SeniorSurfer

Uh  oh...

On 4/21/2022 at 6:59 AM, Ryan. said:

On 4/20/2022 at 2:02 PM, mlovest said:

Yes, I've been frustrated by that as well.  I always enjoyed pretty MJ and Gwen, but today things are getting crazy.  I'll take the 60's thru 80's any day!  Just me...

It would have brought a higher price if they had sold the complete set with Ditko and Kirby.

Never seen that Vic Flint!  He sounds like one of the character names the MST3K guys came up with for that "actor" when they riffed "Space Mutiny" (Buff DrinkLots...Roll FizzleBeef... Biff McLargeHuge...Thick McRunFast...Punch RockGroin...Splint ChestHair)

I don't see it happening, at least not anytime soon unless some anomaly occurs like:  A character being selected for a major motion picture or a warehouse with 3/4 of an available book going up in smoke (reminds me of Dangerfield after he encourages the audience to "bust up the joint" then tempers it by saying "all right... all right... wait 'till next week after the fire").  Otherwise it seems unlikely and younger buyers are making the classic mistake of buying manufactured "limited edition" collectibles (see Beanies, Precious Moments, Franklin Mint anything, etc.) as opposed to ones that became collectible due to their scarcity.

A look at Reddit, eBay, IG, Facebook and any other individual selling platforms shows beacoup moderns for sale at any price with captions like "thinning out my collection" or "trying to concentrate on just..." or even "spring cleaning."  A look at most dealers will show little interest in buying books that don't have a ".25 or less cover price" and certainly not trading even truckloads of modern "variants" or "keys" or "grails" for GA and SA.

As we've heard ever since we started this collecting hobby:  Buy what you like to read and don't think so much of future riches as you're likely to be disappointed.

On 3/22/2022 at 4:12 AM, Ken Aldred said:

Regardless of venue, the asking prices in general have turned ridiculous and unaffordable for most people, for anything with a hint of key desirability or vintage.  It’s painful to look at offers anywhere; eBay, elsewhere online, or here, compared to the cheaper, happier, more carefree days of yore.

It is a shocking and scary situation, as indicated by the OP’s thread title, and I personally prefer to distance myself and not stare into the abyss.

On 3/22/2022 at 5:49 AM, Sweet Lou 14 said:

These past few months have gotten to the point that even I (who admittedly have a high tolerance for pain) have been discouraged or even flat out pissed off not only by the asking prices, but even more so by the prices some of these books are getting at auction.  I'm talking about junk run fillers (in high grade, but still junk) going for multiples of anything reasonable.

This just can't go on forever, it makes no sense.

Add to that buying fees or eBay taxes and the situation is really untenable.  There's no getting around auction house fees (for those that have them) but I was scalded by that eBay tax they're collecting now from pretty much every state.  

It was talked about on another thread here, and I read it too, but came the moment to buy something and, as it had never affected me up to that moment, I forgot.      There were a few books someone was selling, I bundled them, made a reasonable offer, and the seller was nice enough to accept.  When I got the eBay invoice, pretty much everything I had negotiated off was wiped out by a 7% tax added (on a 5-figure deal).  I was tempted to tell the seller and just cancel, but a deal's a deal and it wasn't his fault so I just paid up and learned a lesson.

It was a slow month for interesting titles or covers on my birthday.  MCS shows a smattering of Funny Animal, Archie, DC, Romance, Dells and some horror - none of which I collect or would have bought (if I had pockets in my diapers).  What I did notice was an incredible amount of men's "adventure" magazines which had some lurid covers, none more so than this one that caught my eye.  Get rid of most of the cover writing, change the title to a "Blue Beetle" or "Crimes By Women" and you've got a Pre-Code specimen that would have made for a chapter if Wertham would have written a follow-up book.

On 3/2/2022 at 5:58 PM, gadzukes said:

I'm trying to wrap my head around seeing 100 ten year olds running around the Zoo with their .22s and Bows and arrows.

Imagine the chaos.

Yeah, that's what I thought about too, especially seeing that last kid going off panel encouraging others to sell the stuff.  The end result implies cities full of kids running around with guns, bows and arrows, but of course the reality would have been this company using kids to push gobs of their salve on unsuspecting relatives and neighbors.  You'd probably have to sell gallons to even get a sniff of a bowstring.

Incidentally, a quick Google search shows this stuff has been around since 1860, is still being made and is described as a "white petrolatum salve" to prevent and temporarily protect chapped, chafed, burned or irritated skin anywhere on your body.  (Insert jokes here).

And now that I've done a Google search, I must prepare for the inevitable barrage of advertisements on body salve that I'll be receiving.  Just another bullet to take for the CGC Boards.

Miracleman breaking Kid Miracleman's neck when he reverts to human form to escape the pain of a rock and a girder being materialized into his head and chest by Aza Chorn (second place bonus to Chorn for being pushed too far and not pointlessly throwing things but rather "embedding" them).

   Bumping this again to see if in the interim anyone has had dealings with "The Shadow" and if there is another available means to communicate (website, email, semaphore, etc.).

On 2/18/2022 at 9:27 AM, Bookery said:

I admire all the time and effort justafan has put into this (both for the detailed and informative post and the actual efforts in learning the pressing).  And if you have the time and enjoy doing it as a personal hobby, that's great.  But as a dealer juggling about 100 different jobs, I read this (and yes, it was fascinating and I read every word), and the amount of work (and work-space) involved just seems overwhelming.  All I can say is that, if I were a professional presser reading this, I'd smile and think that my job was pretty secure going forward, because there is no way most people are going to be able to do all of this (properly, anyway).  

On 2/10/2022 at 12:24 PM, PopKulture said:

I've found postal employees to be like lawyers and accountants, in that you get as many varying answers as opinions you seek.  

^This.  Also, if you just can't get a box any other way, don't buy it at the PO - try Home Depot.  Next, if you bought it at the PO and had to put it together there, you probably had to use their tape which is never generic, rather it is emblazoned "USPS First Class" or "Priority" or some such, at which point they've got you paying.  Now as far as soaking you for flat rate... that's just laziness on their part.  You are correct that zip code zone, box size and weight determine actual costs.  If you have time in the future, postage can be bought via PayPal where they ask all of those questions and you can wind up adjusting accordingly (ie. smaller box, lighter packing material, etc.) as well as occasionally saving a little.

When I was younger I was always looking for books without missing pieces, chipping, tanning/shading or writing.  PQ is more of a factor now only because I wasn't too aware of it at the time, though opening up a few books bought from shows and seeing brown/yellow pages made it an issue before CGC.  I was looking for stuff like this because I'd been buying since the early 60s, before any special bags or boards were available, and since I kept my books in the best condition possible I expected the same from an external book that was going into the PC.  Since now I'm only trying to finish the big SA key first appearances from when I was a kid, with an eye for a random GA book every so often (good thing neither are very expensive now ) and I'm having to pay big bucks for these books, I'm definitely the same, if not even moreso.

Here's a page from Fandom Marketplace #3.  That Buddy Saunders... I wonder if he ever made it big? 

I remember Rogofsky and Robert Bell but don't have their catalogs still left around.  I do remember (and have written before) ordering several times from Bell, having to write the top "want" on the front of his lined order form and the "second choices" on the back.  I couldn't put enough together at one time to get the FF #1 I really wanted (it went from $24.00 to $35.00 by the time I stopped ordering) so I kept trying for an Avengers #1 ($15.00) and a DD #1 ($12.00), both of which I eventually got after a slew of second choices were shipped.  No checking account as a kid so each time I would be mailing him $12 or $15 in cash for my lottery try at those elusive first issues and never had a problem.

I do have some invoices from almost 30 years ago (must have had some disposable income) that I would be happy to time-machine my way to getting even now.  Still have those books (the addresses are old so nobody get excited about rolling me on the way home) and when CGC came into existence I remember the GA Caps graded 7.0/7.5, #100 was 9.0 and SS #1 (which was the sharpest copy I had ever seen) racked up a paltry 8.0.  Still though, if I ever get one of those 1099s, I'll have some whopping (Hah!) discounts that would offset when I sell.

That Weird Mysteries #4 - Outer Limits episode "The Zanti Misfits" referenced?