VintageComics

In LA everything is close distance wise but far in regards to travel time. It can take you an hour to drive 10 miles sometimes. You can use Google maps and change your leave / start time and they generally compensate for traffic with their travel times.

I say freeze FSF's for all time. Just kidding, FSF.

Or reaching customers who can't get a pass for the show or a reasonable hotel room for the city. There are many complaints of people who want to shop at SD but can't or just won't put in the cost / effort any longer.

'Need' is a relative thing. Most people might 'need' an iPhone more than an FF #52 but very few people really need the latest iPhone. Now if you told everyone in the room that the FF #52 was a 9.6 and worth $20K, they'd 'need' that more than the iPhone. Nobody was saying that a comic book is more useful than an iPhone. What I was saying was that perception fuels speculation in markets and not all speculation pays out. And I don't think anyone is arguing that stocks don't make people money.

BTW, this comment is not correct at all. It's not the "news" that drives the price up in stocks but the implications of that news. Obviously, that is what I meant.

Shipping is included in prices for CGC graded books. Scans to follow. Amazing Spider-man #300 CGC 9.8 White $2750 Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #1 CGC 9.8 White $800 Marvel's Greatest Comics 52 CGC 9.8 White (2006 Reprint of Fantastic Four #52. Manufactured to look aged. Not many on the CGC census and there are only 2 9.8's on the census.) $1000 New Mutants #98 CGC 9.8 White $800

Shipping: Certified books, shipping is included within North America, ROW we split it. Raw books, include $10 for shipping within North America. ROW I will split with interested parties.  Who wins: Time stamp seals the deal as to who wins regardless of the form of communication (including PM, in the thread, text or phone conversation). A negotiation is not a deal until both sides have agreed on terms. If there is an unconditional posted (or communicated) it will trump all negotiations unless we have already both agreed to terms before the was posted. In that case, the will have been in vain. Except that it will give you street cred and look cool to passers by. No House Of Shame or Probationary members or any others of ill repute. Returns: I am considered a very good grader among my peers ( Here is a link to my kudos thread ) but since even CGC is inconsistent I will not guarantee a CGC grade. I will guarantee to be within one grade increment in either direction - so if I am calling the book a 9.4 it could go 9.2 or 9.6. If it falls outside of those parameters (and it does happen that they go in both directions), I will offer a refund. But I don't expect anyone to complain if I undergraded it. I will accept returns if item is otherwise not as described. Consider all books pressed. Payment: Paypal, bank wire, check or MO.

OK gang, updated list and I am also adding some newly graded books below as well. You can continue to take 10% off the previously listed CGC graded books in the 1st list below. Archie Comics #5 3.0 G/VG OWW - Asking $1000 Detective Comics #359 CGC 7.0 COW - Asking $1200 Flash #132 CGC 9.8 OWW - Asking $8250 Journey Into Mystery #95 CGC 8.5 OW - Asking $850 Marvel Mystery Comics #76 CGC 9.2 OWW - another stunning book. - Asking $4500 Showcase #5 CGC 6.5 COW (trimmed) - Asking $350 Teen Titans #23 CGC 9.4 White - Asking $350 -------------------------------------------- These are fresh books and currently prices are as marked. Scans to follow. Again, shipping for CGC graded books is free. Amazing Spider-man #194 CGC 9.8 OWW (1st Black Cat) - Asking $1450 Giant-Size X-men #1 CGC 8.5 OWW - Asking $1300 New Gods #1 CGC 9.6 OWW - Asking $700 Nova #1 CGC 9.8 OWW - Asking $800 Star Wars #1 CGC 9.8 White - Asking $900 X-men #129 CGC 9.8 OWW - Asking $1000 -------------------------------------------- I will also be listing some very nice high grade keys in the CA / MA forum. Link to the books in the selling thread in CA / MA

Got another batch of books that I'll be posting for sale in both the the CA / MA forum and the GA / SA forum. Amazing Spider-man #194 CGC 9.8 OWW #300 CGC 9.8 White Batman: The Dark Knight Returns #1 CGC 9.8 White Giant-Size X-men #1 CGC 8.5 OWW Marvel's Greatest Comics 52 CGC 9.8 White (2006 Reprint of Fantastic Four #52) New Mutants #98 CGC 9.8 White New Gods #1 CGC 9.6 OWW Nova #1 CGC 9.8 OWW

Thanks, Mike! Ms. Marvel #1 CGC 9.8 has also sold privately.

I'm not saying that everyone knows about comic books. Conversations generally go like this: "Oh, and what do you do for a living?" I'm a vintage comic book dealer." And then the conversation morphs into various things, but many are aware of how popular they are and how 'old comics' are valuable. They may not know the details (just like they'd have no idea how to value a Picasso or even recognize one) but they do know that there is a market for them. The asset bubble is a combination of two things IMO. 1) cheap money and nowhere to park it 2) awareness of collectibles as being a place to park your money The movies have increased awareness. Investors have used that awareness to invest in it. The run up on comics related to movies happens in much the same way a stock runs up on favorable news. Oh, Apple is coming out with an amazing new phone that will help you go to the bathroom? Hungry investors pour money into the company expecting it to make them money.

My experiences come from common people in the service industry. I'm not saying that they all know that an Amazing Fantasy #15 is a hot book, but they generally understand that old comics are like old cars and that they hold value based on scarcity and popularity. I think the world is starting to generally understand that pop culture stuff is valuable. I mean, it's literally everywhere. On the news, on social media, etc.

I've never received a negative reception from telling someone I am a comic book dealer, except from one of my daughters when I switched over from my other day job. She did understand the model and worried that I wouldn't be able to pay the bills. She was young at the time and it's pretty funny now, looking back. I travel for a living and meet 1000's of new people every year. They general trend has been that they know comics are huge (again, based on the movies) and almost always follow with some story about how they either wish their mom didn't throw out their comics when they were younger, or that they own some comics now too and ask me about their value. Everyone that owns 'old' comics think they are going to be rich because of it. Old being comics from the 1990's.

His experience is from nearly a decade ago. Like I said, a lot has changed in the last 10 years.

We're not talking about relative size of the market. Of course the comic book market is relatively small compared to some global markets. We're talking about perceptions. When I tell people who know nothing about comics that I buy and sell comics for a living they are immediately aware of the large values involved in vintage books. When I tell people about the 1st Wolverine / Batman / Spider-man / Superman etc they don't know exactly which issue I am talking about but they absolutely know it's a big deal and that it takes big bucks to buy them. I would absolutely put them on par with stuff like classic cars. Comics along with other forms of American pop culture have come a long way in the digital age.

I disagree. I think comics have turned a corner over the last decade (due in no small part to the Marvel Cinematic Universe). The average Joe that I speak to is always amazed at my profession (I sell comics for a living) and then immediately goes on to talk about how much they are worth. Comics were a funny thing to people in the past. They no longer are. And that is because people realize they have value and hold their value.

Had some questions so just to clarify, the raw books are 20% off and the CGC graded books are 10% off. ASM #72 and MMC #87 have now sold. Thank you!

Now you're moving goal posts to win a discussion. My post was throwing comics into the same investment risk as beanie babies. I twas not talking about the history of stuffed toys. Disagree. I think very few people would argue parking their money into an Action #1 compared to a zillion Harbinger #1's. Certain books will 'always' have value and appeal. I put always in quotes because that obviously only holds true for as long as people value popular culture. It's no different than the way certain corporations or stocks have value based on how relative they are to the real world. I'm in no way implying that comics should be universally accepted investments. I'm just saying that they are not a flash in the pan like beanie babies were. Overpriced relative to what? You say they are overpriced but the only way to know that is to see where prices go in the future. And now you are saying exactly what I did. It all comes down to how well you choose. Nobody needs a Caravaggio or a Pollok either but many people invest in them. Again, I'm not saying that everyone should invest in comics. I'm saying there are worse things with less stability than many blue chip books. And I also want to qualify...I hate talking about books as investments. I was always a collector first, but I can't deny the fact that many people do invest in them.

solid advice on "investing" in comics Really? Comics have an 80 year track record. How long did Beanie Babies last? A couple of years. Like anything, it depends on what you choose. If you're investing in something pedestrian or manufactured, it's not going to turn out so well. But people who have gravitated towards quality pieces have not been disappointed. Investing in assets has always been a viable investment choice. Again, it all comes down to how well you choose. There is risk in almost any investment.

If anything, Heroes seems to have a very wide breadth of available material from Golden Age (keys and esoteric stuff) to the Modern Age.

All good points. But in general, you don't find that buying books at shows has become tougher over all for various reasons? The general consensus seems to be that it's; tougher to find stuff over all than it used to be. Whether it's inventory for dealers, keys for customers or just high grade anything. The exception would be lower grade filler. That stuff is common. The Metros and the Bob Storms of the world are going to have much more supply due to networking and time in the hobby but the general consensus from the average dealer is that the good stuff has been drying up for some time.

Are you sure about that? The last GPA sale shows $57,555 last September (2017) and I sold a 7.5 for more around the same time period. I don't think a Hulk #1 has been a $30K book in 7.0 in a couple of years.

Going to bump this thread with another price reduction. 10% off CGC graded books (and shipping included).

CGC allows only Golden Age books with a small amount of glue and / or color touch to be in a blue (universal) holder if the glue and / or color touch do NOT improve the grade. The glue and / or color touch are factored into the grade as defects because they are foreign material. If they improve the grade, the book is encapsulated in a Restored label and the restoration is factored into the grade. It's been like this since day one.

Perception is a big deal for investing. Not for collecting. Collectors love the books regardless of the movies.