An Honest review of CGC CBCS & PGX grading

Summary

In this video, the host compares comic book grading systems across three companies: CBCS, CGC, and PGX. They submit multiple copies of the same high-grade comic books to each company for evaluation. The focus is on grading consistency rather than comparing which company is 'better'. The host finds CBCS to be the most consistent, with the clearest grading guidelines, while CGC shows some inconsistencies. PGX's grading is difficult to assess due to a lack of graders' notes.

Takeaways

• 📕 The video discusses the difficulty of comparing comic book grades across different companies due to varying grading standards.
• 📕 The focus is on consistency in grading rather than which company is stricter or more lenient.
• 📕 The author conducted an experiment by submitting the same comic books to three different grading companies: CBCS, CGC, and PGX.
• 📕 The author found that while all companies provided accurate grading, there were inconsistencies in how they applied their grading systems.
• 📕 CBCS was found to be the highest graded, but the author felt that CGC and CBCS might have been too harsh on minor defects.
• 📕 PGX was perceived as slightly generous in grading, but the author acknowledges that without grader's notes, it's hard to judge PGX's consistency.
• 📕 The author had issues with PGX not providing grader's notes despite requesting them, which makes it difficult to assess their grading process.
• 📕 CGC's grading scale is criticized for being vague, which may lead to increased subjectivity and inconsistency.
• 📕 The author suggests that the grading descriptions on CGC's site are not detailed enough, making it hard to understand the grading decisions.
• 📕 CBCS is praised for having a more consistent grading approach and for providing a comprehensive grading chart for reference.
• 📝 The video concludes that for this particular experiment, CBCS was the most consistent grader with the best reference materials and notes.

Q & A

What is the main focus of the video series?

The main focus of the video series is to directly compare the grading systems of different comic book grading companies.

What does the speaker think is the key issue when comparing grades across different companies?

The speaker thinks that consistency is the key issue when comparing grades across different companies.

What method did the speaker use to test the grading consistency of the companies?

The speaker used multiple copies of the same high-grade comic book to submit to each company and compared the grades given.

What was the outcome of the grading comparison for the 'Far Sector #1' comic book?

The 'Far Sector #1' comic book was graded the highest by CBCS, while CGC and PGX gave the same grade, which was lower than CBCS.

What does the speaker think about the grading harshness of the companies?

The speaker believes that while there is some difference in grading harshness, it's not enough to say one company is a better grader than the other.

Why did the speaker choose to submit books with high grades to the grading companies?

The speaker chose to submit high-grade books to ensure that the grading would be accurate and to avoid any significant discrepancies in the grading results.

What was the speaker's opinion on the grading of the 'West Coast Avengers #1' comic book?

The speaker felt that the grading of the 'West Coast Avengers #1' comic book was consistent and accurate, with appropriate deductions noted.

Why did the speaker have difficulty judging PGX's grading?

The speaker had difficulty judging PGX's grading because PGX did not respond to requests for graders' notes, making it hard to understand their grading process.

What was the speaker's overall opinion on the consistency of grading between CBCS and CGC?

The speaker found CBCS to be more consistent in grading, while CGC showed some inconsistency, particularly with lower grade submissions.

What did the speaker suggest as a way to gauge the grading criteria of the companies?

The speaker suggested looking at the detailed grading charts provided by the companies online to understand their grading criteria.

What was the speaker's final conclusion about the grading companies after the experiment?

The speaker concluded that for this submission, CBCS was the most consistent grader with the best reference chart and notes.