CGC comics came about in the 1980`s as a result from uneducated and unethical business of a multitude of comic book sellers on eBay, who did not know the first hand thing about comic books, their sentimentalism to comic collectors (from childhood) worldwide, and pricing structures with respect to the comic book price guide (CBPG for short.) An unsuspecting buyer, not understanding he would be paying an absurd price for a book, would usually discover later he had been ripped off.

After CGC (Certified Guaranty Company) comics slabbed and "apparently" professionally graded books, these books began popping up on eBay and other comic shops online and offline, at different prices, they soon moved to Amazon, and sold their tricks there...at least for a while.

Then other companies followed suit and set up their own "certified grading" operations. CBCS, PGX and a few unknowns became predominant or cheaper to slab.

Initially, things started out OK, but then took a dark turn into greed, aside from eBay/PayPal fees tacked onto sales by comic book slab vendors online and offline -- prices began souring or they at least were jacked up in the minds of sellers due to the PRO grade and the encased book not so labeled and protected from external damage, which of course in one sense does make sense because if you wanted to protect the book it could be stored away for years to come and be pulled out years later from anyone`s home, dusted off and voila! Instant sale!

As a collector myself, I disagree with CGC and other slabbing companies, because it`s a come-on much in the same way that backing up an odds bet to one`s initial bet on the pass-line at craps is a come-on venture, one which doesn`t need to exist.

Many serious collectors were outraged, because it merely ruined what collecting comics was all about in the first place, reading comics and preserving them over the years for either their children`s children or perhaps sold somewhere down the line.

My second point is that some books should be sent to CGC and other "reputable" companies, but not all books should. Golden age books and keys perhaps, but all types, no. If you know how to grade a comic book an apparent book grade, is just that -- apparent. And without going into the semantics of how to go about detecting a book`s grade, any collector who knows his or her stuff may say the grade of one copy is 6.0. while another who buys and sells books will tell you that this same copy is 5.5, so no one single grade is 100% accurate.

But when the grade approaches worse condition it comes closer to being agreed upon what the condition of the book actually is; with wear and tear and damage, almost any person without the know-how of how to grade comics can tell you right off the bat that a book without it`s cover is worthless to a serious collector, or that tears, missing chucks, multiple folds/creases and improper handling of a book makes it fair to bad to a good copy --whatever that means is unclear even for myself since no one has a definite system whereby to do so other than grading from what we know about how to grade comics.

I have seen one page from action comics No #1 slabbed and sold for thousands, it`s really wacky! In reality, I wouldn`t bother with such a purchase if I had the capitol to do so.

Now let`s get into the heart of this and do an analysis. If conditions between persons differ upon actual grades of single copies, then how is it that CGC and other slabbers of comics are professional graders? Remember now, that CGC is an umbrella company which was formed under NGC, a coin grading company, who have been in the business for years. But to get into comics and start asserting yourself as some pro-grader, doesn`t make much sense because conditions are graded slightly different between those graders who know what they are doing, but when a copy has obvious damage the apparent goes down. And yet these buffoons claim to be professional graders, then encase a book intended for occasional reading with proper handling, so you can`t even get through the encasement to read and/or handle the book short of cracking the encased book and carefully removing the book from inside.

Once that`s done, the book "supposedly" had no more professional grade, and must be re-submitted (usually with the label it was encased with), so that you or someone else who now owns the book, have to shell out another "whatever amount" to get it re-slabbed.

So they profit regardless?

WTF?

Wait.

What?

Aren`t comic books for reading in the first place, that is if properly handled and not falling apart.

But here we have a clear case of taking something meant for entertainment value and cut it off form being touched...ever. While this protects the book in the long run, it also is fairly bad for the book on the long run. This is because more breathing room is neglected from the book and if and when it is "cracked-open" some years down the line (say 34), exposure to air will cause it to crumble, as is the case when paper is put in an air tight box for a few days.

CGC and other companies also do a restoration check, which awards the slabbed book a purple label. Some graders do not know what to look for here and sometimes is undetectable without a close examination and comparison and is the case in most antique dealings. Also sellers and vendors misuse the word vintage for books as opposed to rare. vintage is a term that applies to antiques, usually golden age related as in the 1940`s. You see it all the time on eBay, and irritating words inexperienced or laymen sellers use to attempt to move the book and get it sold from among the thousands of other sellers out there who are also trying to sell similar copies. These words I merely pass up because a savvy buyer checks the seller`s rating first. L@@K! Tough luck buddy.

CGC and other comic slabbing companies have yet to acknowledge that that they are responsible for the shockingly high prices re-sellers select to price their books at, and while it is their choice, somehow they believe that just by the mere fact that the book is or has been slabbed and supposedly graded professionally, that the copy, depending on the grade, is of course more valuable than a book not slabbed, encased and graded.

Sure the book is now protected and perhaps it being an old book or a key issue makes sense, especially for major key issues and first appearances of characters, but something in that thinking is wrong right there.

Have you seen why yet?

It`s because of a yearly or when inflation goes up, etc, etc the comic book price guide comes out with it`s price guide for all books presently known. A current version of CBPG indicates grade and price by grade or condition of said copy and if it is rare or not. In NO list on any page of a current version of a CBPG, will you see CGC pricing of graded copy. And as of yet the company itself who publishes the yearly CBPG has not CGC CBPG.

Understand?

What this means is that even though collectors and vendors submit books to slabbing companies, the mere fact it has been slabbed and supposedly graded professionally, does not change or alter the price of the book according to a current version of a CBPG. So to break this down further, if you have a copy of Incredible Hulk #181 (1974), and the price guide indicates that a high grade copy goes for $3,400.00 (and no CGC price is listed in the guide), then the price for a slabbed book of a copy with the exact same grade is $3,400.00 and therefore is exactly $3,400.00 as it is for an un-slabbed book.

If they are 2 identical copies and both have the same grade and one gets slabbed by say CGC and the other not, then why does the slabbed book suddenly get jacked up in price based merely on the fact it is now encased inside a piece of plastic which cannot be accessed to remove the book nor return it? Or is it because the person now selling the slabbed book paid a specific sum to the slabbing company for services rendered and tacks on the price paid for the slabbing and now wants to recoup that and make back and additional profit?

No, it`s not that way at all! Owners of CGC and other slabbed books are decisively jacking up the prices based merely on the fact that the book is professionally graded and slabbed. In reality, the book (let`s say Superboy #68 [1958] (1st app. Bizarro)), goes in a high-grade for $2,800.00 regardless of being slabbed or not. In other words these sellers began a now out-of-control pricing structure for slabbed books they tacked on themselves, but the reality is weather slabbed or not the book still goes for $2,800.00! All your really paying for is the estra protection and inaccessibility of to the book of it`s encasement -- and that`s all, nothing more or less. It`s still the same price according to a current version of a comic book price guide!!

Absolutely no CGC comic book price guide has yet been published and slabbers have no regulation over such prices, all they do is do a service for the money being paid for the service - it really is an absurd situation with no end in sight and the worse part - there`s no difference in pricing between one grade un-slabbed or not slabbed for the same book graded and sell-able - it`s till $2,800.00, yet the owners have created a market wherein the value of slabbed books becomes more lucrative in spite of the fact that a current CBPG say the price for that book at that grade has not changed. Period.

This is how ridiculous eBay ( and other vendors) slabbed comics have become, but in all actuality...it`s just greed and anyone buy slabbed books at a prices which does not match the CBPG price that does not include CGC prices, is in fact being ripped off -and was more the majority of sellers know it! An exclusion principle to this would be an old book, highly valuable, and a buyer aware of what he is getting for the price being offered. Hey, if you want it, great...some people, no many people do. Fact is I have a few slabbed books myself, but I already knew about the absurdities of slabbed books and the sellers out there trying to make a "bigger profit" off copies of the same books, vying for a sucker who`ll pay the differential, unaware that the person on the other end is smirking every time he lands a sale on slabbed books. Now let`s head on over to eBay and use a few snipets as exemplifications as to the craziness of these UN-regulated sellers of slabbed books and we will look at 3 books at varying prices. We will look at the Highest Priced one first and the lowest ones found online at the time of this writing.

Our first book will be Strange Tales #110 (1963), [The 1st Appearance of Doctor Strange] Going for high grade for $17,000.00 according to CBPG prices.

Here, I did actually locate a closely priced slabbed book close to thje CBPG suggested price:

Here is the Highest Priced book I found with the "buy it now" option at the time of this search:

Here is one which was moderately priced considering the grade, but still overpriced with such a grade in comparison to CBPG pricing suggestions for the grade:

And of course the lowest one which first came up when I scrolled down:

The above, is so shot it might be worth leaving it in the slab since it looks so beat up.

Next we have a famous book made popular by Wolverine and Hulk fans (myself included) is the highly sought after and now classic cover of Incredible Hulk #181 (1974) [1st full appearance of wolverine]. Going for slabbed and UN-slabbed sell-age according to CBPG price suggestions in high grade at... $3,400.00!

Now remember, a current CBPG suggests UN-Slabbed and slabbed prices are identical for that particular grade, and we have below a "buy it now" item highest first, selling at::::

Does this look like it is $3,400.00? No way, it`s completetly off the rector scale to the CBPG...way off! In fact it`s so far off,like the highest example on the prior book, it goes into 39,999.99 almost 11 times! In more direct terms it`s owner as an asking price 11 times the amount to the CBPG ! WOW! Either 1). He or She`s got a sentimental attachment to the book, or 2). He`s just plain grredy, hoping for a fish to take the bait.

An here is the lowest buy it now the came up when I scroll down having chosen that option:::

Holy Cottage Cheese Batman! It looks like we get a worthless copy for over half of $500, perhaps the "value" will go up someday; but to someone out there it might make a fine addition to their collection until they can afford an upgrade - of course it`s probably worth less irrespective of slabbing...go figure. But then again I myself have purchased a copy of amazing spider-man #10 with a few chunks absent from the interior and a section cutout from the top by a mean kid...I assume, but I bought it at a comic book shop for $30.00, not what this clod is asking for minus eBay and PayPal fees -Good Lord! Even at this image size you can esily see tears and UN-restorable and perhaps UN-salvageable damage. Go ahead..you buy it, no thanks!

Next we have Superboy #68 1st App. of Bizarro from 1958.Going for... $2,800.00 in high grade.

...And our first winner for high priced items goes to the lucky...um well I can`t tell you, but here it is----

Hey not bad, looks like we actually found a deal! Purchase or no? In all truth, yes. his would make a great purchase because it is lower than the suggested CBPG price! Quick! Get it before it`s sold!

Next we have the lowest in non-CGC and is it worth it?

Yes and no on this one, take a closer look by clicking on the link and if it looks suspicious ask some questions to the dealer and be sure to look at his or her selling rating -if all is well try it, it may be well worth the investment.

So there you have it! Slabbed books are no more worth Un-slabbed books according to a current version of the comic book price guide. Hey! happy Hunting!