• When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.

comicginger1789

Member
 View Profile  See their activity

  • Posts

    5,793

  • Joined

  • Last visited

 Content Type 

Journal Entries posted by comicginger1789

  1. comicginger1789
    Alright, so for those who need a recap...I started with a CGC 9.6 Spawn #1 Newsstand, a CGC 9.6 Hulk #340 and $500 cash. The goal? Use the cash and books to trade/buy and sell my way to better things. The rules? Only books acquired along the way can be included in the journey. If I acquire a book I have doubles of, I can enter the duplicate (even if it is a book I acquired long ago) as part of the challenge. Otherwise, I cannot just add books from my "to sell" pile at home to this challenge.
    To date, I have acquired:
    TMNT #4 first print (7.5-8.5 range)
    Hulk #340 Newsstand (7.0-7.5 range)
    Batman #251 CGC 6.0 (upgrade on my VG raw)
    Nova #1 FN/VF range 
    Tomb Of Dracula #13 VG range
    Marvel Spotlight #12 VF upgrade (upgrade on my FN/VF raw)
    Elvira’s House of Mystery #1 in FN+ range
    ASM #23 CGC 7.0
    I also still had $74 in cash PLUS the following books to trade/sell:
    - Wolverine #8 in 9.0-9.2 range, raw
    - PPTSS #101 in 9.0-9.2 range raw
    - Hulk #449 in 9.0 range raw
    - around a dozen other random issues including some Wolverine books, DC Secret Origins #1 and X-Force 11
     
    So what happened since my last update?!?! Here we go!
    Sold- I sold the Hulk 449 and the Wolverine 8 for $200. My cash pile is now at $274
    Bought- I bought a raw ASM #361 for $200. It was advertised as a 9.0-9.2 BUT had a stain. The seller refunded me $50. So I have ASM #361 and $124 in cash. I already own a CGC 9.4 copy of this book (albeit direct) so this was purchased with the intent of trading/selling for more value down the road. 
    A Loss- So the PPTSS #101 and X-Force 11 I bought never arrived. I bought this on Facebook marketplace and appear to have been scammed! Argghhhh. Thankfully only a small loss but it hurts my challenge money. A lesson learned. This means though my cash pile drops $47 to a total of $77
    Bought- A low grade Thor #166 for $20. About a 3.5. Cash pile now at $57
    Bought- A low grade copy of Dell's The Creature #1 for $18. Cash pile now at $39
    Trade- I traded the ASM #361 raw copy for issues 1-70 of Hellblazer, a series I have always wanted to have and read. I already own issues 1 & 2 so I kept the nicer of each copy and the others are now part of the challenge. The rest of the issues are going in the PC. Oh and $50 cash on top of the deal. So after factoring in the money to ship ($22), my cash pile is now at $67
    Sold- I sold the Thor #166 for $40. Cash pile is now at $107
    Bought- Marvel Super Mag Special on eBay for $50 all in. This was a sneaky find. A seller had a bunch of magazines listed and was one of those listings where you scroll through a drop down to see what issues were available. Well this was and was listed in "very good condition" however the picture looked amazing. I took a chance and well it arrived and is easily a VF-VF+ copy...maybe better. Very happy to have and right now, I am holding onto it but it MIGHT make its way into a trade or sale down the road. Either way, cash pile is now at $57.
    Sold- Sold Marvel Comics Presents #1 for $15. Cash pile is at $72.
    Sold- Hellblazer 1 & 2 for $40. Cash pile is now at $112.
    Bought- A local shop contacted me and said they had some comics. Kind of an odd place that just opened locally, selling all sorts of weird occult type stuff but also random collectibles? Anyway they had a bin of comics and I grabbed 11, including a Spawn #1 and a Ghost Rider #28 (both books I had) for $45. From these 11, I kept Marvel Age 90 (just a nice McFarlane Spidey cover I don't have), Iron Man 281 (cameo of War Machine plus was a newsstand and sharp looking copy) and Death: The High Cost of Living #1 (fits with my desire to own more Sandman related stuff). This all brings my cash pile down to $67.
    Sold- I sold the 8 comics from the above purchase for $70. Cash pile now at $137.
    Bought- A CGC 9.8 copy of the Madame Xanadu #1 one shot with the Brian Bolland cover for $60. I figure it is easily worth that and will attempt to trade or sell. I have a goal in mind right now and we shall see if I can get there! Cash pile down to $77.
     
    So where does this leave me? Well to the PC I have added:
     
    Hellblazer 1-70 raw
    Marvel Super Mag Special 16 (first Boba) VF raw
    Marvel Age 90 in VF/NM raw
    Iron Man 281 in NM- raw
    Death: High Cost Of Living 1 in NM raw
     
    And still remaining in the trade/sell pile, I have:
    -low grade copy of Dell's The Creature
    -CGC 9.8 Madame Xanadu 1
    - $77 cash
     
    As I mentioned, I have a goal in mind here or something I am chasing. We shall see what the next update brings! 
     
  2. comicginger1789
    Alright, so I mentioned I would try to do monthly updates on my trading challenge...to see how far I could get starting with Hulk #340 CGC 9.6, Spawn #1 Newsstand CGC 9.6 and $500 cash. I want to see, through buying and selling and trading, how far that can get me.
    Well, here is the first update! So far, as result of the challenge, the following books have been added to the personal collection:
    1. TMNT #4 First print raw, around a 7.5 with potential to press and improve
    2. Hulk #340 Newsstand raw, around a 7.5-8.0 grade
    3. Batman #251 CGC 6.0
    4. Nova #1 raw, around a 6.5-7.0
    5. Tomb Of Dracula #13 raw in the VG range, 4.0-4.5
    5. Marvel Spotlight #12 raw, VF copy, which was an upgrade on my Fine copy
    6. Elvira's House of Mystery #1 raw in 7.0 range
    7. Amazing Spider-Man #23 CGC 7.0
    I also still have $74 in cash PLUS the following books to trade/sell
    - Wolverine #8 in 9.0-9.2 range, raw
    - PPTSS #101 in 9.0-9.2 range raw
    - Hulk #449 in 9.0 range raw
    - around a dozen other random issues including some Wolverine books, DC Secret Origins #1 and X-Force 11
    All in all, I feel like value wise I have about $250-300 still in books that could be traded or sold for cash to continue buying. I will update with a photo as I am awaiting the arrival of the ASM 23!
     
    Does it seem impressive? Have I done well or poor? Does the road travelled to get here matter (aka, what did I buy and sell and trade to get to this point?). I will divulge that info soon!
     
     
  3. comicginger1789
    The Premise
    So this is an idea I have seen done but I decided to tackle it in my own way. Basically, what I am going to do is see how far I can get by taking two books and a set amount of cash and seeing how far I can go with it through trades and purchases. To start, a couple rules:
    1. I will have $500 in cash to spend. I feel like this is a modest budget that a collector would have and I want to see how long I can stretch it. The goal is a year. This money can be spent on other books to add to this 'trade tree" if you will. This money can be used on grading any books acquired as part of this challenge. Any money spent shipping out books in a trade will come from this money, herein referred to as the "pot". Any sales made from books acquired during this venture can be added to the pot. 
    2. Only books acquired through trade or purchased with this money can be part of the challenge with the exception of rule 3.
    3. If I acquire a book that I already have, I can enter the duplicate as part of the trade challenge as I do not keep doubles of books. For example, if I buy a better copy of Book A and I have a copy of Book A, I can enter the undercopy (or higher copy if I want) as part of the trade tree. If I do this, I have to factor in what I originally acquired my copy for. Example: Two years ago I bought a book for $20. I acquired the same book in a trade during this challenge and keep this one as it is nicer. My book can enter the trade tree but it costs me $20 from the pot.
    4. At no point can I spend more than the $500. If I get to a point where I have zero books to trade or money in the pot, the trade tree is over.
    Along the way, I will track all trades and purchases and sales, that way we can see what I did have and part with in order to get from my starting point to my end point.
    The Books
    The books I am starting with are a copy of Spawn #1 Newsstand and a copy of Hulk #340 direct edition. The Spawn issue was acquired in a lot several years ago for $3. The Hulk issue is free, as it came in a collection that I made money on and this was a book I kept. I invested $45 (All values in Canadian, sorry) per book to get them graded. Both came back at 9.6 with white pages.


     
    So if we include the cost spent on these books, plus grading fees, we are down to $407 left in the pot. I am estimating the value of the two books at the time of this at around $1000CAD ($600 for the Hulk, $400 for the Spawn). Add the cash and I am beginning with $1500 in value. Obviously, by the end I hope to have grown that amount both in terms of the comics added and maybe even through some sales. 
    The End Goal
    I do not have a specific issue I am targeting. Maybe eventually I will do something like this with an end goal book in mind. No, the goal here is to trade and buy and sell my way to even better than what I started with. I will do monthly updates and the first update will be sometime at the end of the month. I officially began tracking this endeavour back on June 21st and I can already say a LOT has happened. This may not be the case each month...we shall see. I hope this journey is a fun one and can show people that if you work at it, you can work your way to better books and maybe even that book you never thought you would own! Granted, what makes this easier is that I don't have a huge attachment to either book (I have a direct Spawn #1 I am fine with raw and the Hulk book well...let's just say I have a plan in mind!).
     
  4. comicginger1789
    Well, back in February, I sent some of my books of to be graded for the first time. A great thanks to @thirdgreenham for assisting in this!
    Anyways, I thought I would share and talk about the results and what I learned. So let's get started with...
    X-Men #101 CGC 8.0


     
    So originally, I had graded this as a 6.5-7.0 unpressed. I felt that the slight colour fade/loss to the top left of the banner and the fact that the back cover was dirtied would have it fall there. I tried to clean it, but as an amateur, I did not put a ton of time into it so it probably could be even cleaner. That being said, I don't intend to sell and am extremely pleased with the 8.0 grade on it. It was also pressed.
    ASM #238 CGC 9.0

    Another one I was way off on. I was thinking 7.0-7.5 and hoping that maybe an 8.0 could happen. There is a minor crease in the top right corner plus spine ticks so I felt that is where it would be. To get a 9.0 is awesome, extremely happy with that! Book was also pressed.
    ASM #316 CGC 9.0 Mark Jewellers insert

    When I sent this off, I thought it was a rarity. And it still is a more rare copy but since sending it, a handful have sold online with the MJ insert. I still love the cover and had it at 8.0-8.5 with hopes of hitting higher and it did so I am very happy with that. Book was pressed.
    ASM #252 Newsstand CGC 9.0

    Another one, waaaaaay offf. The spine ticks, of which there are a lot on the back as seen above, had me thinking 7.5ish. Because of that, I was kind of on the fence about sending this issue originally but decided to since it is a great cover and newsstand and all. 9.0 is a fantastic grade to get returned! Book was pressed.
    Ms. Marvel #18 CGC 9.0

    This one was the only slight disappointment....and really, it is no disappointment at all. Originally, I was thinking 9.0-9.2 because of a small amount of wear along the bottom edge but a part of me wondered if 9.4 were possible. Then, after I sent it off, I connected with a guy looking for a CGC 9.6 white pages and I somehow thought maybe mine would be that and we could work out a nice trade. So I deviated further in my mind from what it actually was, which was right around where I predicted. Still very happy as it is a sharp copy! It also came from a collection that was just bagged but not boarded and stored in boxes for a loooooong time. Proof that even semi-adequate storage can preserve old books...white pages too! Book was also pressed. 
    ASM #300 CGC 9.2

    Was anticipating 9.0-9.2, happy that I got this one right! I guess if I stuck with my Ms. Marvel grade, that is 2 I have correct so far! Book was also pressed. 
    ASM #361 CGC 9.4

    So this one, I was overly harsh at the staples. I also noted some ink smudge on the cover (which is tried gently to remove but did not come off...was not sure if it was production or not but factored it into the grade anyway). 8.0-8.5 was where I was, hoping 9.0 would happen so 9.4 is fantastic. Man, I grade too harshly. Book was not pressed, did not warrant it based off how flat it was. 
    ASM Annual #16 CGC 9.4
    PICTURE TO COME!
    Another one where I was too low. This one I did spend more time cleaning before I sent off and I am happy I did. Was thinking 9.0, maybe 9.2 so to get a 9.4 is a another win. Book was pressed
    Hulk #340 CGC 9.6

    This was one of the books I expected to get the highest grade...and it did. I safely went 9.4 with my guess so to get a 9.6 is fantastic. Book was not pressed, again did not warrant it due to how flat it was. 
    Spawn #1 Newsstand CGC 9.6

    Another one that I knew upon sending off would likely come back as one of the highest graded. Like the Hulk issue, I said 9.4 so to get 9.6 is great! Book was pressed.
     
    So, what did I learn here? I learned that I am harsh. Technically, I was 2 for 10, and undergraded the other 8. Way too harsh in some cases, especially it seems when it comes to spine ticks, especially if that is the only real flaw. CGC does not seem like it hits that as hard which is interesting. And I mean, I counted a good half dozen or so on my ASM #252. But to be fair, everything else was sharp plus a press took out any minor imperfections. I am content though to continue grading in this way because it leads me to believe I have a lot of comics that I am grading at 8.0-9.0 that could in fact be higher. We shall see. Right now, I want to submit more but then I think about cost and I pump the brakes a bit. I will eventually but might space it out a bit. Also, I will try to share my friend's GI Joe #21 Canadian Price Variant. He sent it in and it looked rough...lots of spine ticks, cover had lots of non colour breaking bends and indents and what not. We were thinking 4.5-5.0 and he was praying that on a good day he might get a 6.0....well that sucker came back 8.0!!!!!!!!!!!! He was floored. I will share pics once he sends em, wish we had taken some before images though. 
    Oh and I am still awaiting the return of the DD #1. It should be back within the month, who knows, but I will add it here when it does return. That one, I put at 1.0 so anything higher will be awesome although I dont anticipate it. Plus, with staples added to reattach the cover (as I think the original staples are were detached), it could come back restored. I hope not though.
     
  5. comicginger1789

    My First Ever CGC Submission!

    By comicginger1789,


    CGC Submission
    So I finally made my first ever submission to CGC! I am excited and hopefully these will be back to me by June. Here is a list of the books submitted, along with reasons why I submitted it! I also did a video showcasing the books and my grade estimates. 
    Book 1: X-Men #101. Anticipated grade after a press is 7.0. I would be fine with a 6.5 and elated with anything higher. I am getting this one pressed because it is a great cover and a book that I MAY sell one day.
    Book 2: Ms Marvel #18. Anticipated grade after a press is 9.0-9.2. I am curious how high this one can go as it is very clean and this is part of the reason I am submitting it is to see how nice it really is.
    Book 3: Incredible Hulk #340. Anticipated Grade is 9.4. I would be fine with 9.2 but this one is sharp and was not recommended to be pressed so I feel it also has a shot at being higher. Great cover and once that displays better than it reads so that is why I am slabbing it. 
    Book 4: Amazing Spider-Man #238. Has the tatooz! After a press, anticipating a 7.0-7.5. I would be thrilled with higher. Just a great Spidey book and cover I love!
    Book 5: Amazing Spider-Man #300. 9.0-9.2 anticipated grade. This would be a joy to get in 9.4 but I am not betting on that. Again, another great higher grade Spidey that I felt should be slabbed.
    Book 6: Amazing Spider-Man Annual #16. Anticipated 9.0 after a press. MAY consider selling if it climbs to a certain point, otherwise a cool cover of a character I am excited to see in the future MCU.
    Book 7: Amazing Spider-Man #361. Anticipated 8.5. Was not recommended for pressing. Very curious where this falls. 8.0 would be fine, lower would be sad. Higher would be fantastic. Again, another book I have had a while now and figured it should be slabbed.
    Book 8: Amazing Spider-Man #252. Anticipated 7.0-7.5. Love the cover and a great one to display. 
    Book 9: Amazing Spider-Man #316. Anticipated 8.5 after press. Has the MJ insert and is one of 2 that I know of to exist. Excited to see if it grades higher, if not a cool book and great one to display!
    Book 10: Spawn #1 Newsstand. Anticipated 9.2-9.4. Another one I am curious to see if higher happens and one that I may sell if it hits this grade or better as I do have a regular Spawn #1 and for me, the sale could go towards some much better stuff!
    Book 11: Daredevil #1. Anticipated 1.0. Real rough but I have to slab it. Anything higher would be a joy!
     
    I will follow up when they return to see how terrible my guesses were! I am anticipating some disappointments but also hoping for a surprise or two!
     
     
  6. comicginger1789

    2020 Spending On Comics

    By comicginger1789,


    Comic Collecting
    So in previous years, I had tried to keep track of how much I "spent" yearly on comics. I am farrrrrr from someone who buys and sells to the extent of some but I do enough selling and have for years to fund the hobby. This year, I wanted to see what that would look like and I want to continue this in future years. 
    After all is said and done, this year I spent a total of $671 CAD (or about $524 USD) on comics. Below are some highlights added to the PC from within that spending...
    -Terrors of the Jungle 17
    - Suspense Comics 19
    -A large Dave Stevens lot
    -Jumbo Comics 83
    - 15-20  or so ASM issues including #32, 61 (signed), 80, 86, 129 and a handful I upgraded including 194
    - a dozen Moon Knight issues from the first series
    - 3 30 cent variant Conan comics
    - Full Warlock run from the 70s
    - full Long Halloween run
    -GI Joe #1
    - She Hulk #1
    - several X-Men books from the Claremont/Byrne run including #129
    - full Inhumans run from 70's
    - full Champions run from 70's
    -all of the Starlin books from the his run on Captain Marvel
    -Haunt of Fear #17
    -Sex Criminals #1-17
    -CGC 9.2 Next Men #21
    -Descender and Wytches full run
    - around 100-150 other filler books from the silver/bronze/copper eras and a handful of new books (finally started buying Ice Cream Man)
    - Oh and a vintage comic standing display rack that I hope to have in my actual home sometime in 2021!
    Overall, I would have to estimate that close to 300 or so books made their way into my PC this past year. Works out to around $2.25 per book Canadian, or $1.76 USD. I think overall for the quality/quantity combination, this was a very strong year. It was helped by a large collection purchase for sure but I also found many a great deal by switching how I was buying my comics from ebay to other avenues. It will be interesting to see how 2021 stacks up. On one hand, I might eventually be able to pick up stuff stateside but I might just wait out another year until this whole COVID thing is under more control, just to be safe. 
    Value wise, I estimate the value of the books I bought to be worth in the $2000-2500 range total. To only spend $671 and essentially get triple the value on books I want is great and likely better than I will do in future years but hey...set the bar high and I will see what I can do. 
     
  7. comicginger1789

    My Collection Count! ASM Bin #1

    By comicginger1789,


    Comic Collecting
    So I am starting this journal to officially count my collection and to also go through and share what I have. Currently, I have 24 black bins as show that are stored on two shelves. They are not full but some are getting close. I am going to go through each bin and highlight a couple favs, how it’s organized and most importantly how many books are in it! In addition to these bins, I have one king box and one short box with stuff plus some others odds and ends which I will someone count/include in my collection.
    Now, let’s dive in!
    First bin is part one of my ASM collection!

    This bin houses ASM issues from 8 (my earliest) up to issue 183. Here are some of my favs!
     


    I have a healthy run from 51 up to 183, but am missing/need to upgrade a few. It’s less than ten issues and is my goal at the moment. ASM 97 was signed by Stan at his last Fan Expo visit, and was bought with a surprise Gil Kane signature inside years earlier on eBay. ASM 121-122 were the first BIG Spidey keys I paid over $100 for. At the time, that felt like a lot but were well worth it. The ASM 61 had a surprise John Romita signature when I bought it. I’ve been very lucky with surprise signatures in books over the years. Finally the ASM 129 was found this year in the best comic collection I’ve ever scored. Aside from a marker “12” on the cover, it looks amazing and I and so happy to have it.
    Many of these were purchased back when the US economy fell and our good ole Canadian dollar was at par. I scooped up some keys like ASM 101 and generally the run from 100-183 for super cheap. 
    Also, a fun find, my ASM 106 which sadly has a popped top staple BUT does have a nice NDI insert!


    Issue 50 is a big one I need. I had one but sold it because it was a rough 1.8 and I want something closer to 4.0. I also really want issues 39-40 too as I have always loved those two covers. 
    Also while not technically in this bin, I have one of my three graded comics that I own, a CGC 9.2 of ASM 149 that was a generous prize won from here on the boards. I sold my raw copy because I’m not someone who needs doubles. I also store my copy of What If 24 in this bin, as it features the alternate story had Gwen been saved and just seems right being stored with 121/122.
    Total count for this bin is..... 139!
  8. comicginger1789
    So here we are at number one! It was kinda tricky to dig through the memory of the past 15 years and pick out the highlights. There are loads more but most were quick ebay buys and flips or lots on ebay where I maybe made a tiny bit and kept some random issues. I tried to showcase more interesting books and finds that resonated with me in some way. But, enough chatter...time for numero uno!
    I wish this one had a bit better story but because it was a find and I consider it one of my prized possessions, it takes top spot. Apologies as I have told the tale before but here goes. This was a very early Ebay buy for me, around when I first got my own account. I wanted to get all of the drug-related non-code approved issues of ASM and started with issue #97. I found a copy online and because the seller did not put much info, I just double checked that the book was complete with no coupons cut or anything missing. He replied saying it was complete but that someone had written a name on the inside cover. I was like "hmm, well I could maybe keep looking" but for whatever reason I asked what the name said. His response was that it read "Gil Kane". He did not send pictures or anything and I thought surely this was some kid writing Gil's name in the book. At any rate, I made an offer anyways, the seller accepted and the book was sent to me. I still remember the excitement opening it to this day...and seeing the below signature on the inside page.

    I am convinced it is Gil's. Even if it isn't, it is staying with me forever anyways. At the time, Kane's art on Spidey and other Marvel titles was some of my favourite and still is. it was also the first signed comic I ever received. 
    Fast forward to 2016 and the year I got married. Some coworkers wanted to get me a wedding present. One of them was going down to the Toronto Fan Expo and Stan Lee was there. He knew I loved comics and offered to take a book down for me to have signed (I also helped him acquire a copy of Dr Strange 182 which had his two fav characters on the cover and his wife a copy of Inhumans 1 from the Secret Invasion arc as that was her favourite character). I could not attend because my wedding and honeymoon were obviously priority that year. So immediately I knew what book I wanted to have signed by Stan. And here it is on the front.

    This book stands for a lot. A great score, my first signed comic, the first comic I had signed (or sent to be signed) by someone, it contains Spidey, may favourite character and is part of a great little bit of comics history having no comics code stamp on it. The trifecta would be to have John Romita sign it, I just have not gotten around to that but I need to. Overall, I am so happy I have it. It will always be the book I am most proud to own and even though I have had bigger monetary scores, it stands out amongst anything else I have added to the collection. 
  9. comicginger1789
    Ever since moving to where I now live, I have regularly checked local avenues, scoured pawn shops and tried to find places that sell comics. It seemed nothing every came up. The one shop that has records and comics only had 80s and 90s stuff and anything from the 70s was automatically priced at $7 or more, regardless of condition. I have gone through the place literally issue by issue and they rarely add anything and there are books that have been there for decades (they mostly make their money on records, DVDs, CDs and clothing/used books). 
    Finally, about a week before my son was born, an ad popped up. A guy was selling an X-Men collection, a solid run from #97 to around 300, with a few missing. Plus, some McFarlane Spidey books. I went immediately. The books were owned by a younger guy. He was moving back home from university and wanted to sell some stuff to put towards a Hulk 181 (this was the early spring of 2018). I was pumped when I saw what he had. All the good keys were there, 100, 101, 130, the Dark Phoenix Saga, 266 and more. All in great shape, like nothing worse than FN and many VF condition. The price was right but I had a goal so I negotiated a bit and got everything for $575. My goal was to sell most of it (in hindsight I could have really had a nice X-Men run between this collection and the teacher collection but alas, as I mentioned I just don't get super excited about X-Men). I wanted to keep a couple fun issues and ultimately, keep 101 since it was a book I doubted I would ever purchase but I like the cover and thought it would be great to own. In addition, I also got to upgrade a couple ASM issues and there were a few I did not have so that was great! After selling what I did not want, I came away in the green by about a couple hundred bucks profit plus the following books kept for myself. This has also been the most money I have ever shelled out at once for a single book or collection.
     

     
    There are 20 more or so after these issues but these were the earlier ones I kept. Prior to this the only X-Men I owned were issues 57 (Neal Adams cover I love), 141 and 142, along with a run of Morrison's new X-Men.
    EDIT: I totally forgot that this gem was also part of this collection and was obviously kept!

     
  10. comicginger1789
    Before I post number one, a couple honourable mentions that I recall but don't fit into my top 10 for various reasons. I remember them all though, so I figure they were worth mentioning....honourably. 
    1. ASM #300. First purchase I ever made from outside ebay over the internet. I sent money in good faith, he sent comic in good faith. I did not include this as it was a specific purchase I wanted. It was around 12 years ago but it was a screaming price for a NM copy and I own it still

    2. The dusty box of comics. A local guy was selling a box of old comics for $100. I went to check it out and man, they were soooo dusty. Just after handling a couple I had grime on my fingers. The box was mostly Gold Key/Dell stuff but there was a diamond in the rough. Doom Patrol 99. I am not a Silver Age DC guy but knew I could break even with that book alone. Later, when I got home and went through the box with a finer tooth comb, there was a reallly beat copy of Astro Boy #1 and some early Star Treks worth some coin. So I ended up doing well. The rest of the box was donation material. I kept the only Marvel book in there, seen below and a couple others but was more of a sell for profit find than an add to the PC find.
     

    3. I found a Hulk #180 in a poorly listed ebay lot. However, after some dealings that went south with someone who was supposed to press the book and send off to CGC for me but resulted in this not happening and the press popping a staple. What was going to be a nice profit towards a copy of ASM #50 turned into a modest profit from a raw sale and a sour taste. I still remember it though but because of the negative taste, I kept it off the list. And because it did not work out, I have still yet to pull the trigger on that ASM #50. Below is the grainy listing pic and then the pic of it after it was pressed and the staple popped. 

    4. A local collectible shop opened up within the last year and a half and I made some great finds there. Everything was $3, regardless of condition or title. The best stuff I found was ASM #212 (when the hype was silly and someone paid me a lot for it as I already had myself a copy) and a run of Eternals. I was super happy because I wanted to read these but at the time, Eternals news was out and these were pricey online so was a nice find. Lots of other stuff too, like random issues of Tomb of Dracula, Ghost Rider and Defenders from the 70s. Was most happy with a Doorway To Nightmare run found there in great shape. Oh and I also found the infamous "Pearl Necklace" Archie issue. Sold it though because I don't really get the love. Headlights covers and what not, sure but the innuendo stuff is such a funky niche. But hey, to each their own! Anyway, below is some of my stuff from there.
     
     
    5. A visit to a pawn shop (yup a pawn shop) found me getting lucky with a couple Batman keys seen below, and some other goodies. They had a sale on. Grand total...$11.45!

     
  11. comicginger1789
    So COVID happened, the border closed and I was sad. No longer could I cross the border to pick up parcels (heck I have 2-3 there waiting for when it opens up). So how was I gonna get me some comics? I hate paying $15-30 for shipping for a small amount of books or even 1 book! I had to buy comics so I took to avenues I had never used really before. And I really regret that it took me this long to do so.
    First, Facebook groups here in Canada. Found a few things, minor things really. For the most part, people seem to price high. But at least I could view people selling stuff. Then, I started working Kijiji and Facebook harder and found stuff. The best find was a pile of romance comics. They were cheap and I looked at the pics and figured even if they were rough (which most were), I could probably double my money. Plus, even add a couple romance to the PC. I posted the pics the guy had used once I bought, in case someone else saw something worthwhile. I go over stuff once in hand but was excited to share some buys and posted before I had them in hand. Welll, a fellow boardie let me know that the Girl's Romances 105 in my lot was worth something. I was excited. And I got lucky, as it was one of the nicer copies.

    I sold it to another boardie just a week or so ago. I was super happy and I hope it arrives to him, along with the others I sent and I hope he loves it in a way that I just couldn't. This money made then went towards upgrading my copy of ASM #194 (I had a lower VG copy that I always felt stuck out because most of my issues from $150-400 are at worst Fine, with most VF). This was a quick flip that went well and a quick purchase (the ASM #194 was also bought off a boardie, along with a couple other missing ASM issues) and it will stick out because I knew somehow that something in the stack of romance comics was gonna be good. 
  12. comicginger1789
    So this collection was a doozy. A connection was made with someone I knew who's stepfather had a bunch of comics. I had met the guy couple of time and one day, he mentions having comics and says he was thinking of just "having a fire" with them. I said woahhhhh at least let me see what they are. I THINK he was joking but either way, he started sending boxes with his stepson who I knew and I valued them. He said they were just taking up space and would be happy to get whatever money he could so once again, I was in a selling situation. The deal was similar to my last one, where I offered to sell it all for him in exchange for some books. A few of the books I wanted were worth a fair bit so I ended up paying him a bit of money but I made out quite well. It was a collection that had a bit of everything...a full Ms Marvel run with duplicates, a bunch of Conan mags, other Marvel mags like first Star-Lord, Planet of the Apes magazines, bronze age war books, a John Carter run, a Warlord run, some Green Lantern/Green Arrow, a Howard the Duck run and a first bronze age Black Adam, some Claremont/Byrne X-Men, a higher grade X-Men 58 and higher grade silver age Archie books. Once again, I made around $1000-1200. In addition, these were the books I snagged and paid a VERY discounted amount for.

    I was amazed at the condition on these too as they were stored in boxes stacked with none boarded and only some having bags. I went with the magazines because they rock and I did not have many. Now, I have a healthy amount. Some of these books like the Ms Marvel Mystique appearances helped me finish the run, which I was elated about. I also filled in some Spider-Woman issues I was missing but I forget which ones exactly so they aren't pictured, as well as some random others that did not sell and he said just to keep them. The FF book had a wicked cool stamp on it so I had to keep it
  13. comicginger1789
    This is going to be a quick series on my top ten finds in terms of comics. I will not be including purchases that I made specifically for a good or decent value. No, these purchases stand out because they were found in some way shape or form and ended up being extremely beneficial for me as a collector in some way. I am focusing on the past 15 years because, at 31, those 15 years represent me collecting the hardest. Before that, the occasional venture was made to a local comic shop to buy back issues for myself. So let us start at number 10...my first score, which I have dubbed "Seeing Double"
    When I was 16 or so, I convinced my dad to let me use his ebay account. I slowly started buying stuff because, at the time, the US dollar was falling and falling and stuff was just as cheap to get shipped from the US. I was heavy into Peter Parker The Spectacular Spider-Man because they were cheap and old and I liked them. I eventually branched into Marvel Team-Up (also cheap at the time) and when the dollar did hit par here in Canada, I started gobbling up ASM issues. But one of my first big lot purchases was a Marvel Team-Up lot of like 20 issues. It cost around $10-15 and there were some doubles which I figured I could somehow sell. Anyways, the lot arrives and one of the doubles was issue  this one.

     
    There were two copies, one more mid grade and the other somewhere in the VF range. And when I opened the nicer copy, what did I see? 
    Fill my eyes with that double vision
    No disguise for that double vision
    My first double cover! I was excited! I was like, this has to be rare right? I had never heard of or seen one before. Sure enough, an online search showed that they tended to have some value. I obviously could not find another copy of this ish with a double cover that had sold but I figured I did not collect double covers or need two, since I had a perfectly good mid grade copy. So this book was one of the first books I listed on ebay and sold....for a whopping $20! I was so excited that I had not only covered the cost of my purchase, but that I had also gotten free comics out of it. I had made $5, plus gotten like 15 comics for a minimal amount of work. My dad was surprised when it sold for that much. He paid me the money (as payment went to his account at the time) and I had come to the realization that if I wanted, I could make this hobby fund itself (or at the very least, find great stuff I loved and offset the cost by a larger amount). And thus began my journey to the collector I am today. 
  14. comicginger1789
    Everyone out there probably has a flea market or yard sale story. Sadly, here where I live, yard sales are very VERY junky. As a result, I rarely go out to look unless the yard sale specifically lists old books, comics or magazines. Occasionally to save time, I will reply to ads or call to see if it is even worth my time (most people are great to talk to plus it can get word around that you are someone looking for comics). This "word" is how this yard sale came to me. My family was visiting us to see our son for the first time so this is only a month after the previous X-Men collection. My wife gets a call from her nana that she is helping a friend with a yard sale and he has lots of comics. Unfortunately, she missed the call to her phone around 9am and by the time she saw the message, it was nearing noon. We were gonna go for a walk with the little guy so I figured lets stop by and see on our way. When I got there, I was told that someone already bought a bunch. To this day, I wonder what that person got. Old Spideys? Silver and Golden Age goodness? I think about it on occasion. Luckily, the guy said he had another bin full in the garage so I went in, not expecting much but boy was I surprised to see these.

    I ended up spending a whopping $60 on the stuff. Sold some books to break even but I was most pleased with adding to the collection. The books were in really good shape considering they were just stacked in a pile in a bin, some with bags, most without. There were others I kept too but this was the main score. I always hold out hope I will find more at yard sales but a local collector friend has also only had one find in the last decade or so in this city and it was just some Bronze Age Rawhide Kid stuff. Very high grade and cheap but nothing one would consider key or noteworthy by any stretch...and this guys hits yards sales hard. 
  15. comicginger1789
    Shortly after moving to where I live now, a colleague who I work with was going through a tough time and needed to sell his collection. My wife knew him better at the time and knew I bought and sold comics and figured I could at least help see what he had. So I went over to see and man, did he have a lot. All of it had been largely untouched since the lat 80's. The best bunch of it all were the Uncanny X-Men books, including a Giant Size #1. Again, this was 7 years ago or so now and this book was not where it was now but still held respectable value. Most of the books sadly were in VG to Fine condition at best....great fillers. The GSX #1 was more of a 3.0-3.5, with the spine split, dog eared corners and creases. I was in "save up for house and wedding ring" mode so me spending was not an option. However, I offered to help sell online and ended up doing pretty well, getting around $1500 for him at the time (he kept the sales data recorded and made sure I was paid for shipping and any fees...if memory serves me, the GSX sold for around $275, and many other books were $30-50 each. He was a teams guy, big on Defenders and FF and X-Men and Avengers. There were lots of runs which sold well for him. In the end, he was happy and allowed me to keep some books as payment for my troubles (I told him I preferred to do this as he had some books and stuff that were cool and that I would love to own). Here is a snapshot of what was kept. There were more minor fillers too, as I think I came away with like 60 books or so but these are the most memorable that I own. 
    Thus began a joy for Treasury sized comics. At the time, Taskmaster was not getting any real love but I knew it was a first appearance and was happy to have it. His Avengers stuff was the only stuff he had (outside of the X-Men stuff) that I was interested in owning, along with the treasuries. He had a run of Avengers from 140 or so up to 170 then it was sporadic. I took the couple earliest ones he had seen here, plus a few others I liked, along with the treasuries. I told him what I figured they were all worth and he said take em. They are still part of the collection today. 
    I need to chat with him more because I know he still has some stuff left over. There was a run of Marvel Two In One that just did not sell at the time. Like 50 issues but nothing super early in the run and all VG so it was a tough sell. I would love to see if he has anything else tucked away because he collects music and CDs and DVDs like a machine....its a massive collection. Maybe he has some comics he forgot, ya never know. Either way, he was happy to get the cash during a tough time, I was happy to get comics. Win win. 
     
  16. comicginger1789
    So about 5 years ago I heard people had found deals in other countries on eBay. I tried but did not seem to have any luck. So I gave up on it. But then one day I had an alert for an auction in Mexico. It was for a bunch of Spidey books, early ASM issues. The ask was $300 and the pictures were once again horrible. There was a beat up copy of issue 50 shown and a few others, nothing key. Yet on the description, there were quite a few books listed, including some key early ASM books I really wanted. I asked if everything listed was included, the guy responded quickly saying yes and I clicked the buy it now for $300.
    When they arrived I was surprised. The pic below shows what I kept. Sadly the issue 50 was low grade and had some writing in it so I decided to sell it to cover some costs. There was also a bonus thrown in, issue 3 of ASM with a repro cover. The interior was all there but some kid had taken pen and literally over and around the images in half of the book. I decided to sell that too and surprisingly did way better than I thought. I moved a few more rougher low grade books and came away even on it all. And with these books essentially free!

    They are mostly 2.0-3.0 range books but complete and perfectly fine for me. Definitely my best Spidey score and it’s finds like these that leave me hope for more even if they are few and far between.
  17. comicginger1789
    I moved in late 2012 to where I am now. This buy I believe happened 2013. Ever since Dark Knight had come out, I had slowly been getting into Batman more. I am to this day a Marvel guy, but I found that 70s Batman through til the 80s was tolerable, with some great runs, stories, and artwork/covers. Golden Age Batman was (and still is) outta reach I feel, although I do like a lot of the artwork a lot, and 50's/60's Batman just has no appeal to me. I respect those who do like it though, it's just not my idea of enjoyment.
    Anyway, I had started by diving into well known good Batman reads. The Cult, Arkham Asylum, The Killing Joke. I added these and others and eventually, a couple Neal Adams issues. I was hunting online often for Batman lots, trying to find some older issue for a good price. Well one day, I lucked out. The listing was simply "older Batman comics" or something to that effect and the main image was grainy and poor. I clicked anyway and am thankful I did. There were a couple pictures, all poorly taken but the last one I could see Batman 251 poking out from the others on top of it. I got excited. This was a pricey book and here I had a chance to snag it. I did, and also got about 15 other older Batman books for around $60. But did I get a winner. Well the package arrived and I started pulling out the books. The guy did not even have them bagged and boarded and I could see why. They were beat. Tattered, worn, ripped. My heart sank. I had gambled and lost. But then the bottom couple books were not too bad and finally, the one I had waited for.

    I lucked out big. And was extremely happy. This also served as a cautionary lesson, that sneakily buying a book or trying to and hoping it will be great based off grainy pictures can backfire. Trust me, I have made several purchases where I thought "hey if I get this book in this lot and it is in this condition, I will do okay!" only to get it in garbage shape and end up running even or even losing a few bucks. 90% of the time, I make these purchases in lots on ebay because something in the lot has some value that I can sell and break even and then there are leftover books that I keep because I want them. This worked out so that by the end of it all, I spent around $30 or so on this copy. Very pleased. But I have since learned to ask for better pics before diving in. I have come across many auctions and online listings where the pics look great and the price seems like a good bargain where I can get some of the books and sell others for a small profit, only to get more images and find that the condition is much worse than imagined. That being said, I still think you can find diamonds in the rough occasionally on ebay....seems harder within the last couple years but if you are patient, you will find good deals always it seems. This just happened to be a lucky one for me!
  18. comicginger1789
    This next purchase was the first collection I ever bought. It was around 2007 or 2008, maybe a year prior or a year later. I had started paying attention and occasionally checking other avenues locally like Craigslist and Kijiji. Anyone, I found a local guy selling a longbox and a random stack of comics. He wanted $100 for everything. What caught my eye was the stack he had in the pictures...a big ole stack of Wolverine #1 from the 1988 run. I counted at least 20 copies. I thought to myself, Even if I sell those at $5 a piece, I can make my money back. At the time, that book varied but nice copies could be sold for $10 or so. I had to check it out. So I hopped in my 1991 Saab, and drove on over.
    The guy was super nice. He was a collector just trying to get rid of his collection and was down to this. He had a smaller box of older stuff that he had not mentioned but I declined to go through it as he mentioned there were books worth $50-100 in there and as teen headed off to university/just into university, I did not think spending that much would be a good idea. Plus I was not as well versed then as I feel I am now. All I knew was that I could pay for the box with the Wolverines (which I did not collect) and then do what I wanted with the rest. So I did a quick flip through the box and said I would take them and that was that. I ended up with 30 copies of Wolverine 1 from 1988. As soon as I went home, I started selling them. I did well, making $120 off just those books. I could have done even better but a guy who bought 4-5 copies claimed they never arrived. At the time, I did not include tracking (lesson learned) and ended up losing out on an extra $50 or so. But I was stoked.
    So what did I end up with? Well it was so long ago, I honestly do not know 100% everything that was in there. I clearly remember the selling of the Wolverine #1's because that was something that took time. I do know that the following were definitely from this collection, as I still have them in mine to this day. Over the years, I probably sold off books form this collection because there was a lot of dollar bin fodder and stuff I was not that into. In hindsight, there could have been something worth something now...but I was young and not as in tune with tracking stuff and keeping a record of my collecting journey as I am now. Anyways, some stuff I pulled from the PC that was in that box for sure.
     

    At the time, the What If and Marvel Spotlight were nothing books. I know the Turtles were in there because I kept them saying "hey maybe other collections will randomly have Turtles in them and I will build a run" and have never ever found Turtles stuff again. Reflecting now, I know the What If issue where Hulk becomes a barbarian was also in there (I should have it but maybe it moved on) and I am also now certain that Marvel Premiere 16 was in there, second Iron Fist. There are probably more but it is safe to say a lot of them stayed with me. I did not keep a Wolverine 1 for myself which I am fine with. Never been a huge Wolverine fan and when I read the issue, I did not fall in love so it made selling all of them an easy choice. It was a day I will never forget and has added some much enjoyed books to my collection.