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On 1/22/2024 at 7:41 PM, gradejunky said:

Leave to auction bidders to hike a book up well past a BIN that is literally 2 slots below it in the search.  This book is a bit different as it does have a custome label and sig, however, like you said, you had it up a BIN for less than what the auction went for with no takers.

For me it’s almost always easier to get better deals buying auction books vs BIN. That may not be the case with current hot books but seems to be otherwise.

On 5/27/2023 at 1:56 PM, Corona smith said:

Honestly couldn’t give a spoon about any of the feces Kirkman squeezes out. He got lucky with the walking dead and it wasn’t even that good. I won’t buy anything of his. 

I’m the same way about most stuff he puts out but Invincible was amazing. I like it at least as well as TWD. Read it multiple times. 👍

On 5/11/2023 at 4:51 PM, Beastfeast said:

I’m about to pull half my eBay stuff and just send them to MCS. It’s been brutal this month. 

It’s buy or hold time depending on your situation. There are so many cheap books right now that it’s hard to get top dollar for anything. The bad thing is that not everyone can afford to just sit on their collection or add to it. Here’s hoping you can 👍

On 5/4/2023 at 8:28 PM, Lightning55 said:

I wouldn't mind picking up a few copies. Has anyone read this, and could comment on the extent that Spider-Boy is involved...at all, a few panels, whole story, etc.?

Read it. Maybe 4 pages or so. Definitely part of the story and a little more insight into what he can do though there is a lot of story to tell imo

On 5/4/2023 at 1:49 PM, Corona smith said:

Let me know when they come up with an actual new character and not the millionth spider-something or some new character based on old existing characters. 

We’d have to go back 4 or 5 decades. 

On 5/4/2023 at 10:02 AM, kimik said:

Hmmm. Looks like Slott is planning to develop Spiderboy a bit further. I guess I should have done the larger pre-order. 

Feel the same way. I’m not surprised that #7 with the first Spider-boy took off but it seems to keep the momentum it started with and is bleeding into another book. Will have a better opinion once I read #8. 
 

I like that they’re adding new heroes and villains the last few years. There was a period of time where new characters were few and far between. 

Spider-Man #8. Not sure if it’s because of his new powers or 2nd Spider-boy but it’s hot out of the gate. Bringing between $18-20 shipped. 

On 4/22/2023 at 12:04 PM, kimik said:

It is interesting to see how much the modern game has changed the past year or so. While raw prices have been relatively stable on books at shows, the prices on slabs has cratered to the point that it is no longer worth submitting a lot of them even in 9.8. Looking at a lot of the modern keys/hot books I am pricing now for the Calgary Expo, they sell for enough raw that the profit margin is higher than getting them slabbed. I am curious how this impacts CGC long term - will submission rates drop to the point where they have to cut prices?

 

I’m curious as to how they’ll respond too. I assumed that submissions were way down looking at turnaround times. There are certainly other factors that can impact TAT other than the number of books but the change was drastic. 
 

Prices hadn’t slowed me down at the time in which I quit submitting but grading did. My last submission was  around 92-96% 9.8s on 300 comics. One box had 12 out of 25 9.8s.

Been grading books well before CGC existed. Well aware that it is an opinion and not a science,  Still, that one really got me. Hopefully that problem has been addressed. 

Never say never but until cost of grading comes down or the price of graded moderns goes up, I’m sitting on the graded sidelines. 
 

It does seem like a great time to buy stuff. 

On 4/21/2023 at 5:44 PM, GFlo said:

You’re also forgetting about the income tax. Ebay reports earnings exceeding $600. 

I never forget it. Just forgot to type it 😝 

On 4/21/2023 at 12:54 PM, Beastfeast said:

With almost anything over $100, I’m getting more and more happy to send it to MCS and forgo eBay entirely. It’s still the place for selling lots and things in the $15-50 range, I think. 
 

however it does add to shipping costs a bit. 

I spoke with someone else who sells on MCS. I like them and frequently order books there. I’ve never sold through them. Do you sell on auction or BIN ? 

Looking at the current cost to grade, ship, and sell a modern comic got me wondering some things today. Where is my line in the sand where it isn’t cost effective to sell a modern book. The costs to grade, ship, and ship back a comic is roughly $30. If you sell on eBay, you’re going to pay 13% in fees for both the product price and the cost to ship. You also have to take into account the cost of the book. For this example, let’s say a raw book that $20 online plus tax and shipping might be worth $100 graded in a 9.8. Let’s use a 5% sales tax and $5 to get the book shipped.

Now our book cost us the following.

$20 comic

$10 shipping and sales tax 

$25 grading 

$5 shipping to and from CGC

$14 eBay fees 

for a total of roughly $74. 
 

You still have the investment of handling time and in most cases fuel. 

I’m aware that there are other ways to sell such as the boards, Facebook ,Instagram, etc. All of these ways are slightly riskier and more time is required in my experience. Time is something I’m lacking.

That leads us to a rough profit estimate of of $26. Even if you buy the book new off of the shelf, your cost drops $15 and you clear $41. This assumes every single book grades a 9.8 which is not a reasonable assumption imo. Then you have a federal tax on your earnings. You might set up at a show and save the eBay fees but then it becomes a job with overhead. How much is your time worth ?
 

I’m not knocking anyone or any business model. Just curious as to what others think about trying to sell graded moderns. So what purchase price vs sales price would you consider a book to be worth your time and effort ? Does it make more sense to sell raw ?

For me, when it was $14.40 to grade a modern and 10% to sell on eBay, this was a much easier thing to decide. That wasn’t very long ago.

❤️

On 4/12/2023 at 9:45 AM, manetteska said:

One of the best music videos ever and perfect for our stuff 😝 

On 4/11/2023 at 10:00 PM, Pitboss said:

PAPER GIRLS #1, CGC 9.8 NM/MT - THE AUCTION HAS ENDED 2015, 1st appearance issue Current Bid: $401 Number Of Bids: 32

Is that a common price for this book ? I still have some but I thought it died down after the show was over. Appears I was incorrect. 😝 

On 4/8/2023 at 11:08 PM, CHASEnBLUE said:

I'm just hoping to get the ones I pre-ordered just before the prices started running....

Got mine today. I’m sure yours will come. 👍🏻

On 4/8/2023 at 5:10 PM, GeeksAreMyPeeps said:

As a guy that's about to turn 50, I'm trying to re-think speculating. If I was giving advice to a 20-something YO, I might say go ahead and buy and hold, because when you're about to turn 50, there will be collectors who weren't around when it came out that will pay a premium for this book. (Think: recent rise in Jim Lee X-Men books and other overprinted Copper keys). But I don't want to be trying to unload books when I'm 80 years old, and I'm sure that whoever is left with that problem if I don't make it to 80 probably won't know how to profit from it.

I’m 56 and have been super fortunate with spec in general. There have been misses like Superman 204 and some very early Image books. For me, I’m spending until I can’t carry the boxes hahaha. Three of my four kids collect and one flips books regularly. I even have a grandkid who reads and collects them but she likes the movies even more. So they will have a good home or two when I’m gone.
 

Have less than 1000 books that are PC. The rest ? Combo of stuff I read and spec on. They all go as soon as it makes sense. I’m certain I’ll be done collecting before 80. I already have every book I wanted as a kid and I love to read new digital stuff even though I buy a ton of physical copies. These small books that have the potential to explode are the most fun spec to me. 🍻 

On 4/8/2023 at 10:10 PM, fastballspecial said:

Mail orders will bring the price down some for a bit in next week or so.

 

Probably. I still think it’s a long term winner. Spider-Man comes on every weekday morning at my house. Kids watch it with grandkids. This kid would be a great fit with Peter, Miles, Gwen, and the rest. If it drops enough, grab it 👍🏻

Spider-man #7 spoiler cover is as hot as anything I can remember in a long time. Has busted $50 many times today on eBay. It’s only 3 days. Crazy.Some stuff might fade but this one has a few things going for it. Those would be Miles, Spider-Gwen, Silk, Venom which led to Knull, Carnage, and the list goes on and on. Personally like the Spider-boy costume and while the appearance in inside is somewhat limited, he’s on the cover which locks this up as a solid first appearance. 
 

The idea of his history, which both exists and doesn’t could lead to some cool tales. 
 

What could ruin it ? A bad story or characterization that sits poorly with collectors. Hoping they have a good story to tell…. 🤞🏻

This one hasn’t hit shelves yet but it’s already hot. 
 

This one hasn’t hit yet but it will this Wednesday. Don’t believe it will stay on the shelves very long. It’s hot on eBay already and it has a first appearance. 
 

On 4/1/2023 at 11:51 AM, Jackhartmann said:

April 1 2023 - LCS had first sellout in weeks with The AMBASSADORS #1 - Mar 2023 Image Comic, Mark Millar Gary Frank

This series is off to a good start. Nice pick. 

On 3/24/2023 at 9:43 PM, mr_highgrade said:

Anyone know what ever happened to @Aweandlorder This was his last post almost 3 years ago. If I recall, I believe he was a Long Island guy.  I hope he's doing well 

Don’t know but always liked him. Easy to get along with and we read/collected the same types of books. I took a break for a while, maybe he did too. 

Second good issue in a row to start the new series and the cover is cool.