Gettin me started...

[Ajax]

I am starting to collect golden age comics, I am not rich, so what superhero series is easy to collect from the golden age, and are low grade golden age worth anything?

[batman_fan]

My personal believe is one of the best titles to collect on a budget is Captain Marvel. Do a little searching on ebay and you will see how affordable these books are. Is it a title that will go up significantly in value? My guess is no just because the character does not have the same wide appeal he had when the books were originally made, but some pretty cool covers in the run.

[143ksk]

Captain Marvel would be my choice for most inexpensive GA hero title. They are also excellent comics to read. Plastic Man would also be in that ballpark. Beyond that, it depends what you like. My advice is to read some GA titles and see what appeals to you. Most GA books are available in reprint form somewhere, so you can at least get some exposure before you start buying. I personally am very fond of Nedor (especially Exciting) and MLJ (especially Pep and Hangman).

[CW]

If you aren't to picky on dates, some of the 50's E.C. stuff can be reasonable in low grade. That stuff has some of the craziest cover art I've seen. Although note that it is technically post Golden-Age.

[rjpb]

low grade GA, unless it's totally thrashed is often an easier sell than mid-high grade as it is more affordable to many collectors. If you're on a tight budget, late GA (1946-1954) is generally more plentiful and much cheaper. You can still find popular titles like Batman in G-VG for under $50 if you look around. early 50s Quality books like Plasticman, Dollman & Blackhawk can be found for $15-$30. If you are interested in other genres beside super-hero books, there are lots of War, Western, Crime, Romance and other stuff that that can be found for $10 or less, although if the cover is considered "classic" it can run alot more.

 

Ebay is great for all this stuff - if you are patient and do a little research as to what stuff should sell for, you can find tons of GA for 20%-70% of guide. Also if you buy raw lower grade books at a discount from guide, then getting a book you think is really a 3.0, but was advertised as a 4.0, is still often worth keeping (and if not, most GA sellers will take a book back). Also unnoticed or undisclosed restoration, especially if minor, is less of a financial risk for VG or less books, as they don't usually lose a high percentage of their value if they turn out to have some restoration, but I would still suggest learning what you can on how to spot restoration as it is all too common on GA books.

 

Finally, I would say you are always better off spending $50 on a book you really want than you are buying 2 $25 books you sort of like, but are tempted to buy because they are cheaper. Don't buy a comic just because it's old, buy it because you think the cover, or character, or art, or story is cool.

[the blob]

I'd agree in Captain Marvel allowing you to get some fun issues for not huge money.

 

By GA, what do you mean? 1940s only?

 

There are still low grade Batmans and Supermans (and Adventures, Actions and World's FInests) from the 50s, technically "pre-silver age") that are also cheap.

 

The Captain Marvels (particularly post-World War II) and 50s DCs are less common than most SA DCs and Marvels, but they're really not "rare" either.

 

And some of the Disney stuff, if you're into it, can also be picked up inexpensively. There's a lot of foreign interest in Disney comics, so there are nice prospects for long-term demand (especially if the dollar remaines in the cr apper forever.

 

From your standpoint, one nice thing is that even with these more common issues, it's not like a copper or bronze or many SA books where you see 10-25 copies for sale at any given time. plug in a random issue # for GA captain marvel or whiz comics and maybe you'll see 1-3 copies for sale at any given time. plug in some random late 40s-mid 50s issues of the DCs and there may be no copies for sale at any given time. it means that if you do sell, there's at least a chance that multiple bidders may be interested because there aren't many copies up.

[shrunkenhead]

Yep, Fawcett superheroes in low to midgrade would be your most economic superhero choice. If you're looking for highgrade goldenage on a budget, you might want to look for runs of funny animal books...

[Silver Surfer]

I am starting to collect golden age comics, I am not rich, so what superhero series is easy to collect from the golden age, and are low grade golden age worth anything?

 

If your a Marvel fan pick up "The Golden Age of Marvel Comics" or there is a new Masterworks edition that is on the advance preview section of Mile High's website that I think is going for around $40. I think that way you can get a flavour of various titles that were produced on the cheap.

[lou_fine]

Yep, Fawcett superheroes in low to midgrade would be your most economic superhero choice. If you're looking for highgrade goldenage on a budget, you might want to look for runs of funny animal books...

 

If you are planning to go for Fawcetts, it's probably better to go for the early Master Comics. These covers are generally better than the standard Fawcett humourous covers and can even be veiwed as classic covers, expecially if by Raboy.

 

Only problem is these issues are very tough to find and will likely run over guide if you are lucky enough to find them. They will, however, provide you with some investment return potential at the same time.

[seank]

Why stick with hero books? One of the great things about Golden Age collecting is the presence of EVERYTHING! There's crime, heroes, funny animals, teenage antics, action, adventure, humor, SF, fantasy, western you name it, it's there. Low grade GA is affordable. Check out whatever catches your eye at first, then focus on what you like.

[sborock]

I am starting to collect golden age comics, I am not rich, so what superhero series is easy to collect from the golden age, and are low grade golden age worth anything?

 

Blackhawk, Military, Plasticman, Police, Exciting, and Thrilling, all have some really great stories, covers and art. You can usually by mid grade copies for a decent price..................

[nearmint]

I am starting to collect golden age comics, I am not rich, so what superhero series is easy to collect from the golden age, and are low grade golden age worth anything?

 

Blackhawk, Military, Plasticman, Police, Exciting, and Thrilling, all have some really great stories, covers and art. You can usually by mid grade copies for a decent price..................

 

And America's Best, Black Terror, Fighting Yank, Startling, Wonder...

[tilleycs]

I am starting to collect golden age comics, I am not rich, so what superhero series is easy to collect from the golden age, and are low grade golden age worth anything?

 

So are you trying to find something that you like or are you looking for investment/speculation advice?

[FFB]

Why stick with hero books? One of the great things about Golden Age collecting is the presence of EVERYTHING! There's crime, heroes, funny animals, teenage antics, action, adventure, humor, SF, fantasy, western you name it, it's there. Low grade GA is affordable. Check out whatever catches your eye at first, then focus on what you like.

 

 

I am exclusively a superhero collector in my silver and bronze age collecting, but every GA book I've ever purchased (except for a couple of scuba covers) was a crime book. GA crime is better than the superhero stuff IMO, because the stories are not as goofy.

 

xoktrunks, you might try picking up a few lower grade GA crime books and see what you think. They're a lot more affordable than superhero books and you might just find that you enjoy reading them.

[Ajax]

yeah, I'm also interested in crime and horror, which i'll look into any suggestions on those genre's

[FFB]

yeah, I'm also interested in crime and horror, which i'll look into any suggestions on those genre's

 

Here's a story from Crime & Punishment #69 that dmgcsr posted a while back. Read this and see if it's your thing (wait for all of the pictures to load):

 

Linkie

[Ajax]

Yep, apparently crime/suspense is my thing.

[FFB]

Yep, apparently crime/suspense is my thing.

 

Mine too.

[Ajax]

now are most crime/suspense expensive?

[FFB]

now are most crime/suspense expensive?

 

Compared to most GA superhero books? No, quite the contrary. Unless you're buying ultra high grade, they are not expensive at all. Check your Overstreet Price Guide for any of the books in the GA crime thread.