When does over collecting become a hoarder in need of help.

[RockMyAmadeus]

30 long boxes? That's it?

 

[Kevin76]

I actually have 3 short boxes and that's it. I don't buy comics every Wednesday. If there is a great storyline, I'll just get the trade, Comics that come out that are "hot" I might pick up but usually pass cause by the time it comes back from CGC, no one wants the book anymore.

[fastballspecial]

When you have to rent storage that's when its time to come clean.

 

[JasonDaTwit]

Storage units sound like a great idea but then I hear about one being broken into and someone's collection get stolen. That's scary. That's why my stash is at my place and in a relative's basement.

 

At the same time, there is such a thing as when is enough, enough? I love my trade because I onlly buy what I'll reread. Some comics are keys while others are sets that I love because of the stories I love.

 

I'm fortunate enough to have a wife who understands my hobby, who reads comics and attends cons with me. She may not collect them to the extent that I do but we have a mutual understanding. I love comics and she likes BOBS BURGERS and GRIMM (why those 2 shows is beyond me since BOBS make me laugh maybe twice in 23min while GRIMM is just male-Buffy [but bad] wtih God awful effects).

 

She doesn't have to love everything I do and vice versa. But we deal with it at the whole of the person is taken into consideration and not just a portion of it.

 

The real question is -- will she shut up if you do what she asks or is she the type to look for something else to complain about until you're buried? Some people, no matter what you do (GRANDMA!) will always complain because they don't know how to do anything else.

 

Hopefully it's the former and not the latter. Good luck!

[Garf]

I only have 2 long boxes and a shortie left. There is one other short box, but that is stuff to sell that is either modern or transferred down from what I have left in the loft. Most of it has been converted into Original Art (and a few small luxury items) and I imagine that I will eventually get down to only a couple of short boxes when certain vertigo books get too hot to hold.... bye bye full runs

 

Over the past few years I have had much more enjoyment having stuff on the walls or in just one folder that I get to see on a daily basis. I still have trades and digital if I fancy a read. I don't personally think that now is a great time to get into OA seeing as prices are on the up and up (at least for the stuff that I enjoy). Regardless I am very happy with the change of direction.

[snowman28]

8 short boxes and 1.5 CGC boxes and I'm already feeling like I have way too many comics. I'm going to try and open an eBay store, then if nothing moves for a while donate and tax write off.

[slym2none]

When you have multiple 6-to-8 foot stacks of raw comics in your basement/cellar, it might mean you have a problem.

 

That's right, E. Church - I am calling you out as a hoarder!

 

 

 

 

-slym

[slym2none]

8 short boxes and 1.5 CGC boxes and I'm already feeling like I have way too many comics. I'm going to try and open an eBay store, then if nothing moves for a while donate and tax write off.

 

Heh - I still feel like I have too many, and I have pared down from a max of 16 long boxes (<3000 comics) to just 4 LBs and one magazine box (>1000 comics) and still feel like I have too many.

 

 

 

 

-slym

[Bill1]

You guys are either a bunch of lightweights, or sellers, but not collectors. Collectors can never have enough. And a true collector never reads trades- or buys them- just worthless reprints. Might as well go to the library to read and never take anything home. And when is it a problem? When you buy when you don't have the money, or have no where to neatly keep them. Otherwise, like in everything else, have at it!

[slym2none]

a true collector never reads trades- or buys them- just worthless reprints.

 

Sez you!

 

 

Might as well go to the library to read and never take anything home.

 

That's what I do now (well, I do check stuff out,) and have read more comics this year than in the past ten years combined.

 

 

 

 

-slym ( relax, )

[gradejunky]

When it is no longer a collection, but instead a non-organized mass of random clutter.

[Bill1]

When it is no longer a collection, but instead a non-organized mass of random clutter.

 

If you don't know exactly what you have and which box it is in, you are on your way to it being classified a problem.

[the420kid]

When it is no longer a collection, but instead a non-organized mass of random clutter.

 

If you don't know exactly what you have and which box it is in, you are on your way to it being classified a problem.

 

I love going through long boxes and say "ah wow I have this? when did I buy that?"

[Bill1]

When it is no longer a collection, but instead a non-organized mass of random clutter.

 

If you don't know exactly what you have and which box it is in, you are on your way to it being classified a problem.

 

I love going through long boxes and say "ah wow I have this? when did I buy that?"

 

I do that too, but if asked if I have a particular issue, I have to look in my Comic program to see if and where it is. While I can remember the keys, I can't remember every single book-- usually I have a pretty good idea though.

[gradejunky]

My stuff is 90% alpha-numeric organized by major publisher's, and I still have those"I have this?" moments all the time. It is fun, but if all your books are just floating around everywhere it is time for an overhaul.

[Garf]

IMHO you know you have a problem when you are buying into manufactured collectibles like say a 1:500 variant or an RRP super limited comic that was printed yesterday but costs you $1500 when we all know 99.99% of variants cool off. If you treat collecting like some sort of race then you may want to take a long hard think about that. Maybe your circumstances mean you don't have to. Lucky you.

 

Back to the original post in this thread... thing is if your wife is nagging you about the amount of comics you have or rifling through one or another collection you have then put that mess down and spend some quality time with her. Share one of her interests instead for a while. Go out. Cull your pull list. IDK. If they are seriously pointing out the hobby you enjoy as a problem then why not work towards a compromise? TBH it's probably going to be the lesser evil before she starts truly hating comics. This is 1000% the worst place to ask the question... Unless you enjoy some fan boy saying "there's no problem as long as long as you have some space and money". Yeah screw everyone else. You collect everything you want otherwise you are a lightweight.

 

You have a problem if you are making someone you love unhappy.

 

 

[Chris_Skeleton]

I've only got three long boxes right now, but my LCS has $0.89/lb on the dollar bin comics on Tuesdays (which has some great stuff) so I'll probably hit 6 long boxes by the end of July.

 

My stance is this: There is a big difference in collecting and hoarding. I collect all kinds of collectibles and family has labeled me a hoarder. Yet I know all the items I have, how much they are worth, and actually use them for what they were designed for. Often I will sell stuff off to pay bills or purchase something else I want. Whereas, we have a family friend that goes yard saling every week and just buys stuff because its cheap, doesn't matter what it is. She then takes it home in boxes and stores them up all over the place not knowing what is there and not using any of it. That is how I define hoarding. Pretty much buying anything and everything vs. having a specific area of focus.

 

Hoarding is now in the medical dictionary, and I'd say most of the members here don't have it. At least not solely with comics.

[JasonDaTwit]

You guys are either a bunch of lightweights, or sellers, but not collectors. Collectors can never have enough. And a true collector never reads trades- or buys them- just worthless reprints. Might as well go to the library to read and never take anything home. And when is it a problem? When you buy when you don't have the money, or have no where to neatly keep them. Otherwise, like in everything else, have at it!

 

I respectfully disagree.

 

If you can't walk freely within your own home because you've got all over the place, you are a hoarder. If you can't stop collecting even though bills are piled as high as the fort of comics you've built in your home, you are a hoarder. If collecting comics mean more to you than the health & wellbeing of your loved ones, than you're a hoarder (that's not to say you need to concede to a nagging wife's demands. I mean its when you are using your money to buy books and not buying clothes for your kid or helping your own wife with her medical bills).

 

The term collector generally means you collect something. This "True Collector" is your interpretation of what a collector means to YOU.

 

IMO, A smart collector would just get the book, bag & board it and either buy the downloadable comic or wait for the trade so they preserve the freshness of the comic they bought. Does that mean I'm right? No because the meaning of a "collector" varies from person to person. Some peeps just collect comics with a marriage theme, some collect only DC or Marvel or just one character (Batman, Spider-man, etc). I collect the writing I enjoy. Granted, I collect more trades than comics but if a comic is really good, I'll be collecting. If I feel I can wait for the trade, then I'll do that.

 

In this day and age, you can't expect people to genuinely wait 30 days for part of a story. You don't do that for TV (you wait a week) and they shouldn't do that for comics. It's really a pre-historic way of publishing & distribution. I prefer the manga method of publishing -- giving people big chunks of stories every few months. Rather than reading one small chapter of a story, your reading one big chunk of the story at a lower price and higher page content. It's even better if it's an omnibus like JUDGE DREDD or LONE WOLF & CUB. Heck, the DC EARTH ONE books were following this method for a bit. Right now we're waiting for BATMAN: EARTH ONE - Book 2, SUPERMAN: EARTH ONE - Book 3 and WONDER WOMAN: EARTH ONE.

 

As long as you enjoy collecting and it doesn't hinder your relationship with family and friends or hurt anyone in any way (including yourself), you should enjoy collecting to your heart's content.

 

SIDE NOTE: Collectors who also happen to be habitual smokers will have problems with their collections. If you're a habitual smoker who smokes around their collection constantly, and you have hopes of selling these items in the future, you can say goodbye to the high priced items you've spent years collecting. Comics are sponges for water and cigarette smoke. They stay in books and there's no way to remove that smell. I always smell comics I may buy because I love that old comic smell and I want to make sure it came from a smoke-free environment. If I smell cigarette residue on a comic, I won't buy it. Frankly, I don't want to smell your addiction on my addiction. It's been known to bring down the price of books that would normally commend a high rate.

 

 

Happy Hunting!

[spreads]

I think each circumstance is different, if it doesn't impact your life negatively the number of comics is irrelevant. I was at a collector's house 2 months ago (not a storage unit or warehouse, his home) that had 600 long-boxes. They were all in his basement, and garage, spaces not needed in the house, and his family didn't care too much about it.