Jan 26, 2017 comic books 101 grading comics how to grade comics yourself taking you through the steps of how to start collecting comics and the grading system we use for buying and selling comic books. Easily go from taking photos to creating full comics all on one device with full page templates and panel layouts. As grading is very much a subjective exercise, it is all too easy for the novice and indeed experienced collector to allow wishful thinking and optimism to influence the appearance of a comic and make it better than it really is. A couple of minor flaws might be allowable, but no more. These grading services assign grades on the same tenpoint grading scale used by mycomicshop. Once you have that information, it will be a lot easier to get them appraised. There are grades in between these basic grades such as finevery fine, but we want this to be a general easy tofollow comic grading guide for the novice.
There are grades in between these basic grades such as finevery fine, but we want this to be a general easytofollow comic grading guide for the novice. And now you can build your comics anywhere you like. Grading comics accurately is essential to their figuring out their proper value and price. Comic grading professional comic book grading eliminates concerns about grade misrepresentations by providing a professional assessment of condition and quality. When grading a comic book, the first thing youll see is the cover. In recent years, grading criteria have become even tighter, especially in silver and bronze age books, due to their higher survival rate. Use an allpoints grading system or a flexible grading system that combines points, letter grades, check, check plus, and custom.
Jul 25, 2017 the advantages of the collectors condition comic book raw grading labeling system is. In these rare cases, a check mark will be placed on the label by the numerical grade. Blumberg, has set the standard for grading the condition of comic books. Egs european grading service halo certification pgx professional grading experts vault 60 day comic grading mcg midwest comic grading. A guide to book conditions the hobbit first edition by j. Newly updated, the overstreet guide to grading comics includes the 10point grading system, as well as exhaustive descriptions of primary and split grades, examples of each grade with more than 200 fullcolor images in all, articles on storage, preservation, and restoration, a look at the independent, thirdparty grading companies, and much more. Some people will not grade a comic missing its cover, but some give incomplete comics.
If you dont want that much detail, his comic book price guide will probably have enough grading information to help you give your collection a fair assessment. For cheaper comics graded on the basic grading scale, we show you a stock image of what that issues cover looks like, but we dont scan the exact book being offered. The standard comic book grading system that is widely used today is the one developed in the official overstreet comic book grading guide. Aug 12, 2014 it is up to the person selling the comic to inspect the book and determine the grade and obviously being the seller there can be a distinct conflict of interest. Collectors will be typically less inclined to part with a rare book easily. Comic grading is the process of encasing a comic book in a plastic case. Complete descriptions sell more books grading book. Comic grading company is the only affordable and reliable comic book grading service. Slip the comic book onto the backing board and into the protective sleeve, or place label.
How to grade your comics comic book grading labels. The worlds largest collectibles auctioneer comic books, vintage comics, original and animation art. It is up to the person selling the comic to inspect the book and determine the grade and obviously being the seller there can be a distinct conflict of interest. Though comic book grading has been around for decades, it wasnt until 2000 that a new thirdparty grading service, cgc, burst onto the scene and revolutionized the comic book collecting industry. Cover shows significant wear, and may be loose or even detached at one staple. That way, anyone can compare their raw or slabbed books to consistent grading standards. These comic grading services will grade a comic and then seal the comic in a hard plastic case that displays the.
How to submit for cgc grading, submission center uk. In rare cases, a comic book will look much better than the given grade. With comic books, once a book is deemed authentic by the cbcs, it is inspected for restoration and conservation by our restoration detection experts. Note that any defects such as missing pages, loose pages. This condition can easily lead to detached staples. A high grade, like an a or mint, is good, while a low grade. This collectibles shop page has the standard 10 point grading scale and definitions, as used in the overstreet guide. Although the actual process of grading a comic isnt really that difficult, it can be a bit intimidating for beginners. Comic book grading labels collectors condition comic book. Learn what is the comic book rating system and how a comic book is graded with cbcs comics grading guidelines. Bring in photos from your photo library or builtin camera, and. The comic book price guide for great britain a guide to grading. Thinkwave educator is great for solo teachers who want a basic, free gradebook. How to grade comics yourself taking you through the steps of how to start collecting comics and the grading system we use for buying and.
Comic book certification, pressing faq cbcs comics. As with grading all collectibles, there is a degree of subjectivity as there are many factors to consider and all of them must be weighed to determine an overall grade. Comic book grading and restoration may 19, 2016 scott robertson 25 comments comic book grading is one of the most important parts of speculating. A book in poor condition will be worth far less than the same book in fine condition. Every comic book certified by cgc is graded by the most experienced and trusted team, according to wellestablished grading standards. The overstreet guide to grading comics 2016 edition. Grading your comic books guide revel in the detail comics. We are proud to provide certification and grading services for collectors and hobbyist in the comic book industry. A highly consistent, descriptive and illustrated extensively grading guide on the web which will be a free service to the collecting community. It is always worth reevaluating your own grading criteria from time to time in order to become the more expert. Once certified by cgc, a comic book is encapsulated in a stateofthe art, tamperevident holder, providing superior protection and stability for longterm preservation. We need to emphasize, however, that not more than two of the above mentioned flaws can appear in the same comic. Special thanks to our comic grading advisor steve borock, president of cbsc comic book certification service, former heritage auctions consignment director and former cgc presidentprimary grader. For one, if you have a really valuable book, it offers a form of protection.
Comic book grading the basics of grading comics superworld. Comic book grading basics what you need to know by admin on thursday, october 15th, 2009 4 comments the grade or condition of a comic book is the most important determination of value outside of the actual title and issue number. The term grade is used to describe what condition a comic book is in. It also guarantees a consistent grade for the comic, which makes it easier to resell. Though comic book grading has been around for decades, it wasnt until 2000.
Tony, i actually have been really, working hard on this grading thing and have in fact been using the official overstreet comic book grading guide very closely. His videos are well worth your time, especially if you are considering investing in comics or sending comics to cgc to be graded. We deal with hundreds of such sellers who have done thousands of transactions with us since we began buying online in 2002. Cgcs restoration grading scale is a transparent system that is much more descriptive and accurate than before. Comic book grading learn the scale and how to apply it. The advantages of the collectors condition comic book raw grading labeling system is. There are two rating system that give buyers and sellers use to grade the condition of comic books. Sep 16, 2014 i found this guy on you tube and he really knows his stuff. The cgc uses a 110 numbering system which is pretty selfexplanatory and easy to understand. How to grade comic books yourself comic books 101 tutorial. Thats why as the buyer you need to be knowledgeable of the grading system and be able to give a rough grade on your own with your own eyeball test. You can think of the grade of a comic book like a grade on a report card.
And in some instances even a second flaw can drop a comic to very good. There are grades in between these basic grades such as finevery fine, but we want this to be a general easy. I thought i knew a lot about grading but he taught me things i had no clue about. Vault grading provides grading, pressing, encapsulation, valuation, and screening services to comic book collectors. Predating todays commonly used 10point numerical grading scale by about 10 years, the 100point scale was an unsuccessful early attempt to apply a more scientific standard to the comic book grading process. Comic book grading has evolved over the past several decades from a much looser interpretation of standards in the beginning to the very tight professional scrutiny in use by the market today. Though at times controversial, its proven grading system has become a gold. You can easily identify a slabbed comic because the grades. Sell my comic books presents a basic guide to comic book grading. We closely monitor and calibrate our staff to maintain adherence to our established standards. Preventative restoration, widely used and accepted by collectors, consists of nonadditive restoration on a book with one or two major defects. Every comic book certified by cgc is graded by the hobbys most experienced and trusted team, according to wellestablished grading standards. Its only been within the last 15 years or so that the problem of bias in comic grading was amended, and it took the form of commercial grading.
In addition, it can be a lot of fun to get your comics graded and watch them increase in value. This book may range anywhere from poor to near mint and there is no obligation to clarify its condition. The official overstreet comic book grading guide will answer just about any question you will ever have on the grading system as it stands today. A comic must be relatively complete to be successfully restored.
When grading gets to fine, you start operating on a point system. Aaron albert, a collector of and an expert on comic books, has studied, taught, and written about the comic book genre for more than 20 years. Please be aware that our pressing service may add more time to your turnaround date when using the express and next day grading services. The best possible existing condition of that comic book. Comic book grading is the process of determining the grade or condition of a book, which directly influences its value. There are eight major grades in the comic book grading scale. The best way to understand why a specific comic book received a check mark designation is to refer to the graders notes. Some basic descriptive terms are used by booksellers to communicate book condition. Additionally, some comics are slabbed by cgc, cbcs, or pgx. All sellers listing items on this site are required to use this grading system for a standard method understood by all. Cgc will provide you with a comprehensive, reliable and expert grading of your old comic books. It is very easy to separate the cover from a staple if it is almost there already.
Tolkien when considering the purchase of a book for your collection, the condition and, if applicable, the dust jacket are the most important factors affecting the value. The owlone card comes sealed in its original foil packaging. The comic may be brittle and defaced by other materials such as paint and glue. This plastic case forever seals your comic, unless you destroy the case to extract the comic. Mar 27, 2020 when grading a comic book, the first thing youll see is the cover. I did put this book up for sale where you were talking about with 3 pictures. Thinkwave educator premium is for teachers who want a fullfeatured gradebook with 100 gb online storage. Comic book price guide i love comic book collection. Discoloration, fading, foxing, and even minor to moderate soiling is allowed.
Useful for when you are unsure of the grade of a book or do not wish to grade the comic. The book pretty much summarizes all the checking points in determining the value of a comic book, and provides extensive comic book grading scale and descriptions for each grading level. Advice for those who dont know how to grade comics. Comics are graded using both descriptive categories and a 010 rating system. This is intended to be a basic guide so that you have a general idea of the grade of your books for pricing purposes. Submit your books pgx comics pgx comic grading services. Sgs grades are comparable to the third party grading companies such as cgc, cbcs, etc. The primary reason to grade a comic is that there is a direct correlation between the condition of the comic and the value of the book.
So if youre worried about future resale of a hg book, you probably do need to factor that in somewhat when you buy it. The majority of sellers we deal with are experienced graders, either long time collectors or comic retailers. Though at times controversial, its proven grading system has become a gold standard for those looking to have their collection appraised. Apr, 2020 packed with fonts, templates, balloons, captions, and lettering art, comic life is a fun, powerful and easy touse app that makes creating comics easier than ever. These ratings often affect the price that a comic book will sell for.
How unusual or how easily replaced the comic might be. Take a close look, ideally with a magnifying glass, and make careful notes of any apparent damage, including. Spoton grading systems, or sgs, is a series of short, multiple choice questions enabling you to grade your comic books onthespot and accurately, within seconds. Comic book grading is a precise procedure that can make it easy to sell or buy comics for what theyre worth. Here is the standard grading system used for all books available on. Packed with fonts, templates, balloons, captions, and lettering art, comic life is a fun, powerful and easytouse app that makes creating comics easier than ever. Our 25step proprietary grading method follows the grading guidelines established by robert overstreet. The newest and second most popular comic book grading company. Every type of restoration found on each book will be individually graded for quantity and quality, with a cumulative score determining the final restoration grade assigned. Thats why as the buyer you need to be knowledgeable of the grading system and be able to give a. As grading is very much a subjective exercise, it is all too easy for the novice and indeed experienced collector to allow wishful thinking and optimism to. Pressing and cleaning comic books is a very delicate process. The ultimate authority delivers the right grade every time grading comic books is the key to successful comic book collecting, and now the leading expert on comic books, robert m. You may think your favorite comic is a very fine read but is it a very fine buy.
The 2 reputable thirdparty professional grading services both begin with c use the same scale, but not exactly the same criteria, but overstreet has collaborated with them for their newest grading guide. Then the book is graded by the cbcs team grades range from 0. Our staff of friendly and dedicated employees offer over 250 years of experience in the comic book market place, and look forward to assisting you. Apr 29, 2006 so if youre worried about future resale of a hg book, you probably do need to factor that in somewhat when you buy it.
305 1336 878 1216 212 247 260 290 547 1082 210 643 473 680 593 549 824 1088 779 502 152 958 386 446 744 37 1320 884 407 11 172 434 1289 1265 1022