sacorn
Junior Member
Posts: 53 
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Post by sacorn on Aug 10, 2015 17:32:58 GMT -5
Hello everyone,
I've got around 5,000 books now and have come to the realisation that there's some that are just not worth reading (I'm looking at you x-men #'s 300-500), others that I love and want to hold onto, and some that are worth quite a bit of money at the moment.
I'm just wondering what everyone's thoughts are regarding the timing of selling some key books.
For instance, I have a copy of Fantastic Four #45 in VG+ condition that that I swapped a number of years ago for a comic probably worth around the $30 mark. Now looking on ebay, I see this could be worth quite a bit of cash at the moment ($300??), so would all you trusted members be looking to cash up while the price is high, just keep in the collection and risk the value to drop, or not even think about selling. I've got a number like that ie FF #48, 51, 53-61, Avengers #53, 55-58, ann#7, Cap #110-113, Surfer #1, 3, 4 etc.
I love my comic collection and am coming up 40yo next year. While I hope I've still got a long way to go, I am finding I enjoy the thrill of the hunt rather than just holding onto everything now (well particularly all the rubbish). I'm struggling to get into the short boxes to read a lot of what I already have and find that I read more trades than anything or just some of the newer purchases. Newer buys are staying longer sitting on shelves and potentially losing value by dropping condition etc.
So, I guess what I'm asking is, has anyone else thought about this dilemma, and have had thoughts on the timing of liquidating.
I've have been thinking of just trying to get rid of the stuff I'm just not interested in and/or the lower ticket items, but then worried I may miss the boat on some of the ridiculous prices things are going for. Do you think this is all sustainable or just a mad rush of speculation?
Thanks in advance for any thoughts/comments.
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Post by Gene on Aug 10, 2015 19:13:25 GMT -5
I'm going through this right now, too. I look at it like this: Take anything that would be 50¢ bin fodder at the LCS that you think someone might want and put it on EBay. Try to sell it in lots if at all possible.
If you think you can get more for it because of an upcoming movie, TV show or whatever, hold onto it and sell it when you think you'll be able to make the best sale.
If it's crap that you think nobody will want, list it for next to nothing. If nobody bites, take it someplace like Half Price Books and let them figure out what to do with it.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 10, 2015 20:27:30 GMT -5
I'd try to sell the cheap stuff on Craigslist. The hassle of packaging and shipping comics in the bargain range just wasn't worth it to me. Also the constant worry about someone unreasonably leaving you a negative feedback, which in my experience is FAR more likely when dealing with collectibles than anything else.
Also, the odds of you actually selling them for money increase on Craigslist. Most comics listed for sale on there are ridiculously overpriced, and any comic section will be absolutely overwhelmed with crazy ads of people asking $40 for a comic not worth a nickel. So in comparison if you're listing 50 cent comics for a dollar each, someone might bite. I've sold hundreds of issues of drek that way. Maybe close to a thousand.
Any good stuff you might have is worth selling on eBay though.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 11, 2015 19:18:45 GMT -5
I'm just wondering what everyone's thoughts are regarding the timing of selling some key books. Everyone's timing is different. Someone thought the time was right to sell Action Comics #1 not too long ago, while someone else might have kept it in storage a whole lot longer. I sell some books right away when the opportunity to flip them makes a profit. Others I sit on, simply because I can afford to forego a sale for some other time. Risky decision? Maybe. But that's part of it. Speculating is all part of it, but you can also drive yourself crazy by trying to second-guess yourself every time. I do not sell on Ebay. A $50 book can sell for $5 if it's not noticed. Great for the buyer...awful for the seller.... |
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Post by chadwilliam on Aug 11, 2015 22:54:58 GMT -5
I've sort of stumbled into this situation myself recently. While I've never really collected comics with an eye towards selling them at a later date, it seems that some of the stuff I own will likely gain value next year when that Suicide Squad film hits. I picked up the first Bronze age appearance of Deadshot (along with most of the 'Tec Englehart/Rogers run) about 20 years ago for $1 in beautiful condition. It was worth quite a bit even then but it never occurred to me to resell it. To even consider doing so would suggest that there existed an even greater Batman fan out there who would appreciate it more than I would - unthinkable. With it potentially going for so much more next year however, I've started asking myself how many times I've actually read that issue - not the story, mind you, but the issue. I've had access to the story since 1989 when The Greatest Batman Stories Ever Told was released and I have all those Englehart/Rogers tales collected in their own volume as well and its these sources I go to when I want to re-read those classics. Meaning, that copy of Tec 474 has probably been read by me once, at most. It almost exists in some abstract form alone where the knowledge that I own it is all that it provides. At the same time however, I cant help but consider the possibility that selling this issue would throw into question the permanence of all of my collection. If I would sell that comic, is there anything I wouldn't sell at the right price? In other words, would I, like you, continue to enjoy collecting comics as much if I knew that anything I might buy today could be out of my hands in the not too distant future? At the same time, when I did I start replacing the term "buying" with "collecting" when it comes to comics? I certainly didn't get into comics so I could "collect" them (or even have to "buy" them - that was just the pesky middleman part of the equation) I just wanted to read them.
So, I don't know. You've got 5000 comics and your definition of "some that are not worth reading" seems to mean at least 200 issues of X-Men. I kind of think that if I had 200 issues of anything of mediocre interest to me, the larger collection as a whole would begin to suffer in my eyes. "How could a medium I enjoy so much be all that great if it produced 200 comics that aren't worth looking at?" So maybe separating the wheat from the chaff wouldn't be such a bad idea. Of course, I imagine that that Fantastic Four 45 has some personal value to you as well, so as far as selling that particular comic - which is what, the first Inhumans? - is missing out on selling it when you could make a bundle going to rankle you more or less than knowing that while you got an incredible deal, it's an issue that may likely never enter your price range again? Do you miss whatever comic you traded it for in the first place?
Also, is Fantastic Four 45 really in danger of changing in value at this moment? With the film bombing, I can't imagine much of anything Fantastic Four related to be going up in price by way of interest tied into the movie(s) and with the comic industry where it's at right now, would a new Inhumans title or whatever might be going on with them, really cause a surge of interest from readers? I honestly don't know, just curious. |
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sacorn
Junior Member
Posts: 53
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Post by sacorn on Aug 12, 2015 22:16:49 GMT -5
Hi guys,
Thanks for all the replies.
That's basically what the dilemma is. I am a reader foremost, having amassed so many comics by buying off the stand early on, then buying bulk collections later on to fill in runs etc. I've now got plenty of trades and probably have copies of most things I really want to read or go back to, even though I don't enjoy the reading experience quite as much with tpb's - just way more convenient.
It's easy enough to get rid of the rubbish, I'm comfortable with that, and there is probably a good 500 odd issues that are double ups anyway that I haven't had time to get rid of already.
You're right, I'm a little worried that once I start, does that mean everything is for sale? Is it the knowledge of having it in a shortbox in the cupboard the only satisfaction required? It is probably the completist in me more than anything that creates the desire to hold onto everything.
So that's brings me back to the dilemma, is my completist nature going to make me lose out in the end? Are comics peaking now, so should I be liquidating these high priced keys? If I hold on to them, are prices likely to hold in the medium/long term etc?
In terms of Fantastic Four 45, yes first Inhumans, I don't expect it to keep going up in value, more that it's got downward pressure if anything. It also had quite a quick increase. So I'm thinking, should I be selling now, despite me kind of wanting to keep it in the collection and complete my run of FF, to make the most of everything while prices are high. Once gone I probably won't be replacing them, so that would be it. I think I swapped for a mid grade X-Men #141. I miss it a little, but more that I don't own it and it would be expensive to replace. I do have a couple of copies in tpb to read.
For the past few years, I haven't even thought about selling anything, but just wondering if there will be a crash and I lost the opportunity I guess.
Jez, how do you decide on what to keep and/or sell, just personal preference of what you want to collect or are you always thinking like an investor?
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Post by Deleted on Aug 12, 2015 22:19:52 GMT -5
Short of an economic catastrophe I'd say silver age keys are safe to hold on to. But if you wanted to get rid of them now you're probably not leaving too much on the table. In 15 years time, nobody knows.
Personally, if I didn't need the money, I'd keep the Silver Age stuff and get rid of my doubles and unwanted moderns and so on. The keys couldn't take up too much space I imagine. My collection used to be in the 7500 comics range, and is now closer to 2000. I got rid of nearly all the mainstream stuff, keeping a select handful of floppies that had sentimental value to me, and then my alternative comics and the more recent moderns I was still reading. As I replace my floppies with hardcovers, I get rid of my runs, even beloved ones like the Fantagraphics Usagi Yojimbo run. I really liked it, but I thought the Special Edition was good enough for me to not miss them too much. I'm thinking of doing another big purge, because I kept a lot of oddball 80's small press stuff that wasn't actually all that good and it's just taking up space. But the only comics I wouldn't be willing to swap out with trades would be my higher priced more collectible ones that were tough to track down, like Love And Rockets #1 of my MAUS set. Otherwise I'm just waiting for the right HC.
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Post by Icctrombone on Aug 13, 2015 6:14:57 GMT -5
Give away the junk. I hate posting a run of 20 books and getting .99 cents on eBay. I'd rather give it away on CCF, or trade.
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Post by Icctrombone on Aug 13, 2015 6:17:56 GMT -5
The truth of the matter is that over 90% of todays comics and 75% of older books aren't worth much. . That's why I have Marvel Unlimited. I read it , and move on.
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Post by Deleted on Aug 20, 2015 22:27:34 GMT -5
The truth of the matter is that over 90% of todays comics and 75% of older books aren't worth much. . That's why I have Marvel Unlimited. I read it , and move on. Beware of the sharpies who try to tell you your new $3.99 cover comic atrophies to $0.10 wholesale value as soon as you walk out the front door of the comic book shop. |
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