Aman619

These are so cool... I’ve never seen them on this side of the pond. They’re like bizarro variant issues!

They use efficiency experts? And pay them? Where would one find someone with experience in speeding up the handling and grading of comics etc? CBCS? PGX? After 20 years of doing what practically nobody else does, isn’t CGC the efficiency expert with the experience they are looking for? Seems to me the TAT problems stem from running a small team for profitability for years, plus a high level of specific skills needed to grade comics, and the time each requires, working within an un expandable office building, then running into a glut of demand. Voila. Their business has moving parts and a workflow, but it’s not just another sneaker factory... ‘yes, dealers would be a great resource for some aspects.. havent they reached out to solicit ideas and opinions periodically? But there’s a difference between soliciting input and actually enacted the changes ....

Sounds like a plan for my next trip.

Do they have manga from the 50s and 60s? Early first printings etc? I tried looking in Japan years ago, but never found a store that carried “original printings.” It was explained that manga has been reprinted so many times that almost nobody has made a market for original/first printings like we do here. Or perhaps it only goes on in some rarified books stores in a Tokyo?

I have a GoCollect question. I was looking at prices today and saw that their price guide prices were wildly higher than the actual sales they were using. I know that when there are very few sales, it’s hard to draw conclusions as to their values, but when there are actual sales, you should use them as the value, and not calculate a price derived from say a 9.8 and a 4.0 and build a curve from them. Real work]d sales ARE real world values until more data comes in. Anybody have any insight into this? Sorry I don’t recall which title it was , so sorry that important info is missing in my question...

New copies coming to market is good for that comics value... if there are only a handful, and they are locked up, the values can only be guessed ar. Sure there’s the danger tat too many copies come out, but that doesn’t affect prices as much as we used to think now while new collectors have come to snap them up.

This is such an innocent thread... a discussion about serial numbers back when few people understood how they are created. Sigh, we are all so much older now.

Sorry if that was cryptic. I just mean that pressing and “restoration” weren’t invented in 2001. Books have always been improved by collectors and dealers since it all began.

One would think...

Chalk it up to the cost of doing business. Danny D had it right when he said that grading would make you take on a lot of partners in your collection to sell for what they are worth!

well, in a positive light, the fact that CC auction site wasn't built to handle buyers premiums supports the idea that this was never in Metros plans, and was sprung on them by the Kentucky consignor, no? Shouldn't be too hard for them or GPA/George to change the final prices to include the BC... a spreadsheet should do the trick.

do their listed sale prices include the 15%?? or the highest bid?

yeah me too. Its a special key book that has fallen out of favor.. But could be one of those that just needs a movie or TC series to jolt it back to life. There's various shows being announced using the GA JSA heroes of late, so could be this year's hot sleeper book. I had one that I sold to buy a bigger book long ago, so Im not chasing it, but we have seen this play out before. More Fun 73, Sensation 1 etc

youre right of course.. I didnt think you were rude, I was just reacting in a cynical way to all the gushing. But I get it, really I do. These books are the holy grails we all aspire to, and they are increasingly out of reach now, so their status is enormously palpable. Im just a bit jaded at this point. As for Christine's "heavier" Tec 27 its probably cause it had more restoration than the Action 1! just kidding, but when the goal is to own everything, you make allowances for restored copies in the runs. She's vert sweet, Ive seen her at shows --- STILL BUYING new comics!

well sure, its freighted with enormous symbolism and awe. But its surprisingly just like any other GA comic in hand.

Just a note to say that the imminent destruction of this copy of Action 1 is wildly exaggerated. I saw the book 30 years ago. And from the pics of it today, it doesn’t look any worse. It’s been carefully cared for most of its life, from a bank vault to a slab... and will be from now on. it was even treated to a few Florida vacations at a very nice Humidity controlled spa where it was pampered by the staff day and night. It’s not falling apart any time soon. Rust is not a living thing like tartar on your teeth. It’s a chemical reaction. It needs humidity to “grow” and this book won’t be left out in the rain ever. and geez, there’s nothing sacred about an Action 1. You hold it in your hands and flip through it, and guess what, it’s just a comic book. It’s kind of a letdown really.

it may be that in time, as we "original generation" comic collectors pass on the hobby to the newer collectors, coming to comics from other collectibles with different views on "restoration/conservation" our ways of thinking will no longer hold sway. And comics will be treated similarly to those markets that embrace it.

thats a good point... are treated prints worth less? or just not discussed or disclosed when selling?

the difference between an Action 1 and an oil painting is greater than between comics and cars. Or any other mass fabricated object that attains values over time by collectors. Any copy of Action 1 could disappear and the concept of the value of an "Action 1" would not change. Just one less copy in existence. And there'd are still "plenty" to go around to make a market. The art market has long ago accepted that a one-of-a-kind painting or piece of art keeps its value intact if and when it needs work done due to damage to it. Cars are closer to comics IMO. Many were created all at once to be used (driven, or read) and over time, most fell away as a collector's market grew for whats left. I dont claim to know the ins and outs of the Collectible car market all that much, but perhaps since cars were created to be utilized, not collected, just a tune up and a car wash here and there, and were often damaged in the course of their functional lives, and then repaired, their markets have readily accepted repairs/restoration, certainly expert restoration. But isn't there still a variance in values depending on how much was done to the car and who did the work? Comics are conceivably on this same path, and maybe we WILL throw away much of the heavy penalty for whats currently classified as "restored" comics someday as the hobby continues to mature. But buyers MUST be made aware of what was done. We are where we are because resto was a dark unspoken manipulation that burned too many of us. (I dont want it near children! Thats an infamia!) So if this rusty staple copy turns to brown mush inside its slab in decades to some, or just gets an ugly spine in 2 places, it only affects the owner, which is why this copy has an asterisk and IS a risk to its owners investment. The other copies will be fine. Untouched our comics will last a lot longer than ours kids lifetimes. We aren't keeping them unprotected anymore, and their crappy paper is still strong and supple after 80 years when given a chance. Our collecting mindset and value system has always been about the more perfect the preservation absent any manipulation. Since we have seen some practices that improve their appearance accepted, who is to say how many more changes to our value system will occur?

theres ways to get creative sure, ... but when a seller doesn't know the value of something, telling them its valuable often doesn't lead to a sale. They have to think about it, etc. Unfortunately --- and Im not advocating for ripping off people -- it falls under the category of " no good deed goes unpunished!" Sad that buyers who tell the truth and try to be fair and do the right thing too often get burned. The seller's trust is inversely proportional to the vales of their junk. no, not that junk. sheesh

That’s the dealers quandary. Offer what something is worth, educate the owner only so he wants to keep it cause it’s valuable Offer pennies to steal it and you have a better chance to you get it. But you’re a dirtbag. No middle ground.

yes. both

the CGC graders notes were never meant to be a resource where CGC notated every book's flaws or condition. They took time to write, and some graders were into it, while others weren't. And as CGC has stated, the only reason they were created and kept initially was for the other graders. They didnt want them to waste time and the notes allowed the followup graders to examine the areas mentioned in the notes by the previous grader. Thats why they are hit and miss. Now they are a lot easier to add to the grading process... and appear to be some kind of pull down menu since the wording is identical for each defect. what Im saying is that overall, the presence of a grading note does not signify the importance of the note for any given books condition, nor does the absence of any note (or mentions of visible defects) infer their lack of importance to the grade of the book. Especially the longer ago the slabbing took place.

I think this sale is a good buy mid-long term. Sure we all go way back and think whoever bought it paid too much because WE would never pony up for it at these prices.... but if he doesn't panic sell, he'll be fine. Just sit back and let the market do the work. Of course, lets say this is a bitcoin 9 figure millionaire having a lark. He's not really going to see a huge return on his investment. So there IS a pretty large share of "wanting to own something cool" like an Action 1 for the buyer -- and its the 3rd best (really 4th best) copy. The highest graded copy that will be available for quite some time too... as Im sure Mtero assured the buyer. As for the rusty staple, yeah thats a an issue that may come back to haunt the buyer and the book. But if it stays in the slab, just have to sell it before the rust migration eats away paper and it becomes visible. Gotta unload it before that. And Im against allowing replaced staple be allowed and remain in a blue label. A are that for THS book you could make an exception, but iy would be a horrible precedent. In ten years? well, maybe. Man I love this hobby! TM

Im hoping these sell well for you, I'm wondering what my HCs etc are worth today too! : )