Need some info on Pulps

[alecholland]

I e-mailed a guy who put an ad in the paper about some pulps he was trying to sell. Other than that I think they have cool covers, I really don't know much about pulp magazines. He's got some Astounding Science Fiction, Astounding Stories, Amazing Stories, & Wonder Stories all from the 30's and 40's. I'm thinking about going over to his house tonight and check them out. If they are in decent shape, I might make him an offer, but I don't even know what they might be worth.

 

Any advice/suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Scrooge]

Keep your offer per pulp well south of $5 on those. They are common books and these runs rarely have any "key" issues, i.e., first appearance of important work by later star writers. My 15-second recommendation.

[alecholland]

Thanks for the reply! That's kind of what I was thinking. He sent me a list and only has about 30-40 pulps. He's got prices next to some at $25 - $40 apiece. I was thinking $75 - $100 maximum for the whole lot if they are in decent shape. 99 out of 100 times these things usually amount to nothing.

 

Thanks again for the reply.

[gozer]

>> They are common books

 

Yes, those are common pulps. If they're in nice shape, folks pay $10 to $30

for them.

 

 

>> these runs rarely have any "key" issues, i.e., first appearance

>> of important work by later star writers.

 

I disagree about that. In Astounding:

 

July '39 - Van Vogt' fist, "Black Destroyer"

Aug '39 - Heinlein's first, "Life-Line"

Sept '39 - Sturgeon's first, "Ether Breather"

Mar '42 - Asimov's story "Runaround" that intros his 3 laws of robotics

May '42 - Asimov's story "Foundation" is basis for Foundation trilogy

Apr '46 - Clarke's first fiction in print, "Loophole"

 

The Amazing Stories for Mar '39 has Asimov's first published story.

 

There may not be many, but there are a few.

[rjpb]

The 30's "bedsheet" pulps (think treasury sized) of some of those titles often have cool covers and go for okay money depending on condition.

 

The real common stuff is the post-war material - though there are some nice covers here and there.

[Paratrooper]

Get yourself a copy of this: http://www.amazon.com/tag/pulp%20price%20guide

 

good reading and good info on pulps. Kinda like the OSPG for pulps.

[sckao]

Thanks for the reply! That's kind of what I was thinking. He sent me a list and only has about 30-40 pulps. He's got prices next to some at $25 - $40 apiece. I was thinking $75 - $100 maximum for the whole lot if they are in decent shape. 99 out of 100 times these things usually amount to nothing.

 

Thanks again for the reply.

 

So he's thinking in the $750 - $1600 range and you're in the $75-$100 range.

 

Hopefully, you'll bring some evidence as to the real world value of the stuff so he won't be outraged.

 

(Considering that a tank of gas almost cost me $65...)

 

 

 

[Scrooge]

>> They are common books

 

Yes, those are common pulps. If they're in nice shape, folks pay $10 to $30

for them.

 

 

>> these runs rarely have any "key" issues, i.e., first appearance

>> of important work by later star writers.

 

I disagree about that. In Astounding:

 

July '39 - Van Vogt' fist, "Black Destroyer"

Aug '39 - Heinlein's first, "Life-Line"

Sept '39 - Sturgeon's first, "Ether Breather"

Mar '42 - Asimov's story "Runaround" that intros his 3 laws of robotics

May '42 - Asimov's story "Foundation" is basis for Foundation trilogy

Apr '46 - Clarke's first fiction in print, "Loophole"

 

The Amazing Stories for Mar '39 has Asimov's first published story.

 

There may not be many, but there are a few.

 

Hi, I don't disagree that those pulps will sell for anywhere from $10 shipped to higher if in better condition but realistically, I've assumed the books were not in great shape and that AH was not looking at keeping them so paying $5 a piece sounded fair. Yes, some issues are desirable but the odds that most issues in the batch are is fairly low so concentrating on the high priced one lead to over-valuation. At $5 a piece, AH is safe if the group does not hit the right months! The original post stated '30's to '40's, a little too vague for a better analysis. The whole thing is moot now that the seller is looking for full value on the books. I think the seller should realize that a bulk deal will not land in top $$ on a group like this.

 

AH, tell us how the visit goes (thumbs u