bapowell Posted May 6, 2021 Share Posted May 6, 2021 Hi all, I'm relatively new to comic collecting and still trying to get a "sense" of comic grading. I came across this Tales of Suspense #78 (https://www.ebay.com/itm/383631111489 ) that the seller suggests is a VG on account of the front cover condition (there are no other major issues as per the seller). The multiple large spine ticks are the obvious defect but I'm surprised that these would result in a VG grade, thinking perhaps a VG/FN or even FN- might be fair. I'd love some impressions from more experienced collectors. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Funnybooks Posted May 6, 2021 Share Posted May 6, 2021 Back cover pics would help... based on front cover, the VG grade by the seller seems fair/conservative. I could possibly see a 4.5 based on these pics...assuming the back cover is very clean. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marvelmaniac Posted May 6, 2021 Share Posted May 6, 2021 Welcome To The Boards!!! The book does appear to be better than a VG 4.0, possibly a VG/FN 5.0 since the stress lines are all I see, however, with only one pic... If you are new to comic collecting and want to learn about grading I would suggest you invest in this or the 2016 edition. https://www.gemstonepub.com/en/the-overstreet-guide-to-grading-comics-6th-edition Also, you can work on your grading skills by grading some of your own books and then posting pics of them in the... https://www.cgccomics.com/boards/forum/42-hey-buddy-can-you-spare-a-grade/ and see if your assigned grade is the same or close to what the group thinks, you can also view the books others have posted and see if your grade matches what others think, if yours does not agree, ask how they determined their assigned grade. Remember, with higher grade books, very minor defects lower the grade whereas lower grade books may have multiple defects that do not lower the grade. If you are on the fence about the grade always go lower, it is better to undergrade than overgrade. You can also use this... https://comics.ha.com/tutorial/comics-grading.s?show=comicdefinitions Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bapowell Posted May 6, 2021 Author Share Posted May 6, 2021 Thanks guys! I have a copy of Overstreet and it's very helpful. I've got the first edition, though, and I find it hard to apply it systematically for grading ( since the examples in the book tend to have multiple issues/defects it's hard to know how much influence each type of issue/defect has on the overall grade.) I know it's certainly imperfect, but the grading "tool" from comicbookrealm is fun and seems somewhat useful for just getting started: https://comicbookrealm.com/example-based-grading . Great tip on the group grading link...I will certainly have a look there! Funnybooks 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Lions Den Posted May 6, 2021 Share Posted May 6, 2021 I've dealt with Ed quite a few times over the years and his grading tends to be on the conservative side. From what I can see, this book appears to be at least a VG and possibly a bit nicer. I hope this helps and good luck! Funnybooks 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
