News and Updates
JUNE 2021 NOTICE!
Over the last year, we have seen a huge influx of new collectors entering both the collectible toy and video game markets. As a result we've experienced an exponential surge in submissions to both AFA and VGA.
While we greatly appreciate the continued patience of our valued customers, we want to reassure everyone that our top priority is getting caught up on overdue submissions. In order to accomplish this we will be moving forward with several short-term changes.
- We will temporarily close our Express tiers (except for loose action figures) effective immediately.
- We will temporarily designate two weeks per month to solely process overdue Economy and Express tier submissions.
We will continue to accept submissions under the Archival and Premium tiers. All submissions already in-house or postmarked before 05/31/2021 will still be eligible to be processed under the Express Tier. Turnaround times for incoming Archival and Premium submissions will be adjusted accordingly.
In addition to the aforementioned short-term changes, we continue to work on long-term projects which will greatly enhance the submission process and customer experience moving forward. These include:
- Significantly Increasing staffing in every department at CGA.
- Expanding our facilities to gain additional space to process, grade, and case submissions.
- Designing a new website to improve every facet of the customer experience.
We are very appreciative of the kind, thoughtful wishes we have received all year and are grateful as always for our special position in authenticating and preserving your most cherished items.
CURRENT DELAYS IN SUBMISSION PROCESSING TIMES
- Receiving and Invoicing: 6+ weeks to process current incoming submissions
- Express Grading Scales: 4+ months beyond anticipated projected completion date. Temporarily Closed to new submissions
- Loose Express Grading Scale: 2+ months beyond anticipated projected completion date
- All Economy Grading Scales: 5+ months beyond anticipated projected completion date for in process submissions. Temporarily Closed to new submissions
Please Use These Submission Forms
We are excited to announce that we have a new website under construction! During this process, certain functions of our current website may become inactive for brief periods.
Currently online submissions are disabled. All submissions must have the below PDF submission form filled in electronically or hand-written, printed and included in every package shipped to us.
For detailed instructions on how to fill out your printed submission form, please click
here.
4/3/2020
ACHIEVEMENT UNLOCKED:
QTY 150+ FREE
INTUBATION SHIELDS
DONATED AND DELIVERED!
Introducing Our New Crystal Clear Loose Action Figure Cases with laser cut solid acrylic accessory holders
As we continue to strive to provide a higher level customer experience, here is a list of our recent enhancements
Immediate enhancements already in effect:
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Casing innovations tied to our new high powered laser CNC equipment, including new acrylic accessory holders.
-
We now guarantee turnaround times on all Archival, Premium, and Express tier submissions for both loose and packaged items. Late submissions are now entitled to a credit difference down one tier level. Additionally, turnaround times are no longer given in business days but in actual days to provide more clarity.
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We have finished compiling the results of the multiple surveys we've conducted over the past year and as a result we will no longer assign the 'U' or "Uncirculated" designation for loose vintage toys.
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We have changed our membership structure to reward our higher tier members with bigger discounts. Under our new membership structure silver members receive 10% off, gold members receive 15% off, and platinum members receive 20% off.
Additional enhancements including more on-line services, tracking, and updated information and population report access are not far behind.
*In order to catch up on loose items previously submitted under our standard tier, we will not be accepting loose Economy Value tier submissions until further notice. Eventually we will introduce an Economy Value tier without a guaranteed turnaround, but at the present time we will exclusively offer guaranteed tier services for loose figures under the new Express, Premium, and Archival pricing.
AFA IMPLEMENTS PLUS (+) GRADING SYSTEM
Several years ago we introduced the “plus” designation to our grading system for Video Game Authority to create a finer differentiation between items of similar conditions. The plus attached to the end of a grade denotes an item which is above-average for its grade level, yet doesn't quite possess the qualities to reach the next-highest grade.
Because of the popularity of the plus grading system with video games, as well as the flexibility it gives us to identify more exceptional pieces near the higher end of the scale, we will be incorporating the same method with all items graded by Action Figure Authority effective immediately. This includes packaged and loose figures, vehicles, playsets, and all other items eligible for AFA grading.
In addition, most items previously graded by AFA are eligible to be reconsidered under the new scale, with the exception of loose custom items. For those wanting to have graded items re-evaluated under the plus scale, we are offering reassessments for a limited time at our current “Priority Recase” pricing (LINK HERE).
Furthermore, similar to grading under VGA, any item receiving a grade of 85+ or higher will be recognized as “Gold Level” and will also be given an accompanying gold hologram under either the Classic or Clearview label styles.
For a more detailed breakdown of our grading scale, please follow the accompanying LINK.
UPDATES ON LOOSE FIGURE GRADING
Due to the increasing popularity of loose figure grading, our Loose Department is still currently running several months behind schedule.
In an effort to honor our commitments and expedite all loose submissions currently in-house, for the next several months the ONLY loose items we will be accepting are vintage Star Wars 3-3/4" figures and coins.
Effective immediately, the grading of any other loose toy lines will be temporarily suspended.
Please click the link below for loose toy line restrictions, as well as current pricing and quantity limitations for loose vintage Star Wars.
CLICK HERE
All custom loose figures already in-house and awaiting grading are being processed normally. We ask that all customers please refrain from sending any other toy lines in that are not already in-transit so that we may focus our efforts on taking care of delayed submissions. Items already in-transit and postmarked before May 5th will still be accepted.
Carded/Boxed AFA, VGA, CDA, and DCA items are unaffected and will still be accepted for authentication and grading. These submissions are currently running on-time and are in no way affected by the suspension of the custom loose figures.
Loose figures requiring authentication by CIB will continue to be processed under the new pricing and turnaround time.
We apologize sincerely for any inconvenience and appreciate your understanding while we work hard to get back on schedule.
CIB UPDATES
We are happy to announce that CIB is now accepting submissions.
We want to thank all AFA/CIB supporters for their patience and understanding over the last several months.
For future submissions with Prototypes and other rare figures, that require authentication through CIB, please click the link below (at the bottom of the page) for our new pricing updates:
CLICK HERE
For Custom Size Prototypes and other rare figures, in order to ensure acceptance at this time, please contact the Customer Service Department via email before sending your items.
We can create virtually any custom style or size acrylic display case and we're excited to offer some new additions to our in-stock sliding bottom cases. Find the right case for your collectible on our Online Store.
AFA has added conservative minimum value requirements for
several types of vintage collectibles to ensure they are properly
insured in return shipping to you. For additional details please
visit our Minimum Declared
Values page.
Attention Collectors in Japan.
Hakurai Toys is
now our official Japanese Submission Center, so if you don’t want
to worry about shipping your items to the United States and clearing
them back through customs, please contact them for information
on how they can help take care of the submission process for you.
