listing. Being naïve I asked for photos from the buyer to show the differences from mine. However, Ebay did not support the request and did not request ANYTHING from the buyer other than his word. I'm sure you've all experienced some version of this situation if you are an ebayer, but it leaves me confused as to the best approach.

4. I truly love comics and truly want to provide the best buyer experience possible, so can any of you describe an IDEAL listing or provide an example? I'd be grateful!

my first post ever, so please be kind...

I'm not a pro grader either, but c'mon, how tough is it to thoroughly read and follow the Overstreet guidelines? (rhetorical...)  I'm with you; I've been collecting & selling on EBay for 15 years, and when I started I was truly stunned at the rampant grade inflation and had to adjust my expectations accordingly, but separating nefarious intent from rookie mistakes is always tough.  So in order;

1) I believe you should represent as a non-professional and am of the opinion that the more details and dialog you provide, the more buyers will recognize the attempt to get it right.  At least that's what the cockeyed-optimist in me believes... The more hi-res pics you are willing to provide, the better.  Always outside the bag, multiple pics if you have the time and patience, and close-ups pics of any exceptionally remarkable flaws.

2) Use both letter and numerical to avoid the very misunderstanding you are describing.  We're literally talking about just a few additional keystrokes.

3) I had one book returned out of a couple hundred sales, and it was legit - the book had been trimmed and I failed to notice it, even though I'm quite anal-retentive.  The guy took several photos comparing it to other Silver Age books from the time, and I was convinced he was absolutely right.  He also had high positive feedback, several several hundred if I remember correctly.  It was only like $80, so I gave him a full refund and told him to keep the book.  I was convinced he was right, and no better way to prove to the buyer it was an honest mistake, sometime you just gotta be willing to eat it...

4) re: "truly want to provide the best buyer experience possible" - I like your style, as it should be!  I spent most of my life as a corporate accountant, so I use spreadsheets for everything.  Attached is an example of what I use for grading, I will simply copy & paste into my auctions.  Note, this is simply the mechanism, the vessel to communicate the grading if you will, sorta like a tortilla is to a fajita, but what it DOES illustrate (hopefully) to a buyer is that I have clearly taken the time and effort to make a legit attempt at honest grading.

hope this helps a little...



 

screenshot.png

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 6/18/2019 at 6:02 PM, Slappy Jones said:

my first post ever, so please be kind...

I'm not a pro grader either, but c'mon, how tough is it to thoroughly read and follow the Overstreet guidelines? (rhetorical...)  I'm with you; I've been collecting & selling on EBay for 15 years, and when I started I was truly stunned at the rampant grade inflation and had to adjust my expectations accordingly, but separating nefarious intent from rookie mistakes is always tough.  So in order;

1) I believe you should represent as a non-professional and am of the opinion that the more details and dialog you provide, the more buyers will recognize the attempt to get it right.  At least that's what the cockeyed-optimist in me believes... The more hi-res pics you are willing to provide, the better.  Always outside the bag, multiple pics if you have the time and patience, and close-ups pics of any exceptionally remarkable flaws.

2) Use both letter and numerical to avoid the very misunderstanding you are describing.  We're literally talking about just a few additional keystrokes.

3) I had one book returned out of a couple hundred sales, and it was legit - the book had been trimmed and I failed to notice it, even though I'm quite anal-retentive.  The guy took several photos comparing it to other Silver Age books from the time, and I was convinced he was absolutely right.  He also had high positive feedback, several several hundred if I remember correctly.  It was only like $80, so I gave him a full refund and told him to keep the book.  I was convinced he was right, and no better way to prove to the buyer it was an honest mistake, sometime you just gotta be willing to eat it...

4) re: "truly want to provide the best buyer experience possible" - I like your style, as it should be!  I spent most of my life as a corporate accountant, so I use spreadsheets for everything.  Attached is an example of what I use for grading, I will simply copy & paste into my auctions.  Note, this is simply the mechanism, the vessel to communicate the grading if you will, sorta like a tortilla is to a fajita, but what it DOES illustrate (hopefully) to a buyer is that I have clearly taken the time and effort to make a legit attempt at honest grading.

hope this helps a little...



 

screenshot.png

An impressive first post. Welcome to the boards!  :headbang:

Link to comment
Share on other sites

10 minutes ago, The Lions Den said:

An impressive first post. Welcome to the boards!  :headbang:

So having said all that, I just joined CGC in late April, sent 25 Silver Age books for slabbing, have 13 back so far, and have some observations on their grading, but I was ecstatic to find that the majority were spot-on, coming back +or- a half-grade from what I expected.  Gimmie a week & I'll post a couple pics with comments, I'll be curious to hear what members with much more experience think, as the couple that came back a bit lower than I expected really surprised me... to be continued...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

1 minute ago, Slappy Jones said:

So having said all that, I just joined CGC in late April, sent 25 Silver Age books for slabbing, have 13 back so far, and have some observations on their grading, but I was ecstatic to find that the majority were spot-on, coming back +or- a half-grade from what I expected.  Gimmie a week & I'll post a couple pics with comments, I'll be curious to hear what members with much more experience think, as the couple that came back a bit lower than I expected really surprised me... to be continued...

I'm glad to hear that things went well. I certainly look forward to seeing the books...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
3 3