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KEYS or SETS

Its a personal choice People get into this hobby for a variety of reasons. Some just want to make money by flipping comics. Some are just Collecting Nuts and want every issue of every series that they are interested in. Some want to collect just key issues. Some want just comics that give them a nostalgia from childhood. Some collect only certain artists or writers. Heck some actually want to READ the stories and gawk at the artwork on the inside. WHOA you mean there are stories in thes
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ANOTHER TOUGH DOT! Why You Ask?

I just love tough Harvey issues! Back in September I got my hands on an unbelievable copy of Little Dots Uncles and Aunts number 2 in 9.6 condition. That thing will probably NEVER be found in better condition due to its jet black background. It is one of only two copies to ever reach 9.6 so far. Then I got a 9.8 WP copy of Little Dot Dotland number 16 in December that just BLEW ME AWAY! Dark cover and OAK OAK OAK! For some reason I have chosen to select specific series of certain Harvey char
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SO SO SO...

At this rate Im gonna go Br-OAK! SO cool. SO dark cover. SO OAK! Nothing so so about this one! These dang Marvel Epic Groo issues are so hard to ever find graded. Except for number one of course. This may not be the most sought after series in the world but for you Mad Magazine lovers out there Sergio Argones is a legend. Besides you all know how much I love OAKs with dark covers. Having one fit right into one of my top ranked sets is even more satisfying. Check THIS one out! Only 9.8 iss
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In The Spirit Of Things

Waiting for the real deals... You know when I started in this highly addictive hobby I didnt worry too much about what I paid for something I really wanted. That was partly because I had a huge influx of finances and partly because I was new to the hobby and wasnt as shrewd about my purchases. My how things have changed. I now am willing to be VERY patient when it comes to my sets. I have even waited too long and let some things go simply because I just didnt want to pay THAT much for what I
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Tax return. Oh, what to do...

Needs or Wants I have always gotten money back on my tax returns every year. This year however I am going to get the largest return I have ever received! We are talking well over five thousand dollars! Now I am definitely putting some into my only debt which happens to be a credit card. But I have to decide how much to put on the card and how much to spend on things I have REALLY ben wanting to get like an IPAD2 and of course CGC comics. I already have my eye on a few issues I will definit
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File Copy = Pedigree?

Are they or are they not? Alright everyone Im fairly new to CGC collecting being that Ive only been involved in it for about three years. There are many of you guys who have been collecting CGC graded issues for ten years or better. So Im still a rookie in that sense. I certainly dont profess to know everything when it comes to comics and CGC collecting in general but there IS one thing Ive often wondered. Harvey Comics is the only company Ive seen who has put comics aside in their warehou
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This Hobby Of Ours

Labels Labels Labels Im sitting at home. Ive had a few and Im looking through my collection and attempting to come up with a subject to write a journal about. How about this hobby of ours in general. It is a very niche hobby full of die hard collectors and nostalgia chasing grown ups. To be truthful this whole grading thing is not all that old quite yet. At first no one was sure if it would catch on or last all that long. I know I waited at least ten years before I considered getting into it
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Let The Mystery Begin !!

Ok I will play copycat. Those of you out there who have kept up with my journals know that I have always been very proud of all my top ranked sets. None more so than my New Mutants set which has held the top ranking for the last three registry awards. Tnerb has slowly worked on his set as well and little by little has gained on me until this year when he finally managed to surpass me to reach the top spot. Congratulations Tnerb. I have lost top rankings in the past and its always a little
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Nostalgia vs. Value

Making exceptions We all want to collect comics that are popular. We all endeavor to try and get those special OAK issues that put our comic over everyone else's or put's our set just slightly ahead of anyone else's. Sometimes we pay a lot more for something that's highly sought after, hence more valuable, even if it's Registry Point value doesn't match up to the cost. Signature Series issues are often like this. You can wind up paying WAY more just for the sig that gives you just a few extr
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OAK Alert! OAK Alert!

What a Harvey! If you've read any of my journals then you know by now that I like to refer to One of A Kind comics as OAK's. I just got my hands on an OAK to die for if you're a Harvey collector! I love getting graded comics with dark to black covers in top grades. Typically, the older the comic with a cover like this, the rarer it is to find copies in 9.6 or 9.8, and once you get into the mid 60's or earlier, 9.8's of these become holy grails. I recently acquired 1 of only 2 copies in exi
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What Would CGC Do?.....

Marvel Sticker Album Remember back in the mid-80's when different companies would come out with sticker sets and then have comic-shaped albums that you could stick them into in order to display your collection? I don't specifically remember which franchises did this, but I DO remember seeing quite a number of them. None of them interested me until Marvel took notice of the phenomenon and decided to copy the trend. The Official Marvel Series Sticker Set came out in 1986, along with (go figu
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Why?...... Why Not!

Life, Desire.......... and one of a kind(OAK) comics. I often wonder why I feel the way I do about certain graded comics that show up from time to time. Sometimes it's just because I'm trying to put together a complete set. Sometimes it's because I'm just wanting to own a one of a kinder (OAK). Sometimes it's because of how it causes nostalgia from my youth. I'm always seeing issues that I would like to bid on, but I'm very careful and selective with what I go after. Otherwise I would liter
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Talk About Patience!

Been waitin' on this one I got into CGC collecting about 3 years ago. I started with New Mutants and slowly branched out in my collecting habits. Transformers was a set I wanted to work on but they were far too expensive for what I wanted to pay for them. So I waited. Issue #1 was originally selling for around $400 in 9.8 back then. So I waited. Around a year and a half later, I got a 9.8 WP copy of #1 for $104 total! I've seen it sell for more than that just recently thanks to the ne
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More "Wonder"-ful acquisitions!

Two more One of A Kind (OAK) issues! As usual I'm always on the lookout for what I like to call "OAK" (One-of-A-Kind) issues. Graded comics that are either single highest graded copies or the only SS copies of such. I love to own rare & unique things and my comic collecting is no exception. Lately, I've been on a Harvey Publications kick, but I've taken a quick break from it to acquire not one but TWO 1980's OAK issues! While I'm not the biggest Wonder Woman fan out there by any stretch
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Reaching 60,000!!!!!

Gettin' on up there. Due to some recent acquisitions of older Harveys, I've managed to finally break the 60,000 total registry point barrier! As you all know, I always look for really good deals on older issues that give me more registry points than what I pay for the comics. RP/AP ratios, as I refer to them, are key to my furthering of total ranking in the CGC collecting world. I also like to get those extremely rare if not one of a kind comics that show up from time to time. This beautif
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Another 10 Gem Mint.........FINALLY!

My second one! Believe it or not, the very first CGC graded comic I EVER purchased was my 10 Gem Mint copy of New Mutants #1! It was the ONLY copy of the issue at the time to achieve the top grade, and it was the issue that sparked my whole interest in collecting CGC graded comics! Three years later. there has been ONE other copy to achieve the grade now, but it has not diminished the soaring pride I have in owning a graded comic of it's caliber. After all, as of this journal's posting, ther
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Registry Point / Amount Paid Ratios

Getting MORE than your money's worth I have four main ways of collecting CGC comics. 1)Getting particular issues that I'm interested in owning. (Cap. America Annual #8) 2)Getting issues of series that I want to make sets of. (New Mutants, Dazzler, etc.) 3)Getting issues because they're JUST SO CHEAP. (see my last journal entry) 4)Getting comics that hit fantastic Registry Point/Amount Paid ratios. Part of the joy of CGC collecting is the gaining of registry points to slowly move you
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Heck! Why not?

Ever get one just because? Have you ever picked up a cgc graded copy of a comic that you don't even collect, just because the price was so good? I've had a few occasions where I bid on and won an issue that I really wanted and because of combined shipping costs and cheap prices and apparently no one showing interest, wound up getting my hands on 2 or more extra issues REALLY CHEAP! I'm talking cheaper than it would cost for me to go out, find a great condition copy of the issue, and pay to
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Patience, Grasshopper!

Be patient or you may end up being a mental patient! All right, have you ever bought a graded comic and felt elated at your purchase, only to watch future equally graded copies sell for less and less until your purchase looks like you must have been drunk off your rocker at the time? Of course, you have. Pretty much all CGC collectors have faced this issue at one time or another. Why? No patience. We tend to think that just because this is the first copy of an issue thats been graded at it
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WOW! Sometimes you just get lucky!

Jonah Hex #92! I can't believe it! I've been wanting to get my hands on a 9.8 copy of Jonah Hex #92, being that it's one of those Low-print-run-last-issue deals of a character that I like. So far, there are only 14 of these out there to get this grade, and they've always sold for over $100. When this thing showed up on Ebay the other day, I was blown away! 9.8, White Pages and SS signed by cover artist Klaus Janson!? HOLY ! This is currently the only SS 9.8 copy of this thing out there! Ta
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My first double cover!!

What If #28! I've seen some double and triple cover graded comics before, and while they are definitely interesting, I've always refrained from purchasing any of them. Why? Two reasons. 1)They are usually overpriced for my taste. 2)The individual covers are graded separately and I've personally NEVER seen them get 9.8 or better on each of the covers. That is until now! Reason #2 is the biggest requirement for me to even consider purchasing one of these comics but they also would nee
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News-stand Vs. Direct editions

Something to consider! Once Dazzler #1 came out in March of 1981, there were countless 80's issues that have two versions of covers. Those with the barcode on the cover(news-stand editions) and those with an image in it's place(Direct editions). They also vary slightly in the spot where the issue number and price are. A fellow collector, TNerb, recently wrote in a journal that he will pass up on any graded comic with the barcode on the cover. Personally, I agree with the choice on a purely
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Edging Closer!!

10 to go! Come on Registry Awards!!!! It's been a while since I've done one of these so here goes. I've been ever watchful for my beloved New Mutants issues and I've been slowly edging my way closer to my goal (all of them, of course!). I recently was able to get my hands on only the second copy of #51 to achieve 9.8 WP status! I am now only 10 issues away from the complete run! I was also going to put story summaries of each of the issues onto my descriptions. I started out quick with th
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TNerb's Ultimate New Mutants Goal

Can he do it? I have been in talks with Tnerb for a little while now. Great Guy. Lofty Goals (like me). I wish him all the luck in the world with his goal of all the new mutants in 9.8. I currently have the same passion and am only 12 away from accomplishing it. By the way, Tnerb, I got my #1 Gem Mint 10 on ebay about a year and a half ago. I made an offer and the guy took it (probably still too much $$$$, but I'm happy!).Believe it or not, there are actually 2 copies in 10 now. As fa
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My New Mutants set - almost!

Gettin' closer, people! Well, if you've been following my progress for the last year, you'd know that I'm only 14 issues away from completing my New Mutants set in 9.8 WP or better! New Mutants was the first comic book I ever started collecting when I was a kid. The first issue I got was #32 and It sucked me into the whole comic universe and I've never really looked back. I will always have a special fondness, however, for this series. I'm currently in the process of putting a few different
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