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Tnerb

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Journal Entries posted by Tnerb

  1. Tnerb

    That's it, I'm done.

    By Tnerb,

    Enough is enough.
    For the past year and a half I have been writing journal after journal. I wrote what I was doing, what I did, and what I wanted to do. During this time I have also been diligent in what I have been collecting. I have solidified my second place standing in the full New Mutants set and also lost my 2nd place standing in the ?Liefeld? New Mutants set. So what am I to do?
    I have spent thousands of dollars on encapsulated comic books, enough to purchase a new car. Last year in the final six months I spent 3970 dollars. This does not include the new books I get every Wednesday. I do plan on finishing both New Mutants Sets and even have designs on finishing two more, one being the Magik limited series, the second is the X-Infernus limited with variants. I guess since it has something to do with Illyana Rasputin I must have it. I even put a deposit down on a Polystone Statue based on the cover of issue #1.
    (Please check out my review at: http://www.comicbooked.com/polystone-darkchilde-statue/ )
    It will be a while for me to fill those sets and the knowledge of what I am spending is helping me decide to sell off my dupes, but do I use E-bay, Comiclink, Comic Connect, or even Heritage. I won?t get back what I spent and I wonder how much Bagofleas lost when he sold his 9.8?s he upgraded. I already have dedicated $750 more on the next 4 books I want, all in a 9.8, all with signatures. Did I mention it was ONLY 4 books? I am not even talking about any one of those four being a copy of Daredevil #168. That?s when I realized I am done, with all that money, just gone.
    So the decision is made, I?m done procrastinating and now I?m sending in the books I love. My membership ends in August and I only sent in one measly batch of ten. I plan on readjusting my finances and send in some of my own books. I currently have had a small sum of 250 books set aside to be graded, just sitting there for six months now. With that amount of money I stated I could have had every single book graded and sent back to me and still have money left over.
     
    If I am lucky starting in May I will get together a first order for June, then in June for July, and a third in July for August. After that, I am unsure if I will renew, but only because I have always just purchased CGC books form some source online. Fortunately for my books I am not worried about the grade or to protect an investment but only to protect the books I love.
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb
  2. Tnerb

    Reaching 200

    By Tnerb,

    Is it just a number?
    It's been a while but I currently have 200 slabs on the registry. I do have a few more, I guess some odds and ends, books that would not be worthy of putting on the registry. It's not so much the grade or the points but they were my own personal copies I got graded and do not plan on following up with others. Passive the books I have on the registry are currently in either one of my New Mutants sets. At least 10 of those are duplicates that I eventually plan on selling, but not below the price I think they are worth not to mention less than what I paid for.
    With Wizard World Philadelphia 2011 fast approaching I need to at least save a little bit of money. Although I will not be there for the full weekend this year due to my APA obligations, I will however be there on the first day to drop off some books for the signature series. I am also (crossing my fingers) hoping that this year I will be going for free. This "free" ticket is something that not only will I be working for but something I am going to have to really work hard for. I will be one of the writers for Comicbooked.com covering the event. I hope to introduce others to the joys of collecting CGC comic books.
    I hope to interview at least two people but I also hope to talk to dealers and find out what the ratio is between selling books from CGC and PGX. I don't look for books from PGX so maybe that is why I only see books from CGC. In my collection I am very biased on what I like, when I write I try to be as unbiased as possible. I have in the past questions my graded comic books right here on the registry, my latest one being a copy of New Mutants #81. I have no idea with as many spine stresses there are how that book ever achieved a 9.8. Anything and everything I report for Comicbooked.com I also plan on writing for the registry.
    I know I plan on having 300 books by the end of the year. This goal seems to be more and more distant. Money is getting tighter. I hope that soon the changes coming change I plan to make and if I'm lucky this will help my goal 300 books by the end of the year not only achievable the plausible. After that goal 300 I have my next goal which there is a possibility that could be reached during my stretch for the next hundred books but I will not reveal that now not until I finish my current goal. I just don't know if the current goal will be reached by hitting 300 books first or completing my New Mutants set.
    1. Finish my New Mutants set
    2. Have all my original New Mutants copies I have graded
    3. Start my Sandman run to be graded
    4. Reach 300 graded comic books for the registry
    5.
    I left 5 blank on purpose.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  3. Tnerb

    18 Months

    By Tnerb,

    I always felt weird when people would say my child is 18 months old instead of a year and a half.
    18 months
    I have come a long way since I first started these journals. I have written both on a regular basis and sometimes erratically. In November I wrote 30 journals in 30 days as a precursor to actually having to write on a schedule. Now I write for Comicbooked.com and although they have not assigned me a set
    schedule I still want to write on a regular basis. I plan on doing this with a series of articles about CGC and grading.
    I have created new sets on the registry and am nearing completion on one of my favorite titles. There are a few more sets I wish to complete as well as to start a few new sets but if I'm sticking by my decision to get some of my own books graded I would like to do this before my paid membership expires. I will most likely renew with another paid membership but I am unsure whether to renew with the same membership or continue with the premium. I guess that would depend if I had some really old high grade, books to get encapsulated.
    With Wizard World Philadelphia 2011 approaching and the reality of not being able to make it the whole weekend might also be the best one yet. The reason for this is not because of the stars they have or the signature series I plan to get (although that helps) but because this might be the first year I will be going with a press pass. So when I normally like to shop I will have to work, but how cool is it to have a press pass. I do have at least two people I want to interview for ComicBooked.com but this is where I blogged, informed, vented, entertained, and raved with wild abandon.
    I will of course keep writing here because without the registry and without you reading I would never be where I am and that is falling in love with, books all over again.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  4. Tnerb

    Best Laid Plans

    By Tnerb,

    Hiatus.... What Hiatus?
    Best Laid Plans
    My budget is complete up till the end of June. I even have three miscellaneous categories just in case there's something extra I wish to purchase. Of course the unexpected does occur. May is the month I have my annual car inspection and as I budget for everything I did so for this, just not enough.
    I had plans to send CGC some of my own books. I wanted to send in three sets of 10, one in June, one in July, and one in August. I might just opt to wait till the beginning of August and send in 50. Thirty for me and 20 to sell, provided I attain a high enough grade but that is only the plan.
    I would like to pick up a few more shifts but I am already at a 53 hour work week, not to mention playing pool two times a week, writing for Comicbooked.com and I also like to add my journals right here on the registry. I am closing in on 150 journals and it feels good. My first journal to reach 500 views happened on the 11th of May (CGC Vs PGX) and I'm rather proud of that achievement. It's humorous that the Journal after that one only has 90 views. Once that gets to over hundred they will all be except with the newest ones.
    I already budget well, but gas prices are climbing, health insurance is climbing, and car repairs are constantly at risk. Soon I hope to be looking for a higher class restaurant than where I am working right now. It is amazing how you either are over experienced or not enough.
    I am also hitting another milestone I almost have two hundred CGC books registered and yet I still want more. I am hoping to have 300 by the end of 2011. This will take stricter budgeting and a break from purchasing already graded books. I have two more on the way, and another two more I promised to purchase and at least three more before my original plan is complete. Then I have to reevaluate everything after Wizard World 2011.
    Recently since I have not been able to collect I have been living through the journals. I love seeing others being able to get what they want. I know eventually I will be back on track, if not sooner than later. How do you do it, how do you budget and scarier to ask how do you pass on that one book you truly desire? Of Course I am having the unexplained difficulties pop up from time to time, which lays waste to my best laid plans.
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb
    To see old comments for this Journal entry, click here. New comments can be added below.
  5. Tnerb
    Can you believe there are others who do not know what fun it is to collect a CGC graded Comic Book?
    I love being able to talk about my experiences and the fun of collecting comic books graded by CGC. There are many websites out there that sell graded comics. I purchase mine from numerous sources. Over 10 years ago it might have been hypothesized that CGC would never last. After a few comic books sold for a minimum of $1 million each I would have to think those naysayers were proven wrong.
    As there are many sites that sell graded comic books there are also those that discuss, review, and list what is coming out or what came out. One such site is http://www.comicbooked.com/ . I started to write for this site only for the past few months but I hope to continue to do so. That is why I am writing this latest journal. I was hoping to ask you for help. I appreciate everyone that has followed me journal after journal and I'm hoping you will follow me at comicbooked.com.
    The following link is the items I have written http://www.comicbooked.com/author/cgc-lee/. Some I have written for the registry; others were exclusively for comicbook.com. I was amazed how my fellow contributors were unaware of the popularity of graded and encapsulated comic books. I am hoping with your support and comments we can show more and more people what fun it is collecting CGC graded comic books.
    I decided to see how many people have registered their sets and I noticed there are over 2000 of us that currently enjoy showing off what we own. I cannot see how anyone who has purchased a graded comic book would not know about a site that caters to them exclusively, especially with the website for CGC on the back of every comic slab. But for those that have not purchased a graded comic book before maybe they will now.
    I am amazed though that so many people do not see the extreme collectible side of it, because let's face it when you purchase a book for anywhere from 10 to 50 times the going price then you are an extreme collector.... And that is not necessarily a bad thing. I mean I did purchase my CGC copy of New Mutants #1 in a 9.8 at 15 times the going ungraded rate and 99.3 times the same rate for my 9.9. I hate to think what I would pay for a Gem Mint 10. Thanks for reading and as ?Bartles & Jaymes? would have said thank you for your support.
    Tnerb
  6. Tnerb
    We're talking about new comic books, I say new comic books....
    I think DC did the right thing by lowering their prices to $2.99 a book. Almost every week in Comic Shop News I see an ad for DC ?holding the line at $2.99?. I was waiting for Marvel to follow. Before Joe Quesadda stepped down I remember reading that Marvel was going to do the same thing. I think this was in December. The months passed and every week I looked, I saw the same $3.99 price per book on the books I loved. There has been no change and I have been left waiting.
    Although I still get my books every week and I read them as I get them, I noticed I was slipping in reading my free Comic Shop News (Yes I said free). I tend to skim through them but time has a way of dragging when you work overnights. A long night and five Comic Shop News newspapers will kill at least an hour. I was perusing very nicely when a three sentence blurb needed to be reread. Marvel is not lowering the prices. They state they would focus on quality and talent. Does this mean they weren?t focusing on quality and talent (like the late nineties), or are they trying to say DC isn't? I don't know anything about this Flashpoint story by DC but it looks good and the talent they have is what makes it look good, by the way it is listed as a $3.99 book(so much for holding the line.)
    Marvel does plan to release "most" of their mini-series at $2.99 but will alter their decision on any future new series, whether they will be $2.99 or $3.99. I remember when the $.60 book was raised a nickel $.65 and I was slightly shocked that within less than a year of this change they raised it again to $.75. It took some time before they jumped into the dollar category and as time went on the prices escalated. Its latest one from $2.99 to $3.99, so what's next $5.25? Even though Action Comics issue #900 was just released at $5.99 it at least had 96 pages, but I still passed. I am not a fan of the back story.
    Marvel still gets my vote, and I think what they care about is they still get my money, but somehow someway I wish they would feel pity on us and give us something more. I know, the first Saturday of May is free Comic Book Day and it could be argued that the comic companies give us free comic books for this one day but we buy them the other 364 days. What might be a good idea is every comic purchased would come with a code and this code would be a digital copy, something akin to what a lot of movie companies are doing. I love buying a Blu-ray and getting a copy to watch on my iPod. This would be great to buy a comic book and have a backup copy to read anywhere. (Have you ever tried to read a comic book at the beach?) But since Marvel isn?t lowering their prices I am simply going to have to stop purchasing as many books. I don?t want to, I just need to.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  7. Tnerb

    The Price of Gas Pt 3

    By Tnerb,

    No thanks, I'll walk.
    Finally Spring has arrived. My gas bill had increased during the winter months and now of course since it is Spring I no longer have to keep the heat on high (or even on at all). Although heating a basement apartment costs more, I don't think it was any colder this past year than the previous year. Unfortunately I forgot to turn the heat down more often than not. I spent more on my monthly bill than I wanted too but at least it was less than I budgeted.
    I take public transit to the comic book shop I frequent (parking in town is a pain) but I do drive to work. With gas hitting four dollars a gallon (or a comic book a gallon) I once again have to wiggle my budget. I have slowed down my CGC purchases because I want to at least send in three different sets of 10 for my own books to get graded before my membership expires but that is not the only reason. I just started to budget $45 on each gas purchase and this is included four times over the span of a month. Chances are I will only use three of the appointed four but that still adds up to $135 a month or five books sent out, graded, and returned.
    The New Mutants I need are dwindling so I am less prone to splurge the cash I don't have. I tried being on hiatus for a month and it hasn't worked completely yet. I know of one collector trying for a year (sorry about that Amazing Spider-Man #92). I am not making any more than I was last year but still feel better off. There are at least 10 books readily available I wish to purchase but have refrained. I am simply waiting till I have a little extra cash to splurge again, but how much will gas be then? How much can I actually afford?
    Of course do I really need the car? The answer is no but I want the convenience of being able to go where I want, when I want. I'd save not only on the price of gas but on insurance as well. I do live in a city with decent public transportation but if I took that option more often could the transportation cost transcend the price of gas. I just have to figure out if waiting for the bus in the middle of a rainstorm is worth it or not.
    The monthly pass would cost me $83 a month, so the money that I save would give me an extra $150 a month, give or take a few extra dollars (due to fluctuating costs) to spend on comic books. But would the savings be worth sacrificing my convenience, because let?s face it I would still need the car in an emergency or to go to my best friend?s house. By public transit that would be a two hour bus trip compared to a twenty to thirty minute car ride. SO that $150 savings is not lowered to $63 which would still have to go towards the price of gas.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  8. Tnerb
    What would you do if you lost it all?
    I love my parents. This is for a few reasons. There are people out there that sometimes forget what their parents are to them. I have not. I have a Father and Stepmother that are wonderful and both love me unconditionally. They want what's best for me even when I don't know what that is. They also worry about me when I think they shouldn?t have to. So what does loving my parents have to do with insuring my comic book collection?
    I started writing November 16, 2009 for the registry, soon after I started to read these to my father. I would do this before posting. He is my best sounding board because he'll be the first one to tell me what I am reading to him sucks. I'm sure after a while he told my Stepmother about my journals, since she would be the one to make him realize the stapled pieces of paper I?m collecting are worth something, also she is more sensible.
    About a year ago my father began to mention to me about getting insurance for my apartment and my collectibles. I called Nationwide, my car insurance provider for both, made an appointment and sat with them in person. They were not able to give me a quote at that time. They said they would call me back, they never did. I used that as an excuse to save on a monthly bill.
    My parents gave me another number a couple months later. This was State Farm. They called back, but sporadically. Finally, I took the initiative; I started with a small renter's policy. I had hoped this would help move the process along a little bit smoother. I was wrong; I had to keep calling back for a rider policy on the comic books. They at least admitted they never insured anything like this before and it might take awhile.
    Eventually I got frustrated and stopped calling. I even wrote about getting insurance and a reader recommended Collectibles Insurance Services.
    If you get one or two graded comic books you might not notice this insurance company, but if you're doing anything you can to complete a set you will realize that this insurance company is advertised quite extensively. However, I didn't call them when I first became aware of them. I called after they were recommended. A voice recording picked up and I left a message. They never called back. Eventually I got complacent, my parents did not.
    Only recently, about the beginning of March or maybe the end of February my parents gave me another phone number. This one was for American Collectors. I put this away so I wouldn't lose it. Of course I lost it. They went on a little rant about how I had to find it. I knew I had too, I just couldn?t remember where I put the piece of paper. They reminded me (in their own little way) that the number could be recovered if I did the research myself, the comic books could not.
    My parents gave me another number; I was shocked this time they also came up with Collectibles Insurance Services. I waited. During a cleaning spree of my kitchen table, which sometimes resembles a desk, I found the first number my parents gave me and yet I still waited. The catalyst between my parents nagging and my upstairs neighbor having his second flood made me start calling again, the procrastination had ended. I called American Collectors first. I told them I was looking for insurance on my comic book collection. I expected for them to say "we will call you back".
    They didn?t ask to call me back; they didn't put me on hold, all they simply stated was they wanted to ask me some questions. The questions were simple; the thing they wanted to know the most though was what they thought my collection was worth. I told them. I didn't have to wait. They gave me a quote directly over the phone. I didn?t ask any questions. I didn?t know what to ask, or even what to say. After they told me it would be a $388 fee for a $70,000 annual policy, I was slightly astounded that it had to be paid in one lump sum. I was hoping it would be like my other car and renter?s policy and be able to pay it each month. They did mention anything I had worth $2500 or more had to be listed. It's a small list. Actually it is a list of one and even that could be questionable. I didn?t know what else to say, or even ask. I said Thank you and hung up. My head raced?. $388?.up front.
    I called the second number, Collectibles Insurance Services, which was for the same company that never called me back. I wasn't expecting much, actually I was expecting the forced voice mail option again, but was answered right away. They also immediately asked me questions about my collection. I guess the
    financial crisis is starting to hurt them as well. Collectibles Insurance Services, for the same amount of coverage wanted $377 for the year. Immediately they told me what it covered, unlike the previous company, not to mention how long they have been doing this.
    They gave me a slew of information in comparison. I was covered under theft, fire, and flood; two of which are my biggest fears. I?m expecting my upstairs neighbor to have another disaster. OK, so the floods weren?t his fault. The other thing I liked was it would cover a book immediately after I bought it, since I'm not a dealer (and not getting insurance as a dealer) I was told it would not cover any books I tried selling at a convention. The other concern and this is the same as the other company, they wish to be paid in advance. Either company is going to cause me to rearrange my budget.
    I fear getting robbed, and overall just losing what I have, the first and foremost for these things to happen whether it is flood, fire, or burglary my things will be gone, but being insured at least allows me to purchase my books over again so let's see how much it costs for peace of mind. (As with my other the "cost of? article" please excuse all errors in math.)
    My collection is about $70,000, $60,000 in comic books and $10,000 in artwork. If I use the cheaper more comprehensive coverage of $377 a year it breaks down to $31.42 a month or a dollar three a day, give or take 2/10 of a penny. That is only a dollar three a day for peace of mind. Let's pretend I have 5000 comics exactly. I have more, but for the numbers I want to make it easier. So at 5000 comic books that means I'm only spending 7 1/2 cents to insure my comic books per book, whether that comic book is worth $.50 or $2500.
    I remember when I was a kid watching Sally Struthers telling me for the price of a cup of coffee a day (and I do love my coffee) I can feed a starving kid. Now I can still see her pitching a commercial but this time telling me the price of a cup of coffee a day I can insure my collection. If I wish to narrow it down even more that is $70,000 of coverage for only $377 equals two millionths of a cent per a comic per a day. I find that amount staggeringly small, maybe if I did the math like this before I wouldn?t have waited so long.
    Am I lucky that nothing has happened? Yes I am. Will I ever need to use my insurance? I hope not. I love my collection. I would never want to lose them especially since some of them are currently irreplaceable. Insurance is for two reasons one for my own peace of mind, even though I never worried about it before and the second well that's just keep my parents off my back.
     
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  9. Tnerb

    My Deal Breaker

    By Tnerb,

    Why I wouldn't buy that 9.8
    I remember talking to another collector and he mentioned to me that if a modern age book is anything but white pages then they don't want it. If I am not mistaken someone even wrote a Journal about why they wouldn't want a CGC graded comic book. Currently two of my 9.8's have off white to white pages, both of them are part of the signature series. I still bought them, although to be honest I overlooked the page quality. It never bothered me till that conversation and I don't know why, it's not like I'll ever open them up.
    What bothered me before that conversation was (and is) the covers with UPC codes when (and only when) they could have had a picture in the box. More times than not this picture was Spiderman's face, this was also considered a direct market edition. If a graded copy of a book has the UPC code instead of Spiderman's face on it I will pass on purchasing the book. This of course is only true on those books where I have the choice.
    Issue number 17 of The New Mutants was sold by WorldWideComics.com. It was a 9.8 and had white pages but it also had a barcode. Bagofleas, the current first placeholder of the complete New Mutants set purchased it. He bought it before I had the chance and I wonder if I did have the opportunity would I have bought it. At the time it was the only one.
    There are five others, to my knowledge, and all owned by the same guy. He had them for sale on eBay for a price I thought too high. There have been other books I have seen online that I wanted to purchase but I didn't because of the UPC code on the cover. On the new books if the cover only has the barcode I understand there's nothing I can do about it. I like the more recent covers and how they have the UPC even smaller then before but look forward to the day that they place the UPC on the back of the book. (Is someone from Marvel reading this?) There are other things that might make me stop buying a graded book but the lack of Spiderman (or some other character) looking at me is my biggest deal breaker.
    Thanks for reading
    Lee
    Next up....
    The cost of... Insurance
  10. Tnerb

    One Step Closer

    By Tnerb,

    Closing in on my original goal.
    Wednesday Morning I was on the el heading to see my father. My ear phones were on and I closed my eyes hoping by the time I saw my Dad I would be more awake. I finished an eight hour overnight shift and I always look forward to the weakly routine of coffee and comic books.
    Every Tuesday night I work on the register rather than serving tables. It?s a guaranteed eight hours at a guaranteed wage. This amount of time also gives me the moment to reflect on the comic books I still need to finish my sets, especially for the New Mutants. I have 93 out of 109 listed and one more on the way.
    I am also a follower of Murphy?s Law and all variations, so it seems that any time I have a delivery coming I am never home (and I need to be home). I like to order comics and more importantly I like to get the comics I order. I don?t trust the Post Office and every order I place I ask for the person shipping to add a signature required to the parcel. This way I get what I ordered, I hope. Let?s face it I?ve had trouble with the Post office getting even this simple request.
    The books I am waiting to get are sitting at the local Post office and I can?t wait for work to end and the Post office to open so I can retrieve what is mine. The books waiting for me are both graded, and both from the New Mutant series. One brings me closer to having them all in a 9.8, the other is a 9.6 but both are now mine because of a friend. Of course now he blames me for adding a New Mutants set to his registry. The gauntlet has been thrown, but thrown amongst friends. He plans on sending in all his New Mutants from Liefeld to compete. However he won?t be competing against me, I am only in 3rd (currently), so I might not be that much of a challenge.
    Thank you Lee K for helping me get closer to my goal and I welcome you in collecting a real set. I hope to be back in 2nd when you get closer and if you reach 2d before I reach first could I please buy what else I need from you.
    Thanks for Reading
    Lee aka Tnerb
  11. Tnerb

    What is in a Name?

    By Tnerb,

    Or Why I use Tnerb?
    I have been posting for almost a year and a half. During that time I have replied to other peoples posts and have done my best to replay back when someone answers mine. I like the friendship that others extend on this site. There are no freaks, geeks, or other alienated terms, we are collectors. This is both negative and positive. My comic books are an essential part of my life. Could I live without them, yea I can. Do I want too? No not at all.
    What I do love when I check my views I have noticed only two, not including recent ones are under a hundred views. I like when my stuff is read, and even have a journal entry well on its way to 500 views. To me that means something. I love that not only am I writing what I want to write about but others are reading what I write. I also love that 24 people have added me to their friend list, so I know from the people I have on my friend list that their latest journal entry will pop up and I can go read it, although I am addicted to this site and read all the journals.
    The one thing though I have gotten the most questions, thoughts, opinions, and inquiries (yes I know inquiries are the same as questions but I just felt like adding a fourth) is my name, Tnerb. This is a variation of the original name I used when I first entered to online world (ok the first one was Magik back in the early Sysop days of the Amiga computers.) I used Tnerbson1107. Broken Down, it is my son?s birthday, the fact he is my son and it is his name backwards not my own.
    So why have I used a variation of my son?s name? It is for a few reasons, one I tend to write better under anonymity. The fear someone might figure out who I am and tell me what I am writing is absolute . I can deal with constructive criticism but I hate barbaric barrages on something I enjoy and only because they do not. You know, my superhero can beat up your super hero (HEY don?t mess with the Human Fly mister). I have signed my name once to one of my journals? and would be really impressed if you know which one it is. But I could also be that I think my son is really really cool. I will continue to use Tnerb from time to time, but not this time.
    Thanks for Reading
    Lee
  12. Tnerb
    Do I really need it?
    I?ve been good (don?t we all admit this even when we are not). Really, I have been good. I have stopped spending beyond my means. I didn?t stop spending, just stopped frivolously. I do have two books I am paying off; both could be used in either New Mutant sets. I?m saving up for another four books I promised to purchase. Two from one seller and the other two from a friend, each book will be a step closer to completing a set. Normally I will also bid on other books or even purchase a few outright, but money is tight and the books I am beginning to get are more expensive.
    I had for the past few years budgeted $10 a week for new books which has recently stretched to $20 ($25 on a good week) and with the price of gas constantly going up I really need to pick and choose what I want, which has been increasingly difficult. (This also cuts into my CGC spending) Even now the new books coming out seem to be better that they were years ago. Take the Avengers for instance (is instance a better word than example), I collected this title as a teen and only restarted shortly after the Scarlet Witch went off the deep end. I know I won?t collect them in a 9.8 CGC especially since the ones I already have (and read) would probably grade at a 9.6. Did I mention I do so love the JR JR covers?
    The ?Storm? I am referring to is twofold. I have three days I am taking off in June. These days are Friday, Saturday, and Sunday. I make the most money on these days, so between the hours and the tips I?ll lose almost a full month?s rent. This does not include the money that I would be spending. At this time last year I had a thousand dollars saved up. This year I have nothing, but that is because I am not going for the full 3 days. I joined a pool league and the fates decided to have the APA City Championship on the same weekend as Wizard World 2011.
    I hope to go on Friday and drop off a few books for the Signature Series. The books I currently plan on dropping off are all in a 9.8 status. I just hope they retain their 9.8 status. Then there are my own personal books I am thinking of having signed, but no more than ten because this stuff adds up. But I am happy to say I don?t have the urge to buy a graded comic book just to have it, well at least not yet.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  13. Tnerb
    Striving for that Final Aspiration
    We all have these. They could be as simple as getting through the day or as complex as providing for your family. If you?re reading this, it could also be finding the comic book you?ve been searching years for. It might be because you are coming closer to completing a set and the only thing stopping you is locating the books themselves.
    I have been doing my best to complete a CGC set of New Mutants. This includes all 100 issues, 7 annuals, 1 special, and their origin in Marvel Graphic Novel #4. I have been striving to put together this set for over a year and now the forward motion has slowed to a crawl. I will keep looking for the issues I need but I think my immediate goal will have to change from getting them all in a 9.8 to getting all my original issues graded. I think it would be really cool to have a set regardless of condition, and most likely the only way I will be able to complete a set before a certain other collector.
    Apparently the points don?t matter and the cost is secondary. My greatest hesitancy and fear is the books will get lost in the mail. These are my pride and joy of my collection. When I had my issue #15 graded it was at a convention. It took me awhile to even join CGC with a paying membership which allowed me to send in my first and (at the moment) only submission. It was a good experience. I had the books out and back within about a month. I wasn't expecting high grades at all. I guessed the highest I would have received would be an 8.5, so I was surprised when my issue #9 was returned with a 9.2.
    At times in my life I have wondered numerously why I collect comic books. I stopped once because lack of money, never because I was uninterested with it. To be honest with you I am glad that happened because as I was catching up by buying the back issues I needed, I realized they sucked, and most likely would have given up because of disinterest. Eventually writers such as Bendis, Brubaker, Pak, and Ellis (to name a few) wanted to write Epics and not stories. I am 39 now and still love going to the comic book shop and glazing over all the new issues. If I had the money I would be collecting a lot more than I am.
    I still collect shot glasses and out of the over 300 owned, I have only had to purchase a handful. The collection stems from friends and family purchasing them when they were on vacation. I started playing pool and there are two pool cues I would like to get, one being around $500. I have yet to purchase any new Star Wars action figures and only recently put a deposit down on the first statue I bought in years (if not decades). So it isn?t just comic books I collect.
    Why do I collect? What makes me look at a graded comic book and have the desire to buy it? I tend to buy CGC graded books only because I already own raw copies of the same issues and want the best out there (that I can afford). Essentially I am purchasing doubles. If I bought a 2011 Chevy Camero, I wouldn?t buy another one. If I were out to eat I wouldn?t buy two Rib-eye steaks to have in one sitting, not to mention buying identical houses next to each other. Of course you should see how many copies of Star Wars I have. One more will be added when the Blue Ray Discs are released in September (Thank you George).
    What is the appeal of collecting? Is it addictive? Or is it just me? Can I quit? And do I even want to? And where will this all lead me? Is it my goal to finish or just something I dare to dream, and how ambitious do I have to be to finish both?
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  14. Tnerb

    28 in 28

    By Tnerb,

    28 journals in 28 days....or something else.
    In November I challenged myself to write thirty journals in thirty days I succeeded in getting this done, but did I do a good job? I had ideas that I wrote and then posted, and then I had ideas I wanted to, topics that would only be justified by time and research. At times I think of a title and write based off that title?other times it is an idea and I just continue on until I either think I wrote too much or that I made my point. During my experiment I wanted to work on a series simply called ?The cost of??
    The idea is for it to be longer and more informative. I always planned on doing something like this but constantly placed the idea on hold or would make an excuse that no one wants to read a lengthy journal. Then Lee K wrote one called ?Why the Registry?? and then ?Dust, Light, and Oxidation shadows?. I think these two being the most recent are worth mentioning and worth reading. They are informative. I was intrigued and comforted by the fact that if someone else is writing things like this then so should I...or have I been doing this and not realizing it.
    At times I wrote too much I would just separate them into parts giving the reader time and choice to check the other parts out, especially since there are times a journal does not last anytime at all in the recent three.
    My price guide journals turned into four parts. I?m not saying that "The cost of series..." won?t be in parts (or short, the first one to be posted will be shorter than what I finally intend) just that they will be lengthy in word count.
    I wrote a journal a long time ago entitled ?3 vs 4?. It was bout when I should post another journal. I hope once I start 'The Cost of...." series I will post them on a regular basis. I was thinking once a month regardless of when I post anything else. I tend to write on paper before transferring the written piece neatly into a book and then into my digital contraption. The people at work think I have neat handwriting but that is only after writing and rewriting a handful of times. As I write I like to have some semblance of order in which I post?one story referring to another. What can I say, I like to write.
    Currently I have a surplus of journals. I will post them hopefully not too much out of order since this one that you are reading now is skipping five others. Having this abundance in order is what got me thinking I could do 30 in 30, but 28 in 28 is not about doing a slew of journal is February, it is just a title, along the lines of "42"? a journal title I planned on using for my 42nd journal?which came and went without that title. This is most likely a warning much like a sign ?Keep Away Zombies Feeding? The Cost of will hopefully be entertaining and informative and not too lengthy that you open the journal page and close it?.I think I did this with New Mutants #28 pictured below. I believe the first page was Professor Xavier talking. Nine panels of a bald guy talking ughhh?..
     
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb

  15. Tnerb

    What if...?

    By Tnerb,

    Doesn't everyone ask themselves this question?
    I didn?t have consistent internet access when I purchased my first CGC, nor did I have it when I bought my copy of New Mutants #1 in a 9.8 at a local comic book show. I was able to get online with a laptop when I brought it to my friend?s house. He would let me use his wireless connection to get online. I used this primarily to check e-mails and not for on-line bidding.
    It was a few months later that my laptop broke (unfortunate demise) and I purchased a net book through Verizon Wireless. Now armed with internet access no matter where I went I was able to sit and watch the final seconds tick down and place my bid and let?s face it, most people on E-bay wait for the final seconds. I won many times like this and lost even more. Once able to jump online (I did not do this in a literal sense) and bid whenever I wanted all hopes of a serious saving diminished.
    I check the registry on a regular basis, mainly to see if anyone added any New Mutants. I noticed someone added #93 and #86 in a 9.8 on their Liefeld New Mutants set and I wonder how I missed those. I also check the #1 spot currently held by Bagofleas to see if any issues were recently added. I am proud to say I helped him with issue #55. As I was looking over this I started to look at the dates he added these books. Bagofleas tend to add his books right away, even before he gets them to the door. (I tried this once?and I never got the #$%@ thing).
    Then it dawned on me, if only I had the internet sooner we both would have been competing against a lot more books that ne we had. I will have to mention how we were introduced to each other in a journal sometime. I am not envious (anymore) or bitter but rather proud I am following in his wake. This probably saved both of us a lot of money, especially since I refuse to bid against him.
    I plan on being just as diligent in my search but I fear my road is about to be as difficult as Bagofleas. I wish him luck and still hope to finish my set directly after he finishes his but I have to ask if only I started to collect a little sooner?What if?
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb
  16. Tnerb

    Juxtaposed

    By Tnerb,

    How things have changed...
    I started collecting comic books when they were sixty cents. That might not be more than some reading this but it is likely more than most. I got an allowance which was my original funds for my comic book collecting and I normally shied away from purchasing back issues. My main (immature) reasoning was the cost; back issues were too expensive compared to new issues.
    When books hit seventy-five cents apiece, the simple math was I could buy four books for the $3.00 I had. I wasn?t charged tax and I didn?t buy bags and boards because it would cut into the money I had for books. Mind you, it?s not that I didn?t buy back issues. I remember the long walk I took to purchase a copy of New Mutants #8 for a $1 and sometime later I bought a Daredevil #171 for $3.00. It was during that transitional time that I thought buying four new books compared to one back issue was so much better. After all I was buying them to read. As I got older I decided if I wanted to complete my collection it was the back issue bins I would have to search in.
    I was very selective with what I purchased, in fact I still am but I find it easier to purchase back issues. This is most likely due to what I am willing to spend on CGC graded comic books. At conventions or during blow out sales I tend to find books only a couple months old for a $1 apiece. Now all these decades later (2 1/2) I am buying four back issues for the price of one new book.
    Just recently I purchased both issues #19 and #20 of Daredevil Volume #1 for only $25 (both copies are in a Good + condition). That is $12.50 apiece or about seven new books. The ratio is a lot smaller with the increasing prices. I am still waiting for Marvel to follow DC at the price of $2.99 like they said?.
    Then of course there are CGC books (and PGX). How can I complain about spending $4 on a new book when I will spend $16 (Black Panther #513) on a newly graded 9.8 CGC encapsulated book (shipping not included). The hobby has been changing for a great many years but I never stood back and witnessed it until recently, that is until I started to spend hundreds of dollars at a time, and not just on any back issues, the best that not only I can afford but the best that is out there.
    It is kind of interesting though. The books I hesitated at paying between $3 and $35 apiece (DD #?s 158-191). I am now looking at paying anywhere from $35 to $500. I want to get them all in a 9.8 and the price alone on issue #168 (lowest to date is $515.00) will be more than what I paid for the original 33 issues combined.
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb

  17. Tnerb
    What is Incredible Hulk #181?
    You're right.
    I'll take comics for a Million......So soon after Amazing Fantasy #15 in a 9.6 sold for 1.1 Million Dollars, another milestone occurred with the selling of Incredible Hulk #181 for $150,000. This book was originally graded over ten years ago by CGC in a 9.9 and was kept in a private collection till its recent sale through ComicLink.com. Here is what they said about the illustrious issue:....?Hulk #181 is by far the most significant comic book printed in the last 40 years. Wolverine?s popularity over the last few decades is right up there with Spider-Man?s. The issue is one of the most highly collected of all vintage Marvel comic books and we believe that in CGC 9.9, this singular example is definitively the most significant single comic book graded by CGC published in the last 35 years.?....What is causing these ?Key? issues to sell at such inflated prices? Would they have sold at the reported prices if they were simply bagged and boarded with a Mylar bag and acid free backing board? Does having a 3rd party grading company really contribute to the value of the comic book, and not just any 3rd party, but CGC?I purchased a book graded by PGX once before. It was a copy of New Mutants #5 in a 9.9. Since I am working on a full set by CGC in a 9.8 or higher I decided to hand over the encapsulated comic at Wizard World 2010. CGC graded it a 9.8. Apparently their standards are different.Since I got swept up into the collecting aspect of 3rd party graded comic books it is the small nuances that bother me. There are a few 9.8 copies I own that I feel should be a 9.6 and vice versa. Don?t get me wrong, they are both beautiful copies but when the difference between a 9.6 and a 9.8 could be a minimal price differential of 100%, well that could add up to quite a bit.I would love to see the copy of Incredible Hulk #181 in a 9.9 just to see how it rates to my New Mutants #1 in a 9.9, one book is 9 years older than the other so maybe I should compare a 9.8 copy and the 9.9 copy of the same book. Which begs to question, does the age of one book allow for more defects? Will the 8.0 copy of Action Comics #1, which sold for one million dollars look any different than the Daredevil #158 in the same grade that I own? Will they have the same amount of blemishes and defects? Is each crease calculated the same? Is every corner chip, every spine stress, and staple scrutinized the same way?With Incredible Hulk #181 being the first comic book from the ?Bronze? age to reach over a hundred thousand (all other books that achieved this goal were from the silver age or older). These hefty prices are becoming more and more regular and every one of them has been graded by CGC. I wonder when the first ?copper? age book will reach $100,000 and will it be graded a 9.8 or a 9.9?Thanks for readingTnerb
  18. Tnerb

    Million Dollar Comics

    By Tnerb,

    What do you mean they are only worth 30 points?
    This was originally Written for Comicbooked.com I thought it would be appropriate here too??
     
    It finally happened; a silver age book broke the 1 million dollar barrier. A copy of Amazing Fantasy #15 recently sold for a whopping $1.1 million dollars, marking the first time in history a Silver Age comic book has breached the one million dollar price mark. Amazing Fantasy#15 featured the first appearance of the acclaimed comic book superhero Spider-man.
    Three times last year this absurdly high amount was conquered. The first time was for an 8.0 graded copy of Action Comics #1 at exactly one million dollars (c?mon tell me you don?t hear Michael Myers as Dr. Evil saying one million dollars). This issue featured the first appearance of Superman.
    The second one, which sold only a few days later, was Detective Comics #27 for $1,075,500.00. This book features the first appearance of Batman and was also graded by CGC as an 8.0. If you want to know the investment mark up for this book, if I recall correctly the book was purchased in the late 60?s for about a hundred dollars. Remember, a hundred dollars in the late 60?s for a comic book was down out right insane.
    It didn?t take long for Superman to regain the championship and the right to be in the Guinness book of world records for most expensive comic book when Action Comics #1 sold for 1.5 million dollars, this time it was an 8.5 graded copy.
    These books would never have reached these astronomical prices it weren't for third party grading. I wrote before in a journal on the CGC registry, and the following is a portion of that journal?.
    I have purchased a few CGC books that I spent more than I wanted too (and even more than I should) but I am happy with them and have no desire to sell them (at this time) and I hope that whoever did purchase them (referring to the million dollar books) enjoys owning them as a collector rather than selling them as an investor. Now just let me know when an Amazing Fantasy #15 or Fantastic Four #1 hits that illustrious million dollar mark and maybe then I will be a bit more awestruck.
    So there it is, Amazing Fantasy #15 in an illustrious 9.6 sold for 1.1 million dollars. That is a book so near perfection from the early 60?s that my mediocre 3.5 copy of Daredevil #1 feels so?..used. This book was purchased privately through Comicconnect.com, which also happened to sell the Action Comics #1 in the 8.5 condition. I have to wonder what they plan on attaining next to sell.
    On a personal note I love that the world of Comic books are getting so noticed, the fact I have a chance to see my characters on screen, and that this never would have happened without people spending what they do on comics to have these movies see screen time. There would be no Superman movies, no Batman movies, nor X-men, Amazing Spider-Man and even?.brace for it? Howard the Duck, if people didn?t love these characters.
    I still like to read the books, and as of last year I finally placed Amazing Fantasy #15 on the list of books I have to own. Mind you, I will be very happy purchasing a very well read copy ungraded by CGC so I can read it first and wonder what it must have been like spending my hard earned .12 cents and be introduced to Peter Parker?. And yes after I read it, I will send it into CGC to get graded. When I do, I?ll let you know.
     
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  19. Tnerb
    If you don't notice the difference, does it matter?
    One of the books I desire in a high grade, higher than the one I already have is Daredevil #168. The current graded copy I have is a 9.2. This was the same back issue I bought as a teen in the eighties. However I would like a copy of this issue in a 9.8. Recently one sold on E-bay for a little over $500.00. With annual price guides stagnant, CGAnalyisis.com seems to be the way to go.
    After I posted my ?Price Guide? journals a few people recommended the site to me; enough to make me part with my money to use the site for a month. I joined because I hoped this would give me a better understanding of how to bid and win the book of my choice, or at the very least not to bid more that what other people think it is worth.
    I scrolled down to the issue number in question. It was easy. I don?t think they could have made it simpler. The records went back quite a few years. It was more than enough to compile an average for my needs. I was able to see the highs and lows for the book each year it sold. The years available showed the most I could have paid? and the least. So let?s find out the cost of a grade.
    I decided to look over the three grades above mine. They are a 9.4, a 9.6, and my ultimate desire a 9.8. I am still trying to understand CBAnalysis.com and what better way to investigate the website than with a book I want so I apologize if the following math is wrong. Any and all advice/feedback would be appreciated because this journal is long and I wanted to know if it would be better in parts. (By the way before I start, the book I mentioned that sold on e-bay has not yet been noted by the CGA, as of this writing.) They update every month.
    I would love to find a raw copy at a comic shop, local convention, or even Wizard World 2011 and send it to CGC for grading but to be honest I don?t think I am that good at grading by CGC?s standards, whatever they may be. I might be able to find a 9.4 (pretty sure), or even a 9.6 (partially sure) but I am not confident (not yet) that I can pick out a diamond in the rough and have a guaranteed 9.8. I would have to haggle to get the price I want because I will not pay a CGC graded premium price on a raw book. So I?ll take the easy way and look for a book that is already graded. I wanted to break this down grade by grade, please be patient.
    In 2002 the first recorded Universal 9.4 ( all the prices I?ll be mentioning are all universal grades, no pedigrees, no signature series, no qualified, no restored?and so on) sold June 30th for $405.00. The same day a second one sold for $251.00. That is around a 60% difference for the same grade (page color is not reported.) The high price of that year was $500. The low was $176. Someone help me with my math but I believe that is a difference of 184%. There were 24 copies sold this year. This number more than doubled in 2003.
    2003/ 51 Sold (High): $306.00 and (Low): $153.00
    2004/ 38 Sold (High): $295.00 and (Low): $183.00
    2005/ 35 Sold (High): $278.00 and (Low): $134.00
    2006/ 27 Sold (High): $262.00 and (Low): $128.00
    After five years the high price of this book dropped about 48% and the low price dropped about 25%. And the last four years are as follows:
    2007/ 25 Sold (High): $210.00 and (Low): $119.00
    2008/ 31 Sold (High): $253.00 and (Low): $120.00
    2009/ 22 Sold (High): $225.00 and (Low): $87.00
    2010/ 20 Sold (High): $224.00 and (Low): $115.00
    So far (as of this writing) only one sold for the year (recorded) at $133.00. 284 copies sold to date. $500 is the highest price registered which sold in July of 2002. This grade has never reached higher and I don?t believe it ever will. So far the lowest price paid for this book occurred June 2009 ($87). That?s about 82.5% off the highest price paid. If I saw a comic book shop with a sign outside saying 82.5%off I would definitely stop in. I think low price matches the CMV for this book in this grade. Although if I agree with this price matches the FMV then I have to admit my 9.2 is worth less. I have always considered an off the rack near mint should equal a 9.4. From 2003, which had the most copies sell in a 9.4 compared to 2010 when only twenty copies sold, a decrease of sixty percent.
    The fist registered 9.6 also sold in 2002. Only two sold that year. The first one was at $660. And the second one was for $710. If we take the highest price recorded for a 9.4 and we already have an increase of $160, but what about the following years.
    2003/ 18 Sold (High): $760.00 and (Low): $427.00
    2004/ 18 Sold (High): $700.00 and (Low): $500.00
    2005/ 15 Sold (High): $625.00 and (Low): $386.00
    2006/ 12 Sold (High): $520.00 and (Low): $280.00
    After five years the high price of a 9.6 dropped 32% and the low price dropped about 35% from the 2003 ales year. This is a much closer percentage then it was for the 9.4
    2007/ 16 Sold (High): $508.00 and (Low): $285.00
    2008/ 22 Sold (High): $799.00 and (Low): $225.00
    2009/ 28 Sold (High): $375.00 and (Low): $202.00
    2010/ 25 Sold (High): $330.00 and (Low): $150.00
    So far this year only three were registered as sold. I thought it very unusual that the highest grade sold in 2008, six years after its first sale. It seemed someone really wanted that book desperately much like I wanted the New Mutants #1 in a 9.9 a few months back.
    159 copies of Daredevil #168 sold in a 9.6. $799 as the high, and most recently a $150.00 low. Amazing enough that is also above the 80% range between initial sales prices and current sales prices. I would figure this book will settle at the $125 price mark. At least that is how much I can see myself purchasing the book without second thoughts.
    But, if the cost of a 9.6 is going down to such acquirable prices for my budget range, has the same thing happened to this book in a 9.8 grade? And if so can I afford it, provided another one can be found. We looked over a 9.4 and a 9.6 so how about we continue with a 9.8
    Only one sold in 2004 at a whopping $3,305. There are no previous years for this book as there as there are from the previous two grades, and as with those let?s list them out
    2005/ 5 Sold (High): $3000.00 and (Low): $1725.00
    2006/ 2 Sold (High): $1925.00 and (Low): $1525.00
    2007/ 3 Sold (High): $1912.00 and (Low): $1700.00
    2008/ 8 Sold (High): $1575.00 and (Low): $1016.00
    2009/ 12 Sold (High): $1024.00 and (Low): $595.00
    2010/ 14 Sold (High): $1250.00 and (Low): $515.00
    With a significant drop between the first 9.8 selling at over $3000, and at the 2010 low price you could purchase six of them. I predict this to drop a bit more, but why are there more 9.8?s appearing recently? Are more people becoming aware of the subtle differences between the grades and only sending in what they feel is a 9.8 or is the 9.8 pre-screen allowing more 9.6?s to pass as a 9.8? Is the possibility of CGC?s grading standards becoming lax or maybe are more people hearing about astronomical prices for comic books (remember the Action comics #1 found in an attic) and what will happen to Daredevil #168 when the first 9.9 is graded (if there is).
    Going back the past two years the average price for a 9.4 in 2009 was $155.00, this average increase by only a $1 to $156.00 in 2010. Although the low price of $87.00 is a
  20. Tnerb
    More goals for 2011
    I know this hobby can get expensive. I added up what I spent in the last six months of last year and have decided not to spend as much this year. Normally from January 1st up until the convention in June I save my money. Now it seems I won?t be able to go for the full three days this year, so what am I still saving for?
    My goal for this year was written in another journal. I mentioned simple things I wanted to do. It is two months into the year and I picked up one CGC box, that was filled right away and I only need three more Daredevil comic books to complete the run. So with those things on their way to completion I thought I would add a couple more. As far as my collection goes I believe it is known I want a full set of New Mutants graded in a 9.8 . I am cutting down the lead Bagofleas has but the collection I want are the books I originally collected. I am currently ranked in the teens somewhere.
    With the 9.8?s dwindling this should allow me to start spending my money in other ways, such as sending in some books to get graded. I want to send in ten, but which ones. Do I send in the next 10 of my New Mutants starting from issue #11, or count backwards from 100? Then a genius of an idea came to me to send them all in?.and after adding that up said no. So my other thought was to send in 10 books that not only I didn?t have graded but that also had no more than a copy or two graded including annual #4 and issue #81. Both should get around 9.4.
    But the New Mutants isn?t the only series I want graded. I am not collecting this other series in a 9.8 because having the very best of them is not necessary. I started collecting Sandman with issue #32 and worked backwards as well as forwards. When I made my way to purchasing the first 8 issues I knew these would run me a lot of money. They were shown on the wall of the comic book shop rather than the back issue boxes, as most of the really wanted books tended to be. Next to getting my Daredevil Miller issues, the Longshot Limited series, this was the most I spent on back issues, at the time.
    All in all this would be 175 books graded, which will run into a couple thousand. I could stop getting other books altogether, but would have to save up money for a bit, or I could do them 10 by 10, five from each until they are done, but can I be patient enough to this, and does CGC grade faster on larger lots? After all of them are encapsulated, posted on the registry and I put them away where will I have the room to get more books?
  21. Tnerb

    My 125th Journal

    By Tnerb,

    Hey, I like to write, but I also like to read.
    125 journals and I?m stll writing them. I started a blog and ended it because I didn?t like the site. I would start again if I could find a decent site, kind of like this one. I enjoy writing about my thoughts, feelings, and utter ramblings. I tend to post something when I am no longer in the top three or four days later. I wrote about this a long time ago in 3 VS 4. In every 25th journal I write about some of the journals I have enjoyed writing. I also enjoy reading, so this time I wish to be different, this time I wish to tell you about some of the recent ones I enjoyed reading. I won?t write much about them since I feel you should check them out and let them speak for themselves.
    The first one I have listed is very informative. It is entitled Grading: A Mini-History by SREW. Every now and then you find a journal with good solid information. I found this to be one of them.
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8347
     
    The second one I think could be very useful and it has not been read very much at all. I don?t plan on ever using it because I like the stickers; it reminds me where I got it, not to mention what I spent on it. It was written by Tom Skahan entitled ?How to remove sticker residue from a slab?
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8308
     
    This one I really liked because it issued a challenge and then people answered that challenge. I won?t even tell you the title because I want you to go read it. This was written by Lee K.
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8307
     
    Then if you want to read something instead of collecting slaps see what Surfer 99 recommends in ?Marvel Masterworks?. I can?t wait till the next convention to find these.
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8230
     
    I also liked ?No Space? by Triskelion because I feel it is something that we all have problems with. It was nice to know that something I touched base on happens to others.
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8203
     
    There are more, but I only wanted to suggest a handful. Please go read them, take an hour like you used to as a kid with your comic books sprawled on your bed and just see what other people love about this great hobby. Maybe you might see some of it too, that is if you don?t already.
    Thank you for Reading
    Tnerb
  22. Tnerb
    OK! Now What?!?
    Recently I joined the American Pool Association, or otherwise known as the APA. The first connection with that anagram was three very different words. I had to pay an annual membership fee and I pay table fees every time I play. Currently we play once a week, and if I add everything up for a year it would still be cheaper than the Daredevil #1 in a 3.5 I bought. I have played pool since I was a teenager and have only now realized I wasn?t playing so much as I was hitting balls (when in doubt, shoot them about).
    In my first two matches, I lost. I didn?t even win a game (5 total). My third match, in my third week only consisted of two games. I won both, the first one because I sunk the eight ball and the other because my opponent scratched going for the eight. I didn?t care, a win is a win. This group took me in knowing that I?m not that good and still made me part of their team and being a team player means sacrifice. It might mean not being able to hang out with my best friends to watch a television show. It might mean spending more money at a pool hall practicing rather than using it to bid on a comic book. It might mean not going to Wizard World 2011 so I can go to the City Championship?
    Wait a second? Did my team Captain actually tell me that the championship will be on Father?s Day weekend? The same weekend as the convention I have been going to since 2007. Yes he did. So what now? How do I take a love from childhood and sweep it aside for something I only just joined? Ok, I am making this more dramatic than it is. I am a team player and being such I won?t let them down, at least by not showing up I won?t. I will be there, but I can?t help if I lose. This of course poses a dilemma on how I can do both. I want to play pool, I do, but I need to get Comic Books.
    On the first day (Friday), the tournament doesn?t start till seven so at least on that day I can do both. Saturday I can only shoot pool because it goes all day. If we lose Saturday, there is no Sunday and I can go to the comic book show, but if we win (when we win) then we play Sunday and a chance to advance to nationals, all I have to do is skip the biggest convention in the Philadelphia area?.oh and win.
    Thanks for reading
    Tnerb
  23. Tnerb
    Is it Worth it?
    As mentioned in my ?Price Guide? journals, the final price of a book and what it is worth all depends on what you want to pay for it. As I wrote those journals I was notified about the GPA. As it was with CGC, it was the same with GPA. I knew about the site and even used the free trial. This ?free? service is only good on three particular books. If you used the trial then you already know which ones they are.
    What got me curious to part with my ten dollars ($9.95) was not to find out what the books are worth to me (I already know that), but to see what they are worth to others. I am simple. If I want a book, I?ll get it. I know I have a budget to abide by (even at the age I am now, my father still reminds me not to spend more than I have) and normally I do not go over my predetermined limit (Daredevil #164 doesn?t count, I lost). GPAnalyis is a tool, much like a price guide, bags and boards, or even 3rd party grading companies. I just don?t know if it is a tool for me.
    I wonder if I will use this to help me make more informed bids or will I just continue to wing it? After all the final issues I need for the New Mutants set are minimal (and rare). In fact a few of them on the census have only one in a 9.8. Issue #98, having the highest quantity of graded comics sells very well but I feel this comic book is above what it is worth,. The highest (to date) I placed a bid for this issue # in a 9.8 was $175.00. The lowest this book ever sold for was $40.00. I am not Na?ve enough to ever feel it will go this low again, but I hope it goes a bit lower.
    I am using the GPA to try to figure out my hobby a little more. I want to see if it will help me get insurance on my books, (which is a lot harder than I thought). There is one thing that I would like to be able to do with this site and that is to add the books I sent to CGC to get graded. Even though they have no records of sales, I can still add the registry number. Since they don?t have this ability I just hope that they have a record of one that sold with the same grade I have. On some I have added it this way and just appointed the appropriate ?force? value (this was not a Star Wars reference).
    After one day of use (as of writing this journal) it seems to me that GPAanalysis.com is an essential tool for a dealer or someone who buys a lot of books. Currently I have 179 books (not including what is on its way) so I don?t even know how useful of a tool it will be for me, but at least I have a month to find out.
     
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb
  24. Tnerb

    The Cost of... a Pedigree

    By Tnerb,

    What is the real difference?
    I tried winning a Rocky Mountain Pedigree (oooh look at the sticker) in the latest ComicLink auction. I made sure to bid on a book I wanted rather than just to have an actual pedigree book. I limited myself to a $150 and after firmly setting myself to bid no higher, my final bid was $200. I didn?t win and the final tally was $220 the comic book I lost out on was Daredevil #164 with white pages (I know you were probably thinking it was Ro #1. It was probably a good thing I lost.
    Would I have bid that much if it wasn?t a pedigree and with 3rd party grading does a pedigree hold any merit? Currently there are 29 Daredevil #164 in a 9.8 (47 in a 9.6) on the census. There is no way to diversify between a pedigree 9.8 and a universal 9.8 (unless you check out GPanalysis) even though CGC has acknowledged the book as a Rocky Mountain Pedigree there is no notation on the census. If CGC feels it is not important to give it its own classification (like a Signature Series) what makes us, as collectors, decide the book is so much more desirable than a non-pedigree.
    At one point of time getting a pedigree meant having one of the best looking books out there. With third party grading doesn?t having a pedigree become obsolete, especially since buying a 98 is most likely the best you could possibly get. There are stories about pedigrees which probably add to the pedigree prestige. The ?Curator? collection comes to mind, whether it is true or not I don?t know. I did want the book I placed the bid on but I can?t figure out why I would bid so much higher than I normally would have.
    World Wide comics shows they sold the same issue in the same condition for a $150.00 (the GPA marked it as sold for $130.00) this was the golden state copy (and that is not a pedigree, just overstock. If you decide to check they also have a raw Near Mint copy selling for $40 (a western Penn copy) Will more and more collections be considered pedigrees with 3rd party grading or wile Pedigrees be limited to the eighties and earlier? Anyone can send in books with a prescreen prerequisite of a 9.8 allowing the collector to have the main desirable aspect for a pedigree, the condition.
    What would you prefer to own, a 9.6 pedigree or a 9.8 non pedigree and then which one would you pay more for? And if you have these answers could you tell m why I was willing to bid so high on this books (or maybe subconsciously I knew I was going to be outbid like when I placed the bid on Daredevil #1?.oh wait I won that one, and it wasn?t even a pedigree.
    Thanks for Reading
    Tnerb

  25. Tnerb

    No Guarantee...

    By Tnerb,

    Would you chance a Signature?
    I like to go to the Wizard World conventions to purchase books I can?t find in the area. My friend goes for the signatures, this year I think he is going for Bruce Campbell?s autograph. Lately I have been interested in the Signature Series so I might go this year just to get a few. I have a copy of New Mutants in a 9.8. it is an extra since I got a 9.9 and I?m thinking if there is someone there that has something to do with this book I might just have to get it signed, I already have a 9.6 SS with Stan Lee, do I dare dream of a 9.8 with Chris Claremont?s scrawl? The downfall is even though the book is already graded a 9.8, CGC won?t guarantee it will stay a 9.8. It might decrease.
    At any given time there are hundreds of Signature Series books in a 9.8 on E-bay, some are even a 9.9. Were these raw copies at first or did someone chance a 9.8 copy a collector(dealer) just needed to have signed, I have a few that I bought under the signature series banner, and just like when I first started collecting CGC books, I wanted more. I have a few comic books signed, a couple Daredevil?s by JR JR, a couple Sandman?s be Neil Gaiman, and even a few Valiant comic books when it was in its heyday. These creators I met through small meet and greets my LCS sponsored.
    Do I dare even send them in for a qualified grade, and is it worth the time and effort? Should I go to a convention that CGC will be at or just send it to CGC for them to take care of everything? Do I send a raw copy hoping I can get a 9.8 SS or do I send in a universal 9.8 hoping it stays a 9.8? I can keep bidding on E-bay but it could be cheaper doing it all myself, then again it could be more expensive too. What would you do?
    Thanks for Reading.
    Tnerb
    PS. In support of Lee K, don?t forget to read his latest journal
    http://comics.www.collectors-society.com/JournalDetail.aspx?JournalEntryID=8307
    After all it is a great idea and I feel bad knocking it further down the list where someone might miss it. I must say I was happy today when I woke up to see I had three new journals to read. The chat boards are good for quick short messages, but the journals give you a voice.