sfcityduck

They have modified the description and added additional information. You need to read the full description.

Feel free to tell me your background and why you keep asserting this book came out of a PLOD? You keep dodging the question about the assumption you have made which undergirds your seemingly slanderous statements about the seller and Sparkle City.

It's not that hard a prediction to make if you pay attention to what's being stated on this thread. Gator stated above: "The person that is bidding and imo will likely win this does have a complete coverless copy." Gator has extensive knowledge, is a high end dealer, and there's no reason to doubt what he just said. In addition, an incomplete coverless copy (missing first wrap) was auctioned off in the past few years. I'm not making up the facts, I'm just piecing them together to make an informed guess.

Here's a real world example: March 30, 2010: Action #1 CGC 8.5 sells for $1.5 million June 12, 2018: Action #1 CGC 8.5 sells for $2,052,000 That's a 36.8% return over 8 years, 2 1/2 months (3.89% annualized), for one of the most desirable books in the entire hobby (23.1% if there was a full 10% commission; 30.0% if there was a reduced 5% commission, which works out to 2.56% and 3.24% annualized, respectively). Minus any applicable taxes as well, of course. And if you're really nitpicky, you could adjust down for inflation. In any event, 2.5% to 3.9% a year for an object that brings you great joy is a huge huge bonus. If its your retirement account? Then you might be sad that you weren't invested in stocks during that same time period.

I don't know that. To the contrary, I believe that this Action 1 is destined to be pieced up with the cover going one direction (married to a coverless interior), the first wrap possibly going another (married to an incomplete coverless copy), and the going rate on single wraps or pages from Action 1 would certainly make it worthwhile to piece out the remainder and substantially defray the purchase price. The buyer here is almost inevitably going to be a very sophisticated participant in the comic market.

First, why are you saying "purple labeled holder from whence it came"? Second, Sparkle City's description, photography of the book, and Q&As appear comprehensive and make clear it would go into a PLOD: this book is restored. Overall restoration would be considered in the 4 - 5 range (Moderate/extensive restoration) by a 3rd party grader. Restoration includes: Color Touch (slight on the cover), Color Touch inside front cover, Piece fill and support to cover, Cover Cleaned and reinforced, Pages cleaned, staples replaced. The book is a PLOD .5 no matter what. The description includes a disclaimer that third party graders may disagree with aspects of the description. I'm not seeing any real risk here based on the disclosures. This seller has probably rightly concluded there is not need to pay a third party grader to encapsulate a book that is likely to be taken apart by the purchaser, married to another interior or cf, and probably then re-restored. Third party grading can certainly get you a higher price for a book, but that's usually to get the certainty of a higher grade. This book is a different animal. The slander by this poster is ridiculous.

Sparkle City says the book was never submitted to a third party grader. Why are you making this somewhat slanderous statement about the seller?

"Collectibles, like art, or stamps or comic books do not have a measurable fundamental value," said Gus Sauter, who served as Vanguard Group's chief investment officer from 2003-2012, in The Wall Street Journal. "Certainly, they provide enjoyment to some people who love to examine them. But the only way to make money investing in collectibles is to find someone who is willing to pay more for them than you did." In addition, the tax rate on proceeds from selling collectibles is higher than for classes of traditional investments. So I think there's a good reason why a financial advisor would not recommend a comic book retirement portfolio. Having said that, we all know anecdotes of folks whose collection have really paid off. Still, we also know that a lot of us are not getting rich off this hobby.

Sparkle City has sold a lot of books through eBay (apparently 57,000+). I'm pretty sure they understand their risks and benefits better than you do. Of course, we've already seen the highest price ever paid for an Action 1 recorded in an eBay transaction. We've also seen many other six figure transactions on eBay. The history of eBay and high value comic sales is well established. I've never heard of a "buyer fraud" case coming out of one of these expensive comic transactions. So it just doesn't seem like the hand wringing is necessary.

Just thought I'd keep a log and see how CGC/CCS does at meeting their estimates for books dropped off at SF Con. I'll update this as the process progresses. STANDARD Stated turnaround times when submit.: CCS = 15 business days; GCC = 15 business days (Total 30 business days or 6+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) "At CCS" - 6/18/2018 (quick enough - Bus. days since Rec. CGC = 2, bus. days since Con. submission = 6) FAST TRACK VALUE Stated turnaround times when submit.: CCS = 20 business days; GCC = 32 business days (Total 52 business days or 10+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) "At CCS" - 6/18/2018 (quick enough - Bus. days since Rec. CGC = 2, bus. days since Con. submission = 6) MAGAZINE MODERN Stated turnaround times when submit.: CCS = 35 business days; GCC = 45 business days (Total 80 business days or 16+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) VALUE Stated turnaround times when submit.: CCS = 45 business days; GCC = 57 business days (Total 102 business days or 20+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) TOTAL BUSINESS DAYS ELAPSED AS OF THIS POST = 6

LOL! I love irony. (It's the hypocrisy that is unattractive).

No one who regularly posts on Comics General is Mr., Miss, Ms., or Mrs. Popularity ... unless you spell that with a capital "L". If you want good discussions, go to GA. If you just want lowest common denominator arguments, you're in the right place. I now regret that a seemingly good thread caused me to waste my time reading page after page of pointless argument culminating in one guy boasting about his post counts and another harkening back to his glory days in "public school" (are you a Brit?). No wonder the GA guys say to avoid this board.

You have a very rosy view of a GA comic with over 30 copies on the census right now in 8.0 or better condition (12 universal). By comparison, Action 1 only has 12 (4 in universal). The likelihood that someone can get a really nice presenting CA 1 far exceeds that for Action 1. So you would think that demand at higher levels is going to be much more diluted. Plus, let's face it, Captain America is a sucky character (just another Shield rip-off), almost as bad as Daredevil (just another Wildcat rip-off)

Parino's losses on the "pay copy" MC 1 and the Church Flash Comics 1 seem to be written off by many as just his mistake and illustration of the perils of overpaying in private transactions. The scarier scenario for many, IMHO, is actually the example of the Church run of Flash Comics. That was not Parino. And those books were bought at auction, I think, then sold at auction for a lot less. And a very similar scenario has happened with high grade Barks Duck books. The lesson of those examples is that auction prices can plummet if just one strong bidder exits the market without someone having come into the market to take his place. Folks that think that high grade GA comics will inevitably increase in value are not paying attention to the market history.

It's only a 10 mil book of if two people think it is. Right now, there's no hard evidence that any comic, including the MH Action 1, would garner more than $3M and change at auction.

I thought the "crash and burn" topic was pretty interesting. I'm more than a little shocked that in a thread on that topic a couple of insufficiently_thoughtful_persons would rather argue about IMSM 1 and SM 1, than ponder an epic "crash and burn" like the above.

In the 1980s? The answer is Bob Layton. At least in the early1980s we collected full runs of titles, not "key issues." The reason folks were more interested in Iron Man 1 in the early 1980s was because they got sucked into the Iron Man title by the great art and stories of the Bob Layton run. Like "Demon in a Bottle." No one in the 80s was motivated to go back and get SM 1because that title was cancelled in 1974, so no one was getting hooked in to seek the back issues.

2003 - The "pay copy" of Marvel Comics 1 sells to Jay Parino in private transaction for $350,000 2007 - The "pay copy" of Marvel Comics 1 sells for $204,999 on Heritage ("OUCH!") 2010 - The "pay copy" of Marvel Comics 1 sells for $227,050 on Heritage (A mere "ouch" when fees taken into account) And then there's the Edgar Church copies of Flash Comics ...

Just thought I'd keep a log and see how CGC/CCS does at meeting their estimates. I'll update this as the process progresses. STANDARD Stated turnaround times as of today's date: CCS = 15 business days; GCC = 15 business days (Total 30 business days or 6+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) FAST TRACK VALUE Stated turnaround times as of today's date: CCS = 20 business days; GCC = 32 business days (Total 52 business days or 10+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) MAGAZINE MODERN Stated turnaround times as of today's date: CCS = 35 business days; GCC = 45 business days (Total 80 business days or 16+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO) VALUE Stated turnaround times as of today's date: CCS = 45 business days; GCC = 57 business days (Total 102 business days or 20+ weeks) Date of Con Drop Off - 6/10/2018 CGC Received Date ("Rec-CCS Required") - 6/14/2018 (4 business days from Con submission to "Received" - quick IMHO)

Not trying to shut you down. Just offering my opinion of the "connection" you are trying to make. I take opinions, and information, on their own merits, and am not overly impressed by "experts" or overly critical of "newbies." Here, I learned something new from your thread - that GI Joe 10 was the first appearance of ZD's GI Joe. Thanks for that info! The fact that I disagree with an opinion you floated here, doesn't mean I won't agree with opinions you float in the future. So keep on posting, and I'll keep on reading your posts. And Welcome!

It's a book of comics. Actually, really cartoons. Like Bill Mauldin's "Up Front," which was also a collection of cartoons from Army publications like Yank and Stars & Stripes, but this one is not nearly as good as "Up Front". The lead characters in "Up Front," by the way, were to GI's named Joe and Willie.

1945 (similar to "Up Front"):

I don't see any relevant connection at all. The name similarity is like saying that Captain Marvel (Fawcett) has a connection to Captain Marvel (Marvel). Except that "Capt. Marvel" was not a generic term which predated both Ziff-Davis's and Marvel's GI Joe's. This is more like saying that every character called "Sarge" have some "connection." I generally hate the whole "try-out" and "precursor" hype, but this is especially weak. Someone had to say it.

Yep ... "GI Joe" was a generic term for an infantry soldier used during and after WWII. Dave Breger may (or may not) have coined the term in his GI Joe cartoon series starting in Yank in 1942.

Sadly, my rank speculation is that it is more likely now than any time in the past.