Flash collectors thread 25 25

[flashlites]

Lots of Silver Age Flash at the end of this fun video! Check it out Flash Fans!

 

[Terry E. Gibbs]

I know we don't normally talk about money here,  unlike it seems every Marvel post on CGC forums, but thought this should not go unnoticed.

Anyone here watch this auction. Anyone here win it or know who won it, or was the under bidder ?

SC 13 9.2 hits $38.4K.  It is the single highest graded. It was last listed as a GPA sale 2009 for $13,145. It had a sale of $9K for a 8.0 on Comic Connect late 2017 and a 8.5 sold for just under $10K on CL a few months ago.

The really crazy thing is that a 9.2 SC 8 went for $31.2K on HA a few months ago. Okay there are two copies at that and none higher, but it was 1st Capn Cold, 1958 SA comic. First modern super villain. Now seems a bargain.

https://comics.ha.com/itm/silver-age-1956-1969-/superhero/showcase-13-the-flash-dc-1958-cgc-nm-92-white-pages/a/7246-94191.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116

[flashlites]

On 9/9/2021 at 8:45 PM, Terry E. Gibbs said:

I know we don't normally talk about money here,  unlike it seems every Marvel post on CGC forums, but thought this should not go unnoticed.

Anyone here watch this auction. Anyone here win it or know who won it, or was the under bidder ?

SC 13 9.2 hits $38.4K.  It is the single highest graded. It was last listed as a GPA sale 2009 for $13,145. It had a sale of $9K for a 8.0 on Comic Connect late 2017 and a 8.5 sold for just under $10K on CL a few months ago.

The really crazy thing is that a 9.2 SC 8 went for $31.2K on HA a few months ago. Okay there are two copies at that and none higher, but it was 1st Capn Cold, 1958 SA comic. First modern super villain. Now seems a bargain.

https://comics.ha.com/itm/silver-age-1956-1969-/superhero/showcase-13-the-flash-dc-1958-cgc-nm-92-white-pages/a/7246-94191.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116

Such a beautiful book!!! Seeing any of these early Flashes in 9 or better is just amazing!!! It's just so rare.

Edited September 10, 2021 by flashlites

[innocuous]

On 9/9/2021 at 7:15 PM, flashlites said:

Such a beautiful book!!! Seeing any of these early Flashes in 9 or better is just amazing!!! It's just so rare.

I think that’s the point. Rare in high grade, the tide is lifting them all. 

[Terry E. Gibbs]

On 9/10/2021 at 12:18 PM, innocuous said:

I think that’s the point. Rare in high grade, the tide is lifting them all. 

Yeah it appears so. High grade for these early showcase  (8.-14) is probably anything 7.0 or over as there are so very few of them. The low grades on this has also strengthened - as there are just not many SC4 -14 around. Be interesting to see if the low and mid grade on ebay now vanish, either being picked up or dealers pulling them back until they can sell them at Cons. (hmm Cons ... remember them ???)

[flashlites]

Is it just me or does it really seem like ther are more high grade Marvels from the early 60's? And why do we think that is, if its true? Is it just a fact that more Marvels from this era were saved? Is it only an illusion, due to the fact that a higher percentage of Marvels get encapsulated? Maybe DC had smaller print runs than Marvel? What do you think the reason is?

[flashlites]

On 9/9/2021 at 9:30 PM, Terry E. Gibbs said:

Yeah it appears so. High grade for these early showcase  (8.-14) is probably anything 7.0 or over as there are so very few of them. The low grades on this has also strengthened - as there are just not many SC4 -14 around. Be interesting to see if the low and mid grade on ebay now vanish, either being picked up or dealers pulling them back until they can sell them at Cons. (hmm Cons ... remember them ???)

I wish I could get at least one more low grade Showcase appearance for my collection, maybe a SC14! Dare I say a low grade SC8?

[frozentundraguy]

On 9/10/2021 at 7:03 AM, flashlites said:

Is it just me or does it really seem like ther are more high grade Marvels from the early 60's? And why do we think that is, if its true? Is it just a fact that more Marvels from this era were saved? Is it only an illusion, due to the fact that a higher percentage of Marvels get encapsulated? Maybe DC had smaller print runs than Marvel? What do you think the reason is?

I was pretty sure that DC titles sold more than Marvels in the early 60's, but according to the Comichron site 1966 is the first year there are figures for the Fantastic Four. FF finished in 19th place just ahead of Flash but quite a ways behind all of the main DC titles. I think we can chalk up the higher number of graded copies to a larger fan base for Marvel. Having said that I have not researched the CGC census to confirm this. However the other factor is that the Marvel titles with a couple of exceptions were brand new for the Silver Age where Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman had been published for about 20 years already.

 

https://www.comichron.com/yearlycomicssales/postaldata/1966.html

[Terry E. Gibbs]

On 9/11/2021 at 12:30 PM, frozentundraguy said:

. Having said that I have not researched the CGC census to confirm this. However the other factor is that the Marvel titles with a couple of exceptions were brand new for the Silver Age where Batman, Superman, and Wonder Woman had been published for about 20 years already.

 

In 1964 there was a widely covered article in I think Time or NY post (a mainstream mag) covering the surprise that anyone would pay  $100 for an old Superman or Captain Marvel. From then on many people saved these and some bought multiple copies. In 1964 X-men and DD debuted. In 1961 Marvel had only one super-hero title, the ASM arrived in 1962. Fandom was already under way by then. Fanzines were being churned out. The Alley awards from 1962 had been held, (Flash 123 top comic for year Cinfa best artist and FF best new comic). In that period 1956 to 1960 up to first JLA there were not a lot of people collecting. Four years later all that changed.

[Jaylam]

On 9/9/2021 at 9:39 AM, flashlites said:

Lots of Silver Age Flash at the end of this fun video! Check it out Flash Fans!

 

Nice video. He brought up something that has always intrigued me about Hawkman's mask, how does he see out of it as the eyes of the mask don't line up to where the wearer's eyes actually are? He also comments a lot about the Go-Go Checks. I don't mind them, but I think they distract from the aesthetic of the cover. What I really hated was the "Marvel Comics Group" banner across the top of Marvel books throughout the 70's and early 80's. Same stupid idea at play as Donenfeld's Go-Go-Checks. Totally wrecked the aesthetic's of what would have been many great covers from the time.

[Jaylam]

On 9/9/2021 at 9:45 PM, Terry E. Gibbs said:

I know we don't normally talk about money here,  unlike it seems every Marvel post on CGC forums, but thought this should not go unnoticed.

Anyone here watch this auction. Anyone here win it or know who won it, or was the under bidder ?

SC 13 9.2 hits $38.4K.  It is the single highest graded. It was last listed as a GPA sale 2009 for $13,145. It had a sale of $9K for a 8.0 on Comic Connect late 2017 and a 8.5 sold for just under $10K on CL a few months ago.

The really crazy thing is that a 9.2 SC 8 went for $31.2K on HA a few months ago. Okay there are two copies at that and none higher, but it was 1st Capn Cold, 1958 SA comic. First modern super villain. Now seems a bargain.

https://comics.ha.com/itm/silver-age-1956-1969-/superhero/showcase-13-the-flash-dc-1958-cgc-nm-92-white-pages/a/7246-94191.s?ic2=mytracked-lotspage-lotlinks-12202013&tab=MyTrackedLots-101116

If anyone would have told you back in 1958 that this 10 cent comic book would one day sell for $38,000+ , you would have been laughed out of the room. Back then the medium income was $5,100 and the average cost of a new home was $12,750. 

[Robot Man]

This one always cracked me up since I first saw it as a kid.

[SpeedforceKJ]

So I bought this book in 2017 on a deployment for $500. Was so happy to get it as it was a book I had been after for years. I expected it to be a lower grade which is why I bought it( my flash collection is a low grade collection) i finally decided to send it in for grading last year. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was to see the purple label and it honestly was the final straw that turned me away from collecting and buying book in general for the past year now. 

[flashlites]

On 9/14/2021 at 10:30 PM, SpeedforceKJ said:

So I bought this book in 2017 on a deployment for $500. Was so happy to get it as it was a book I had been after for years. I expected it to be a lower grade which is why I bought it( my flash collection is a low grade collection) i finally decided to send it in for grading last year. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was to see the purple label and it honestly was the final straw that turned me away from collecting and buying book in general for the past year now. 

Its hard for low grade collectors like us to get books of this caliber in any grade. Don't be discouraged. Any copy of this book in 2.5-4.0 is worth about $500 or more in my opinion. Maybe you over paid a little but you have a copy now and that's the important thing. I paid almost $600 (with shipping and tax) for a 105 last year. They told me the centerfold was missing but that it did not interrupt the story. It did interrupt the story, missing about a half page of story. So I probably way over paid for that book. But I'm still glad I got a 105 with a cover. I thought for sure I'd have to settle for a coverless 105. I'm sure in a year or two our books will be worth more than what we paid for them. The important thing is that we have filled those important holes in our collections.

[SpeedforceKJ]

On 9/15/2021 at 7:51 AM, flashlites said:

Its hard for low grade collectors like us to get books of this caliber in any grade. Don't be discouraged. Any copy of this book in 2.5-4.0 is worth about $500 or more in my opinion. Maybe you over paid a little but you have a copy now and that's the important thing. I paid almost $600 (with shipping and tax) for a 105 last year. They told me the centerfold was missing but that it did not interrupt the story. It did interrupt the story, missing about a half page of story. So I probably way over paid for that book. But I'm still glad I got a 105 with a cover. I thought for sure I'd have to settle for a coverless 105. I'm sure in a year or two our books will be worth more than what we paid for them. The important thing is that we have filled those important holes in our collections.

the grade isnt what bothers me, it was the restored factor that wasnt disclosed when I purchased it. I wouldnt have bought it had I known it was restored. I could have used that same amount and got a different copy. 

[flashlites]

On 9/15/2021 at 8:09 AM, SpeedforceKJ said:

the grade isnt what bothers me, it was the restored factor that wasnt disclosed when I purchased it. I wouldnt have bought it had I known it was restored. I could have used that same amount and got a different copy. 

True, maybe you can sell it and go hunting again for new 123. It would be nice to know how to check for things like that. I guess we will all have to invest in UV lights and read up on restoration detection. What level of restoration did it get? Was it deemed to be professional or not? On the back of the label it should say.

[JohnH19]

On 9/14/2021 at 10:30 PM, SpeedforceKJ said:

So I bought this book in 2017 on a deployment for $500. Was so happy to get it as it was a book I had been after for years. I expected it to be a lower grade which is why I bought it( my flash collection is a low grade collection) i finally decided to send it in for grading last year. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was to see the purple label and it honestly was the final straw that turned me away from collecting and buying book in general for the past year now. 

That’s too bad about the purple label. I assume that you couldn’t tell that the cover had been reattached before sending it in.  

[innocuous]

On 9/14/2021 at 8:30 PM, SpeedforceKJ said:

So I bought this book in 2017 on a deployment for $500. Was so happy to get it as it was a book I had been after for years. I expected it to be a lower grade which is why I bought it( my flash collection is a low grade collection) i finally decided to send it in for grading last year. I can’t tell you how disappointed I was to see the purple label and it honestly was the final straw that turned me away from collecting and buying book in general for the past year now. 

No way to sugar coat this . . . it sucks. 

The C-1 designation means it is slight amateur work. You could consider having the glue professionally removed, but then it seems you will have a cover partially split or fully detached. In that case, the grade would likely be lower.

BUT, do not let this discourage you. We all have stories in the past like this. In my case, before I was able to spot restoration, I spent a couple thousand on a book that came back restored. Before I could fully understand grading, I bought VF books that came back VG. We all learn, but we still love the comics.

If you bought this in person, make sure it is a reputable dealer or someone you trust that will take a return. If buying online, again, research the vendor. Search these boards as most dealers have been discussed over and over and you will know who to trust and who not to. Of course, buying already slabbed will help avoid this situation, but even CGC sometimes makes mistakes.

BTW: there are several threads on how to spot restoration, read them. And, watch some videos on YouTube.

Good luck. In the meantime, crack it out, put it in a mylar and enjoy for years. Or, sell it and buy the next great comic for your collection. 

[SpeedforceKJ]

On 9/15/2021 at 10:27 AM, innocuous said:

No way to sugar coat this . . . it sucks. 

The C-1 designation means it is slight amateur work. You could consider having the glue professionally removed, but then it seems you will have a cover partially split or fully detached. In that case, the grade would likely be lower.

BUT, do not let this discourage you. We all have stories in the past like this. In my case, before I was able to spot restoration, I spent a couple thousand on a book that came back restored. Before I could fully understand grading, I bought VF books that came back VG. We all learn, but we still love the comics.

If you bought this in person, make sure it is a reputable dealer or someone you trust that will take a return. If buying online, again, research the vendor. Search these boards as most dealers have been discussed over and over and you will know who to trust and who not to. Of course, buying already slabbed will help avoid this situation, but even CGC sometimes makes mistakes.

BTW: there are several threads on how to spot restoration, read them. And, watch some videos on YouTube.

Good luck. In the meantime, crack it out, put it in a mylar and enjoy for years. Or, sell it and buy the next great comic for your collection. 

I got the book online while I was deployed so I had no way seeing ahead of time. and i had it stored away from 17-20 (deployed again in 19-20, but didnt look at my books much in 2019 before I left). I can see the restro now that I really look at it. I'll more then likely sell it for a loss and use it to get something else I'd like. I'm not trying to track down this book as at the current state, its long out my range I can afford at the moment. 

[JohnH19]

I agree with the poster above. Crack it out, read it and enjoy owning it. A little bit of hard to detect glue shouldn’t  detract from owning a personal grail.