2Sunny

Yeah I re-subscribed to GPAnalysis and then went back to gocollect. Must be Old Timer's disease struck again because I don't know where I was looking but I thought I saw recent auction sales of $4450. Obviously I was looking at something else. Anyways, not disappointed as it is still the earliest ASM in my collection and as you point out still well off the peak. EDIT: Hah - I see what I did. I fat fingered a selection of ASM 2 on gocollect from the bottom selections and it has a red top just like ASM 4. What a goof. I knew it had to be something like that, but figured the price couldn't be too far off since it was $1.4k less than the next 5.0 on MCS

I'm slowly collecting ASM starting from number 200 and working backwards as I had most of 1975-80 from my years of buying in the store. Anyways, I peruse the interwebs for what I consider "deals" and have won a couple auctions that I thought were a good deal, but today I was perusing MCS for possible deals and came across what appeared to me to be a book that was under priced by a wide margin. I only have gocollect to use as a price guide so my thought is maybe there's other data out there that says the book was priced correctly. I paid $1820 for an ASM 4 CGC 5.0. Did I get a deal or did I miss something? Doesn't matter too much either way as I'm not gonna sell the book, but rather add it to my ASM collection so really just curious. https://www.mycomicshop.com/search?ItemID=59613752

First, I'm learning about 2 new to me topics here so feel free to offer more info if you think it's relevant as regards "square bound" comics and misplaced staples. I bought this from MCS. They graded it as 8.5. Upon close inspection the staples are about 1/4 inch in from the edge and do not appear on the outside of the book, they have left a dimple on the top at the 200th anniversary banner area and a color breaking dimple on the bottom. Questions: 1) Am I correct that this is a "square bound" comic? If so how do I know for sure? 2) Are the staples misplaced? 3) Ignoring other potential flaws for the moment, how do you think CGC would grade this situation and what would the criteria be? Might this be considered a bindery defect? Just so everyone knows; I am perfectly satisfied with the purchase and only ask because I want to learn something new. Thanks to anyone that can help.

Holy tons of reading Batman!! Thanks everyone. Looks like my summer, fall, and winter reading list is full

Wow. You are an inspiration! I'm just starting out to complete my ASM run through 1978 which is when I stopped collecting, but now you're making me reconsider. Thanks for sharing the story, and I hope you'll keep us posted on your next endeavor should you decide on one.

People here have incredible stores of knowledge as regards comics, and I can only assume some of that is from experience, but I also assume some of that comes from written sources. So . . . what books do folks here recommend if one wants to learn more about the history of comics, artists, writers, companies, etc? Thanks!

Like Christmas morning here in Westchester, NY. Can't believe I won this for $305. Presents beautifully! Also, just finished cracking 15 books I sent to CGC in the fall of 2021. It was part of my learning a little about modern grading. I know it's often discussed here, but one conclusion I gained by cracking what I sent in and what I have purchased from MCS is that I can see very clearly that there is considerable variation amongst graders. In the end it doesn't make a whole lot of difference to me because other than the assurance of decent grading I have no use for "slabs". I absolutely need to feel it, smell it, and most importantly be able to read it - so no slabs for me, LOL. Don't mind buying one, but for sure I'll be crackin' every slab I buy. Just like I did below.

That's a great story showing the value of CGC, but what a bummer that a large shop would pull a stunt like that and not immediately offer a refund. Guess like everything else in life it's "buyer beware"!

Your description makes me sorry I wasn't collecting back then. Gives me that nostalgic chill. Thanks for sharing!

I'm curious how much change longtime collectors have seen between desirability and pricing of higher grades. Personally, I see books that are VG that I would have no problem collecting. I even recently bought a CGC 3.0 early ASM that I find perfectly acceptable. As a "born again" collector I don't see the need to pay the premium price afforded CGC 9.0 and up, and I'm just wondering if the gap from VG to NM was as big before CGC and the internet as it is today because my assumption is not. Did you as a collector try for NM whenever you could or were you satisfied with collecting lower grades, and how did you know if the prices you ran across at a convention or a LCS were fair? Did you have thousands of prices memorized in your head or did you just go on intuition or maybe just collect items you were familiar with? Anyways, just curious how dramatically or not times have changed as regards prices and grading.

Alas . . . poor Yori(c)k Sorry couldn't help myself. I'm sure I'm not the first to make that joke

i did similar and opted to put Marvel Unlimited on my iPad. On the one hand I enjoy the exaggerated colors and perfect detail and not having to worry about damaging something old, but on the other hand I find a need to pull out paper copies on occasion when I'm reading something I actually have in my collection. I must say I really enjoy being able to read a series starting at number 1, and it's interesting to realize which stories I still enjoy and which ones I thought I would enjoy, but really don't. An example for me was the Silver Surfer series. One of my favorite characters, but the series left me wanting to see less Silver Surfer not more.

I think that's likely to be the attitude I adopt going forward. However . . . there is a part of me that would question my "investment" in this hobby if a bunch of boxes in my basement that I rarely open were to represent a 6 figure sum. It's one thing to take some of my favs and put them in a frame where I can enjoy them every time I hang out in my man cave; it's another issue altogether to stare at a bunch of card board boxes. I suppose if from time to time I crack open a box and pull some oldies out for a read maybe it makes it worthwhile. On the other hand, part of the fun is the "hunt" and now my new found enjoyment of taking part in an auction. Certainly that has a value to consider as well.

You won't believe this but I actually went to college with Rachel, and she was just as dead pan back then. I had 2 years of German with her. Of course, that was a loooong time ago though, hah! And, not to worry as the good Doctor is most certainly correct that the books will trade below what I paid, but as a "collector" who really doesn't plan on ever selling anything (at least that's how I'm feeling now) I'm just ecstatic that a whole bunch of books are 50% or more below where they were a little over a year ago thus putting them in range for me. In the end it let's me collect a few more names with the same budget. I've been salivating at the mouth for over a year now waiting for a serious "pull back" so I could buy some stuff. Now if FF1 would just fall another 80% maybe I could afford a decent copy, LOL!! That brings to mind a question I have had for some time. Has anyone ever run a poll on the forum to see the range of values people's collections are? I figure it's probably considered inappropriate to ask, but my guess is serious folks on this board have 7 figures easy tied up in comics. EDIT: Yet again old timer's disease strikes; meant to say 6 figures not 7.

Interesting list. My first reaction was like that of others and leaned towards the ASM, but reading through others remarks and looking up the items in question I remembered that once upon a time I was interested in finding a Spotlight 32, and now that prices are coming down ya' got me thinking! Thanks for the interesting question and list.