New to comics: Dr. Strange 2 2

[honeyisazombie]

Hi, I recently received a few hundred or so old marvel comics from a relative, with the intention of sorting and selling them for him. This included a number of Doctor Strange comics, some of which I think may have some value? I have issues 3-15, 20-29 and 174-186. Could anyone help me with this, I have no idea what I'm doing..

 

[CGC Mike]

Hi

I am moving this out of the selling area to the proper section.

Mike

[MattTheDuck]

Ok, so there's a lot to unpack here.  First, there are a few Dr. Strange (1974, 2nd Series) books that have some value.  However, that is in higher grades (and if already professionally graded and encased in plastic holder, which of course costs money to have done).  Now, if the #174-#186 are the 1968, 1st Series (as pictured below), those have some value (and again, the better the grade the higher the value). 

To give you a sense of what you're up against, I've picked up almost a full run of volume 2 books (like the #3 you have pictured) for between $0.42 and $3 at garage sales and here on the Boards over the last couple of years.  The condition of those books is what you might expect at a garage or Estate sale - decent but have clearly been read.  Your books might be at least a little better.

Make a list of all the books (I use Excel) if you haven't already.  Then I'd encourage you to take a look at a site like MyComicShop.com and search the books you have.  They'll have them for sale in various grades (and some will be "raw" like your books - i.e. not "graded") so you'll have a general sense of what they're trying to sell them for so you can at least ballpark a number.  

Good luck!  Keep asking questions in this thread and folks here will try to help.

 

[shadroch]

It looks like you have a 9 Pence copy, which was distributed overseas. 

[zzutak]

On 10/14/2023 at 9:28 AM, honeyisazombie said:

I have no idea what I'm doing.

This does not sound promising.    Have you revealed this to your relative?  Learning enough to become even minimally knowledgeable about a very specific niche of the collectibles market takes time.  Hence, what value do you place on your time?  Would you be happy working for, say, $0.25~0.50/hour?  The best route for you and your relative to take may be to sell the entire collection to someone who does know what he/she is doing.

Regardless of which route you choose, putting together an inventory list (exact titles and issue numbers) is always a good first step, supplemented by as many group or individual-item photos as you have time for.  If you're willing to divulge your zip code, folks who visit this forum may be able to recommend someone in your neighborhood/town who could look over your relative's full collection and give you a rough estimate of its market value.  Good luck! 

[honeyisazombie]

On 10/15/2023 at 1:32 AM, zzutak said:

This does not sound promising.    Have you revealed this to your relative?  Learning enough to become even minimally knowledgeable about a very specific niche of the collectibles market takes time.  Hence, what value do you place on your time?  Would you be happy working for, say, $0.25~0.50/hour?  The best route for you and your relative to take may be to sell the entire collection to someone who does know what he/she is doing.

Regardless of which route you choose, putting together an inventory list (exact titles and issue numbers) is always a good first step, supplemented by as many group or individual-item photos as you have time for.  If you're willing to divulge your zip code, folks who visit this forum may be able to recommend someone in your neighborhood/town who could look over your relative's full collection and give you a rough estimate of its market value.  Good luck! 

I have told him that I'm not the most knowledgeable about comic selling in particular, I just collect a few as a little hobby, but he was mostly just trying to get rid of them, as he's clearing out his old collections. Thank you though! This is super helpful, I'll get working on a full inventory list, as there is a lot of them, and not just Doctor Strange. As for valuing my time, he's allowed me to keep any of the comics I want for my collection, and the money from sales, if I make any.

[honeyisazombie]

On 10/15/2023 at 1:02 AM, MattTheDuck said:

Ok, so there's a lot to unpack here.  First, there are a few Dr. Strange (1974, 2nd Series) books that have some value.  However, that is in higher grades (and if already professionally graded and encased in plastic holder, which of course costs money to have done).  Now, if the #174-#186 are the 1968, 1st Series (as pictured below), those have some value (and again, the better the grade the higher the value). 

To give you a sense of what you're up against, I've picked up almost a full run of volume 2 books (like the #3 you have pictured) for between $0.42 and $3 at garage sales and here on the Boards over the last couple of years.  The condition of those books is what you might expect at a garage or Estate sale - decent but have clearly been read.  Your books might be at least a little better.

Make a list of all the books (I use Excel) if you haven't already.  Then I'd encourage you to take a look at a site like MyComicShop.com and search the books you have.  They'll have them for sale in various grades (and some will be "raw" like your books - i.e. not "graded") so you'll have a general sense of what they're trying to sell them for so you can at least ballpark a number.  

Good luck!  Keep asking questions in this thread and folks here will try to help.

 

Thank you! This is super helpful! I've started on making an inventory and photographing all the comics I received from him, (there's hundreds, not just the Doctor Strange). They're in mixed condition, some I would think somewhere between 6 to possibly an 8? theyre definitely not mint or near. Would it be worth actually getting them graded, or would I just lose money that way? Is there a way to know what Series each comic is from, or am I going to have to search them all individually?

[namisgr]

Of the comics you mentioned owning so far, they would not be worth getting graded as a whole.  However, there are one or perhaps two issues that might be worthwhile if they are in nice enough condition, such as Dr. Strange #1 and if they are in the collection Dr. Strange #s 172 and 173, with Dormammu stories and cover appearances, along with #169, the first issue to run Dr. Strange solo.  But if none are better than very fine condition, then it would probably be a money losing proposition to get them graded and encapsulated.

There is a section on the Boards ('Hey buddy, can you spare a grade?' link: https://boards.cgccomics.com/forum/42-hey-buddy-can-you-spare-a-grade/) for posting high resolution front and back cover scans of books and getting the grading opinions of board members.  If you can, it would be worthwhile to use it for what you believe to be your highest value comics.  

 

Edited October 15, 2023 by namisgr
link added

[zzutak]

On 10/14/2023 at 9:28 AM, honeyisazombie said:

Hi, I recently received a few hundred or so old marvel comics from a relative, with the intention of sorting and selling them for him.

This says, "I am helping my relative sell some of his comics." 

On 10/15/2023 at 3:59 AM, honeyisazombie said:

he's allowed me to keep any of the comics I want for my collection, and the money from sales.

This says, "I was gifted some comics from a relative and am trying to decide which to keep and which to sell." 

On 10/15/2023 at 4:14 AM, honeyisazombie said:

Is there a way to know what Series each comic is from?

Yes.  You can compare cover images and publication dates to those archived in the Grand Comics Database (GCD).  Good luck! 

[shadroch]

Learn what a Marvel Value Stamp is, and check each book to ensure they are present.  Lots of people cut them out, and a missing stamp reduces the book value by about 90%.

[LowGradeBronze]

Given how rare an opportunity it is these days to come upon a collection of bronze and silver age comics, I would suggest you just take the time to sit back and relax, looking through them and getting to know the various artists and their styles and decide which of them you really like. You're bound to have books by a good many of the greats, like Gene Colan, Steve Ditko, Jack Kirby (the King) and others. What a chance you've been given. Don't rush to sell anything yet. And apart from the fun of learning to grade, for your own benefit of knowing the difference between a very good and a very fine, there's no real need to have anything locked away in a plastic case unless it's really valuable. You can't read it sealed in plastic. Good luck, I would love to be in your shoes. I haven't been in your situation for well over 30 years! It's a rare gift you've been given. Don't blow it!

[thehumantorch]

On 10/15/2023 at 4:59 AM, honeyisazombie said:

I have told him that I'm not the most knowledgeable about comic selling in particular, I just collect a few as a little hobby, but he was mostly just trying to get rid of them, as he's clearing out his old collections. Thank you though! This is super helpful, I'll get working on a full inventory list, as there is a lot of them, and not just Doctor Strange. As for valuing my time, he's allowed me to keep any of the comics I want for my collection, and the money from sales, if I make any.

Welcome to the boards.  Probably the best site for looking up values quickly is https://www.keycollectorcomics.com/series/?groupBy=series&orderBy=queryRelevance

Sort your books by title and then look up each title to find books of value within that title.  That will allow you to focus on books of value and avoid wasting time on books with little value.

Here's the Dr Strange title that you imaged #3 from  https://www.keycollectorcomics.com/series/doctor-strange-2,5979/?showNonKeys=true&groupBy=issue&orderBy=publishedDate

All the books from this era, bronze age,  probably have a minimum value of $5 in mid to high grade and there are many books from this era that have more value.

Once you've identified potential books with value you might want to post pics of some of them in the grading forum.  That'll help you understand grading and help you value the books as with any paper collectible condition is very relevant.  Also count pages, most of these books will have 8 pages to the centerfold and 8 pages to the end of the book.  As you count pages watch for anything cut out or any interior damage.

And feel free to post more images here.  We love a treasure hunt.