Have the grading companies increased the value of books. Certified guaranty company, also known as cgc, is a sarasota, florida comic book grading. Cbcs team members all share in the love of our hobby and the medium. There is a large distrust in the collecting community, so if you are going to spend the money to get a book graded, we recommend cgc or cbcs. Every comic book certified by cgc is graded by the most experienced and trusted team, according to wellestablished grading standards. Guaranty company cgc, a leading thirdparty grading service for comic books. Comic book series proposals for our comic book line comic book series proposals must have at least eight pages of final art included with the pitch material so they can see what the finished comic book pages will look like. Are speculators ruining the hobby by slabbing comics. Cgc certified guaranty company, pgx professional grading experts, and cbcs comic book certification service. To conclude, slabbing provides a piece of mind to a trader and fellow collector that he is getting his prized book at the grade he wants and it eliminates the need to have disputes which can turn ugly sometimes. In a surprise release today, beckett media, parent to beckett grading service, has announced their acquisition of cbcs comics. Why should a golden age comic found in an attic in new jersey that is in 9. The process involves a check for restoration work, assigning a grade and encasing the comic in a. Eric kaylor is an it professional, small business owner, very parttime comic book investor and seller, and very fulltime happy husband and father of one amazing girl, plus a few needy cats in columbus, ohio.
Once certified by cgc, a comic book is encapsulated in a stateofthe art, tamperevident holder, providing superior protection and stability for longterm preservation. Tales from the database mile high comics, chuck rozanski. In this vlog we discuss what it means to slab or encapsulate a comic book with one of the third party comic book grading companies. Golden age comic book reprints history captured in a comic book from single issues to entire series. Part of the reason is because its understood that at minimum the cost of grading the comic is added to the raw value of the book. My slabbing for selling is usually just to cover the cost of the slabbing and try to break even on the comics i want to keep for myself.
To qualify, the book must still be encapsulated in its original cgc holder. Cbcs, and pgx are two of the more popular companies performing comic sacrilege. Comic grading company has a simple and affordable pricing structure without any clubs to join. Cgc is the newer comic book authority and grades comics in this manner. The industry giants are dc comics and marvel comics, both founded in the 1930s. A few weeks ago, i attended a local comic convention here in vancouver and i heard about the new company comic book certification service. List of comic book publishing companies pen and the pad. Slabbing a comic is a practice of sending a comic book to one of two grading companies cgc or pgx where they, for a fee, assign a grade for the comic and place it in a protective case. It appears to me that there has been an onslaught of controversy over the whole concept of slabbing comic books by comics guarantee corporation.
Im not a perv, but i like wonder woman the best of all. We are proud to provide certification and grading services for collectors and hobbyist in the comic book industry. Ya, if i want to sell something and its a desirable comic, ill slab it. Comic book grading company the affordable and reliable.
This company was started by steve borock, the former president of cgc so he definitely has some clout in the industry. There is a lot to consider today when youre thinking of submitting your very first book into one of the many available grading companies. Well do a subsequent blog talking about the merits of the various companies that offer gradingslabbing services, but for right now, lets concentrate on the. These fans contend that this mummification of books, or slabbing as some. The oldest comic publishing company on this list is the nowdefunct book publishing. So, while slabbing posters, coins, and cards may be appropriate, the slabbing of comics is a process that effectively nullifies the comics very reason for being. Comic book grading, certification process cbcs comics.
And to the original question of the thread, i dont believe speculators are ruining the hobby, but affecting it by buying up copies of what might become a hot book, slabbing it, then playing hot potato passing the comic around with other speculators hoping to squeeze out another buck before interest wanes and realized prices stagnate or. We will explore each companys specifics in the future entries of this series. For many comic book collectors, grading and encapsulating or slabbing, as the cool kids call it their collection is a top priority in protecting their collection. Books that have been encapsulated and certified by an objective thirdparty grading service take the guesswork out of the grading process for both collectors and dealers. From the moment your books enter into our facility they are handled with the upmost care by our highly trained professional staff. Manta has 243 companies under comic books in the united states. Over the decades, dc comics has brought to life such superheroes as superman and. Manta has 81 companies under comic books in oregon. Beyond that requirement, please feel free to include as much additional material as you wish.
Search or browse our list of comic books companies by category or location. Comic book certification service cbcs was started by professional comic book hobbyists and provides certification and grading services for collectors and. Ill grant you that there is a certain cachet and mystique attached to any comic book originally collected by edgar church, but does the same hold true for all pedigree collections. Cbcs offers impartial grading and certification for comic books. A comic book in a cgc holder is encapsulated in a new cgc holder. Beckett grading has acquired cbcs comics comic booked. Our standard turnaround time is just 30 business days and all of our shipping. They have individual pricing and three different membership plans to choose. Just wondering how you do you choose which comic book to slab. Another thing that often happens is the person submitting the comic will not agree with the rating of the books condition. Furthermore, every cgccertified comic book undergoes a thorough restoration check by leading professionals during the certification process. But cbcs looms big and i think will become a major player in the comic book grading world.
The three most notable companies would be cgc certified guaranty company, pgx and cbcs comic book certification service. Certified guaranty company cgc, launched in early 2000, is a comic book. Slabs and why they are relevant in comics collecting. The oldest comic publishing company on this list is the nowdefunct book publishing company, david mckay publications that was founded in 1882 and published comics from 1935 to 1950. Learn how cgc comics have helped the industry, how cgc grading works, and how. Several years ago, pgx had a large scandal where books were being given higher grades than in reality. Have professional grading services overinflated the price of. For a long time, cgc was the premier comic book grading company. Usnav2724 cgc is a scam in the sense that they overprice for their services. There are currently three american companies that do this. You then hand the book over to them, and it gets sent off to be graded.
The upside to cbcs is avoiding the constant slabbing and unslabbing and possibility of damaging the comic book in the process. 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. Theyve enabled collectors to safely buy and sell books without fear of surprise and disappointment. This process, also known as slabbing in the comic book community, exists to remove any subjectivity and ambiguity in judging a books actual condition. Certified guaranty corporation cgc, comic book certification service cbcs, and professional grading experts pgx. Right now, the two main companies that can slab a comic are cgc. Only if you consider this guy a legitimate company. Cgc has been in operation now since 1999 and has developed quite a position for themselves in the comic book industry. A slabbing company could really cash in on this and wind up in the fortune 500. Oh, and page quality is also a factor in any slabbing discussion, but then we. Pgx was created to meet the growing demand for professional, thirdparty comic book grading.
Some will suggest that older comics benefit from slabbing because, given their age and fragility, they are in need of some protection. That can add up in a hurry, especially if youre working with a limited budget. Graded and slabbed books have completely changed comic book collecting and revitalized the hobby. Cbcs comics comic book certification service cbcs was started by professional comic book hobbyists with the intent of protecting our fellow hobbyists when buying and selling comic books. View population reports for cgc comics, magazines and lobby cards. But theres also this social contract that exists which allows buyers to put more faith in a book graded by cgc because of the confidence their reputation brings to the table. Display your books and compete with other collectors for best sets. In the world of comicbook publishing, there are industry giants as well as smaller publishers that are helping to fill the shelves at the local comic shop. This process is often referred to in comics jargon as slabbing. There are other companies that slab and grade as well. We have taken every precaution to safely house your comic books while in our. Just to be clear, it is not my intention to solely endorse cgc, as there are other companies who also offer third party grading services. Over the years weve lost countless publishing companies due to shifts in the market, poor business decisions or simply a struggle to stay relevant. Comic book age comic book grading company company 1.
In this series, we will explore this process by first examining what exactly grading and slabbing is in general, and then dig into the specifics of the three primary grading companies. The grade assigned to the book should not change, unless any damage occurred postencapsulation, in which case the grade will be adjusted accordingly. Most comic publishing companies were established in the united states of america where comics became popular in the mid 1900s. 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.
We are temporarily closed but will be reopening and accepting orders again friday april 17th at 12. Me neither, everyone uses some form of slabbing now to protect the ubervalue books. So, while slabbing posters, coins, and cards may be appropriate, the slabbing of comics is a process that effectively nullifies the comic s very reason for being. After your comic has been examined, used for bathroom. Certified guaranty company cgc is a leading thirdparty grading service for comic books, magazines and other collectibles. Thanos creator has harsh words for comics grading service. Thats why slabbed books cannot be opened and slabbing will turn your comic. Today, were taking a moment to look at 15 of these defunct comic book publishers. As one of the leading choices in comic book grading, by the leading brand in grading, the acquisition is a game changer in. Could the overlap in the comic book world explain why he sees potential in many different companies and isnt. We all know that graded comics sell for much higher prices than equivalent.
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