skybolt

I once had my moderns all laid out on bed, and my brother sat on them by mistake. I later gave him the copies that has butt imprint on them.

Beautiful Books. Keep posting.

I'm 33 years old. I purchased my first GA book 2 years ago (Action Comics #120 in FN+ condition).

I would love to see some of your books. Post away. Me too. I doubt if any of my GA collection would even receive a 6 Gerber rating.

If you are referring to the two volume Photo Journal, I bought my through Amazon.com, although I think there is an ad in the CBG that is less money. Or were you referring to a different book? Whichever one that lists the Gerber scarcity numbers.

Thanks.

Where can I purchase a copy of the latest Gerber book? I've been collecting GA books for the past 2 years, so I'm sure this book would help.

Another problem with Gerber is the condition factor. A book may be given an 8 but have multiple HG copies (due to its collectability back then), while a book given a 6 may have more copies out there but less in HG since it wasn't considered a key, and preserved properly 30 years ago.

What is your opinion on the percentage of GA books graded (especially in 6.0 and better)?

It's really hard to figure out when most GA collectors don't bother to submit their books for grading. For instance, Wonder Woman #3 has only 8 graded copies in the CGC census. I currently own the 3rd highest copy, which is only a 6.5. If everyone submitted their books to CGC, is it possible that the number of books graded would increase by 10 or 20 times, I just don't know. The census for this comic, and other GA books I own (All Winners #2 CGC 8.0, All Select #3 CGC 7.0, etc.) hasn't budged in the last 2 years.

I've been buying comic books on Ebay from the Golden Age to the Modern Age for the past 2 years. There are many good deals to be had on Ebay, but there are plenty of frauds to offset these deals. Until I became adjusted to the system I got burnt many times. My advice is to start slow by purchasing $10 to $15 books for the first 4 or 5 months before going after the higher priced ones. As a caution, do not buy any books from the seller "Cuteypie82". He would auction off vintage books such as Amazing Spider-Man #1 and X-Men #1. All these books have been previously CGC graded and are restored books. He buys them, takes them out of their CGC holders and sells them off as his 30 year old collection. People are expecting Fine to Very Fine books and receiving very good restored books. Also be careful of in_the_attic_toys, he lists vintage books on Ebay, which he does not own. I filed a fraud complaint, but never received my books or my $700 back. There are plenty of others like this on Ebay, so watch out. As other people have mentioned, be very careful of buying $500 worth of comic books from someone that has a feedback rating of less than 10. After a couple of bad dealings, the only vintage comic books I pruchase have to be CGC graded and from reputable sellers. Buyers always make the mistake of thinking that it's better to buy a book advertised as VF+ than to pay slightly extra for a CGC graded VF+. We trick ourselves into believing that we might receive a book that has a potential for NM (9.4) grading (from the scans and description). From past experience, and from sending books I purchased on Ebay to be CGC graded, I've always received a lower score than what was advertised. Many times, the grade was much lower. Sometimes sellers will tell you that the book is a VF+, no better than VF/NM, but not less than a VF. This sentence usually means that the book you're purchasing will receive a FN/VF grading by CGC. Also, don't ever fall for seller's tricks, where they will tell you that they're out of money and they need to pay their bills, therefore, they're willing to sell their vintage books at half price. I've lost a lot of money thinking that I could outsmart the seller. My other advice is that other than vintage 1940' and 1950's Superman, Batman, Wonder Woman, etc. books, the other books are aplenty on Ebay. Don't ever get into bidding battles with another determined Ebayer. I've done this in the past where me and this other person are back and forth until I wind up paying $600 for a Spider-Man issue, and then next week that same graded issue will sell for half that price. Make sure to use the Overstreet Price guide for reference, and don't ever pay anything higher than what's listed at VF/NM and less. There are a lot of inflated books out there such as Amazing Spider-man #129 (1st Punisher). These books are selling for 3 times price guide because of the Punisher film. Trust me after the film is done, they won't be able to get their money back. That's why I don't buy any Hulk or Daredevil comic books. The prices for these books have already reached their peak because of the movies' success. Also, avoid buying non key issues that are CGC graded at 9.8. For instance, I've noticed that Ultimate Spider-Man #1 is selling at over $500 for a 9.8 grading. Once people owning this book realize this, they will all send their #1 books to be CGC graded and receive the same grade. At that time there will be thousands of 9.8 CGC'd for this book, therefore, driving the price down in the future. I guarantee that 3 years from now a 9.8 graded Ultimate Spider-man #1 will not sell for more than $100. These days I'm mostly buying 40's and 50's CGC'd Batman and Superman books because a lot of people are not aware that several movies are in the works for these characters. These books are much scarcer than the 60's marvel books. Same thing goes for Iron Man, Sub Mariner and Captain America, as far as a movie being in the works. These books are currently selling at 3/4 of guide prices. At the same time, you can't go wrong with purchasing high grade vintage Amazing Spider-Man, X-Men and Fantastic Four comics. These books will always be popular. As a personal preference, I would much rather own X-Men #101 - 110 CGC graded at 9.4 than to spend $2,000 on one issue of X-Men #101. Nothing personal against CGC, but they would even tell you that the difference between a 9.8 and 9.4 is very minor. For the life of me, I just can't see people buying a 9.9 graded book for 20 times the guide value 10 years from now. Let's just say for instance that your CGC holder cracks and your book is exposed to some harmful elements, that might drop it to a 9.6. If this happens, then the value would drop ten fold. However, if you spend $3000 on a rare Golden Age 8.0 CGC graded book, then its grade and value would not drop significantly over a long period of time. I guess what I'm saying is that 9.8 and 9.9 books are good short term investments, but no one knows what the long term effects will be (10 to 20 years from now).