CBCS - Comic Book Certification Service

cbcscomics.com

Steve Borock and Alec Born

CBCS is the newest third party grading service for comics, and has quickly become the second most popular company for grading comics due largely in part to Steve Borock.

He, along with Alec Born, set out to create a company that not only had a great service, but also had exceptional customer service along with being a "transparent" company. By transparent I mean a very open company that let's it's customers know what is happening within the company, whether it be turnover delays and any other problems that may arise.

For example, a problem arose with the plastics they used shortly after the company started. Instead of keeping it all hush hush and continuing business as usual, they sent out emails to everyone that was a member, and stopped putting our valuable comics into slabs that they thought were substandard. They also gave out huge discounts to everyone that submitted comics to them during that time, even though it almost bankrupt them.

CBCS has recently updated their website and isn't quite 100% functional yet. You can still submit comics, but portions of the website, like collectors sets or a census, has yet to be implemented. They say that they are working on them, but there is no timeline as to when that will be. Hopefully sometime in the near future.

CBCS grades their comics very similarly to the way CGC does. When they receive your comic, it goes through a restoration check, is looked over by a  series of graders, until finally it is seen by the head grader, in this case Steve Borock, and it's given a final grade.

Graders notes

However, there are a few differences between CBCS and their main competitor CGC. For one, you don't need to be a paid member to submit you comics to them via their website. Although CBCS does offer a paid membership tiers with perks for each level, you're not required to purchase them for the privilege of sending them your comics directly. If you decide you'd like to sign up for one of their membership tiers, or would like more information on them, click on this link here.

Another key difference, and one that I am grateful for, is that the graders notes are free and available for anyone to use. CGC makes you pay for them. This comes in handy for anyone that's looking at a CBCS graded comic online or, if you have a smartphone, at a convention to easily see why that comic got that particular grade. In my opinion, it's a great resource to have and I use it fairly often. I've included a picture of the graders notes on The Uncanny X-Men #297 Pressman Edition to give you an example of them. Also, if you'd like to know how this comic made it's way into my collection, just click the link above.

CBCS uses many different labels. The first label is the Certified label, which is the equivalent to CGC's Universal label. This label is given to comics that are in their original, off the shelf condition, that has no autographs, or any repairs or restoration done to it.

The next label is the Restored label. CBCS doesn't use colored labels like CGC does. It looks very similar to the Certified label, but it's still very easy to spot a comic that is sporting the Restored label. All you have to do is look under the numerical grade. Examples of restoration would be color touch on the cover, trimmed edges, torn pieces reattached, ect... Just like CGC, CBCS doesn't consider pressing and dry cleaning restoration.

I'm not a big fan of the Conserved label. CBCS states that "Conservation is a process used to prevent the deterioration and further destruction of a comic". I have no idea what CBCS considers to be conservation, but to me, this sounds a lot like restoration, and I consider them to be restored comics, but that's just me. Again, you can tell the Conserved label by looking under the numerical grade.

There are two labels that are color coded. The first is the yellow Authenticated Signature. This is also very similar to CGC's yellow Signature Series label. A comic that has been signed by a writer or artist, either at a convention or other special event, in the presence of a CBCS authorized witness, will get this yellow label.

CBCS teamed up with CSA Comics to create this final label, the red Verified Signature label. I, for one, think this is a great idea. For all of those comics that were autographed long before grading companies existed can now be verified as authentic signatures and receive a proper label, rather than being slapped with a green Qualified label at CGC. If you'd like to know more about the verification process, just click this link here.

There are other advantages to using CBCS. Even though they recently increased their grading fees, it is still cheaper than using CGC. I recently sent in some comics to CBCS. It cost me $300 to have eight Silver Age book graded by them. The same books would have cost me $480 to be graded by CGC. You can check out their pricing page here.

There is a drawback to using CBCS as well. At this moment in time, CBCS graded comics aren't selling for the same prices as CGC, but that is slowly changing. Values for both are starting to even out a little bit more now that more people are starting to trust the services from CBCS. However, there are still a lot of people out there that will pay more for a CGC graded comic than a comic at the same grade with the CBCS label.

In closing, CBCS still has a way to go to catch up to their competitor, but they are heading in the right direction. Their commitment to customer service and their hard work to try and keep their turn around times on time, make them an easy company to like. I'm looking forward to the day that they get their website up and running at 100%, but until then, I will patiently wait.

Sign up to CBCS here

Updated 6/13/2017
Due to a huge backlash over their redesigned "rivet" labels, CBCS once again came out with another new label. I haven't seen these labels in person yet, but the over consensus is positive. Check out these new labels in the video below.

CGC - Certified Guarantee Corporation

cgccomics.com

When it comes to comic book grading services, CGC is the big daddy of them all. The company was founded in 2000 and changed comic collecting and investing forever. Comic books are now encased, or slabbed, in a hard archival plastic case to be preserved forever. There is no longer any guessing when it comes to determining the grade of a comic. I know the pain in the butt that it is to go to a shop or a convention and thoroughly look over a book and try to judge it's condition, and then arguing with the dealer about it. I've seen many dealers over grade their books. CGC takes all of the guess work and arguing out of it.

Click to Enlarge

Let me try to explain how CGC comes to give the grades they do. A series of three graders examine each comic that is sent to them. The book is sent one by one to each grader. They look for any defects or restoration and takes notes on anything they find. They know nothing of the grade or the notes of the grader before them. Then the comic is looked at by the "head" grader. He looks at the comic and the notes of the three graders, and then assigns a final grade between .5 to 10. This is the grade that ends up on the label. Occasionally you may see a grade that says "NG". "NG" simply means No Grade. You will usually see an "NG" on comics that are in very bad condition, like comics that are missing covers and multiple pages or it might just be a single page of a comic. These "NG" graded books usually aren't very investment worthy but I have seen single pages of Amazing Fantasy #15 for sale on eBay, but I don't know if any of them sold or for how much if they did.

Before CGC encase the comics, they add microchamber paper between the cover and pages of the book. What this little piece of paper does is absorb the acids in the pages of a comic, especially older comics, and helps prevent any further damage. What these acids do is cause a yellowing to the cover over time. It's suggested to have your comics "reholdered" every seven or eight years to have be microchamber paper replaced, but that can get quite expensive and isn't really necessary. Leaving the paper in longer that 7 years won't cause extra damage to your comic.

Old CGC labels

There are many labels used by CGC. Some of them are old, outdated labels that are no longer in use but are still available to buy. You will occasionally see some pop up online or at a convention. The old labels are pictured to the left. The red label is a "Modern" label that is no longer used at all. The "Universal" and "Qualified" labels have been updated to the new design, as you will see below.

The new labels are much nicer than the old ones. They made the grade much more apparent and is overall far more appealing. They added a few more colored labels as well. I'll show you each color and what each one means. First we'll start out with the updated, blue Universal label.

The Universal label is a comic book that is in it's original condition. There has been no restoration, no witnessed or un-witnessed autographs, and not missing any pages or coupons cut out.

Next is the purple Restored label. A comic book that has had some kind of restoration will get this purple label. Examples of restoration would be color touch on the cover, trimmed edges, torn pieces reattached, ect... As of now, CGC doesn't consider a pressed or dry cleaned comic book restoration. A comic that has been pressed or dry cleaned will still get a blue Universal label.

A yellow label is their Signature Series label. A comic will get this label when it's been autographed by your favorite artist or writer in the presence of a CGC authorized witness. A comic that gets autographed and does not have an authorized witness will get a green Qualified label.

A green Qualified label if a comic that has an un-witnessed signature like I stated above or it has a page missing or coupon cut out that does not affect the story. Other defects that might get a Qualified label could be a large tear in the cover, as long as the comic still has a nice visual appeal. I don't really agree with this Qualified label. If a comic is missing a "value stamp" or other page or coupon and is an incomplete book, then it shouldn't get a grade of 9.2 like in the picture to the left. That's just my opinion though.

The blue and purple Conserved label is the newest label offered by CGC. They say on their website that the Conserved label applies to "any comic book with specific repairs done to improve the structural integrity and long-term preservation". This label sounds a lot like a restored label to me. So, a comic will get a Conserved label if it has been cleaned using solvents (not dry cleaned), pieces of the comic have been reattached or the staples have been replaced. Again, I'm not sure I like this label. A lot of the criteria for a Conserved label does sound a lot like restoration. But who am I say?

Lastly, there is the Restored Signature Series label. This yellow and purple label is a comic book that has had restoration like I mentioned above and also has a CGC authorized witnessed autograph, also like I mentioned above.

You can send your comics directly to CGC only if you sign up and pay for a membership. There are three membership levels. The Associate level for $39 a year, Premium for $149 a year, and Elite for $299 a year. Each level has it's perks. You can check their website here to see the details.

If you'd like to submit your comics to CGC without paying for a membership, you can visit their booth at a comic con. They are usually set up and taking submissions at most of the larger conventions. If you don't have access to a con, you can stop by one of your local comic shops and ask if they're an authorized dealer. If they are, they will send in your comics on your behalf.

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Having your comics graded by CGC won't be cheap. Especially if your're sending in older comics. Comics printed before 1975 will cost you $60 a piece to be graded. Comics printed before that will cost a minimum of $18. That's all before tax and shipping and handling charges. I've included the pricing chart to the right.

However, CGC'd comics will fetch a premium price when you decide to sell. CGC graded comics have a higher selling price than all of the other comic book grading companies. At least for now. However, the new company, CBCS, is starting to see some rising prices in their sales, but I'll be talking about them soon enough. If you'd like to check out CGC or sign up for a membership, click the link below.

Sign up for a CGC membership here.