Do you crack slabs for books staying in your PC? 3 3

[innocuous]

On 2/17/2022 at 5:38 PM, Robot Man said:

I have never been happy really with reprints. Paper and color saturation is different. Digital is out of the question.

”Female Repellent” Ha! Maybe if they could capture that Edgar Church scent. There is nothing like a deep whiff of one of those. Anybody who has partook will know what I mean…

This.

First thing I do after cracking out a book is smell it. (Yay for comic chat boards where this statement is totally reasonable.)

[badback83]

On 2/18/2022 at 12:30 AM, innocuous said:

This.

First thing I do after cracking out a book is smell it. (Yay for comic chat boards where this statement is totally reasonable.)

I smell books at shows.  Can’t beat that Gold/Silver aroma.  You wouldn’t believe the strange looks I get.  I thought that was a common thing.

[comicjack]

On 2/18/2022 at 7:24 AM, DocHoppus182 said:

I smell books at shows.  Can’t beat that Gold/Silver aroma.  You wouldn’t believe the strange looks I get.  I thought that was a common thing.

More common with collectors who get it still love the smell of a golden age inside pages

[toro]

I am 90% into silver age, so I don't need to crack mine out as I would have purchased that same book for 12 cents as a kid.  I still have a few of those books.  Avengers #4, Silver Surfer #1 and others.  Most of those books are now coverless or beat to heck as my brother, cousin and myself read those books dozens of times. 

[lou_fine]

On 2/16/2022 at 1:33 PM, Robot Man said:

I don’t really enjoy them much. Such a one dimensial experience. Look at the cover and put it aside.

They are much prettier in a shiny Mylar and I can pull them out and enjoy them whenever I want. 

This is pretty much it in a nutshell.  

Being a long time collector from the old days, a slabbed book is not so much a comic book to be enjoyed anymore, but much more a commercial product meant for potential resale.    

[silverseeker]

On 2/18/2022 at 10:59 AM, lou_fine said:

Being a long time collector from the old days, a slabbed book is not so much a comic book to be enjoyed anymore, but much more a commercial product meant for potential resale.    

This is also pretty much it in a nutshell. 

When I got back into collecting in 2000, CGC was relatively new to the hobby and the majority of key books (or any books, really) available at cons and on eBay were raw, so I pretty much collected raw books and cracked out the few slabbed books I purchased for my personal collection.

Things have obviously changed a lot since 2000, but I thought this bears mentioning...

[Venomous72]

Well now I’m even more tempted. This little flap on the spine, I want to fold it back down…

[Lord Gemini]

On 2/18/2022 at 12:59 PM, lou_fine said:

This is pretty much it in a nutshell.  

Being a long time collector from the old days, a slabbed book is not so much a comic book to be enjoyed anymore, but much more a commercial product meant for potential resale.    

I personally just like the look of it slabbed. I have plenty of books that I never intend to sell as long as I live (though it would be nice to have something ready to go for my family when I pass...sorry, just got dark. Ha ha.). It's also a nice feeling that the comic is fairly well protected.

[lou_fine]

On 2/19/2022 at 7:28 AM, Lord Gemini said:

I personally just like the look of it slabbed.

Clearly a case of to each their own, as I find the big bulky slabs to be more industrial looking as opposed to simply a clear mylar sleeve where the gloss and beauty of the books really stands out all on its own with nothing else to get in the way.   

Edited February 19, 2022 by lou_fine

[Randall Dowling]

On 2/19/2022 at 8:35 AM, Venomous72 said:

Well now I’m even more tempted. This little flap on the spine, I want to fold it back down…

CRACK.  IT.

Get that baby out of there and check out Steve Ditko's awesome art in person the same way kids did 57 years ago.  It's a time machine, take it for a ride!!  

[shadroch]

On 2/18/2022 at 11:59 AM, lou_fine said:

This is pretty much it in a nutshell.  

Being a long time collector from the old days, a slabbed book is not so much a comic book to be enjoyed anymore, but much more a commercial product meant for potential resale.    

You say that as if it is a bad thing.  I love the fact that comics let me take an early retirement.

[lou_fine]

On 2/19/2022 at 11:02 AM, shadroch said:

You say that as if it is a bad thing.  I love the fact that comics let me take an early retirement.

No, definitely not a bad thing for the exact reason that you pointed out as it's always good to diversify your retirement funds.   

Especially when the equity markets have taken a big tumble in the past few months with many of the once red hot popular growth stocks being pummeled and crushed by a 60% to 80% hit from their recent highs. 

Always good to slab if you are selling your vintage collectible comic books, but since this thread was asking about books for your own personal collection, I much prefer my books to be encased in clear glossy mylar sleeves.  Especially since they also take up a lot less room in terms of your storage space, particularly when it comes to your expensive high end books in a safety deposit box. 

[shadroch]

Once I discovered Omni's and archives, my feelings for comics evolved.  My eyes take to the larger versions better, and having a collection of expensive anythings can be a burden. 

I'm sorry if you are not doing well in the market.  None of my holdings are off anything like 60%.  I did sell a book for less than I paid for it. I don't like doing that but I apparently misread the market for it.

[Venomous72]

This seems like it might be tricky. Plenty of room at the top, but toward the bottom of the right edge the book is pretty much flush in the inner well….

Not sure there is a safe way to get this out 

[Number 6]

On 2/20/2022 at 12:33 PM, Venomous72 said:

This seems like it might be tricky. Plenty of room at the top, but toward the bottom of the right edge the book is pretty much flush in the inner well….

Not sure there is a safe way to get this out 

The key is to cut along the weld which is about a quarter inch away from the the inner well and the book. 

[Venomous72]

On 2/20/2022 at 1:50 PM, Number 6 said:

The key is to cut along the weld which is about a quarter inch away from the the inner well and the book. 

Oooh i didn’t know I don’t need to cut where the inner well is…’open’. Just inside the weld. TIL!
 

I’ve cracked a few books before, didn’t know I could cut that far away from it 

Edited February 20, 2022 by Venomous72