Yes, this is my first post ... and I hope it sparks some conversation as I am certainly interested in other perspectives ... but for now here's mine:
PGX is F@<%ing joke!
I have been a collector for almost 25 years, and while it is not a full-time pursuit as it was when I was a kid, I have continued to follow trends and buy books from time to time. As a collector, not a seller, I have never been one to chase slabbed books. My general opinion is that books should be slabbed only above a certain grade and only if your intention is to sell them. Lets face it, it is amazing what people will pay for a slabbed copy of a book they could buy and submit on their own in the same condition for SO much less money (that however is a topic for another time). As for maintaining books, I believe storing books can be done more effectively and safely with archival quality storage products from various vendors. That said, I have certainly purchased slabbed books in my day at shows, on ebay and from various brick and mortar auction houses. My typical move is to crack them free and restore them in 1 or 2mm mylar with a charcoal filtered backboard ... overkill maybe, but I have a large Golden Age collection and old paper needs all the help it can get.
Ok, enough lead up. Recently I saw a book I needed for sale. It had been slabbed by PGX. The seller of course described the book according to the PGX label, 4.5, off-white to white pages, etc. But even in the scans it was clear to me that the book was tan to heavy tan pages, and knew there was no way it was a 4.5. Further, I noticed that the seller referenced the CGC census and a price of the last CGC sold book. Ironic? Not really, more like realistic. It was clear to me that even he knew, no one cares about PGX, no one trusts PGX and no one wants to buy PGX. So I emailed him, expressed my opinion and offered him what I felt to be a fair price for the book at a 2.5-3 grade. He quickly accepted, and the deal was done. Upon receiving the book, I cracked it for a look. Clearly not a 4.5. I of course am pleased with the book and the price I paid, but I have been thinking for giggles, I'd like to send it to CGC for a PROFESSIONAL grading just to see how far off PGX really is.
So again, I'd love some input, but as far as I am concerned PGX is a scam. It is a place for less than reputable sellers to send their clearly low-grade schlock for a better grade so they can ask premium prices. Why I'm I posting this if I don't care about slabbing? Well, for one, because I am bored and think scam artists should be called out, but also because I have noticed various people asking about PGX vs. CGC without a lot of quality replies.
Let the games begin!
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