FrankG

I’ve had my slabs stored in a cedar chest now for about ten years with no problems so far.  After reading this post a while back I arranged them spine side down for probably the past 5 years with no issues.  I try to flip them in direction every few months but still keep the spine down.  I know the OP talks about the negative affects of wood, but how does cedar stack up with the other woods ? One benefit is they are always in a dark place and humidity is pretty constant in the room where the chest is.  Second question, does anyone recommend mylar or some other covering for the slabs besides the original poly bags CGC sends ?   Thanks in advance for any help on this topic. 

18 hours ago, Point Five said:

8th Avenue, maybe around West 54th or so? I think I stopped in as a kid and heaps of books were piled all over the place? No memory other than that though.

 

Yes, that was the place.  I now remember the piles, pretty disorganized. The heavy hitters were hanging on the walls by clips. He was quite the character, 

So, I mention this shop only because of some interesting memories I have from buying here in the 1970’s as a young kid.  His shop was somewhere in the 50th street range on 8th Avenue in Manhattan. It was a unique place in that Johnnie did not care if you bought anything from him, but he was very happy to tell you stories whenever you did business with him.  After a while, I grew to respect him.  He was a bit of a hot head though and I was thrown out of his shop a few times unexpectedly when he was in a bad mood and I mentioned the wrong artist or character to him.  He hung most of his stuff up in the wall with little clips that indented the top of both the front and back cover of his books.  I still have some books that I can see Johnnies indentations on.  Particularly some very early ASMs I still cherish.  However, he was a very fair dealer and he usually provided some great bargains to his customers.  I’m sure Johnnie is long gone by now, but I am curious if any other New Yorkers may have met and dealt with him. He was an intimidating person and very knowledgeable of the industry at the time.  I am showing my age here, and I mean no disrespect to him, but I am curious if anyone else recalls this establishment. 

On 7/9/2021 at 11:09 AM, Robot Man said:

Tell everyone you know you collect comics. Don’t be afraid of what people think. Be that “comic guy” 

I had that reputation at my old job. Got a nice Hot Wheels Collection, a few House cleanouts and found this box at my desk when I came back from lunch one day. 

Looks like you hit it right on this one !

3 hours ago, Ken Aldred said:

Unfortunately, the current prices for back issue comics have made me very cynical about the motivation for threads like this one, and then to  make a default assumption that it’s most likely about how to maximise flipping opportunities in an overheated market rather than the pining of a fellow, enthusiastic comics fan for the passing of simpler and cheaper times.

I could, of course, be wrong.

Ken, I’m not a bargain hunter or a flipper to get rich, comics are a hobby for me not a career.  I have many memories of buying a collection.at a persons asking price(not low balling), keeping what was in my interests and moving the rest.  Unfortunately I don’t have space for everything I bought in the past.  The thrill for me was in the discovery, not any profit.  Let’s just not be skeptical right off the bat in this topic.  It was meant lighthearted and simply to share ideas.  I meant no I’ll intent. 

I have been collecting for many years in the New York area and could always discover places for finding good buys.  Years ago it was flea markets, drug stores selling back issues, and local garage sales advertised in newspapers.   Later in life it was mostly Craigslist and Ebay.  However, in today’s times it doesn’t seem possible to scoop a great deal anymore.  People selling comics on their own tend to overvalue them.  Is there a new approach that works to find hidden gems and sellers that under value their items ? 

Thanks for the feedback and welcome.  Long time follower here, but somehow my sign in got reset, so starting over.

Since this has some value, I’ll get it cleaned, pressed and graded and post results.  Probably won’t be quick based on current TAT’s. 

- A somewhat rough copy.  There are 2 extra staples in the middle and bottom spine, visible in the scans..not sure how this affects grade.  I'm thinking removing them may just make things worse. 
Any and all advice welcome.