INVESTING IN COMIC BOOKS

[COI]

Ok, I'm probably going to take some flak for this, but here goes:

 

I admit I'm into comics partially because of the business aspect, but so what? The fact is, I probably wouldn't be collecting much if I wasn't making money off of them as well. I'm 24, and I'm doing well financially(so far) but I'm still far from what I consider "financially set", and you probably won't find many self-made people my age who are either. Finding ways to make money off of the hobby have become essential to me BECAUSE I love the hobby, not greed. If I didn't look at it as a business, I probably wouldn't have 90% of the books I have now, and I also wouldn't have established the contacts within the hobby(collectors and sellers) that I have. I do love the hobby itself, and making money on it simply enhances the experience for me. Comics(for the most part) are not one of a kind items. I can sell books that I want to keep because I know that eventually I can get another copy again, and this is especially true for most of what I collect(Silver-present).

 

Now here's the thing: I admit that I don't read comics much. I've read most of what I've wanted to read, and don't do it as much anymore. If I do read, it's usually re-reading my favorite books. Why? Because I primarily like Superhero books, and let's face it, they're all pretty much the same. When you see Spidey in trouble on the cover, you know he isn't going to die. You know that somehow he'll get himself out of trouble. Really, the formulas for most superhero stories are essentially the same, with different characters and settings, and subtle plot changes. But I haven't been able to capture the same wonder of reading comics, since I was 8-12 years old. And as a result, I'm simply not as stimulated by the material anymore. I also personally believe that superhero books have reached the plateau of their creativeness starting around the time of the Neal Admans Green Lantern, BWS Conan, and on to the Frank Miller DD run, the Byrne X Men run, and finally ending with DKR, Year One, Born Again, Watchmen etc..I'm leaving A LOT of good stuff out, but you get the point. IMO, it's been down hill since. How much more can be done with these characters? Most of us should have realized before puberty that with these books, the more things change, the more they stay the same. These Heroes will be around a long time, and essentially the same scenarios will be played out. They may be a good read, but for me they lack the mental stimulation. I love the characters more than the comics themselves. They are Icons to me, and it's for that reason I will continue to collect. As for stimulation, I usually turn to books and literature. Again, I still LOVE reading old classics, but I still think that comic stories are on a steady decline. The fact is, creators are running out of ground to break, which is why they have to turn to cheap gimmicks like re-launches and Rawhide-Kid type publicity stunts.

 

But that's just me....

[joe_collector]

You won't catch any flak from me. I read old comics for nostalgia, novels and biographies for entertainment, and classics when I want to think.

 

New comics have no place in my reading schedule, which is already cramped as is.

[Zonker]

Fair enough Andrew, and sometimes I feel the same way. For me, I was at that exact point in the early 1980s, but then Moore's Swamp Thing & Watchmen and Miller's Dark Knight hit, and I got pulled back in!

 

Since then, I've found a few books with a different enough take on the whole super-hero schtick to tide me over: Baron & Rude's Nexus, Gaiman's Sandman, and Jack Robinson's Starman come to mind.

 

Most recently, I wonder if you've sampled Morrison's JLA of a few years ago, or the current Millar & Hitch Ultimates?

 

Cheers,

Z.

[THE_BEYONDER]

I was kinda wondering when you were going to drop in. I'm new to these forums, but from what I've read, you seem to know alot about the present state of collecting comics, and from what I've seen, you own some truly outstanding books. I would be lying if I said that MONEY didn't lure me back to comics. It always does, and for me, the outcome is always the same. I remember going into a comic shop one day, just to get an idea of what my childhood collection would sell for(I went to pick-up a price-guide). This was when IMAGE had just started. Of course, instead of selling any of my own books, I ended up buying all the new stuff(Spawn, Youngblood, Pitt, etc..) I still have every one of these books in UNREAD condition. That was the 1st time I ever bought comics that I didn't really READ. Then, many years later......I find EBAY. Once again, my intention was to sell. Of course, I started buying instead. Like most people(I'm assuming), I figured I could buy "raw" comics at a good price, "slab" them, and make a nice profit. To make a long story short, I still have every one of those books. Not because they wouldn't sell, but because I didn't want to let them go. Every once in a while I buy more than I can really afford, and am forced to sell off some books to pay for them. I don't want people to think that INVESTING IN COMICS is a bad thing, I just wanted to talk about the REAL reasons that people collect. I ask this question, because sometimes it seems like I don't know why I do......

[COI]

Actually, I just re-read my post, and I'm not being totally fair.

 

I'm really enjoying Ultimates, to tell the truth. I love the Avengers, and this new spin on the team is great. But books of this caliber(to me anyway) have been few and far between. And I'm sure if I expanded and tried different things, I'd probably find more good stuff, but I have to like the characters before I can pick up a book, and most of my favorites have been sub-par for quite a while, with the occasional, brief surge of quality here and there. I don't think I will ever totally stop reading new stuff, but my expectations for the future are not all that high.

[COI]

Thanks for the compliments.

 

I totally see where you're coming from. I was in my early teens when the Image stuff started coming out, so I know what you're saying. But I've always had a thing for the monetary and collectible aspect of comics. I picked up my first price guide when I was 8. All the other kids my age cared about the comics, and could care less about my book, but I loved it. The idea of value being ascociated with these books facinated the hell out of me, for reasons I still can't fully explain. I'm interested in History in general, and old comics are a type of history in themselves. And the value thing was not so much about greed, but more of the fact that people love these books so much that they are willing to pay lots of money. And it is natural to be drawn to things of value also. The first time I saw a wall at a comic shop, I was floored. And even though I now own a lot of the stuff I used to gawk at as a kid, I still get a great feeling seeing a huge wall of vintage books.

[Smokinghawk]

Guys like me with crummy jobs and small children to feed can't collect for investment. I don't own ANY high-dollar comics (my ASM #1 is in G-; I'm just now finished paying off my RESTORED AF15, my Hulk 181 went to buy a dishwasher, etc.)

 

I collect for reading, and for fun. I'm finishing runs of ASM and DD in lower grade, which I love just for the pleasure of them. I don't invest in keyes outside the titles I read, and I like to buy tacky older comics (sci fi, cowboy/Indian, etc.) in crummy condition to read and then toss to my toddler son.

 

I, for one, miss the smell of old comics. I even miss the ads (R. Creshtol's "Thor" ripoff icon, Fun Factory and Johnson-Smith company spreads, GRIT, "Be a Slam Dunker," Your poetry set to music, 10 Chinese coincs for only a dollar, Sea Monkies, etc.) It kills me to this day to read a comic I bought when it was new and see ads for ASM #1 for $500.

 

If anyone wants to donate a Hulk 181 to me, it'll be treasured and cherished. Support the "good guys" of this world. *grin!*

 

[COI]

I can definetly see where you're coming from. I had no money when I started collecting, and if I didn't buy/sell comics to supplement my purchases of more comics, I couldn't have bought any of the higher dollar stuff I have. I'm also currently single, and have no one to feed but myself(and maybe my dates ) so at this time I can spend more on comics. But this might not always be the case. If some unexpected financial difficulty comes up, or I eventually get married and change priorities, I may have to sell off most of my comics for lower grade versions. Who knows what could happen.

[Illiterati-migration]

So, Andrew, have I missed your story somewhere? What is it exactly that you do? Do you run an online-type store or something?

[Rob]

Here was my pride and joy that I had to sell a few years ago. It wasn't high grade, but I won it on an unpopular web auction site for $100. I'm currently looking for another. I've contacted old buyers of mine, whose names I found on my feedback, but I can't find the buyer. I'd like to buy it back.

 

Batman 27

 

I also had to sell this puppy.

[highlite23]

I didn't read all the posts, but if your relativelly new to comic collecting, condition questions, for me anyway, is more so "I" don't get cheated.

 

I'm still a little fuzzy on what exactlly constitutes Mint, NM+, etc... So if someone is offering up a comic at a decent price but miss-representing the grade, i kinda want to know what the heck to look for.

 

I myself, don't really like the whole grading thing, comics, cards, or whatever. I posted a question "Is grading worth it" and got pretty much what i hoped for...I collect for myself, so why spend the money on grading.

 

That being said, help a newbie out, I did get one really good suggestion, the Overstreet grading guide, sounds like a handy little tool.

 

So, NO, it's not all about money.

[COI]

I work with gold. I trade bullion and even buy older gold, melt it down and sell it in bulk to jewlers.

 

I also do security consultation for private parties, night clubs, sepcial events, etc... as well as setting up surveillance, like Nanny cams etc...this is part-time at the moment.

I'm hope to one day build this into a full-fledged security company, which will specialize in traing security and body guards. My work as a bouncer for 2 years is what sparked my interest in that line of work. But to do this will require some serious $$$ and is not in the near future.

 

But I'm considering calling it quits with the gold, and getting a securities(bonds) license, as I'm also interested in the financial services industry.

[Illiterati-migration]

A jack-of-all-trades! (Or two or three at any rate.) So wait, where do the comics fit in here? Are they just icing on the cake?

[THE_BEYONDER]

I am anything but an expert GRADER. I can pretty much handle VF or better, but when a comic falls below a VF, I'm lost. I hesitate to assign a grade to anything in the Fine or less catagory, I usually just call them "reader's copies", and let them ride. There are a ton of people on these forums who would be willing to help you with grading. Just post a pic in GRADING AND RESTORATION, and ask someone to grade it.(Hopefully someone can host some pics for me this week). As far a CGC goes, I have never actually "slabbed" any of my personal collection. Not because I don't want to, but because I really can't afford to. I do own a few graded books, but I bought all of them pre-CGC'd. As soon as I get my finances back in order, I'm going to send a few in. Who wants to play "predict the grade?"

[COI]

Are they just icing on the cake?

 

Basically. I dable into comics to continue building my collection/inventory, but I don't do it for a living, or depend on it much in that way. I do shows here or there, but haven't done any in the past 2 years. The market is too volatile right now for my liking, and I'm not willing to put in huge amounts of $$$(huge for me anyway) at this time. If the market took a major nose dive sometime soon, I would not yet have the financial resources to recover, and my ventures would all likely come crashing down on top of me. Then it would probably be back to bouncing for me, until I could muster enough money to bounce back.

[Aman619]

you chose some great reads on your list. Its impressive for someone so "young" to have caught up with a lot of the best stuff of the last 40 years. (Not trying to be condescending---my impression of younger readers is thet they dont bother with the older stiffer comics...)

 

But if you like those books, you should still be reading. At every time for the past 40 years, 90% of the comics have been crappy make-the -deadline hack work. And thats true today too. But there are great comics coming out every week and they are just as rare as they always were, In many ways they are better, because they have encompassed themes and techniques from other "real" media. Try em, you'll like em.

 

For mr, the best stuff today are those comics that re-examine the characters, their origins, motivations and supporting cast members lives. Often they turn comics stereotypes as upside down as Moore and Miller did in Watchmen and DKR.

[Aman619]

I'm really enjoying Ultimates, to tell the truth.

 

there ya go. Guess I should have read on before replying to you.....I didnt want to make a list, but If I had, Ultimates would be on it for the reasons I stated earlier!!

[COI]

you chose some great reads on your list. Its impressive for someone so "young" to have caught up with a lot of the best stuff of the last 40 years. (Not trying to be condescending---my impression of younger readers is thet they dont bother with the older stiffer comics...)

 

Hey, not only do I NOT take offense to that, but I strongly agree with you. I've got a couple friends my age who I'm constantly trying to expose the older books to. It is true that most in my age group haven't started looking too far back yet, but I also suspect that many will come around eventually.

[joe_collector]

>>I would be lying if I said that MONEY didn't lure me back to comics. It always does, and for me, the outcome is always the same.

 

Truer words were probably never spoken. Whenever there is a marked increase in back issue prices, there seems to be a commensurate jump in collectors "coming back to the fold", only to leave when times become tough and collecting comics isn't quite as "sexy".

 

It's as predictable as the sun rising in the morning and setting at night.

 

This ebb and flow of "returning collectors" is obviously motivated by money, and strangely enough is the totally opposite angle to take. Buy when times are tough, and sit out or sell during the speculator height. No matter if you're after comics or money, you'll come out better on both ends.

[ninanina]

I'm playing "catch-up" 'cause I did not read Silver Age on a regular basis when I was a kid back in the '60's. So, when Karen Page, for example turns into a "junkie" because of the lack of history I have for the character, it doesn't or couldn't hit me like many of the readers who read Daredevil since Day 1. Now, I'm progressively going through all the early issues and am getting to know a character like Karen from her early beginnings. I just finished reading issue 32 so I have a long way to go but when I finally run into that issue again, I think the tragedy will have more meaning to me.

 

Also, I'll finally figure out what made the Miller issues so special. I've heard it talked about quite a bit, but have not as yet experienced it. So, I think I'm in for quite a ride. This is all new to me because I initially started reading Daredevil from around issue 170 or 180, or thereabouts (can't remember the exact issue) so up until now the history has alluded me.

 

Last year I spent most of the summer reading up on the original Justice League of America comics. Comparing the two titles, it's easy to see why Marvel was so much more popular.

 

So, yeah I collect them and I'm definitely a reader. Very special 'cause I've never read them before.