Ridiculously Rare DC Giveaways And Premiums 5 5

[Ian_Levine]

wait it out Ian and when no one bids at that insane price, then work it out privately on the side.

 

As it happens, once I realised the minimum reserve was a thousand dollars, I sent them a private e-mail yesterday in case they had accidentally typed in an extra zero, and only intended the reserve to be a hundred rather than a thousand.

At that point they offered to cancel my bid but I asked them not to.

 

At the end of the day, if I'd been forced to pay a thousand I still would have, rather than lose the item and never see another. I would just rather have won it that high in a bidding war. It was only the reserve I objected to.

 

But their kind gesture in lowering the price HAS to be applauded by all the fair minded amongst us, surely

 

Right now I respect them more than ever for what they did. Nobody forced them to. They could have just taken the thousand and ran, but they made a gesture instead, which hopefully will make me myself try to be a better person in future.

 

 

[BachelorOfComix]

These boards are a means for us all to discuss purchasing comics. People discuss dealers and injustices on here.... LOTS OF PEOPLE in fact. Look at the amount of threads about Comic Keys...

How can your situation be an injustice on a similar level as the Comic Keys situation? Or how can it be considered an injustice at all? Who forced you to bid $1000? You may not be the only person looking for that TPB, but certainly you are the only person willing to pay $1000 for it. Why shoot yourself in the foot & then blame someone else?

 

Why when other people discuss a dealer on e-bay is it healthy discussion, but when I do it's me playing the victim

 

Your quote: "Quite frankly I think it's extortion and it makes me feel sick to my stomach. Pure highway robbery !!!!!!!!!!!!!"

 

Your quote: "I really feel I've been held to ransom."

 

Your quote: "So I'm forced to pay something I think is unfair."

 

You quote: "Consequently, I cannot help but feel fleeced."

 

And you changed the title of the thread to "Held To Ransom"

 

Forgive me for being a pessimist but you have 22 DCs left in your quest & I have a hard time believing that you won't come here crying foul again about yet another transaction gone horribly wrong.

 

[PUNYHUMAN]

Ian, you seem to take alot to heart,these guy's are busting your chops & you play right into it every time!!! Just take it easy ,stay focused on your collecting their's no need to rush and get every book now. One of the thrills of collecting is the hunt ,sometimes you have to be patient,I myself can't afford or can find every book I'm after,but I sure enjoy the aquisition when I find a book on my want list. Sometimes it's taken me years to find a book & can afford ,keep in mind whether your investing or collecting if your not having FUN ,than it's time to get out of the hobby. Don't get your self all frazziled because a deal didn't go through,just Relax,& Enjoy the Hobby!!!!! Ray!!!!

[Darthdiesel]

As it happens, once I realised the minimum reserve was a thousand dollars, I e-mailed them yesterday in case they had accidentally typed in an extra zero, and only intended the reserve to be a hundred rather than a thousand.

At that point they offered to cancel my bid but I asked them not to.

 

At the end of the day, if I'd been forced to pay a thousand I still would have, rather than lose the item and never see another. I would just rather have won it that high in a bidding war. It was only the reserve I objected to.

 

But their kind gesture in lowering the price HAS to be applauded by all the fair minded amongst us, surely

 

 

I'm surprised that with your quest you are not better equipped when it comes to negotiation tactics aside from strongarming. I am surprised even more that the other posters on here, both for and against you, still see the obvious tactic of letting the auction end with reserve not met and then working something out with the seller instead of paying $1000/$750 for the book like a rabid fanboy.

 

Yes I applaud the seller for realizing that they had set the reserve too high (which was their prerogative entirely) and they gave you 25% discount. Although as a small time dealer, I'd probably do the same when faced with being bashed with no justification on two influential comics forums by DC's most unabashed and prominent collector. all you had to do was post in the ebay comics board and you would have set your own Levinian wheels in motion against this dealer for "extortion".

 

Right now I respect them more than ever for what they did. Nobody forced them to. They could have just taken the thousand and ran, but they made a gesture instead, which hopefully will make me myself try to be a better person in future.

 

This is getting to be a repetitive pattern with you. I wish you luck in a less eventful acquisition of "#20 to go" without adding another to the circle of extortionist dealers out to stop Levine and his Quixotian quest...

[Ian_Levine]

Forgive me for being a pessimist but you have 22 DCs left in your quest & I have a hard time believing that you won't come here crying foul again about yet another transaction gone horribly wrong.

 

21, almost 20.

 

Wouldn't it be nice if you just didn't read any of the threads I'm involved with It won't be that difficult. They're not usually mixed in with the more general threads. Just think how happy you'd be and how much less deja-vu you'd have to suffer if you were spared my incessant whinings and my crying foul. I can't bear to be the cause of so much anguish to a fellow comic collector.

[ArAich]

Wouldn't it be nice if you just didn't read any of the threads I'm involved with It won't be that difficult.

 

That's pretty much my M.O. ...

[Ian_Levine]

Forgive me for being a pessimist but you have 22 DCs left in your quest

 

Please lets get this correct. There are 21 DCs I need that were proper comics (well actually one less as Double Action 1 doesn't seem to have been a proper comic even if the number Two was).

However, on top of that there are currently exactly a hundred Giveaways, Promos, and Previews, on the next part of the list, that I also need. We can't count that as a finite number exactly, because firstly they were never offered for sale, and secondly there are more turning up all the time that even the experts have never heard of. So yes I need 21 to complete the PROPER collection, but this rare Man Of Steel was not one of them, it was one of the Giveaways.

 

Heaven help me when I come to eventually buy a copy of "Supergear" or "What Do You Know About This Comic's Seal Of Approval" or even the rare "Blind Justice" Trade Paperback, which seems to be as rare as this Man Of Steel.

So. not that you're interested anyway, but the promos are quite literally never-ending.

[BachelorOfComix]

I found one DC you need. What's your finder's fee & will you donate it to a comic charity of my choice?

[Ian_Levine]

That's pretty much my M.O.

 

I'm confused.

If you didn't read this thread, how could you be posting an answer ?

[Ian_Levine]

I found one DC you need. What's your finder's fee & will you donate it to a comic charity of my choice?

 

Is this on the level

It all depends which one it is. If it's Funny Stuff 37 or Heart Throbs 66, the finders fee won't be too high, but the finders fee alone will be more than the guide price for the comic.

 

If it's the Big Book Of Fun Comics, that's another story altogether.

[ArAich]

I'm confused.

 

Clearly...

[Ian_Levine]

Clearly...

 

What I meant was that I couldn't work out if you were saying that....

 

A - if someone annoyed you that you'd just miss out reading their threads entirely,

 

or that

 

B - you had already missed out reading my threads.

 

It was ambiguous, hence my amusing (or so I thought) short reply.

[BachelorOfComix]

Is this on the level

It all depends which one it is. If it's Funny Stuff 37 or Heart Throbs 66, the finders fee won't be too high, but the finders fee alone will be more than the guide price for the comic.

 

If it's the Big Book Of Fun Comics, that's another story altogether.

Yes, I'm dead serious. How about 5% of the purchase price to charity as a finder's fee?

[Ian_Levine]

Yes, I'm dead serious. How about 5% of the purchase price to charity as a finder's fee?

 

If it's one of the twenty one (apart from the one I'm hopefully about to secure) and if the price is what I agreeably want to pay, I suggest ten percent rather than five, to a charity of your choice.

[Ian_Levine]

Yes, I'm dead serious. How about 5% of the purchase price to charity as a finder's fee?

 

 

Just to clarify, for the avoidance of doubt, that means one of the proper DCs to complete the list, one of the main 21, and not something like a Superman-Tim or anything like that which I don't consider anywhere near as important to the quest.

[Ian_Levine]

Yes, I'm dead serious. How about 5% of the purchase price to charity as a finder's fee?

 

And now we're ALL waiting with bated breath.........

[FFB]

Same here. If I get a Buzzy 34 or 70, he can have it for cost, plus a nominal $4,000 shipping and handling fee. Never let it be said that I would not bend over backward to help a fellow collector!

 

I think it was robbery as well Ian. I'll state it here for the record:

 

If I am able to acquire one of the books on your list...you can have it for cost + shipping. I would hope others would do the same for me if I was seeking a book and it wasn't on their want list.

[BachelorOfComix]

Yes, I'm dead serious. How about 5% of the purchase price to charity as a finder's fee?

 

If it's one of the twenty one (apart from the one I'm hopefully about to secure) and if the price is what I agreeably want to pay, I suggest ten percent rather than five, to a charity of your choice.

Here you go: link

[Ian_Levine]

Same here. If I get a Buzzy 34 or 70, he can have it for cost, plus a nominal $4,000 shipping and handling fee. Never let it be said that I would not bend over backward to help a fellow collector!

 

With a $4000 handling fee, I'm the one who'd be bending over backwards..............

[FFB]

I hope I'm not repeating what others have already said (I'm responding as I read down the list), but Ian, if there are only three in the world and you need one, then it's "worth" whatever you and the seller agree on as the price. And if you are not willing to pay his price, then you can't have it. He doesn't have to sell you the book, and you don't have to complete your DC collection. But if you want to, then you may have to pay him whatever he wants for the book. Doesn't seem the least bit unfair to me, and I'm one of the guys who wants to see you make it to the finish line. But stop acting like you're entitled to get there for Christ's sake.

 

Don't like the price, don't bid : It doesn't get any easier than that...

 

But it's not that easy at all.

If I don't bid at their starting price, I may never come across another copy. I only know of three in the whole world. Yes it's seriously rare but it's still not worth a thousand. Even if there aren't any other copies around. So I'm forced to pay something I think is unfair.

And as I said earlier, these are discussion points about comics, and whether you agree with me or not, I think this is a very valid discussion point for these boards.