[Groop]Larry and his rant (here's my even longer rant)
MisterElie@aol.com
MisterElie@aol.com
Sun, 26 May 2002 22:38:28 EDT
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Sean, Larry, Everybody,
First off, thanks for getting going on this thread - I enjoy collecting
comics; it has been a passion of mine for about 10 years and I enjoy talking
about it with anyone that'll listen and contribute (I got into it when I was
16 - making up now for my "lost" youth).
I have almost 3,000 comics. That isn't too many, they are easily stored in
about a dozen bulk paper boxes. In all the time I've been collecting, I've
probably sold about fifteen, all but a couple of those sales were for a
dollar each. The reason for this is they are too new. If I could buy a
comic at a convention or a store in Newark, Delaware for $2.25, then anyone
can buy one and probably for a lot less than what I paid (I know, I know,
those of you in New York or LA don't live in a bustling metropolis like
Delaware, but bare with me here <wink>).
The only times I ever sold comics for a little money was when they were from
Silver Age . They were over 25 years old, in fairly good condition, and I
had them up for auction. Older comics are the valuable comics because no one
thought they'd be valuable when you could readily get them. Why do you think
original 1977 Star Wars toys are worth so much more than 1999 Episode I toys?
I was amused when I saw the flood of "collectors" storm into Toys R Us and
buy all the Darth Maul and Qui-Gon Jinn action figures they could get their
hands on only to try and sell them 2 weeks later and find everybody else was
trying to sell the same thing.
Many people, including ME have talked about how the speculator comic book
market in the 1990's caused the entire industry to collapse in on itself. By
hording these valuable collector's books, stores went out of business,
literally by the hundreds, when they discovered no one wanted to buy them
because they all had them. I got into comics as this collector's edition
craze was swinging into high gear and in my naivete I admit to buying more
than a few collector's editions myself.
Regarding CGC, as I said in my last post, I like it because I've been burned
a few times by purchasing comics sold at a higher grade than it really was.
I personally judge a comic's grade not by how much I can sell it for, but by
how gingerly I have to hold it to keep it from disintegrating in my hands.
CGC does a better job at finding flaws than I can. And also....slabbed
comics make GREAT artwork!
For more information on comics collecting, Chuck Rosanski (sp?), the founder
of Mile High Comics publishes a weekly column in the Comic Buyers Guide
called Tales from the Database. I suspect from some of the Letters to the
Editor that get published in the CBG that he has a lot of critics, but I find
his column insightful; and while I'm not a regular Mile High subscriber,
every purchase I've made from them has been fair and reasonable. My opinion,
of course......
I also got to thinking, many people are afraid to remove comics once they've
been slabbed. But CGC tells everyone they EXPECT the comics to be removed
once the comics change owners. They even give instructions on how to safely
open the sealers, yet even though I haven't bought any slabbed comic, I seem
to be the only person who will admit they would actually open a slabbed comic
to read it!
I keep flashing back to The Mighty Magnor. There was a running gag where
kids would buy comics to keep them and no one considered taking them out of
the polybags to read them. That was written several years before CGC came
into being. How's that for a Sergio and Mark prediction!
Wow, that was long! Didn't I tell you I have a passion for comic book
collecting?
Elie
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<HTML><FONT FACE=arial,helvetica><FONT SIZE=2 FAMILY="SANSSERIF" FACE="Arial" LANG="0">Sean, Larry, Everybody,<BR>
<BR>
First off, thanks for getting going on this thread - I enjoy collecting comics; it has been a passion of mine for about 10 years and I enjoy talking about it with anyone that'll listen and contribute (I got into it when I was 16 - making up now for my "lost" youth).<BR>
<BR>
I have almost 3,000 comics. That isn't too many, they are easily stored in about a dozen bulk paper boxes. In all the time I've been collecting, I've probably sold about fifteen, all but a couple of those sales were for a dollar each. The reason for this is they are too new. If I could buy a comic at a convention or a store in Newark, Delaware for $2.25, then anyone can buy one and probably for a lot less than what I paid (I know, I know, those of you in New York or LA don't live in a bustling metropolis like Delaware, but bare with me here <wink>).<BR>
<BR>
The only times I ever sold comics for a little money was when they were from Silver Age . They were over 25 years old, in fairly good condition, and I had them up for auction. Older comics are the valuable comics because no one thought they'd be valuable when you could readily get them. Why do you think original 1977 Star Wars toys are worth so much more than 1999 Episode I toys? I was amused when I saw the flood of "collectors" storm into Toys R Us and buy all the Darth Maul and Qui-Gon Jinn action figures they could get their hands on only to try and sell them 2 weeks later and find everybody else was trying to sell the same thing. <BR>
<BR>
Many people, including ME have talked about how the speculator comic book market in the 1990's caused the entire industry to collapse in on itself. By hording these valuable collector's books, stores went out of business, literally by the hundreds, when they discovered no one wanted to buy them because they all had them. I got into comics as this collector's edition craze was swinging into high gear and in my naivete I admit to buying more than a few collector's editions myself. <BR>
<BR>
Regarding CGC, as I said in my last post, I like it because I've been burned a few times by purchasing comics sold at a higher grade than it really was. I personally judge a comic's grade not by how much I can sell it for, but by how gingerly I have to hold it to keep it from disintegrating in my hands. CGC does a better job at finding flaws than I can. And also....slabbed comics make GREAT artwork!<BR>
<BR>
For more information on comics collecting, Chuck Rosanski (sp?), the founder of Mile High Comics publishes a weekly column in the Comic Buyers Guide called Tales from the Database. I suspect from some of the Letters to the Editor that get published in the CBG that he has a lot of critics, but I find his column insightful; and while I'm not a regular Mile High subscriber, every purchase I've made from them has been fair and reasonable. My opinion, of course......<BR>
<BR>
I also got to thinking, many people are afraid to remove comics once they've been slabbed. But CGC tells everyone they EXPECT the comics to be removed once the comics change owners. They even give instructions on how to safely open the sealers, yet even though I haven't bought any slabbed comic, I seem to be the only person who will admit they would actually open a slabbed comic to read it!<BR>
<BR>
I keep flashing back to The Mighty Magnor. There was a running gag where kids would buy comics to keep them and no one considered taking them out of the polybags to read them. That was written several years before CGC came into being. How's that for a Sergio and Mark prediction!<BR>
<BR>
Wow, that was long! Didn't I tell you I have a passion for comic book collecting?<BR>
Elie</FONT></HTML>
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