Hudson

Exactly what 500 books do you think that Chuck would have remaining that would devastate the entire comic book collecting market if he decides to sell them? Especially after he took the last 150 items from his original Church find and auctioned them off through Heritage back in 2011. Let's just say that the Red Raven, Spirit books, Feature books, etc. had a rather underwhelming and negligible impact on the collecting marketplace. Now that he has already disposed of all of his best books, how are 500 books which are most likely devoid of any keys or anything of any significance going to devastate the collecting marketplace. I believe you may have been drinking way too much of Chuck's Mile High juice. I could be mistaken, however, I believe HHwolfman was being sarcastic.

I hear you on that, Dave. When it comes to an AC1, I would take whatever I could get my hands on as well. BTW, great new avatar you have there.

I have heard many people say they don't buy restored books and others seem to think a certain level of restoration is ok. To many, it seems that restored books may be the only way they can afford some of the "big boys" they are looking for. So, I thought I would ask the question as to what is the most restoration you would accept on a book for your personal collection. I know this is not a perfect poll as it is hard to judge which is a higher level of restoration between say "expert moderate" as opposed to "amateur slight". Maybe how professional it is matters. Also, some other things (like trimming) are sometimes a deal breaker even if simple restoration is not. This question is specifically for GA collectors as I believe they have a far greater chance of running into restored books. This quesiton is specifically for books in your own personal collection. It is not saying what kind of book you would buy if you only intended to flip it anyway. Thanks in advance for your time.

I think a handshake is a deal regardless of how much money I lose. If I put something up for sale for $X and someone agrees to pay $X, then I should honor that deal OR if I put something up in a "no reserve: auction and it sells for $X, then I should honor that as well, as I choose to use the "no reserve" auction format. What if the final hammer price was twice FMV, would I (assuming I am the seller) say, "No, I can't take that much, just give me 1/2 what you bid"? This is of course just my opinion, and I am not forcing this belief on anyone else. In your post you say that it is also ok, if the buyer is only paying a small fraction of the FMV. So at what point does it make it ok for a seller to break his word and walk? Is it ok if he finds out the buyer is only paying him !0% of FMV, 25% of FMV, 50% of FMV, or maybe 90% of FMV? What is the "small fraction"? Is it a fraction or a $ amount? If the seller is only going to lose $1 he should stick to the deal, but if he loses $100 he should walk? I guess what I am asking is what price does a person place on their word and their honor. I am in no way insinuating that you OR anyone else is not an ethical person, or that you would not honor your word. I am just asking at what point people believe that it is ok to walk (for those who do hold that belief).

This. Is Chuck sitting on 100 copies of Incredible Hulk #181 or does he have a short box full of New Mutants #98? Even if he did, that is pittance in comparison to the number of copies floating around. How deep is his Silver Age stock? Is he sitting on 10+ copies of key books like FF #1, AF #15, etc.? And even if he has depth on these books, are they in a high enough grade that it would matter if they were released on the market? It just seems unlikely that MH has gathered enough books of significant value to harm the market if he started blowing out his stock for pennies. Why does anyone believe Chuck has numerous copies of ANY of the books you mentioned? His web site does not show a single copy of IH181, AF15, or FF1, let alone multiples of any of them. I did notice a FF2 in VG for over $1,400, but no #1. I would think that if Chuck had numerous copies of say AF15, that at least one of them would be on his website. It might be a poor 0.5 copy with a cool $1,000,000 price tag, but it would still be there. I am NOT staying Chuck might not have a personal collection with some nice key books, but I don't think he has a short box full of AF15s or FF1s sitting around collecting dust. Just my opinion.

It's all scanner dependent of course, but I accidentally left a slab inside its mylite bag once and was shocked by how much it cut down on glare. Repeated the trick successfully since, and it works. Try putting a sheet of mylar or something down on the scanner bed when you scan, if you don't put your slabs in bags. Worth a shot before looking at other scanner options. Thank you. I am always amazed at how clear other people's scans are.

I tried scanning some books and they came out horrible (glare, etc). This is especially true when trying to scan slabbed books as opposed to raw. I know I saw a thread on here once about what scanners are good. I need to look for that thread at some point and see if I can wade through it. As I recall there were a number of opinions and so I might end up back where I started. Unfortunately, I am not much of a computer (or tech) guy. Heck, I didn't even know how to post a photo until Gotham Kid (Peter) was kind enough to point me in the right direction. Even my photography skills are poor, although I think the sig line photo came out ok. I have thought about changing it out, but that would require me taking more photos and who knows how those would come out. Hopefully the sig line and the few photos I post here and there are acceptable until I become more versed in scanners and such. Thank you, woowoo, for noticing my books and thinking them worthy of extra attention. I sincerely appreciate that. There is a long legal-sized scanner thread in Comics General. The bottom line, as I understand it, is that most current scanners do a very poor job with slabs -- the scans are muddy. The culprit is apparently a change in scanning technology that manufacturers implemented a few years ago. (I do have a recollection of someone posting that there are high-end scanners on the market that use a different technology and do a good job with slabs.) So, most people have bought older scanners that use the previous technology. The HP 8300 that I use can be picked up pretty cheap second hand. It does an excellent job on SA and later slabs, but does usually leave some glare on scans of GA slabs. If you use a Mac, you would also need to download VueScan, an easy to use, third-party software program. Thank you. This is good info. Not sure I will go out and buy an OLD scanner, just to scan slabs, but I appreciate knowing that it isn't just me (when my scans come out horrible). I thought maybe if there was a new scanner, I would upgrade my older one, as my wife would like one of the new wireless ones (like I purchased for my sister). Since the new ones are not going to do any better than what I have, I suppose I would just be wasting my money. Sorry, woowoo, looks like no scans for now. Is there something special you want to see?

I tried scanning some books and they came out horrible (glare, etc). This is especially true when trying to scan slabbed books as opposed to raw. I know I saw a thread on here once about what scanners are good. I need to look for that thread at some point and see if I can wade through it. As I recall there were a number of opinions and so I might end up back where I started. Unfortunately, I am not much of a computer (or tech) guy. Heck, I didn't even know how to post a photo until Gotham Kid (Peter) was kind enough to point me in the right direction. Even my photography skills are poor, although I think the sig line photo came out ok. I have thought about changing it out, but that would require me taking more photos and who knows how those would come out. Hopefully the sig line and the few photos I post here and there are acceptable until I become more versed in scanners and such. Thank you, woowoo, for noticing my books and thinking them worthy of extra attention. I sincerely appreciate that.

Not sure what grade or price point you are looking for, however, Jamie (Southern California Comics) has all three of the books on your want list.

n2wdw - Just want you to know I really like your sig line.

MCS will never let this happen. If you had to guessamate how many books do think MCS has in stock??? 3 mil 5mil...how many or is Chuck up on the market by Double his nearest competitor ? I think you cannot reasonably compare the two. MCS probably has less books than MH, however, the books they have seem (IMO) to cover more of the GA and probably more of the SA.. You need to factor in a "quality" component. If I have 11 million copies of a book nobody wants then I really cannot hurt the market. If, however, I have 11 million books that people are actively looking for, then that is another story. For me, Chuck's website contains very little that interests me. I will not call what he has "junk", as that may be what others collect and I respect that. Due to my lack of interest, however, in what he sells, I am forced to rely on other people's postings to know whether the books he has would have any significant market impact if they were all to be sold at once (at a fire sale price).

Being the OP of this thread I believe it is important to address this. I want to state publicly that I hold no bad feelings toward Chuck as either a person or Mile High as a business. Although it has been a number of years since I have purchased anything from Mile High, I will say Chuck has never personally cheated me or treated me unfairly. This thread was NOT started because I don't like Chuck, or because I don't believe he has a right to charge whatever he wants for the comics he owns. This was started because I was amazed that in today's world of easy internet access, where prices on easily accessible books can be quickly compared, that Chuck could even stay in business. When a person's price on an easy to find item is not a fraction higher than the competition, but multiples of it, I was baffled as to how Chuck could continue to sell books. Who is buying these books and why do they choose Mile High? I am NOT a big buyer of modern books or variants, so I cannot comment on that market. Perhaps that is his niche and perhaps those prices are acceptable. I really don't know. My original post compared several of Chuck's rather common low grade SA books to some competitors. In this arena it seemed like buying from Chuck would be equivalent to throwing your money into a huge bonfire. My main area of interest, however, is GA and Chuck's selection in that arena seems rather sparse for someone who own 10 or 11 million books. Let me repeat, however, for the record, I have no bad feelings or ill will toward Chuck or Mile High. As a seller, Chuck has the absolute right to charge what he wants. Thankfully, as a buyer, I have the right to take my business elsewhere. That is the free market system we live in.

Great set of books Judge. Good luck with getting the 3, 6, and 12. They are definitely out there. I remember getting my first 3. I was so excited to finally find a copy. Congrats on the awesome set you have put together thus far!!!!

1. Didn't he already sell most of that off? 2. 100 books is going to damage the market? Maybe for short term, but it you think 100 books is a lot you don't understand how many books are actually printed. I do not buy a lot of SA Marvels, so perhaps I too do not understand the market. It would seem to me, however, that if (as was suggested) 100 of a single Marvel SA book were to hit the market all at once and they were all graded say 9.6 to 9.8, there would be a short term significant price drop for that issue, and it would take a long time for prices to retrace their previous levels. If this were to happen on numerous issues all at the same time, I could see at least a short term panic in which flippers were trying to get out from under their books and that is when "fire sale" prices could be seen (at least in the short to mid term). Just my opinions, but then again, I am sure there are many who understand the market far better than I do.

Because the blue label was a 9.0 and the restored was a 9.2.

I find this interesting and I have to wonder if Chuck may be reading this thread. I decided to go back and check the prices on the books I originally looked at when I began this thread. They were as follows.... Action #244 in Fair for $123 (minus 60%) and the total cost is $49.20 Tonight that book is now listed at $30.00 Action #244 in Good for $245 (minus 60%) for $98.00 Now - $60 Action #246 in Fair for $123 (minus 60%) for $49.20 Now - $30 Action #246 in Good for $245 (minus 60%) for $98.00 Now - $60 Action #249 in VG for $441 (minus 60%) for $176.40 Now - $120 Action #250 in Good for $240 (minus 60%) for $96.00 Now - $60 I will say this is a step in the right direction.

I seem to recall hearing Chuck say he pays 1/4 X for things he sells for 3X. I am going to assume X=FMV. Not sure why anyone would sell to him for 1/4 FMV (which I would not doubt is less than 1/4 FMV) Then again, not sure why anyone would buy from him at 3 times FMV (which I tend to believe is often more than 3 times FMV).

Dave, Did Torpedo go out of business? I have not purchased from them in about 6 months. What I found strange was the two books I purchased from them (as a gift for someone) about 6 months ago are still listed for sale (by them) on eBay. http://www.ebay.com/itm/WEIRD-WESTERN-TALES-23-CGC-9-8-HIGHEST-GRADED-/122150902639?hash=item1c70c2db6f:g:5r8AAOSwI-BWOpRJ http://www.ebay.com/itm/WEIRD-WESTERN-TALES-25-CGC-9-8-ONLY-2-GRADED-AT-9-8-/122150902606?hash=item1c70c2db4e:g:WegAAOSwwbdWOpRQ

Great 41, Rick. Congrats.

Nice looking book, Jimbo. Congrats!!

I too purchased books from MH back several years ago. I thought their prices were always a little high, however, that did not bother me. I am a collector and sometimes when someone has what I want, it is just not worth waiting to see if the item will come along again, simply to save a few bucks. Perhaps it is just me, however, it seems as if Chuck went from overcharging by a little here and there (a few years ago) to now charging multiples of FMV for relatively easy books to come by. I wish you luck finding an ASM #1 in the condition and price you feel comfortable with. I know the pain of having #2 - up of something and wanting that #1. Good luck in the hunt.

Thank you, and yes, to the best of my knowledge this is the 1st appearance of Ma and Pa Kent on an Action cover. Keen eye you have there.

So how did you stumble on that one? Is that the best copy in the CGC census? Certainly looks like an interesting story too! Hepcat, Forgive me for not getting back to your questions earlier. Your first question is easy, a dealer (who I have bought more than I can remember from) emailed me when he got this book in, knowing I would be interested. Your second question is a little more difficult to answer. Yes, this is "sort of" the highest CGC graded copy. The problem is it is restored. Although, I don't typically buy restored books, I made an exception in this case (as the restoration is a minor amount of color touch and I really liked the book). With that being said, I feel it is only fair to show you the highest CGC universal, blue label, 9.0. I wanted to wait until I had a chance to pull this and photograph it, before answering your questions. Here is the highest universal (please forgive my poor photography skills)

Thanks Dark Knight. The preservation of this copy was astounding which I had to share with everyone. Nonetheless, the AF15 club deserve pictures of each interior page of Spidey's Origin and contents for others too see. This was really an awesome gesture, to photo the entire interior of such a high grade book. Thanks for sharing this. Thanks Straw-Man and Hudson. Hudson, I'm glad you enjoy it, for I can tell you love your books raw...BTW, awesome Action Collection there. Thank you for the compliment on the Actions. Yes, I do prefer my books raw, however, I understand other people's desire to slab them. I have personally only put 3 books in slabs and they were all duplicates, so as I still had a reading copy. I have, however, purchased slab books when that was what was available. Once again, awesome AF15! Simply stunning!