Here is some backstory on the books, for anyone able to stay awake:
DETECTIVE 35
The 35 was an “accidental” purchase. I was following a bunch of books in an HA auction 2-3 years ago, probably some Planet Comics or Lou Fine awesomeness, which was my main collecting focus at that time. Previously I’d acquired some of the Batman Joker issues, and had always fancied a pre-Robin Detective Comics, but figured it would never happen, so didn’t generally keep those books on my radar.
And then, the live HA auction was underway, book after book rolling out, and I see a couple of the Tecs coming up. And I see the 35 sitting at a not-insane price. I think, wow! for Tec 35 that seems darn reasonable! So the book comes up on the auction block, and I figure, well, let’s throw down one bid, just so I can say I was in the game. A few seconds later.. you know how the story ends. An unexpected load on the finances, and Mrs. Zolnerowich wasn’t pleased! Fortunately, she got over it, kind of.
DETECTIVE 29
I have to thank @Gotham Kid for his spiritual guidance on this one. I’d been able to save up some moolah and decided there was no time like the present to buy another pre-Robin Tec. I’d come across a Tec 31 with a married centerfold and trimmed pages. Tempting, sort of, though the resto/ct was not all that precise. Somehow, as luck would have it, I stumbled across a Tec 29 on MyComicShop, and after some back and forth with the kind proprietor of MCS, ended up with the book at a pretty reasonable price.
Having read through this thread from page 1, it’s clear that there’s the 29-ers and the 31-ers. For me, 29 wins the day, for its pulp-Gothic combination of bats in front of a full moon, a turbaned henchman giant disarmed of his knife, an array of beakers, flasks, potions, and condensing tubes, the skull, the book of dark arts, the menacing orb and nozzle, the monocled lunatic doctor, and of course The Batman in skinny mode with long ears and the tremendous wing span.