Best and Worst Surprise Grade?6207
Collector | Themaxx35 private msg quote post Address this user | |
So I am curious, what has been the best surprise grade you've received (expecting and 9.2 and got a 9.8 or something like that) and what's the worst (expected a 9.8 got a 8.0 for example)? I watched a video the other day where some guy sent in a NM 98 to CGC that looked it could have been VF/NM and got a .5 restored grade - he didn't realize a page was missing and someone did some color touch on the cover. I am wondering what other stories like that are out there. |
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Collector | 00slim private msg quote post Address this user | |
My ASM 194 was a pleasant surprise. Paid $70 for it at auction expecting a 9.0. With a press, it came back 9.6 with WHITE pages. Downside? Paid a fair price for a Wolverine 1 (limited) and an x-men 266 years ago. Expected 8.0’s. Both came back 6.5. Fortunately, I got my money back out of them. |
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Collector | KingNampa private msg quote post Address this user | |
Most disappointing moment was getting a bunch of 8.5 with check marks back from CBCS that looked NM to me. | ||
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I had no way of knowing that 9.8 graded copies signed by Adam Hughes weren't what you were looking for. | drchaos private msg quote post Address this user | |
Worst surprise were the two 0.5s I got from CBCS (golden age and modern Wonder Woman books that were missing pages). Also CGC gave me a green label on a Kick-Ass 2 variant that was also missing a page. |
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I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life. | kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
Bad ones: Silver Surfer #4 signed by Stan Lee in person... came back a red CBCS 0.5. Missing wrap, does not effect story. Star Wars #1 Action Figure Cover Variant, signed by Mark Hamill, came back yellow CBCS 8.5. Good ones: TMNT #1 Jetpack Comics Exclusive, Orange Cover Error Edition, purchased as a "best one of the pile" that was "maybe a 9.0-9.2", came back a blue CBCS 9.8! Amazing Spider-man #569 signed by Romita Jr, Second Printing Romita Jr Variant, came back yellow CBCS 9.6! Howard the Duck #12, signed by Gene Simmons of KISS, came back yellow CBCS 9.2! ROM Space Knight #1 Newsstand Edition, signed by Frank Miller and Jim Shooter, came back yellow CBCS 9.4! |
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Beaten by boat oars | Studley_Dudley private msg quote post Address this user | |
Batman 189, 0.5 Incomplete, missing a page which didn't affect the story. Probably why I missed it. Thought for sure it would be in the 7.0 range. X-men #101, 8.5 restored. I was pretty upset about that one, then I got over it when my other copy came back as a 9.6 New Teen Titans #2, 9.8. I was thinking 9.4 all day, but I'll take it. |
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Collector | CopperAgeKids private msg quote post Address this user | |
I have gotten books a couple of books that were .2 to 1.0 off from my grades, bigger discrepancies past .2 -.4 points came on lower/mid grade silver books. I'm usually very accurate with my predicted grades. Never got back a book with resto, and/or missing a page. Those are things I notice when I grade screen my books, so to speak. I can tell by the weight of a book in my hand, if it's missing one or more pages. |
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Collector | Darkga private msg quote post Address this user | |
I thought this would be a 9-something but had no idea... |
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Collector | Darkga private msg quote post Address this user | |
For some reason I thought this was going to be a 4.5... |
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Collector | Drogio private msg quote post Address this user | |
Biggest let-down: I got a 9.0 on a book (captain America 6, winter soldier variant) I swore up and down was a 9.6/9.8. Turns out it had an circular "imprint" that was sort of like a non color breaking crease that spanned the entire front cover...couldn't see it unless you held the comic in sunlight at nearly a 180 degree angle. Ironically since it was so minor, I'm sure it could easily get pressed to 9.6 or better. It was my first submission and I didn't even know pressing existed. Best surprise: Had a Batman 357 (1st Jason Todd) that had a large non color breaking crease...almost folded over...across the back cover...had it pressed prior to grading (lesson learned). The crease was so extensive I was t sure pressing would help much...Would have been happy with a 9.0...Came back a 9.6!!! |
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"Forum Overlord" bah ha ha ha... | JustThatGuy private msg quote post Address this user | |
I got an ASM 300, 299, 298. Paid $287 for them. Asm 300 came back 9.8. No press | ||
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Collector | TellEmSteveDave private msg quote post Address this user | |
Worst Phantom Stranger 14 had pegged 9.0/.2 came back 8.0 2001 ASO #8 solid 9.0+ in my eye. Came back 7.5. Best Savage Tales #1 expected 9.2 at the most, came back 9.6 Monsters Unleashed #7 expected 9.2+ came back 9.8 WP. Single highest graded across the street. |
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COLLECTOR | Stu private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by KingNampaI know the feeling - X-Men #94 looks like a 9.2 came back as a 8.5*. Been meaning to get it pressed and resubmitted. Best - Werewolf by Night #32 looked like a 7 came back an 8.5! |
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Collector | czarnickolas private msg quote post Address this user | |
Worst: My first time ever submitting comics for pressing, I just grabbed the 10 or so from my mid-90s collection that were the most valuable per comicspriceguide.com (oi vey!) and didn't even look them over before sending them in. Two included were an ASM 300 and Harbinger 1. The ASM had significant cover warping that could have easily been remedied by pressing, and the Harbinger 1 had some serious staining on the back cover that I could have easily seen had I examined the book before submitting it (pretty sure the book was like that when I bought it in 1994, and I just never looked at it). The ASM came back a 7.5* (the dreaded asterisk!) and the Harbinger a 5.0!! I've since sent the ASM to a reputable presser (Josh Avery), who manage to clean things up (see photo), and am now waiting on my re-submit. As for the Harbinger #1, I'm thinking of cracking it open and selling it, as I can't bear having to look at it every time I open my box of slabbed books. Best (so far!): Bought an Iron Man 1 from a sports card dealer with over 70k feedback who admitted to knowing so little about comic books that he didn't even try to guess at a grade - he just gave his condition notes and some good pictures - and I figured it for 7.5-8.0. Came back an 8.5 today. |
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Collector | MR_SigS private msg quote post Address this user | |
Late 80's I bought an X-Men #50 "NM" from Mile High via a comic book ad (I think for $35). I was very happy with it, and put it with the few comics I had at the time (didn't have much money back then). 2011, I discover CGC after returning to the hobby (with money, this time) and add this book with my first of only 2 ever submissions. It came back 9.6 OW/W. I was expecting 9.2 I no longer have it, I traded with Anthony Snyder for some art by Mike Royer, $500 worth. |
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I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life. | kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by CopperAgeKids |
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Why just the women? I like bears. | Gaard private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by kaptainmyke Daredevil/pretzel/salt |
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Collector | brandon77 private msg quote post Address this user | |
Worst: X-Men #221 thought was a 9.4, returned 7.0. ASM #239 figured was an easy 9.4/9.5, came back 8.0. Detective Comics #437, looked like a 7.0+, came back 5.0 (ouch!) Best: Preacher#1 figured would be 9.4, came back 9.8 |
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I'm good with splotches. | Nuffsaid111 private msg quote post Address this user | |
I expect "lower than I expected" grades to occur often. Finding defects we dont see is not uncommon and that's why we entrust our grading companies. On the flip side I get very anxious and concerned when grades come back significantly higher than expected. If I think 9.0 - 9.2 and it comes back 9.6 - 9.8 that means I see defects and it actually bothers me when I'm that far off |
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Collector | vacaboca private msg quote post Address this user | |
I think I posted about it at some point in the past, but a couple of years ago I saw a Batman #232 on a store wall while traveling... it looked great, and was impossible to pass up at $180... this is a picture I took the day I bought it: I submitted it to CBCS, and though it might come in as low as an 8.0, possibly as high as a 9.0... and it came back a 9.4: I hadn't gone over it in fine detail, to be honest, as the specific grade wasn't all that important to me... I knew it had been a deal regardless. |
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COLLECTOR | Foghorn_Sam private msg quote post Address this user | |
I thought this book looked better and had better structure than the 5.5 CGC gave it. CBCS surprised me with a 7.0. (It was cleaned and pressed before sending to CGC.) |
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Collector | nikki666666 private msg quote post Address this user | |
I bought my copy of Crow #1 off ebay and the guy had it listed as a VF- got it for around $95 and it came back a 9.6! when it arrived i knew he had under graded it.. i thought a 9.0 if I'm lucky. boy was i lucky. Worst is my NM87 - To me, it looked flawless.. my most perfect crisp book i have set eyes upon (other than anything from the last year or two) in fact it looked as good as those from this year! i could not fault this book. It came back a 9.2 with a noting of spine creasing non colour break. I submitted a Harley Quinn 1 - Adam Hughes the same time. i thought this would be a 9.0 at best and that was a 9.6!!! notes for that were spine damage colour broken!!! HUH!!!! |
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Captain Corrector | CaptainCanuck private msg quote post Address this user | |
@czarnickolas Quote: Originally Posted by czarnickolas Did you mean “...submitting comics for grading”? |
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Captain Corrector | CaptainCanuck private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by CopperAgeKids That should have came with quotation marks and a footnote. It’s a direct quote from Steve Borock. |
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Collector | czarnickolas private msg quote post Address this user | |
@CaptainCanuck Quite right! Do you have any idea how to edit a comment, or will that error be there forever? (Ah - looks like you can only edit your post within 24 hours of writing it - nvm!) |
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Captain Corrector | CaptainCanuck private msg quote post Address this user | |
@czarnickolas No worries, I was just making sure I was reading it right. |
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I live in RI and Rhode Islanders eat chili with beans. | esaravo private msg quote post Address this user | |
Included in my first ever order to CBCS (or any grading company) was a nice copy of Iron Man and Sub-Mariner #1 (a one-shot book that predated both Iron Man #1 and Sub-Mariner #1 and has stories that are continued in those issues - yes, Marvel was making you buy extra comics even back in 1968). I had never tried to put a number value on a comic before (I grew up with G/VG, FN/VF and VF/NM as the main grades), and had taken a 20+ year hiatus from collecting as well. The book looked high-grade to me, but the paper on the right side of the comic was a little rough, and there was just a little wear at the top and bottom of the spine. I hoped the book would get an 8.5 from CBCS. Here's what they graded it: I have since learned that roughly cut edges were fairly common in SA comics, so they did not hurt the grade. So this comic (and really any BA Newsstand Edition that comes back with a 9.8) are my biggest surprises for best grades. This was the highest graded and the only 9.6 SA comic from my first order. |
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I live in RI and Rhode Islanders eat chili with beans. | esaravo private msg quote post Address this user | |
My worst surprises have been due to me being ignorant of restoration. My first CBCS order included an Iron Man #8 that came back with a slight color touch, and I have gotten back two SA X-Men that were found to be trimmed. This one bummed me out the most, as I thought it was one of the nicest copies I had ever seen of this issue (now I know why). Here's the ungraded copy: And here's the slab: All three restored books were bought from dealers over 35 years ago. I'm guessing the two X-Men were bought from the same guy. |
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Collector | JesterHats private msg quote post Address this user | |
Worst: This Doctor Strange #28. Totally gorgeous NM+ looking book, but cover & first wrap are detached from bottom staple. I wonder if it's some kinda factory error. |
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Collector | czarnickolas private msg quote post Address this user | |
@JesterHats Oh man. The dreaded checkmark. "Looks better than its grade." | ||
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