How much more are you willing to pay for nice colours on your vintage comic cover? 2 2

[William-James88]

I was looking at a random World's Finest book and just taken aback by the nice blue on the cover. These books sell for guide or less so I bid guide and it was not enough, so I bid some more, still not enough. I could buy the same book at guide price (not hard to find) but something about those colours just speak to me. Clearly I am not alone, as the bidding shows. Not sure how much I'd overpay. And now I wonder how you guys feel, how much are you ready to pay above market price for nicer colours?

[buttock]

On 1/11/2022 at 9:41 AM, William-James88 said:

I was looking at a random World's Finest book and just taken aback by the nice blue on the cover. These books sell for guide or less so I bid guide and it was not enough, so I bid some more, still not enough. I could buy the same book at guide price (not hard to find) but something about those colours just speak to me. Clearly I am not alone, as the bidding shows. Not sure how much I'd overpay. And now I wonder how you guys feel, how much are you ready to pay above market price for nicer colours?

Enough to get the book I want.  

[theCapraAegagrus]

Are you talking about more vibrant and/or less-faded colors?

[William-James88]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:50 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

Are you talking about more vibrant and/or less-faded colors?

yes, exactly

My specific example would be this:

Over this:

 

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:57 AM, William-James88 said:

yes, exactly

My specific example would be this:

Over this:

I am always willing to pay more for better quality.

[october]

Eye appeal (especially cover colors) > technical grade for me every time. 

[Robot Man]

Nice color on a book is huge to me. I often pay a little more for nice color. In fact, I have often even downgraded a little for better color. Fiction House comes to mind right away. They were printed poorly. The books at the beginning of the print run are usually nicer than the end of the run. A high grade technical copy just doesn’t cut it if the color isn’t vibrant and rich. 

[William-James88]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:59 AM, theCapraAegagrus said:

I am always willing to pay more for better quality.

me too, but how much more? That's what I am debating

[Ken Aldred]

Very tough to quantify as a percentage.

 

[theCapraAegagrus]

On 1/11/2022 at 12:25 PM, William-James88 said:

me too, but how much more? That's what I am debating

I think that the answer would vary too much. $150 more for a Tomb of Terror #16 3.5 with contrasting colors like the example you provided? Sure. $500 more for a Black Cat Mystery #50 3.5 in the same situation? I would think about it. I wouldn't touch 4-figures.

[october]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:25 AM, William-James88 said:

me too, but how much more? That's what I am debating

If it's between a copy with nice colors and a copy with mediocre colors, the converation in my head is less about a premium for the former and more about whether I want the inferior copy at all. The answer is usually no. That said, I would go 20-40% more for a truly exceptional looking copy. The Fiction House example above is a good one. Strong colors on a lot of those mid-run FH books should garner significant premiums, even though they often don't.

I would also expect to pay over guide for a nice looking WF 90. That's one of the more in-demand issues from that title, at least for the era. 

[Robot Man]

On 1/11/2022 at 9:25 AM, William-James88 said:

me too, but how much more? That's what I am debating

That is impossible to state. Depends on the book, and how much I want it with better color.

There is never a rule as to how much to pay for books. Every collector has his own limitations.

[MattTheDuck]

So I've been advised by people much more knowledgeable than I that I should be looking for good color on the FH books I'm collecting, as noted by @october.  I have a general idea of FMV on these books, which includes both books with good color and books without it (as I understand it, CGC does not really consider this when assigning a grade).  I feel like I am not seeing books that have good color that are priced at a premium, but I may have too small a sample size to go on.  

[Funnybooks]

much more 

[HighRadArt]

On 1/11/2022 at 8:57 AM, William-James88 said:

yes, exactly

My specific example would be this:

Over this:

 

Beautiful example.  I would prefer the first book over the second but I would also have to consider the cost.  Which I could consider with a BIN or fixed price.  How bad I want a book and bidding on said book never seems to end in my favor. 

[Lazyboy]

On 1/11/2022 at 10:57 AM, William-James88 said:

My specific example would be this

Just be careful. Images are not all created equal. Sometimes books mysteriously  look much better in pictures than they do in person.

However, in this specific example, it would be shocking if the first book somehow didn't look better than the second in person.

[adamstrange]

On 1/11/2022 at 11:57 AM, William-James88 said:

yes, exactly

My specific example would be this:

Over this:

 

 

This is the one I found acceptable.

 

[Point Five]

On 1/11/2022 at 2:19 PM, Lazyboy said:

Just be careful. Images are not all created equal. Sometimes books mysteriously  look much better in pictures than they do in person.

Yeah, I was about to say the same. Sometimes scans and photos can naturally boost the color strike and saturation level… and other times it’s done intentionally. If you’re about to pay much more for a book’s color strike based on a scan, worth a skim through the rest of the seller’s inventory to see if *everything* is similarly amped.

[William-James88]

On 1/11/2022 at 12:33 PM, october said:

I would also expect to pay over guide for a nice looking WF 90. That's one of the more in-demand issues from that title, at least for the era. 

And yet the less nice WF 90 I posted is currently available at guide price. I'll take a look at the ficiton house examples, I am super curious now.

On 1/11/2022 at 1:46 PM, MattTheDuck said:

So I've been advised by people much more knowledgeable than I that I should be looking for good color on the FH books I'm collecting, as noted by @october.  I have a general idea of FMV on these books, which includes both books with good color and books without it (as I understand it, CGC does not really consider this when assigning a grade).  I feel like I am not seeing books that have good color that are priced at a premium, but I may have too small a sample size to go on.  

CGC does not consider it in general. Especially since the colour may simply be due to printing (like with the FH comics) and printing defects are not accounted for till you get to really high grades. They are also lenient on dust shadow and the like. It's not wear from handling and won't stop from getting VF/NM on GA comics. I guess it goes back to the old adage of "buy the book not the slab".

On 1/11/2022 at 12:16 PM, Robot Man said:

Nice color on a book is huge to me. I often pay a little more for nice color. In fact, I have often even downgraded a little for better color. Fiction House comes to mind right away. They were printed poorly. The books at the beginning of the print run are usually nicer than the end of the run. A high grade technical copy just doesn’t cut it if the color isn’t vibrant and rich. 

I remember I had a slabbed ASM 15 in 8.0 once that was much more faded than a raw 6.0. I put the 8.0 for sale and kept my 6.0. 

Edited January 11, 2022 by William-James88

[Funnybooks]

color strike becomes less important in my mind as the book falls below mid-grade. A high grade copy that's faded or exhibits dust shadows is a turn off.

I would "gladly" pay up for a nicer copy in grade that's centered with exceptional color strike