Charlton + cheap production = how to collect question?

[nocutename]

I am not sure where to post this so I am just putting it here. I am just starting up a new collection of Charlton romance comics and got my first two in from the same seller. One of the comics the centerfold is ripped badly by both staples but otherwise looks great. I mention this because I never seen interior rips around the staples before. Kinda looks like the DC Dollar cover rips from being stacked

 

The second comic the top staple was never stapled correctly so it now only is connected on the first page and has pulled through the entire comic. Again this one has the same tear by the one staple and it goes through a few pages.

 

Are this common problems associated with this company? The comics themselves are not terribly expensive so I don't really fault the seller for not inspecting them but I am wondering what else should I expect as a pitfall to collecting these.

 

BTW - The second comic with the major flaws was graded a Fine. So I don't have any faith that higher grades can avoid these problems. The series I am looking at is My Secret Life.

 

Thanks for any comments and information.

 

 

 

[seanfingh]

 

 

I have a fair number of Charltons. I have always loved them, mostly because of the painted covers on the horror books and the fact that they were easy for my dad to get off the rack at a couple of the local drugstores. (ie no one else wanted them )

 

They are subject to a panoply of production problems. While I have a number of CGC 9.4-9.8 copies, I have dozens and dozens that have: miswraps, jagged edges on pages and on covers, cracking at the spine, unexplained yellowing or complete browning of otherwise nice copies, staple anomalies. They also, to me, seem to be extremely prone to multiple covers and also severe miscuts.

 

I have always looked at it as a fact of life collecting Charltons: The production was terrible., so just do the best you can and find the best copies possible.

 

PS: Gary Dolgoff used to have great deals on warehouse Charltons. Some of them that he graded "warehouse VF/NM" have come back CGC 9.6. You may want to check out his current inventory.

[nocutename]

Thanks for the info. I am going to check his website now. I was going to start with another series but noticed that the first issue had suffered from miscuts. After looking at 5 different pics of 1's, I decided that I should hold off on that one and get it at shows etc.

 

They are kinda hard to find too which makes them fun to get. I am not too much of a condition freak but was wondering what to expect. I am not crazy about the rips in the interiors though.