Comics Handling at the LCS...

[fastballspecial]

DCBS is Discount Comic Book Service out of Northern Indiana. I think now they are the largest subscription service for comic buyers now that they swallowed up another smaller one last year.

 

[Ken Aldred]

 

The worst part: a lot of books don't even make it to the shelf anymore in NM. If you've ever opened a package of weekly comics, it is amazing how they are shipped to the store. The first time I was witness to it, I was horrified. This was in recent times too. It is incredible to imagine what the shipments must have looked like 30, 40, or even 50 years ago.

 

 

Diamond UK are quite renowned over here for being more than a little careless while processing and packing their wholesale stock. I saw quite a number of deliveries with badly impact-damaged books at the LCS that I used to go to each week. So, even fresh on the shelves, finding ultra high grade can be difficult and not necessarily due to mishandling in the shop itself.

[jmelton8]

Every shop I've been to in Knoxville bag and board the comics as they put them out.

[towards2112]

And to think that when I had a store, the biggest problem I had was all the

fanboys clogging the aisles, reading their comic books before they bought them.

[GeeksAreMyPeeps]

Well, it's a good point. Buy comics to read them and enjoy the stories, art, and intrigue, and you'll never have to concern yourself with their minty freshness.

Some of us like to do both.

[loadstone]

DCBS is Discount Comic Book Service out of Northern Indiana. I think now they are the largest subscription service for comic buyers now that they swallowed up another smaller one last year.

 

I began using DCBS as a backup for variants and items that my LCS either didn't order or sold out too quickly. It nearly replaced my LCS . For the most part they are very reliable, but I would spend the extra .12 cents per issue to have them shipped bagged and boarded as I've received some raws that showed signs of damage from the way they bundled them all together. . They do ship them safely in very sturdy cardboard boxes and use a couple solid foam pads that render the comics immovable in the box.

 

However, the prices on their variants got ridiculous and can be found on ebay pre-sales and other online shops cheaper. I also received a couple with water droplet damage on some pricey variants and they weren't willing to take them back. Their return policy is pretty much non-existent whenever I've tried talking with customer service and they will only remove items from your order if they haven't been already been filled yet they often don't fill orders until sometimes after the order has already been released in stores. Their discounts are pretty decent even compared to some deep LCS loyalty discounts on pull box issues. However, shipping costs eats into a large chunk of that discount especially if you want your comics delivered more than once a month.

 

DCBS used to be better and is still a pretty good alternative especially if you don't have a LCS nearby but there are some key pros and cons.

 

Pros:

1. 40% off most new issues and 50% off most TPB

2. Greatest selection of titles to order from including new low print variants

3. Safely packed and shipped though I recommend adding polybag/boards for shipping

4. Decent website format and pullbox option with account management features.

 

 

Cons:

1. Shipping costs can eat up any discounts if not ordering a bunch of comics.

1A. For once a month it's $6.95 flat even if you're only ordering 1 comic. Order at least 5 comics to break even, 9 to realize 20% in savings, 20 comics to realize 30% savings. (My LCS gives me a 25% discount on all new issues)

1B. For twice a month add another $6.95 ($13.90 total) order at least 9 comics to break even.

1C. For weekly it comes to $20.85 total. Order at least 13 comics to break even.

2. DCBS prices 1:100 -1:300 variants out of the market. you can find them cheaper elsewhere

3. You can't inspect your comics before you pay so you don't get to cherry pick and don't get to see if any have severe printing errors or shipping or handling damage.

4. Returns and cancellations are not accepted once an order has been filled or shipped.

5. They sometimes fail to fill all orders on time so you end up having to wait another shipping cycle to receive them.