Thinking of getting rid of my comics

[Speedy-D]

I'm toying with the idea of selling my comics, and getting deeper into the OA scene. It's been a couple years since I was a heavy comic buyer ... lately I've been buying some Marvel SA keys here and there. But they're really easy to get, and I don't get a lot of satisfaction out of them. I could probably raise like $10K pretty quickly with a couple few sales, and turn some comics I don't really care about into one or two pages or a cover I'd love to have on my wall. I wish I could raise enough from comics sales to be able to afford an Infantino/Anderson Flash or Adam Strange Mystery In Space cover, but there's little chance of that.

 

Sounds reasonable, no?

[AKA Rick]

It sounds totally reasonable.

 

Personally, I think as an investment, there's more longevity, sustainability and higher return on investment margins with Original Art than comic books. The fact that you're no longer interested in them makes them easier to part with (and subsequently you can regain the nostalgic stories via reprinted TPB's).

 

Original Art is "one of a kind" (per piece) so is less condition sensitive and when there is a demand for a piece, since it is one of a kind, it'll command way more attention than any high grade book for which there might be a few others lurking around or inferior or superior grades out there vying for competitive attention.

 

The Carmine Infantino / Murphy Anderson DC work, as with Gil Kane's in my opinion are underpriced (I guess similarly how silver age Marvel has higher value than most silver age DC), so I think you're interests in the art has good timing and it's a wise choice aesthetically as well as, as an investment too.

 

Good luck in your collecting endeavors!

[suspense39]

I've been doing just that, selling off a 25 year collection, just so you know it's a very time consuming affair! And factor in that you're probably you'll probably get back about 75% of what You put in....although I hope you do much better.

[Bronty]

If your heart is pulling you that way, go for it

[buttock]

The downside is that SA still has plenty of growth potential, especially Marvels. That stuff just seems to have endless demand. If they're in grade, I'd be conflicted.

 

The upside is that SA is always replaceable. Always. And it's all available in reprint form. Much easier & cheaper to read.

[Pete Marino]

I think asking here is a bias answer. Ask in the SA forum and see what they say....

 

At least get both sides of the coin... not just the side you're hoping for =)

[mister_not_so_nice]

[Speedy-D]

EXACTLY!!!

[theflashunc]

From a practical standpoint, as someone who's moved a fair bit for work during my career, the thought of carrying more than a couple of longboxes into a truck and then into a new place is soul-crushing.

 

And to your point, SA keys (or whatever else tickles your pickle, I've kept my full Bendis run on Daredevil, and Ennis' early Marvel Knight Punisher run because I love them, not because I think they'll ever be worth anything) are in fairly wide supply compared to OA.

 

It's the approach I'm taking, though maybe not as extreme. Thinning my comic collection of books I can't possibly live without, and using those funds for expanding my tiny OA collection.

 

 

[Hekla]

I started thinning my collection a year ago & using the extra funds for OA. I anticipate ending up with 20-25% of my starting collection keeping only favorite stories/art, favorite keys & grails. I've shed a couple of boxes of comics so far and picked up a few extra pages outside of my normal OA budget. No regrets so far...

[Dumur]

When I got into OA, I went from 13 long boxes of comics, to one... and I didn't keep my most expensive books. I kept the one's I remember buying with my hard earned part time job money. I have no regrets and I can't even remember the last time I looked through the one box I have... but I look through my art folders constantly.

[Rodey]

I'm getting ready to thin my collection. Just not as passionate about comics as I used to be. But I get excited when I see a new warriors page I like.

[Speedy-D]

Thanks folks. It's good to see I'm not alone in this.

[Terry Doyle]

I sold off my comics collection years ago. It got to a point were I was just adding to titles that I'd long since stopped enjoying. Most of the stuff I cared about existed in reprint format, so I used the proceeds from my comics sales to add more pieces to my OA collection, and stock-up with cheap reprints.

 

Afterwards came the slabbed phenomenon (which I thought was kind of sad, as comics were meant to be read and enjoyed), so I'm glad I didn't get caught up in that particular racket!

 

If your heart's no longer into collecting the books, I'd say it's doubtful that you'll have any future regrets selling. I certainly don't.

 

 

[Garf]

Thanks folks. It's good to see I'm not alone in this.

 

You most certainly are not.

 

My long boxes were sitting in the loft space away from the pets / kids and more importantly I simply did not have space for them downstairs any more. I have to admit that apart from the odd revisit they were basically neglected for 5 years. Happy to be selling stuff off here and there and putting it into OA. It's not as if I can't get most of it back if I ever wanted to own it again.

 

The art I have is there all the time and a constant enjoyment. Feels now like the hobby has evolved into something a little bit more mature than having tons of floppies kicking around the house. The last thing I will ever let go will be my trades (especially the OOP ones).

 

I would imagine you have been collecting OA far longer than myself so I can't offer any sage advice but I can relate.

[alxjhnsn]

I have 20K comics or more ranging from the late 50s to current. I'm turning one of my daughter's bedrooms into a library and will bring out those that I really like and will sell the rest, I think. The money will go into OA, I suspect.

 

[batman_fan]

I started the long slow process of selling off my collection about 3 years ago. It is a very slow process. I have not been moving the money into OA specifically, but I have picked up a few pieces guilt free.

[Speedy-D]

I sold off my comics collection years ago. It got to a point were I was just adding to titles that I'd long since stopped enjoying. Most of the stuff I cared about existed in reprint format, so I used the proceeds from my comics sales to add more pieces to my OA collection, and stock-up with cheap reprints.

 

Afterwards came the slabbed phenomenon (which I thought was kind of sad, as comics were meant to be read and enjoyed), so I'm glad I didn't get caught up in that particular racket!

 

If your heart's no longer into collecting the books, I'd say it's doubtful that you'll have any future regrets selling. I certainly don't.

 

I'll probably start with the SA Marvel keys. I really have no love for them, and they're super easy to get, pretty much whenever you want. It'll take a lot more debating in my head before I sell off my Infantino stuff, but then it's not really high grade so it won't make much of a difference.

[jbud73]

Ok,

 

I will play advocate here for a bit. On one hand I have sold comics and some of that money has made its way into OA, but then again I've sold comics to buy more and still put new money into comics as well. Another thing to consider is timing. I was talking to another Hybrid (my term for a collector who buys both OA and Comics on a regular basis) the other day about the comics verses OA phenomenon. The main caveat is that really cool comics and really cool OA both cost money. The other issue is that comics have been coming back down to earth, especially graded comics (actually I think the drop has plateaued) while OA has continued to rise.

 

So for a Hybrid there is a bit of a dilemma, do you sell your comics at potentially less than you paid for them to buy OA at the highest prices in recent memory? Of course some people will say that OA will continue to rise indefinitely (the sky is the limit) - others will say that OA at these prices is crazy (the sky is falling); the truth is probably somewhere in between in that OA will continue to have strong and weaker prices.

 

I would also and always caution against the, "there can be only one" notion that is over used in OA. True every piece is unique, but auction after auction we see Ditko Spidey's and Kirby FF, Thors, you name it. The truth is that there are far fewer A type examples and ONCE IN A WHILE you will have to pay up for a "there can be only one" piece, but not every piece falls into that category.

 

My advice as always, perhaps never more true than now, is buy what you like, but if you have Marvel keys you may want to consider what you are selling and what you intend to buy with it. While is is also true that almost every auction has multiple AF 15s and other Marvel keys, it may also be that those books continue to rise so the utility of replacing them is a factor in the statement, "they can always be re bought."

 

One of the best pieces of advice that I ever got from an OA collector who also had some comics was, to paraphrase, "buy what you like and sell what you don't, however put as much thought into the latter as you do in the former. OA like any collectible has a shiny new penny period to it. I know I have fallen into this mind set on occasion and most people will tell you they were far more astute than they actually were when entering into a new hobby or collecting focus.

 

My specific thoughts are that selling comics to fund OA is a good thing to do to avoid dumping new money into a purchase. However there are pieces of OA that I would sell before letting go of some of my ECs or Early Marvels go (try replacing Pedigree JIMs). The compulsion will be to sell your big books first, they will move faster and bring you more money. Unless there is a "TRULY ONE OF a KIND" Grail piece for you on the market, I'd avoid that temptation. I know a few comic collectors who sold their books and went looking for OA to buy because they had a wad of cash in their accounts. Though not totally a disaster, they ended up with some pieces that probably meant less to them than the comics they sold to buy them. To a lesser or greater degree should you sell of your comic collection you will have the "money burning a whole in your pocket coupled with shiny new OA penny syndrome."

 

Maybe you have had a epiphany style change in your collecting and will sell all you books and buy OA with the funds. Just remember the advice I got and now pass along, "put the same scrutiny into your selling decisions as you did into acquiring that which you now sell." That advice has served me well....

 

[Speedy-D]

I started the long slow process of selling off my collection about 3 years ago. It is a very slow process. I have not been moving the money into OA specifically, but I have picked up a few pieces guilt free.

That sounds like a good way to look at it.