VintageComics

I want to make sure I'm not being misunderstood here because I was the one that initiated the conversation about books that upgrade.
I didn't say and I don't believe that every AF #15 (or any other book) that goes for a record price is upgradeable.
But I do believe that at least 2 (and likely 3) of the 3 record price books in the CC auction were upgradeable (I think it's worth noting that there were several other books that did not sell for record prices).
And I have stated from the beginning that I do believe that a sudden price surge like this can cause a new rise in prices if the market chooses to accept the new prices as a new range for FMV.
As far as 'dumb buyers', if buyers aren't privy to this discussion then they're not as informed as those that are privy to this discussion. That's not 'dumb' that's just a lack of knowledge.
 

I've been here for 13 years.
Everyone knows who I am and many have met me in person. I'm an open book.
GAtor and I are not only personal friends, we partner up on deals and we also happen to share the same opinion on AF #15 pricing.
You have no idea what you're talking about.

Bob, there's no point talking logic with someone irrational.
Appreciate the kind words. I still remember how white that cover was.

I've been here for 13 years.
Everyone knows who I am and many have met me in person. I'm an open book.
GAtor and I are not only personal friends, we partner up on deals and we also happen to share the same opinion on AF #15 pricing.
You have no idea what you're talking about.

You are the most petulant board member I've seen in years.
You've sent me 2 apologies via PM and I haven't accepted either because I know they're not sincere.
You're like a 12 year old on the side lines cheering on anyone that agrees with you and jumping on anyone who doesn't. That's why most people don't respond to you anymore.

Right. I think the books that are selling at strong prices now like in the Clink auction (after the record price CC auction) are books that buyers are starting to feel pressured to buy because they don't want to take a chance at a new price increase.
And they are probably people who don't read this thread.
The reason Chicago copies aren't selling is because the panic hasn't reached the street crowd. An auction house casts a much wider publicity net for buyers than a single comic con.
There was a very nice CGC 6.5 being shopped privately around in Chicago at what would be below current record prices as per CC auction that dealers didn't buy.  That should tell you something.

Scanners convert a picture into a code of 1s and 0s.
Then it converts it back to a picture from 1s and 0s.
Think of converting a paragraph from English to another language and then having a 2nd translator convert the paragraph back to English  no real references from the 1st source material.
You'd have differences between the 1st English paragraph and the 2nd. You'll never end up with exactly the same paragraph.
Touching up the picture with photoshop scrambles the image even more.
the best you can do is try to get the image as close to the original as possible but it will never be exactly like holding the book in hand.

So why not just limit sigs?
If you want more sigs you get back into line. Solution seems pretty simple.
 

I'm not a sig series fan either but that doesn't mean that someone who collects sig series isn't a real fan.
 

There's no way they should be telling people in line how to have their books signed IMO.
It's a debate about economics, not people and they should treat it as such.

It's really meaningless.
And it's visually the most prominent thing in the entire quote box area.
This is like an attempt at Facebook junior, which really isn't a good thing.
The Like button notifies your Facebook friends of a post. In this format does it do anything?
I can see CGC keeping it if they are looking to monetize it somehow. Not sure how they'd do that at this point though.

So why not just limit sigs?
If you want more sigs you get back into line. Solution seems pretty simple.
 

Is it possible that the Marvel rep that pulled the stunt in the article in fact wasn't a Marvel rep?
I wouldn't put it beneath someone to play that sort of prank.

There's no way they should be telling people in line how to have their books signed IMO.
It's a debate about economics, not people and they should treat it as such.

There's no way they should be telling people in line how to have their books signed IMO.
It's a debate about economics, not people and they should treat it as such.

Incredible Hulk #181 CGC 9.2 has now SOLD!
Back cover for Rawhide Kid #26 CGC 9.4 now added as per request.
 

As always, GPA is only a guide and only as good as how you interpret the data (and as good as the data that is supplied)
For example, if people are hitting BINs on eBay to spike GPA data but not paying for books that isn't real sales data.
They haven't submitted their numbers for that auction yet, I'm assuming.
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@Jaydogrules, sorry but anybody who knows the market knows that the $450K sale in 9.4 was not an anomaly or a surprise that would cause a surge in price.
The 9.4 sale @ $450K may have been a record at the time but it was expected by anybody who had reasonable market expectations.  There was already a precedent of high grade AF #15 sales both privately and publicly.  In fact, Metropolis had a WTB paying that much for AF #15 well before the Heritage auction topped out at $450K. So how could it be a surprise that sent the markets surging?
In fact, if you read this thread there was some disappointment that it 'only' ended at $450K. 
Nor was the 8.5 sale @ $150K a big surprise. AF #15 was already a $125K book in 8.5 more than 4 years ago. I know because I tried to buy one at that time.
And there was a Voldemart CBCS 9.0 sale @ $240K
So the expectation of a 9.2 hitting $350K was already established.
I question the validity of the $392K sale because it was submitted by Pedigree and Doug has a habit of bolstering sale value with heightened trade value. But yes, it is on GPA so the general public will accept it as such.
And I do agree that Barton's CGC 9.2 $450 sale was a strong number but would also argue that it was the real anomaly as a 9.4 was available for the same price a few months earlier.
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In comparison, the Hulk #1 9.2 sale @ $330 was unexpected as there was no precedent to establish it. There was only extreme rarity in grade to drive the price.
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But even in light of those number and last years mid year surge (AF #15 seems to surge every year) you are still moving the goal posts.
This new surge is entirely based on the record prices of 3 copies that set record numbers at the CC auction.  And the main point of my argument is that
all 3 copies were exceptional for the grade - the unexceptional copies sold for regular numbers in the same auction those copies may have all been improvable (I know the 4.5 looked to be and was in an old label holder, I'm certain the 9.0 was as I studied it in hand and I'm fairly certain the 5.0 copy will be as well) the general public doesn't take the fact that these 3 copies were exceptional for the grade into account - they only see grades and prices, as witnessed by the eBay sellers bumping their prices and referencing these auctions specifically. And the last point is the most important one.
Asking prices shifted, WTB requests increased (and the amount of PMs I received looking for AF #15 were at an all time high) - ALL AFTER THE CC AUCTIONS ENDED.
How anyone can argue these points is beyond me. I won't bother arguing any further. I've made my points and would bet the house that I'm right.

Rawhide Kid #26 CGC 9.4 OWW - bought this book a few years ago because I fell in love with the cover. Time to let it go. Single highest graded copy with a 9.0 trailing it that just sold last year for $1500. To add some perspective, this tough book precedes AF #15, Hulk #1 and JIM #83 by several months and is preceded by TTA #27 by one month (1/1962).
Asking $2500

It shows a lack of actual conviction and leadership from those that are highest up.
They need a Kevin Feige type editor who can tie it all together.
I especially agree on the bolded parts. They need to crossover better between movies and comics as one will be a gateway to another.
And Wolverine is dead and Punisher is black? 
They deserve what they are getting, and I'm a lifelong Marvel fan.

I agree, it's a lot of risk but this is how those that play the game play it.
If the 9.0 that sold for almost $400K upgrades to 9.2 and a 9.2 just sold for $450K, that's still a $50K profit, right?

They have an interesting strategy.
Most of the record setting copies last month had improvable defects and potentially improvable grades and those books led the way. Remember, I looked at the 9.0 and thought it had a shot at 9.2 after improvement, which is why I believe it sold for 9.1 price.
So those books set record highs and then people who don't think about or know about improvement will panic to get a copy, driving up prices on non-improvable copies.
Again in this auction, the 7.5 looks terrific for the grade (although I don't see it going to 8.0) but it's high grade enough to draw serious bidding fire (I always stated that I believe 'high grade' starts in the VF range and this book falls squarely in the VF range) and the 6.5 does indeed look like it has improvable defects - the back cover doesn't look pressed, the cover looks dirty, etc AND it has a very nice looking front cover.
So I think you can expect another round of very strong auction prices based on the strategy.
What I don't understand is why books on the market haven't sold at these prices before those record sales last month. And THAT is the real question .

A discussion about posting pictures of comics online. This discussion isn't aimed at anyone in particular.
It's aimed at the proliferation of social media and the hobby through that media.
I've noticed that the quality of pictures being posted of comics seems to be at a relative all time low. For a visual medium where eye appeal is everything, it's ironic that many pics that people post of their books are not very attractive.
This could be because showing ownership of the book is more important than showing the actual book (which in and of itself is a phenomenon of social media - everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame)
Or it could simply be that people don't know how to post nice pics of their books.
So I just thought it was worth bringing up, discussing and possibly improving.
A few things I've observed.
Lots of body parts in pictures: fingers and thumbs, toes ( @seanfingh ) and boobs ( not @seanfingh    ). Now some may not object to the boobs (i can post mine if you want to see them) but really, there is no comparison to laying a book on a nice clean surface (preferably a solid color and taking a picture straight on of the front and rear covers OR buying one of those picture holders that hold the book up on an angle and you can get a straight on shot. You want maximum light brightness so that you can get maximum exposure and color penetration. Nothing makes a picture look more grainy than low lighting. The best source of light is the sun. Taking a picture next to a bright window really makes your book pop. Glare is going to be an issue with photography of slabbed books. Scanners are WAY better for slabbed books. See the 'Legal Size Scanner Thread' for more info on good and bad scanner for comics. If you really don't have a choice and are going to use a camera you can move the book to get the least amount of glare. In cases like this (like when I am at a show and want to take a picture of something but can't eliminate glare completely, I will take a shot with glare on one side of the holder and the flip the holder 180 degrees and take a shot with glare on the other side of the holder. It's better than nothing. If you're selling expensive books, angles and small resolution pictures really don't show the book well and if it's higher grade books buyers will be deterred from a lack of their being able to see the product. If you can't get a good straight on shot then along with the small and angled shots, you can additionally take multiple pictures of the book to convey how it looks. When I was using only a camera, I used to take a 1/4 shot of each quadrant of the front cover and rear cover, so 8 quadrant shots PLUS the two whole shots of the FC and BC making it 10 shots in total. It is more work but if you really want buyers to be interested you're going to have to do the work. Anyhow, that's all I currently got. Anybody else?

A discussion about posting pictures of comics online. This discussion isn't aimed at anyone in particular.
It's aimed at the proliferation of social media and the hobby through that media.
I've noticed that the quality of pictures being posted of comics seems to be at a relative all time low. For a visual medium where eye appeal is everything, it's ironic that many pics that people post of their books are not very attractive.
This could be because showing ownership of the book is more important than showing the actual book (which in and of itself is a phenomenon of social media - everyone gets their 15 minutes of fame)
Or it could simply be that people don't know how to post nice pics of their books.
So I just thought it was worth bringing up, discussing and possibly improving.
A few things I've observed.
Lots of body parts in pictures: fingers and thumbs, toes ( @seanfingh ) and boobs ( not @seanfingh    ). Now some may not object to the boobs (i can post mine if you want to see them) but really, there is no comparison to laying a book on a nice clean surface (preferably a solid color and taking a picture straight on of the front and rear covers OR buying one of those picture holders that hold the book up on an angle and you can get a straight on shot. You want maximum light brightness so that you can get maximum exposure and color penetration. Nothing makes a picture look more grainy than low lighting. The best source of light is the sun. Taking a picture next to a bright window really makes your book pop. Glare is going to be an issue with photography of slabbed books. Scanners are WAY better for slabbed books. See the 'Legal Size Scanner Thread' for more info on good and bad scanner for comics. If you really don't have a choice and are going to use a camera you can move the book to get the least amount of glare. In cases like this (like when I am at a show and want to take a picture of something but can't eliminate glare completely, I will take a shot with glare on one side of the holder and the flip the holder 180 degrees and take a shot with glare on the other side of the holder. It's better than nothing. If you're selling expensive books, angles and small resolution pictures really don't show the book well and if it's higher grade books buyers will be deterred from a lack of their being able to see the product. If you can't get a good straight on shot then along with the small and angled shots, you can additionally take multiple pictures of the book to convey how it looks. When I was using only a camera, I used to take a 1/4 shot of each quadrant of the front cover and rear cover, so 8 quadrant shots PLUS the two whole shots of the FC and BC making it 10 shots in total. It is more work but if you really want buyers to be interested you're going to have to do the work. Anyhow, that's all I currently got. Anybody else?

I Keith Richards'd the hell out of 'em.

He's the owner of highgradecomics.com
Very reputable international dealer that doesn't charge more than 10% to sell books.