NJ Art Con August 28th 3 3

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 7:58 PM, vodou said:

I’m pretty sure it was on CLink, so you likely bought it from the winner there at a healthy flip markup. So it goes, but back to the point at $600 you did vastly overpay. It is possible the overall market move up the next decade will bail you out of it though.

On August 29, 2015, Heritage Auctions sold 4 different ones in the same series for $717.00 and a 5th one for $836.50. As I recall I had seen another one at a private sale for $800-900 (I don’t recall the details).

Edited September 6, 2022 by Rick2you2

[vodou]

Do you think showing me that others sold for too much improves yours?

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 8:12 PM, Rick2you2 said:

On August 29, 2015, Heritage Auctions sold 4 different ones in the same series for $717.00 and a 5th one for $836.50. As I recall I had seen another one at a private sale for $800-900 (I don’t recall the details).

Correction: it was closer to $700.

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 8:18 PM, vodou said:

Do you think showing me that others sold for too much improves yours?

There is nothing to improve. I have no plans to sell, and to my eyes, the piece was a bargain whether the market agrees or not. 
When I posted it in April, 2021, it got 8 likes. So, I guess the market is bigger than 4 people for the right Sparling stuff. 🙂

Edited September 6, 2022 by Rick2you2

[lobrac]

On 9/5/2022 at 4:51 PM, Rick2you2 said:

You confused me there for a few minutes. I spent $600 on one of his “Pin-up Pete” bits of cheesecake from the Korean War era, and I would happily do it again (there have been others for sale). But, it wasn’t from ComicLink. So yes, I do own one, but not what I was looking for. 

It was probably shill bid too, right? Because like, everything is.

Sparling-Gate!

 

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 8:41 PM, lobrac said:

It was probably shill bid too, right? Because like, everything is.

Sparling-Gate!

 

No, it was bought at a New Jersey art con from a real live dealer. Not sure why you think everything being bid up is due to shilling. I don’t.

[Will_K]

I have a 1/2 page from Secret Six 4 by Jack Sparling, just sayin'.  ComicConnect auction in 2020 for $165.00  .

https://www.comicconnect.com/item/895204

Based on comics.org, Sparling didn't draw the entire Bomba series.  But I'd say the covers to Bomba 5 and Bomba 6 would be pretty desirable, not that they'd be in grail territory.

https://www.comics.org/series/1793/covers/?page=1.1

Edited September 6, 2022 by Will_K
links

[lobrac]

On 9/5/2022 at 5:22 PM, Rick2you2 said:

There is nothing to improve. I have no plans to sell, and to my eyes, the piece was a bargain whether the market agrees or not. 
When I posted it in April, 2021, it got 8 likes. So, I guess the market is bigger than 4 people for the right Sparling stuff. 🙂

So approximately $87.50 per “like” on CAF. Seems high. Maybe try posting in one of those art groups on The Facebook to bring down your price-per-like ratio.

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 8:41 PM, lobrac said:

It was probably shill bid too, right? Because like, everything is.

Sparling-Gate!

 

No, it was bought at an NJ art con, not public auction. If anything, I think a higher price for these pieces would be justified by the market

[Rick2you2]

On 9/5/2022 at 8:55 PM, Will_K said:

I have a 1/2 page from Secret Six 4 by Jack Sparling, just sayin'.  ComicConnect auction in 2020 for $165.00  .

Based on comics.org, Sparling didn't draw the entire Bomba series.  But I'd say the covers to Bomba 5 and Bomba 6 would be pretty desirable, not that they'd be in grail territory.

https://www.comics.org/series/1793/covers/?page=1.1

He was a perfectly respectable artist with a long career. Looking at some of his work on-line, he seemed particularly well suited to “real people” like you have, war stories, and those pin-ups and their Eisner-like waists.

[Aahz]

Since we are on Sparling, one of my favorite covers! 

[lobrac]

On 9/5/2022 at 7:10 PM, Heidjer Staecker said:

Since we are on Sparling, one of my favorite covers! 

So great! Yes, I love these grey-tone covers by Sparling he was doing for DC in the early 70s. Some of his best work. This must be the most board chatter ever about Sparling. So here's my small collection of 3 pieces, including one of his grey-tone covers to Unexpected #133. Also the cover to Secret Six #4 and a Clair Voyant strip from 1948. I probably have more money sunk into Sparling than most collectors. But buy what you like and you can't go wrong...and I really, really like all of these! 

 

 

[Bronty]

Cool Secret Six cover, congrats !

[pemart1966]

On 9/5/2022 at 6:16 PM, Bronty said:

 

Call me crazy but I'm going to go with the idea that after selling for decades guys like Mr Mustache might have learned a thing or two.   

Stuff like Bomba is junk at any price to anybody except like four people.    It doesn't so much matter whether you price it at $200 or $300, its not selling either way.    The price isn't as important as whether or not you have one of the four correct people in front of you.

Discounting it doesn't do anything except get you less when you eventually find someone who actually wants it.

 

Make it 5...I love the Leo Sommers' issues.  I bought Bomba #1 off of the stands back in '67.  It's a great book.  I still kick myself for not picking up some Sommers Bomba #1 art that Mitch had years ago...   

[MyNameIsLegion]

oooh, as close to a Jack Sparling thread as we are gonna get! Even ironically! Let me post mine! BRB. 

 

(clicks on CAF link).......lesseee, Smith, Spiegle, Springer....got it! Wait. Not Springer, Sparling. Well this is awkward. (Turns on hidden sold gallery). Damn, I wish I had never sold or traded a lot of this stuff now, anyways....Smith, Spiegle, Springer.... Surely, at some point....but perhaps not, 

[kbmcvay]

On 9/5/2022 at 6:16 PM, Bronty said:

 

Call me crazy but I'm going to go with the idea that after selling for decades guys like Mr Mustache might have learned a thing or two.   

 

 

I guess he learned that if something doesn't sell for $14,000 just double the price because eventually some sucker will come along to buy it maybe some day (this particular example is still unsold many years after being listed on his site at the original price). Original Comic Art by Jack Kirby | Fantastic Four Annual 4 P14 | Nostalgic Investments From the margin notes "There are just not enough Kirby/Sinnott Fantastic Four pages to go around to all that want them." This may be true but nobody is banging down the door to buy this page. They weren't at $14K and they still aren't. "How often are you going to see the Human Torch battle the Golden Age Human Torch?" Every time you visit your website by clicking on that link is how often because even if it sells by some miracle it will likely never be removed from your website.

I wish he'd learn how to have a website that loads properly so you can see all of the artwork as opposed to what it does now which is show random pages by an artist and then repeats half of those pages again when you go to the next webpage of artwork. I also wish he would clear off sold thumbnails so when you click on them it doesn't give you an error that it doesn't exist. Page Not Found | Nostalgic Investments Even better, actually remove the stuff that is sold and solve the problem completely.

 

 

Edited September 6, 2022 by kbmcvay

[Bronty]

On 9/6/2022 at 8:37 AM, kbmcvay said:

I guess he learned that if something doesn't sell for $14,000 just double the price because eventually some sucker will come along to buy it maybe some day (this particular example is still unsold many years after being listed on his site at the original price). Original Comic Art by Jack Kirby | Fantastic Four Annual 4 P14 | Nostalgic Investments From the margin notes "There are just not enough Kirby/Sinnott Fantastic Four pages to go around to all that want them." This may be true but nobody is banging down the door to buy this page. They weren't at $14K and they still aren't. "How often are you going to see the Human Torch battle the Golden Age Human Torch?" Every time you visit your website by clicking on that link is how often because even if it sells by some miracle it will likely never be removed from your website.

I wish he'd learn how to have a website that loads properly so you can see all of the artwork as opposed to what it does now which is show random pages by an artist and then repeats half of those pages again when you go to the next webpage of artwork. I also wish he would clear off sold thumbnails so when you click on them it doesn't give you an error that it doesn't exist. Page Not Found | Nostalgic Investments Even better, actually remove the stuff that is sold and solve the problem completely.

 

 

If we turned that same critical eye towards every buy, sell, and listing you’ve ever made, I wonder what we’d uncover?   I’ve certainly made mistakes , haven’t you?    It’s easy to throw stones but at the end of the day guys like Bechara and Moy have great inventory because they saw value, they saw it early , and perhaps most important of all they delayed gratification - they did NOT take the first shiny nickel they were offered.      They waited for more.    Which brings us full circle.    You get typically get ONE chance to sell this stuff because it’s usually impossible to buy back.    You make the most of it, or you leave money on the table.    

[kbmcvay]

On 9/6/2022 at 9:09 AM, Bronty said:

If we turned that same critical eye towards every buy, sell, and listing you’ve ever made, I wonder what we’d uncover?  

Yawn. Why don't you start an investigation on it?

On 9/6/2022 at 9:09 AM, Bronty said:

 It’s easy to throw stones but at the end of the day guys like Bechara and Moy have great inventory because they saw value, they saw it early , and perhaps most important of all they delayed gratification - they did NOT take the first shiny nickel they were offered.      They waited for more.    Which brings us full circle.    You get typically get ONE chance to sell this stuff because it’s usually impossible to buy back.    You make the most of it, or you leave money on the table.    

I don't think anybody has even mentioned Moy in a critical manner in this thread and I actually was very complimentary of him in this thread and others. You're right it is easy to thrown stones at Mr. Mustache because his website is garbage, he's a jerk in real life and his pricing practices are what they are. If he bought a page for $100 and then priced it at $3,000 and somebody offered him $2,700 for it he would turn them down because in his mind he was losing $300 not making $2,600. 90% of something is better than 100% of nothing which is what it is when it doesn't sell. Ever. He can do what he wants and some people will buy from him but I never will.

 

[Bronty]

On 9/6/2022 at 9:40 AM, kbmcvay said:

Yawn. Why don't you start an investigation on it?

I don't think anybody has even mentioned Moy in a critical manner in this thread and I actually was very complimentary of him in this thread and others. You're right it is easy to thrown stones at Mr. Mustache because his website is garbage, he's a jerk in real life and his pricing practices are what they are. If he bought a page for $100 and then priced it at $3,000 and somebody offered him $2,700 for it he would turn them down because in his mind he was losing $300 not making $2,600. 90% of something is better than 100% of nothing which is what it is when it doesn't sell. Ever. He can do what he wants and some people will buy from him but I never will.

 

1) You can dislike the guy all you want.   I've never had any interaction with him and have no comment on his personality.    

2) Disliking the guy doesn't mean he's wrong in his approach.    In your example of holding out for 3k instead of 2700, why would he sell below replacement cost?   If 3k is a fair replacement price (separate discussion) then selling for 2700 *IS* losing 300.   His cost base, whether its a hundred dollars or a billion dollars, is irrelevant.

3) Expanding on #2, when a dealer prices something for $3,000 that he paid $3,500 for at the time, do you care for one second that he paid too much?    You don't much care about what he paid in that scenario do you?    Granted, that scenario is less common, but it happens from time to time.

Edited September 6, 2022 by Bronty

[vodou]

On 9/6/2022 at 10:55 AM, Bronty said:

If 3k is a fair replacement price (separate discussion) then selling for 2700 *IS* losing 300.   His cost base, whether its $100 or $100,000, is irrelevant.

Yes, if being an ongoing concern versus a liquidation event is what’s it’s about then inventory replacement cost is the model.

Does anybody here watch the news or read the newspaper or news sites? This will be the new pricing model for everything sooner than later. Inventory in hand already is worth more than promises. I like most everybody on this site, and wish you all the best, but man get with the program or you will get left painfully behind and I don’t just mean in building or maintaining your collections!