Dragon Magazines • Collecting General • The Acaeum

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Dragon Magazines
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wvexpat
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 5:15 am

I just purchased a nice collection of Dragon Magazines. They range from No. 3 to No. 116 (but not contiguous). Here is my question: Is there a guide to grading these? I know I can send them to a comic grading service, but I'd like them to be accessible and not locked in a plastic case. Thanks for any help in advance.

jkason
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 10:07 am

Mylar sleeves and backing boards - 2 mil is good, 4 mil is very sturdy.

Prices are about a buck a piece for 2 mil, 2 bucks a piece for 4 mil - when they are available. BCW is currently on B/O until March.
Backing boards are cheap, but make sure you get acid-free ones.

Dave, get the barbarian in the corner a drink, quick!

Mordenkainen
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Posted: Sun Dec 05, 2021 3:57 pm

The guide provided by the Acaeum.com is here: https://www.acaeum.com/frontdesk/grading.html

benjoshua
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Posted: Mon Dec 06, 2021 8:54 am

wvexpat wrote in Dragon Magazines:I just purchased a nice collection of Dragon Magazines. They range from No. 3 to No. 116 (but not contiguous). Here is my question: Is there a guide to grading these? I know I can send them to a comic grading service, but I'd like them to be accessible and not locked in a plastic case. Thanks for any help in advance.

The Acaeum link to grading items is excellent. You may notice that this grading guide does not often jive with eBay seller's grading. Sometimes sellers will state something like, "this item is in excellent shape for its age." Grading is not on an age-related sliding scale.

Also, for now, most Dragon Magazines over #50 are worth close to their cover price in used condition, often less. It's probably not worth your time and trouble to grade these yet. I'd also probably just use polypropylene bags instead of Mylar bags to store them.

Truth is worth finding and life is too short to work for money.

wvexpat
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 11:38 am

Thank you for the responses. I'm trying to catalog the magazines now and eliminate the duplicates. I'm still debating having the very early copies graded since I can access most of the content online anyway.

stratochamp
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 1:48 pm

I disagree with benjoshua. I am of the opinion that the Acaeum grading parameters are off by about a letter grade. Which is to say that what it would judge to be fine I likely would grade as VG. Still useful as a resource, but much too forgiving of flaws. In my opinion.

Shrink is not a condition

Mister Yuk
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Posted: Tue Dec 07, 2021 11:16 pm

You didn't ask for values but since it was brought up. Put this term 'dragon (mag, magazine)' into the eBay search engine and check sold items.

A nice #50 went for $70 two months ago, tons of others over $10 a magazine and that goes at least up to Issue 88.

I would assume the PO increases will hurt single magazine realized prices on lower value books, but sales of books before #130 look pretty strong to me on eBay and RPGAuctions.

dbartman
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Posted: Wed Dec 08, 2021 12:39 pm

stratochamp wrote in Dragon Magazines:I disagree with benjoshua. I am of the opinion that the Acaeum grading parameters are off by about a letter grade. Which is to say that what it would judge to be fine I likely would grade as VG. Still useful as a resource, but much too forgiving of flaws. In my opinion.

The valuation board tends to be a little more critical on the grading than what is described/displayed in the grading parameters, but if you are looking for a place to start, what is provided is a good resource. If in doubt, always be more critical of the grade than less. Having some consistency and a grading convention is better than none.

muaddib5
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Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2021 3:03 pm

stratochamp wrote in Dragon Magazines:I disagree with benjoshua. I am of the opinion that the Acaeum grading parameters are off by about a letter grade. Which is to say that what it would judge to be fine I likely would grade as VG. Still useful as a resource, but much too forgiving of flaws. In my opinion.

And because it's subjective, personal opinion and experience will obviously influence the grading. IMHO, the only way around that would be to have agreed upon examples of each grade. Even with that, there would still be some variation (perception versus reality, etc),

Home - Gen Con Wisconsin 1968 2002

muaddib5
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Posted: Fri Dec 10, 2021 3:05 pm

dbartman wrote in Dragon Magazines:The valuation board tends to be a little more critical on the grading than what is described/displayed in the grading parameters, but if you are looking for a place to start, what is provided is a good resource. If in doubt, always be more critical of the grade than less. Having some consistency and a grading convention is better than none.

Maybe photos of agreed upon examples of each grade? I remember seeing something like that in the 80's when I was still reading/collecting comics.

Home - Gen Con Wisconsin 1968 2002

Mister Yuk
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Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2021 12:43 am

muaddib5 wrote in Dragon Magazines:
Maybe photos of agreed upon examples of each grade? I remember seeing something like that in the 80's when I was still reading/collecting comics.

Might be The Overstreet Guide to Grading Comics, awesome reference.

aia
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Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2021 2:36 am

Mister Yuk wrote in Dragon Magazines:

Might be The Overstreet Guide to Grading Comics, awesome reference.

I dont know that guide... Have you got a link?

benjoshua
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Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2021 9:29 am

aia wrote in Dragon Magazines:
I dont know that guide... Have you got a link?

The Overstreet Guide To Grading Comics: Sixth Edition - Hardcover: Overstreet, Robert M., Tucci, Billy: 9781603602693: Amazon.com: Books

Truth is worth finding and life is too short to work for money.

Mister Yuk
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Posted: Sat Dec 11, 2021 3:09 pm

Thanks benjoshua, quicker on the draw than I.

I was using 1st or 2nd edition in the store, hopefully the most recent is just as good (or even better!)

benjoshua
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Posted: Sun Dec 12, 2021 9:21 am

Mister Yuk wrote in Dragon Magazines:

Might be The Overstreet Guide to Grading Comics, awesome reference.

I own a 2nd edition of this book, published back in 2002, and it's detailed and thorough. The book states in its Foreward by Chuck Rozanski that the book "tightened standards from 1992," whatever that means. It also states that grading comics are inordinately difficult because there are so many factors to consider. While I'm glad I purchased the book, and it helped me grade my comics better, the system provided on these forums is a worthwhile guide for two main reasons, 1) it's free, and 2) it's much simpler, especially if you are using it to aid in your sales on eBay, who's standards are sub-par. The bottom line is that standards change over time, as they have for comics, and getting everyone to agree on the same standard is like herding cats.

Mister Yuk wrote in Dragon Magazines:Thanks benjoshua, quicker on the draw than I.

I was using 1st or 2nd edition in the store, hopefully the most recent is just as good (or even better!)

Sure! I try to be helpful.

Truth is worth finding and life is too short to work for money.

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