Does PGX Rating Bring Down The Value Of A Comic?

[dencher01]

Over the years I have tried to sell a number of PGX rated comics with very little to no success.  Similiar comics rated CGC were no issue for me to sell.  I have contemplated taking the comics out of their PGX case and sell them outright as a raw ungraded comic.  Please give me your two cents worth on what you think of my question.  It may be kind of hard to believe taking a book out of it's case but when buyers seem to "turn up their nose at the PGX rating I feel it may be a good option.

[dencher01]

Thanks dc_eng for interesting info.  Just curious if there is anything more recent?  I see that info is at least five years old.  Have they improved over time?

[space-cabby]

bpmcomics wrote:

"I'd hope anyone out their [sic] willing to buy graded books has enough sense to stay away from PGX, but collectors have proven me wrong so far."

Regardless of how PGX compares with CGC as far as quality of service, the fact that a 3rd party examined a book does reassure the potential buyer and add at least some value. 

I'm not saying that the selling price should be the same for a given grade among the two services -- what I'm saying is that unless you have dealt with a dealer and trust their judgment, it's much safer to pay a little more for a PGX book than to risk an overinflated grade for a raw comic.

[dcebooks]

Thanks dc_eng for interesting info.  Just curious if there is anything more recent?  I see that info is at least five years old.  Have they improved over time?

dencher01, I do not know the answer to that although it appears they've been controversy-free since then.

I think there are more PGX slabs on the ebay market today than there were five years ago, maybe  up to 10 times as many. Whether the percentage of books sold is higher now is another question. Doing a completed listings search for them seem to show a lot that go unsold.

[rancor29]

i  like pgx because they dont have a middleman and can pay in moneyorder and thier quality is just as good as cgc, the only thing i dont like is that thier census is never up to date, it like six to nine months for my book to be counted after many requests to be included. as far as investmet its the same, im going to leave all my stuff to my son anyways

[rancor29]

how can pgx bring value down?? its encased just like cgc, it all subjective i think, both companies do quality work as far as workmanship

[bpmcomics]

how can pgx bring value down?? its encased just like cgc, it all subjective i think, both companies do quality work as far as workmanship

It won't bring the value down, it just won't add the same amount of value a CGC grade would bring.  I would never submit a book to PGX on the basis of their facilities being suspect at best.  Not to mention there's some confusion as to whether they actually have the necessary insurance to cover loss at their "facility" (aka a residential house on a cul-de-sac).  The fact that they don't attend any conventions.  A lack of a known grading staff, specifically a restoration expert.  Combine these things with the information in the link above, and I think I'll stick with CGC IF I were to submit books to be graded.

[dfjfks]

I have been collecting for over 40 years. I go to many conventions, and have over 50,000 books in my collection, and as far as I am concerned, I would take  a PGX book over a CGC book. I feel that PGX books are valued more accurately than CGC. In my opinion, CGC grades a level higher than a book really should be graded at in order to get more business. Think about it, if a seller brings a book to different graders and 1 rates their book higher than the other, isn't the seller going to go to the one that gives him a chance to sell his book at a higher price?  There is a seller called tomorrowstreasures who, if you get a chance to see his catalog, has a similar view as I have about CGC, and writes about it in his books.

[above_bored]

More likely to get a trimmed/restored book in a PGX slab than raw.

 PGX is a laundry mat for trimmers seeking cover.

[komic_buyer]

In my opinion, CGC grades a level higher than a book really should be graded at in order to get more business.

That might make sense if there were any real competition between CGC and PGX.  But there isn't.  For all their flaws and issues, CGC is justifiably more trusted in the community.

[steviehuv66]

I like PGX books and can state that they recently caught restoration to my Daredevil # 4 comic that I had purchased several years ago from Heritage Auctions (tear seals on back). I was impressed with that. There turnaround time you cannot beat. The cases are superior to CGC's holders. With that said, CGC is also excellent at grading comics. I'm sure that they both make mistakes from time to time.

[above_bored]

Looking at the CGC census for Amazing Fantasy #15 you will see there are 484 "Restored copies" and 1024 unrestored. Does this really mean almost 33% of AF #15 are restored? Probably not, more likely unscrupulous sellers have cracked out unrestored books and passed them off continually as unrestored. The unfortunate buyers try to recover some of their losses by honestly selling the PLOD.  Then along comes the same unscrupulous seller-with a second shill account to buy up plods and ...Crack Crack and off it goes to PGX to see if will magically become unrestored... of course a certain lucky seller in Oregon may have the inside track on "unrestored' PGX books.

Add to that, most sellers stipulate "no returns on slabbed books"

... sorry no sale here. If the seller promises a full refund if the book comes back restored from CGC I might risk it.

Avoid high dollar PGX books like the plague

[bpmcomics]

Looking at the CGC census for Amazing Fantasy #15 you will see there are 484 "Restored copies" and 1024 unrestored. Does this really mean almost 33% of AF #15 are restored? Probably not, more likely unscrupulous sellers have cracked out unrestored books and passed them off continually as unrestored.

I don't see why you find that number unlikely.  I figured it'd be in the 25 percent range, so 33 pct doesn't seem too far off.  There are probably some "ghost" copies on there (books that have been cracked open and resubmitted without the label) but I'm sure that's the case for both restored and unrestored copies.

The rest of your post is accurate though.  People have, and probably still are, submitted restored CGC books to PGX in hopes of their spotty ability to detect restoration resulting in a unrestored label.  You said avoid high dollar PGX books, I say avoid all of them.

[bosscomics]

To me personally, this whole PGX/CGC thing is like the whole Coca-Cola vs Pepsi. It's basically what the person likes best. Both offer a very similar service and I feel that PGX has gotten a bad rap unfairly. Their holders are a bit sturdier feeling and stack better, but the label could use a re-vamp. PGX has also been around longer than CGC and is more cost effective and the turn around time is faster. IMO a book graded 7.0 by both companies would have the same value, I wouldn't but a negative on it if it was slabbed by PGX. I do however like the census board and the way you can put up your collection online with CGC. So both have positives. I also feel that many modern books are being slabbed way too often to hike up the price unfaily, when you can still get a Raw copy much much cheaper.

[bpmcomics]

Just in case you need yet another reason not to buy PGX graded books..

http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=5363324&fpart=1

the latest regarding Ryan Elliott.. sometimes PGX grader (at least when it's his own books)..

[phbbbttt]

I hate slabbed comics as I cannot read them... rather stupid. With coins and cards its fine as you can see both sides BUT with comics you can't see inside....

So if you are the lucky guy that has Action #1 CGC 9.0 you're gonna crack it and read it?

A 2+ million dollar comic?

Yeah right!