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Grades and Pressing
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14 posts in this topic

I'm fairly new to the grading/reselling process, but I'm noticing that books with no discernible problems (including books that have been touched by human hands only to be bagged and boarded) are being returned with grades lower than what I would have expected. For some older books, they were dropped extensively because there was a minor finger impression somewhere on the cover. Do you just need to have everything pressed essentially? Because that's what I'm gathering based on what I've submitted and gotten back.

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2 minutes ago, converseba said:

I'm fairly new to the grading/reselling process, but I'm noticing that books with no discernible problems (including books that have been touched by human hands only to be bagged and boarded) are being returned with grades lower than what I would have expected. For some older books, they were dropped extensively because there was a minor finger impression somewhere on the cover. Do you just need to have everything pressed essentially? Because that's what I'm gathering based on what I've submitted and gotten back.

No.

Knowing how to grade takes "study and practice - years of it". You could dump $$$$$ into pressing (or pressing pre-screen, or grading pre-screen) if you have the disposable income and don't know how to grade.

Most books off the shelf are probably 9.4-.

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9 minutes ago, converseba said:

Appreciate the comment. I did examine these books before I sent them in, and while I'm new to third-party grading, I've been collecting and grading individually for the last 40-ish years. 

Well, :censored:. lol

CGC has their reputation for a reason. They don't follow any guides that you may have studied from. 2c

Welcome to the boards!

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Thanks. I do appreciate the advice and feedback. I'll see what happens with the mid-tier books I've sent in for pressing and grading recently to evaluate the difference in results I'm getting. Not the most economical methodology obviously, but I'm clearly a glutton for punishment. Or just not that bright. Possibly both?

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16 minutes ago, converseba said:

Thanks. I do appreciate the advice and feedback. I'll see what happens with the mid-tier books I've sent in for pressing and grading recently to evaluate the difference in results I'm getting. Not the most economical methodology obviously, but I'm clearly a glutton for punishment. Or just not that bright. Possibly both?

Often mid-grade books will have flaws that pressing does not repair, e.g., tears, stains, color-breaking creases, etc. The result is that the book may look a lot better because the cover is smoother and some bends have been flattened, but the technical grade will remain the same due to the non-correctable flaws.

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1 minute ago, Mr. Zipper said:

Often mid-grade books will have flaws that pressing does not repair, e.g., tears, stains, color-breaking creases, etc. The result is that the book may look a lot better because the cover is smoother and some bends have been flattened, but the technical grade will remain the same due to the non-correctable flaws.

My only concern here is that a number of the books I have had returned graded lower than expected have grader notes that only comment on non-color breaking bends or (again non-color breaking) finger impressions being present, with no notes regarding stains, color-breaking issues or anything else other than the fact that the cover is not as smooth as it could be. It's possible the notes aren't complete, but the lack of comments regarding anything other than items that would presumably be fixed by a quick press is what has me a little perplexed. 

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2 minutes ago, converseba said:

My only concern here is that a number of the books I have had returned graded lower than expected have grader notes that only comment on non-color breaking bends or (again non-color breaking) finger impressions being present, with no notes regarding stains, color-breaking issues or anything else other than the fact that the cover is not as smooth as it could be. It's possible the notes aren't complete, but the lack of comments regarding anything other than items that would presumably be fixed by a quick press is what has me a little perplexed. 

Did you observe these defects before submitting the comics? Do you think that CGC is hammering these defects harder than you?

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4 minutes ago, converseba said:

My only concern here is that a number of the books I have had returned graded lower than expected have grader notes that only comment on non-color breaking bends or (again non-color breaking) finger impressions being present, with no notes regarding stains, color-breaking issues or anything else other than the fact that the cover is not as smooth as it could be. It's possible the notes aren't complete, but the lack of comments regarding anything other than items that would presumably be fixed by a quick press is what has me a little perplexed. 

If I were you, I'd post some books in the "Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?" Forum:

https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/forum/42-hey-buddy-can-you-spare-a-grade/

You can get an idea from various board members as to the grade and see if they match up with your assessment. There's always the chance that despite your time in the hobby you may have a bit of a learning curve as to how CGC does it.

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1 minute ago, theCapraAegagrus said:

Did you observe these defects before submitting the comics? Do you think that CGC is hammering these defects harder than you?

I did, but since they were minor and not color breaking, I took a chance at not pressing with some of them. I would say they are hammering these defects harder than I would, although it's their company and their graders, so it's hard to pretend like I have much of a say in the process really. Again, I'm curious to see what happens with the books I sent in for pressing as a comparative sample. I may not get a different grade than I would have, but at least I may be a little bit more sure of how I'm grading them myself. 

Thank you folks for the advice and comments. Trust me, I'll definitely be taking it to heart as I choose both what to grade and what to press. 

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1 minute ago, Pontoon said:

If I were you, I'd post some books in the "Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?" Forum:

https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/forum/42-hey-buddy-can-you-spare-a-grade/

You can get an idea from various board members as to the grade and see if they match up with your assessment. There's always the chance that despite your time in the hobby you may have a bit of a learning curve as to how CGC does it.

Thanks, I'll check out the forum and try to post some pics there. And I'd say you're probably absolutely correct that I'm just getting the hang of the curve since I just started getting books graded 4 months ago in an attempt to start selling off some of the 7,500 books that are not paying rent on their stay in my guest room.

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1 hour ago, converseba said:

Thanks, I'll check out the forum and try to post some pics there. And I'd say you're probably absolutely correct that I'm just getting the hang of the curve since I just started getting books graded 4 months ago in an attempt to start selling off some of the 7,500 books that are not paying rent on their stay in my guest room.

Please read this before posting in "Hey buddy can you spare a grade" :foryou:

Posting there should help improve your grading some

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5 minutes ago, Deadpoolica said:

Please read this before posting in "Hey buddy can you spare a grade" :foryou:

Posting there should help improve your grading some

Will do! Thanks for the assist. Really appreciate all the sound advice and feedback. Hopefully I'll get the hang of this sooner rather than later!

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