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Attempting to collect DC Showcase 1-104 in 9.0 or better!
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Started by FloridianDemon,

393 posts in this topic

tth2

tth2

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On 6/15/2024 at 2:20 PM, Mississippi Mudcats said:

The Slobodian book has been a topic of discussion for some time. I do believe the reported sale on GPA of over $200k is a fake and said so in my registry set.

For a long time, I also would've assumed it was a fake sale, but based on some reported private sales during Covid of other DC and Marvel mega-keys at insane prices to a buyer, who then recently unloaded several at a huge loss, I'm now inclined to believe that it could be a real number.    

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tth2

tth2

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On 6/15/2024 at 2:20 PM, Mississippi Mudcats said:

But if anyone comes across a nice Issue #39 in 9.0 or above, we (my son and I) would very much like to upgrade our #39 8.5. I have not seen one for sale since we started our Metal Men set. 

Very tough book.  The best I've come up with was a raw copy I owned from a long way back, which graded out only to 8.0 when I submitted it to CGC.  NEVER seen any higher grade slabs come up for sale on any of the auction sites.  

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tth2

tth2

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On 6/15/2024 at 2:54 PM, Mississippi Mudcats said:

Interesting, I never knew Brulato ever slummed enough to buy any DCs. I would love to see his books registered, what would he have 30-40 million registry points?  It would just be fun to see all the pics. 

He doesn't collect DCs as far as I know but will acquire them opportunistically if he thinks he can flip them at a decent profit.  I bought a bunch of Legions from him back in the day.

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tth2

tth2

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On 6/15/2024 at 10:32 PM, DanCooper said:

especially when compared to the prior Showcase 38 MM issue, which has a whopping 46 copies in 9.0+ plus three in 9.8! Must have been some kind of warehouse find.

I've always thought so.  The 9.8 copy I owned may still be the nicest looking early SA book I've ever owned, even if the miswrap used to drive my OCD-addled brain a little nuts.

  image.thumb.jpeg.dff05340801d7f79753f0b6f9a6c726b.jpeg

 

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tth2

tth2

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On 6/16/2024 at 12:20 AM, Mississippi Mudcats said:

At any rate, we have debated delisting all our books as you kind of feel stupid when the fact that you may have overpaid for a book is disclosed to the world. I feel like that was suggested a little in this thread on our Showcases  #34-36 and that may be right, but I can promise you we paid nowhere close to six figures for the set.

I wouldn't let that put you off.  Sure, people (including myself :foryou:) can be snarky about prices, but there's usually an element of envy underlying the snark. 

I certainly received no shortage of comments ranging from snark to outright criticism when I was paying record prices for SA DC and GA Ducks back in the day.  I always just liked to think that he who laughs last laughs loudest.

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Mississippi Mudcats

Mississippi Mudcats

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On 6/15/2024 at 11:31 AM, tth2 said:

I can help fill in some of the chain of ownership on these books.

I bought the WP Showcase 35 & 36 in 2004 directly from Tom Hanlin/Linmoth, who is the guy who slabbed them after having bought them directly from the OO (I think).  They were originally 9.6 OW-W and 9.6 OW, respectively, in old label slabs.

I sold them in the same slabs in May 2007 on Heritage.  It turns out I knew the collector who ended up buying them, so when a big SA collector told me he was looking for them, I was able to help broker a deal in 2009 (still in the same slabs).  The funny thing is that this collector was the same collector who had sold me a big run of Western Penn Flash back in early 2003 (yes, it can be a very incestuous hobby at times).

I unfortunately fell out of touch with this collector, but apparently at some point he sold them to a couple of other collectors who starting from 2009 began sweeping up just about every ultra-HG mega-key SA DC they could get their hands on.  For all I know, the collector I brokered the deal with was himself brokering a deal for these other collectors!  Then 4 or 5 years ago those collectors started shopping their collection around.  Whether they were the sellers to you, or there was one or more intermediate purchasers in between, I don't know.  And clearly the books were reslabbed and regraded at some point after 2009. 

Thanks, that makes some sense. The guy who I got the books from, who likes to stay anonymous, had an incredible collection of SA DCs-undoubtedly the ultra HG collector you referenced. He sold most of them off over the last 5-6 years. I bought some books directly from him and some at auction, but I by no means got them all. He stills collects and buys and sells comics, but his focus has changed. His books were never registered, but he was like the Brulato of DCs. 

I am not a good judge of grading, but I do have a lot of 9.6s that look worse than the Showcase #34. Unfortunately, grading is so subjective that it is one of the most frustrating things about this hobby. I know I have upgraded dozens of books where I have sold my under-copy, only to see that book reappear in the market at a higher grade, sometimes higher than the book that replaced it in our collection. I really wish that CGC would only grade a book once. 

Thanks for the info and take care… 

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tth2

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On 6/16/2024 at 12:58 AM, Mississippi Mudcats said:

I know I have upgraded dozens of books where I have sold my under-copy, only to see that book reappear in the market at a higher grade, sometimes higher than the book that replaced it in our collection. I really wish that CGC would only grade a book once. 

This is a major reason why I pretty much got out of collecting comic books.  Being someone who had focused on books that had historically been considered to be really hard to find in ultra-HG, and then realizing that a perfect storm of pressing (and other manipulation), resubbing and re-resubbing and general CGC inconsistency could make many previously tough books almost a dime a dozen, killed off most of my enthusiasm.  

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Chiparus

Chiparus

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On 6/15/2024 at 5:38 PM, tth2 said:

Very tough book.  The best I've come up with was a raw copy I owned from a long way back, which graded out only to 8.0 when I submitted it to CGC.  NEVER seen any higher grade slabs come up for sale on any of the auction sites.  

SAM I AM, picked up the Don/Maggie 9.0 for his set back in 2014. Unlikely to sell it I guess although someone is keen to buy it. (I assume thats you Tom). 

I'm going for a couple upgrades in the next comic link auction in a couple days time. 

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DanCooper

DanCooper

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On 6/15/2024 at 12:48 PM, tth2 said:

even if the miswrap used to drive my OCD-addled brain a little nuts.

If true, then this 9.2 Showcase 39 should drive you over the edge, Tim! (NOT mine. Taken from the Gallery)

I do agree on miswraps. Nothing like nicely centered comics! Baseball cards grading takes it seriously, not so much in comics!

comic

Edited by DanCooper
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Chiparus

Chiparus

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Not particularly great for me either last night. Out of the 6 books I bid on (5 upgrades, 1 new) I got just one. 

#50 from 9.4 to 9.6 

Was the underbidder on #18 and #48 so a little gutted there.

Although I did get BAT LASH #1 in 9.6. 

 

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FloridianDemon

FloridianDemon

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On 6/21/2024 at 3:23 AM, Chiparus said:

Not particularly great for me either last night. Out of the 6 books I bid on (5 upgrades, 1 new) I got just one. 

#50 from 9.4 to 9.6 

Was the underbidder on #18 and #48 so a little gutted there.

Although I did get BAT LASH #1 in 9.6. 

 

Ah! Its was YOU lmao I was trying hard on the #48 hahaha, that one hurt the most. I also bid 6 but got outbid on all of em

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Silver

Silver

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On 6/15/2024 at 9:48 AM, tth2 said:

I've always thought so.  The 9.8 copy I owned may still be the nicest looking early SA book I've ever owned, even if the miswrap used to drive my OCD-addled brain a little nuts.

  image.thumb.jpeg.dff05340801d7f79753f0b6f9a6c726b.jpeg

 

I think #38 was one of the books in the 3-Pak’s that DC was selling in 1962, along with Aquaman #3, Action Comics #288 etc. That would explain the higher numbers. I bought an Action #288 from the SDCC many years ago from a seller that had a bunch of these 3-Paks that he opened. I always wanted to own an unopened pak as May ‘62 is my birth month and year. Since this is a May ‘62 book that explains it to me. I think the collective value made it easier to sell the individual books than a whole pak. The Action I bought was incredibly fresh. 

Edited by Silver
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Silver

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You can see that the date on the Superman is May and Showcase 38 is June. I think it makes sense these were in the Comicpac's accounting for their higher numbers in the census. 

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