Action Comics #96 9.8 or Action #4 8.0, which is a better investment?

[Mr_Glass]

Well I currently own a Action Comics #96 9.8 Mile High. Comiclink has a Action #4 VF 8.0. I really would like to get this book and I probably could do an almost straight trade I think but what do you guys think will be a better book when I look back 10-25 years from now to sell.

 

 

 

Thanks,

Mr. Glass

 

[FlyingDonut]

Hmmm. I'll bet you could sell the 96 for more than the $10,500 on the open market. Better straight investment - probably the Action 4, but a 9.8(!) 96 is pretty sweet as well.

[PedigreeMan]

(A bit biased, but ...)

 

Keep The PEDIGREE!!

 

 

But seriously ... if you're talking pure profit, it should be a toss-up. Therefore, remember the #1 rule: Collect what you enjoy!

 

In other words, if an Action #4 would make you happier, go for it!

 

Al

[clarkkentdds]

Keep the pedigree...That is a sweet book. I think I've seen it before. Did you buy it recently??

 

Yeah the #4 is awesome too... Both are one-of-a-kind.

[Shield]

I'd always say go for the Action #4...However, that Edgar Church guy + 9.8 + Action = keep it.

 

Seriously, the Mile High book is a one of a kind, and you may come across a Fine, VF-, or even a NM- copy of an Action #4. You have the only Mile High copy of #96, so it's more unique.

 

Of course, for pure coolness factor, I'd rather have Action #4 just because of the historical significance (No superman on the cover, 4th app of Superman). But, you're amongst a group of CGC ultra high grade fans on these boards.

 

 

Ask yourself another question - If it weren't for investment factor, which one would you rather have? You realize if you were to crack the 9.8 open and read it, then later re-submit it, it may only come back a 9.6. That would seriously cut into the selling value of the book, right? I see comic link has 9.4 CGC Mile Highs near that number for 1/2 the cost. This is the reason why I don't collect ultra-high grade - you can't read it and NOT WORRY about damaging it. What fun is that?

 

Of course, it could come back 9.9 too...

 

Who knows...

[Mr_Glass]

I purchased it off of Josh Nathanson about 5 months ago. I was kind of thinking the same thing as most people here but I wanted a second opinion since that #4 is still a really nice book. I'll keep it. Maybe it will resurface when the movie comes out if something catches my eye and the prices get insane.

[Bonds25]

Keep the 9.8!!!! You'll NEVER have the chance to get that again, and it has a much cooler cover to boot!

[NativeNewYorker]

What did you pay for it? I'm curious as Parrino auctioned off an Action #98 CGC NM/M 9.8 with Off-White to White pages for $6,720 last summer. It was also an Edgar Church copy.

 

In my opinion, you should keep the Action #96 and pass on the Action #4 as it is a non-Superman cover.

 

Ted

[Lantern]

I agree with Bonds on this one. Keep the 96, if for no other reason it has a Superman cover that is a heck of a lot nicer than the cover with the other fellas.

[PovertyRow]

Action 4!?!?!? I mean, a 1938 Superman Action in VF? This is really of historical importance comic-book wise. And I like the cover even without Superman. It really has a 30's DC "feel" to it, like those pre-Batman Detectives.

 

But then you look at that 1946 Action 96 in 9.8 with the Church pedigree and you kind of get paralyzed for a second.

 

Both covers speak to their times as well. In the Action 4, Superman was still a newbie and didn't always get the cover slot. In the 96, WWII was over and the GA was starting to founder a bit with what to have their heroes do. I think this is also a contributing factor to the indecision, if you are going by cover impact. (it sounds like I am kind of panning the books - far from it - they are each real shockers in their own right).

 

In the final analyses I honestly could not choose between the two. If I were forced I would say go with the 96, due to its astonishing condition and the Church provenance. But I would still feel bad about losing out on the Action 4.

 

What a pickle to be in!

[nochips]

Keep the Mile High, find something else to sell to get the Action 4. There is only one 9.8 Church copy, but you may find another Action 4 if you look hard enough.

 

Books like Mile High Actions are KEEPERS. I have one as well, and it's not going anywhere anytime soon.

[tb]

Both books are Incredible! Picking between apples and oranges,

I'd take the #4: it's fairly easy to find nice Church copies from

the mid-late 40s, but early Actions in VF are incredibly

rare (this is the nicest I've seen). Also, the attraction of the 96

is really that it is a CGC 9.8. If you think 25 years down the

road, you most likely will have to get it recertified by another

company, possibly using a different grading metric. With the

acids eating up the paper in the meantime, there is no guarantee

that it will still stand out among the Mile Highs by then. The #4

is going to stay a VF for sure and I'd say that's a much safer

investment. If you really want Church, why not pick a nice 9.4

in the same price range?

 

[drbanner]

I vote for the Action 4 myself...while the 98 will probably never be surpassed in quality, there is really nothing exceptional about that issue. While I'm not in the market for early DC's, I would guess you could count the number of nice (VF or better), unrestored copies of Action Comics under #10 available for sale over the last few years on one hand.

 

This reminds me of the old fable about the man with two loaves of bread whose biggest worry was that the 2nd one would get moldy before he could eat it...nice problem to have!

[aardvark88]

I would keep the #96 b/c I like chess covers. I would only make a run at the Action #4 if I worked for the police or Royal Canadian Mounted Police due to the cover scene.

[Aman619]

tough choice! The best in the world copy of 98, or a very early Superman in very high grade. A non-Superman early cover issue, or pretty late non-key Action.

 

If I had to choose, a lot would depend on the price I have to pay for the 4 vs how much I'm already into the 98. In today's mindset, 9.8s go for staggering multiples.....but traditionally, Church copies are only 5x Guide. So theres a downside to being into them for greater multiples. Also, a 9.8 vs 9.6 is a huge jump now which may narrow again in time...meaning there might not be such a premium to having the absolutely unimprovable copy of just another early Church Action (since its not a key.

 

On the other end, if you pay Guide for the #4, you know the guide will always increase so you will be ahead more and more every year with much less downside risk.

 

I know many of you would disagree because the 98 is the BEST copy. I looked in the guide and every issue except a handful of Actions between 71 and 99 are commons and roughly the same price. So to me, there are 35 or so equivalent Church Actions to choose from that are the best copies. That makes the #4 rarer and more special, even in lower grade

 

But theres really only one solution---get em both.

[Mr_Glass]

Everyone has definatly brought some interesting views to the table. I think I'll keep it though, like I said before. I guess one of the main reasons being all the better books I've had to sell, mostly to upgrade, I've still regreted in some way. Not that I didn't like the decisions I made but I would really, now that I've had more time to think about it, hate to see this one go, much like the others. Hopefully the #4 will be there when I have the money set aside for it. Thanks for all the replies and happy hunting.

[clarkkentdds]

I thought that MH looked familiar! Are you attempting a high grade Action run? Do you have any other books of (almost) that caliber? ...Interested to know because I collect about the same thing!

[Aman619]

you are putting together a high grade Action run?

[Mr_Glass]

I collect 1-400 in high grade

[tb]

What is it that you like about Action in particular? I've

considered collecting this run myself but tought it was more

bland (in the sense that it did not develop as dramatically over

time) than Adventure and More Fun. It seems like Action got

the formula right starting from #1 and then rested on its laurels

while everyone else was copying the concept? For that reason,

I am more interested in the other runs with Detective as a dark

horse: at least Detective had one major transition. I've thought

about collecting Detective 1-40 but am currently focusing on

Adventure/More Fun as I feel that they give more historical

value for the same budget? You're obviously a serious collector

and I'd be interested in any thoughts you might have on this?

Maybe it would be more interesting to collect scattered high

grade/Church copies from all four runs than to focus on

completing one or two of them?