karlInSanDiego

Anyone looking to purchase CGC TMNT 1-4 1st Prints, I just put some up for sale: http://boards.collectors-society.com/ubbthreads.php?ubb=showflat&Number=8170743#Post8170743

Thanks Peter. I'll keep my chin up.

So this happened today. USPS tried to deliver my CGC addressed (Sarasota, FL) Registered mail package with all my raw books to some address in Texas? I'm hopeful, being Registered Mail, the postal carrier understands the mistake instead of blindly knocking some door, asking for a signature, and leaving what I estimated to CGC as $28000+ worth of TMNT and what I insured with USPS for $25k, with some lucky person. I suppose if that does happen, I'll be paid $25k for them without having to go through the hassle of selling them. Hope my Turtles can surf. Appear to have gotten lost somewhere in the Gulf of Mexico... Still no word on the USPS SNAFU with all my original Turtles raw books. On Friday afternoon they called claiming the scan at Houston was a mistake and that it was on it's way to Florida, but why would it get scanned at a post office in TX at all if it was 2 day priority from San Diego to Sarasota? I'm thinking now it'll be found all mangled under a truck seat or in the corner of a plane, or it's really lost (or stolen???). Just glad I got insurance.

So this happened today. USPS tried to deliver my CGC addressed (Sarasota, FL) Registered mail package with all my raw books to some address in Texas? I'm hopeful, being Registered Mail, the postal carrier understands the mistake instead of blindly knocking some door, asking for a signature, and leaving what I estimated to CGC as $28000+ worth of TMNT and what I insured with USPS for $25k, with some lucky person. I suppose if that does happen, I'll be paid $25k for them without having to go through the hassle of selling them.

Thanks again, Ryan.

Thank you, Ryan. I have to think that several of you have submitted TMNT #1-4 to CGC. Did they force you to use comic or magazine invoice? Is there a better place for me to ask this?

Yes, if I remember correctly CGC will charge you the magazine tier for grading due to the larger size. I believe the coupons are for standard size submissions only. Somebody with a little more expertise in the coupon department might be able to help a little more. Ah thanks for the reply... I'm not sure if it's worth it then. I was a TMNT fan a long time ago and collected the first 10 issues. The 1st issue is 3rd edition though. Every other one is a first edition. I had put them in bags with a board and haven;t looked at them in 20 years or more. They are in good shape but not sure if they are in the high 9's so to speak. Are the first 4 issues worth grading or should I try to sell them ungraded? I am not a comic book collector and would like to sell them. First of all, don't write off whether it's worth it or not, yet. I'm in the same situation as you, and though the coupons are good for Standard Tier and must all be used on the same invoice (or order at least), it is on step 3 of the process and seems independent of mag vs. std comic size. Interestingly, even though CGC goes to a lot of trouble of complicating their submissions greatly by breaking out magazine sized comics, they are currently CHEAPER than standard sized: http://www.cgccomics.com/services/Services.aspx BUT... The max values are a lot lower, and the coupons are only good for Standard Submissions. So in the end, Turtles collectors are getting shellshocked. I just upgraded on advice from CGC over the phone from Associate to Premium for the coupons thinking my TMNT #3, #4, and #1B would qualify for Standard (aka coupon) but now that I'm seeing that I'm in magazine, this was a waste as magazine Standard maxes at $300. But it gets weirder (and this is where you guys who have submitted early books could really help us get this straight), the magazine tier doesn't ever drop into 3% FMV. There is no value limit on their $77 walkthrough. So technically, I will save a lot on the #1 assuming it's in the realm of a 9+ (which could be $300+ itself) Can someone with more experience on coupons and submitting these oversized books please give us first hand advice on what tier your TMNT were classified as? Thanks very much. I guess I can use the coupons on some less valuable comics I kept (ratty Conan #1, Submariner #1)

I've got a raw 1st print that I've owned since the Regan Administration. I purchased it in 85 or 86 from a Dr Who / Comic convention in Philadelphia for $35. It was already a hot book, and I had been reading the other TMNT books when I spotted that 1st printing. I believe me and my friend took the train there, so we were right around 16 but without car priveledges to drive to the city. Anyone else in the club read Turtles before there were cartoons, cereals (I collected a collapsed box for a time), and a weak live action movie? I was already a Miller Daredevil fan having just discovered them reading backwards as I was able to find/afford that equally popular sequence, so the tongue-in-cheek parody by E&L connected with me immediately.

Thanks for the confirmation on the #1 2nd. Just for the accuracy of the info though, I really don't think that 3rd print # is correct - those 3rds are quite common. Thought it was #1 1rst: 3,000 #1 2nd: 6,000 #1 3rd; 35,000 #2 1st: 15,000 Can anyone confirm? This webpage states that Turtlemania gives the print numbers. Sorry my post is dragging up old stuff. http://miragelicensing.com/comics/mirage/turtlemania/turtlemania.html TMNT #1 (first printing) - 3,000 TMNT #1 (second printing) - 6,000 TMNT #1 (third printing) - 35,000 TMNT #1 (fourth printing) - 60,000 TMNT #2 (first printing) - 15,000 TMNT #2 (second printing) - 30,000 TMNT #3 (convention edition) - 500 TMNT #3 - 50,000 TMNT #4 - 60,000 TMNT #5 - 60,000 TMNT #6 - 65,000 TMNT #7 - 95,000 Gizmo - 32,000

I bet the next suggestion will be to get it pressed, huh?

I hadn't thought to use our scanner at the time. I'll try that next as my photography experiment was more to document my own known defects in order to document a swap from the certifier (sorry, want to trust CGC, but of course in my brief coming up to speed, saw that PGX video and scared myself)

Thanks Peter. I took some shots back in June of last year in preparation to ship, but I don't think my wife deemed them flickr worthy, so I'l have to see if she saved then in our photo file.

Hi guys, New here. I stopped collecting and sold 3 long boxes of my comics upon entering college to Capt. Blue Hen Comics in Newark Del back in '87 for $300. By that time I'd met an awful lot of jaded middle aged guys working the comic circuit, and I really just wanted to get my books out there so the next generation of readers could experience Miller's Daredevil, Byrnes X-Men, and all the stuff that made me a great fan through my formative years. I did cling on to a few favorites, among them my Turtles books including a #1 1st print, which I puchased in '85 or '86 for $35 at Dr. Who/ Comic show in Philly. My friend Jim, the Dr. Who fan I went with, thought I'd lost my marbles paying that much for a comic not yet two years old. But I'd already read #1 (3rd print, still have too) and #2 &3. I remember the book (not mine) eclisping $500 at one point and returning back to a more sane $250. Slabbing had not yet come into popular fashion. Now fast forward to last May's sale of the 9.8. I'd been IM'ing an old friend who'd moved away, and I made a Turtles reference. That reminded me that I still had that comic, and I did a quick search to see if it'd climbed any since the last time I'd checked an Overstreet guide and seen $250. Wow. $22k! So obviously, I won't count on my book being a 9.8 or 9.6 I took it to several shops in the Orange County CA area and to Murietta near my home, to ask them to give a rough grade. Most shops had a younger guy at the counter with no real experience, and no one wanted to hazard an expert opinion, though at least one told me def, no more than an eight. No reason why other than a few very minor spine stress lines. The black on these books show imperfections too well, but it looks pretty clean to me. Anyway, Ryan in Murietta was supposed to help me walk it along with some of my other books into San Diego Comicon last year (I didn't have tix and he's a cgc dealer) but he wouldn't grade it himself & flaked on the coordination to help me submit at the show. I don't think they were grading at the show anyway, so it's likely they would have had to fly my books back to FL anyway. So now I've got to get off my duff and spend some dough sending my remaining books to CGC. Anyone want to suggest what I should insure the TMNT#1 1st print for when it could possibly be a mid 9 book, likely not, but don't know? Have you all sent high dollar comics there via USPS and do you have any pointers for me? I also have no Idea what they'll change me, as their fees page doesn't actually specify a fee for books over $3000, but it does elude to 3% fmv. Finally, I don't want to keep this book forever. Any advice on how you'd get the best price for it? I know it's hard to say before I find out condition, but with the exception of a 9+ comic, should I avoid the grand auctions and ebay and just list it on a comic exchange? I hope I don't sound like a troll. My story is a true story of a TMNT crawling out of the shadows, but admittedly, I always knew it was a special book, when I bought it for $35. karlInSanDiego