Has anyone dealt with Sparkle City Comics?

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I got bid up on a comic in the last Sparklecity auction where the underbidder bid me up to where I was only ahead by 1 ct and then let me win. I was so pissed!

 

This has happen to me twice and I think it was the same underbidder each time.

 

http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBids&_trksid=p4340.l2565&rt=nc&item=380430603549

 

I do dikkish stuff like that all the time. You're probably putting in predictable bids. If you bid randomly, you can make guys like me buy stuff we don't want.

that's pretty mean man. Usually I wait until there's 10 seconds and I put a high bid if I really want it. I put a reasonable bid if I want/pass so if someone outbids, have at it!

Now that Sparkle City is mainly selling raw books, has anyone experienced any problems with them?

 

Is there grading accurate?

 

Were there any problems with books coming back with restoration?

Funny, I was wondering that too. They have great scans and great service, but I've yet to buy a raw book from them. They used to always do graded so I bought from them often, but now that they are primarily raw, I was wondering how accurate their grades were.

When a seller sells a raw book as a 9.8, I take it with a grain of salt. Based on their scans, some of their grades certainly wouldn't match mine. They continue to get strong prices even on their raws.

I have bought many slabbed books from them but have yet to buy raw. I compliment their service, shipping, packaging and offerings for sure as I have had no problems with the slabs I have won.

I bought DD #36 that they graded as a 9.8. I didn't notice the big back cover scan or else I would have never wasted my time. Lower left back corner has a heavy 3/4" crease on it and the book, from the scans, would not have graded higher than an 8.5. I felt it was closer to an 8.0, in hand.

Summing up: the defect I missed was in their scan and they gave a complete, no hassle refund including my return shipping. The negative is that they over-graded by 6 grades. My advice is to carefully examine the scans they provide and bid if you want too. I have confidence that they will be a class act if they need to refund.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/131287645378?_trksid=p2059210.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

I recently bought a high grade Haunt of Fear 15 for $1800. It turned out to be trimmed. They gave me a full refund even though it was outside there returns time limit. Awaiting grades on other raws I have bought.

Bought a GA book from them as a raw 7.0 that came back 6.0. No biggy.

I bought a few from them. Some notable ones...

Amazing Spider-Man #300 9.8 (came back graded as a 9.8)

Iron Fist #1 9.6 (not yet graded but it looks fantastic)

Tales To Astonish #100 9.8 (not yet graded but looks fantastic)

It's one of the few sellers I follow on a weekly basis on Ebay. Their shipping is top notch and everything is packaged securely. Also great customer service.

Only one complaint...bidding gets more pricey than most (but this is out of their control).

it is interesting, I wonder why they switched their focus (from slabbed to raw)...

I asked. They're only slabbing books with a value of 5K or more.

I asked. They're only slabbing books with a value of 5K or more.

Considering the strength their raw price seem to be getting, makes sense not to spend on slabbing for the majority of their offerings.

it is interesting, I wonder why they switched their focus (from slabbed to raw)...

A lot of what they used to sell slabbed was hardly worth the expense, but it did help Sparkle City establish their reputation as a solid seller with a cool inventory. Selling everything slabbed at first likely gave new customers a measure of comfort in bidding on books and creating an atmosphere of trust. Short term this may have meant they were breaking even at best on more than a few books, but investing in a customer base. At some point they obviously felt their brand was solid enough that slabbing was no longer needed on the bulk of their books. That's my take anyway.

Sometimes it looks as if their raw grades are a little looser than CGC's might be, but the large scans and complete descriptions make it possible for one to make their own judgement. I've been happy with my purchases from them.

Hi, I've been lurking here for a while after I've been getting back into comics as a hobby after years of not collecting actively.

 

I'm not sure what category I fit into as a collector, but as somebody who went from being a "comic nerd" at high school (during the late 80s and early 90s - I cry when I think back on the mint multiple McFarlane comics I discarded) to being a pro cartoonist to years later buying back some of the stuff I had as well as the stuff I'd read about and salivated over, it's been fun.

 

The exception is when you think you've been shilled on Ebay. I apologise for resurrecting a topic that some might think has been done to death, but I really want to get opinions on something. I've bought a couple of early Uncle Scrooge CGC comics from sparklecity on Ebay, and the bidding pattern on the latest one seemed weird.

 

Here's the page with the bids on it http://offer.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewBids&_trksid=p4340.l2565&rt=nc&item=350556378506. As you can see, everyone apart from this mystery man stopped bidding early on, leaving only me and this other guy. He bid me up another 200% over that last guy's bid. Now, he might just have wanted it, but does that seem strange to you? The final price doesn't seem that inconsistent to other prices I've seen on Heritage Auctions, which is where I've been buying a bit of stuff, but I have a bad feeling about this auction.

 

I thought Sparkle City has a good reputation, but can anyone else vouch for him?

 

Thanks for reading and I hope the rumours of flaming new members aren't true.

 

If he is legit, I'd like to keep buying from him, but something didn't seem right about this one.

Seems you got yourself into a bidding war with the another bidder causing the price to increase a lot Of course you may have ended there anyway, highest max bid always wins. But why not snipe using Gixen.com or similar solutions? I never bid more than once, and I always do it 6 seconds before the auction ends, it has never failed, thanks Gixen ;-) Bidding that late, other bidders have no chance reacting to your bid - but they may of course be saved if their max bid is high enough.

(Sorry if this subject has already been covered, I did not take the time to read all posts in this thread)

I have probably purchased 12 or so raw issues from Sparkle City this year. In general, I thought their grades were pretty reasonable to the issue I received. Warning though - Look at the inside of the issue you buy carefully. Their descriptions and pictures are related to the cover and back of the comic - not so much the inside.

I have returned two issues to them for issues not mentioned in their description. One was for writing that occurred in the issue and the second was for cut outs on various pages (i.e. coupons, etc). I did get refunds for both with no hassle; however no shipping refund. After the second one, I put in a neutral feedback and subsequently got my shipping refunded - but they banned from bidding on any of their items again

Yeah IMO a neutral for that was overboard-not many people go thru every page of a comic looking for defects if they do any kind of volume. Return ship is the same as gas money if you have to return an item to the store-that's on the buyer.

I save neg or neutral FB for sellers I dont wanna buy from anymore. Otherwise you're most likely to get blocked for it so use it sparingly.

I was looking at their most recent auction. They have some great stuff but on can this really be considered a VF/High Grade? This one is going to end soon and check out the back cover scan...

http://www.ebay.ca/itm/Fantastic-Four-36-VF-HIGH-GRADE-1st-Madam-Medusa-INHUMANS-Silver-Age-/381038440378?pt=US_Comic_Books&hash=item58b7a92fba

Given all the comments about possible inaccurate grading and possible restoration I laid down a bunch of bids tonight. I was thoroughly shut out except for 1. I couldn't see myself going all out. I managed the risk vs the bid. In the end, I wasn't unhappy with my win. DD80

I asked. They're only slabbing books with a value of 5K or more.

explains why i haven't bid on a Sparkle City auction in over a year.

Have to agree to disagree with you on this one. To me if a seller has the time to scan the front / back of a comic and give it a grade, then their grade should also include what the inside of the comic is like.

I asked. They're only slabbing books with a value of 5K or more.

I suspect there is more to that story than a $5k value.

Yeah IMO a neutral for that was overboard-not many people go thru every page of a comic looking for defects if they do any kind of volume. Return ship is the same as gas money if you have to return an item to the store-that's on the buyer.

It wasn't clear to me whether Sparkle City refused to refund the initial shipping or the return shipping. If they refused to refund the initial shipping, that is not right.