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Sorry about the lack of posts over the past couple of weeks. I have been on vacation for 10 days and am now getting some time to put some time into some articles.

I received an e-mail from a passer by to this site, Charles Graham, who asked me when I was going to do my article on prepping books for CGC. Some time back I promised to do this and Charles gave me the kick in the butt to start it. So, without further ado here is the first of a few articles to help those of you who want to get your comic books graded.

7 Defects To Look For Before Prepping Your Books For Grading

As comic book collectors we want our comic books to be in the best condition they can be, especially if we are going to spend the money to get them graded by CGC. CGC is a company that “slabs” your comic books in a sturdy plastic case and attaches a grade (a point system from 0.5 - 10) to the comic. This process is pretty intense and they carefully look over each comic for defects which, when found, will determine the final grade of the comic.

SIDENOTE: Take a look at CGC’s site and review their process in grading to get a much better understanding of how this is done.

What Exactly is Prepping?

In a nutshell, comic book prepping is a way to clean up a comic books non-damaging defects which improves the grade of the book and makes it more presentable.

The following seven defects will help you determine if your comic book can be prepped before sending it into CGC.

Ok, here we go…

Defect #1. Spine creases that break ink.
Look for creases (similar to cracks) on the front and back of the spine of your comic. You can determine if the crease breaks ink by looking for the paper showing through the ink (it will typically reveal a white color). The more of these there are, the less the grade of your comic book.

Typically, if all other things are good (see list below) and there is one crease that breaks ink, I automatically set the grade of that book to a 9.4. Of course, there are exceptions, but usually that will be the grade you will receive.

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? No

Defect #2. Soiling or mold.
I’m sure many of you have seen what paper looks like when it is soiled with oil, some type of condiment or mold has grown on it. Due to the paper comics are created with, the same things can happen to them. Look for darker areas on the inside of the covers and pages. You can also spot mold by smell - similar to must and wet.

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? No

Defect #3. Water damage.
When water finds it’s way onto a comic book, it can cause some damage. You can tell water damage by the dis-coloration and are shaped like clouds, lakes or some form of circle. Here is a picture of a comic that has water damage:

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? No

Defect #4. Rips, tears or pieces missing.
This kind of defect is typically easy to spot if they are a 1/4″ or longer but be careful to not pass up those that are smaller in size. Even the slightest tear, rip or piece missing can knock the grade down on your comic drastically.

Defect #5. Rusted or loose staples.
The staples of your comic book should be tight and clean. It’s fairly easy to see if your staples are lightly rusted, have heavy rust or they are loose. To check for loose staples, look at the outside of the spine and see if the cover has any movement by the staples. Also, hold the comic in your hand and open it to the center.

Very carefully, touch the staple to see if it moves around or has any play. if so, It’s a good sign that the staples are loosening or are already loose. This eventually can cause damage to the cover and inside pages.

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? No, but it can be fixed as a restoration to the book.

Defect #6. Ink marks, gouges, fading on front/back covers.
When I prep comic books, I don’t fret too much about date stamps, especially if it’s in an inconspicuous spot on the cover. Ink marks are usually when someone writes on the cover or inside pages of the comic and if they wrote too hard it causes gouges. Pencils can also cause gouges when the comic is written on.

Although the pencil itself can usually be cleaned up, the gouges remain and will drop the grade of your comic book.

Fading is not a grade stopper unless the comic has been sitting out in the sun for a long period of time. It is still beneficial to keep an eye out for it on your comic books.

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? Yes/No. As I explained, pencil can be cleaned but if gouges remain it will affect the grade of your comic.

Defect #7. Subscription crease down the center of comic.
I’m sure we have all seen one of these before. A sub-crease happens when the Post Office delivers your comic book and folds it in half to place it in the mail box. This creates a vertical crease from the top to the bottom of the comic. If the comic was folded too much it could cause the ink to break.

Can this defect be fixed with prepping? Yes/No. The front and back covers most likely cannot be fixed but inside pages can be pressed out but would be a lot of work.

There you have it. You can greatly improve the grade of your comic books by first determining if they are free of most or all of the defects above and get them prepped before you send them out to be graded by CGC.

My next article will cover those defects which CAN be fixed. Keep an eye out for it.

P.S. I wrote this article today because I will be getting my wisdom teeth pulled on Friday (oh, it is Friday already) and I will probably not be up to posting anything this weekend.

Patrick
The Comic Collector