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Post by dbutler69 on Mar 28, 2020 8:54:41 GMT -5
You got X-Men #95 for $45 in mint? That sounds like a great buy. That's one of the few X-Men I didn't get, but I did get Giant-Size #1. I don't remember for how much, but it was more than $45 and it wasn't in mint condition. I got X-Men #95 for $25 in the early '80s but not in mint, more like fine+, it did seem very hard to find compared to some others (I saw lots of #96s for some reason). I had a chance at a Giant-Size #1 at $70 later in the '80s, around fine condition, but then the clerk took it down, took the $70 tag off, wrote a new one at $90 and put it back up on the wall. Never went in there again, it went out of business not that long after. So I've never had the Giant-Size #1 except in reprint form. Never have had 98, 99, 100, 102, 103, 104, or 110 either, but have had 101, 108 and 109 twice. I've got all of the All-New, All-Different up to #300 except for #94, 99-101, and 105.
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Post by beccabear67 on Mar 28, 2020 13:45:07 GMT -5
I got X-Men #95 for $25 in the early '80s but not in mint, more like fine+, it did seem very hard to find compared to some others (I saw lots of #96s for some reason). I had a chance at a Giant-Size #1 at $70 later in the '80s, around fine condition, but then the clerk took it down, took the $70 tag off, wrote a new one at $90 and put it back up on the wall. Never went in there again, it went out of business not that long after. So I've never had the Giant-Size #1 except in reprint form. Never have had 98, 99, 100, 102, 103, 104, or 110 either, but have had 101, 108 and 109 twice. I had a bunch of X-men in the 90-120 range, but ended up selling them all for a couple bucks each when I decided to get into computers around 1987. Thanks for bringing up that painful memory. I sold all I had off with just #168 somehow escaping. What I have now I bought again in the last two or three years for a lot more than a couple of bucks, I don't think I can afford to get #139-143 again for awhile. It's hard when you remember fairly vividly paying 50 cents too (and how at first that seemed like so much more than the 40 cents of a few months earlier). I bought a Tandy Model 4 sometime in the '80s as the first computer I owned, green letters on a black screen, no games unless a hangman game I wrote myself counts. Before that I'd used various TRS-80 and Commodores in school. I think there are people who collect and will pay a bit for early Apple Macs but if old Tandy Model 4s are valuable you can tell me and get payback, it just went to the recycling depot a couple of years ago.
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Post by Trevor on Mar 28, 2020 14:12:56 GMT -5
^ This aspect of collecting is my I love digital so much (but I’ll never stop getting some paper too).
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Post by brutalis on Mar 30, 2020 7:35:55 GMT -5
I think it was 1982 or 1983 when I got an Iron Man #1 for $25. I was still getting lots of '60s comics for $1-2 each, but that one was pretty special. It was a few more years before anything equalled that purchase, and then I probably traded in a bunch to move up. I think the next big purchase was an X-Men #94 when it was around $45 in mint, but I got a VF- at $30 (some silver spray paint along the top edge), and FN+ #95 at $25 not so long after. We had a place that had the comics piled a hundred or so deep in what looked like an oversized space for shoes, but those were mainly kind of oddball '70s titles from Marvel, DC and Atlas, they were all 50 cents or 3 for a $1 I think. The better '70s and '60s comics were on a table in ordinary cardboard boxes, no bags, but a few were even on the wall by the owner's desk in ziplocks or shake n bake bags (the owner did have a Price Guide but it was well out of date and he would go with half whatever it said as being fair). IT was startling to me when during a visit to my aunt in California I went into a used bookstore and finding a wall of plastic wrapped comics all priced amazingly high (to me at the time) when all I ever saw in Phoenix at used bookstores was indifferent shop owners who just piled the stuff up in paper grocery bags or piled them up against the corner letting them fall where may. Those were glory days of 5 cent comics and buy 20 for a dollar where you actually had to DIG for gold. To place an issue like X-Men #94 on the wall for $60 (was the cheapest I ever saw it listed, usually more around $100) was an unbelievable idea to me. I was dumbfounded in thinking; who the hell would ever pay that kind of a price? Stupid, ignorant and naive me. I have always felt and believe that I should never pay more than $5 for any used comic book. And now new comic books are exactly around that price point. Scarey...
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Post by Trevor on Mar 30, 2020 7:52:33 GMT -5
I think it was 1982 or 1983 when I got an Iron Man #1 for $25. I was still getting lots of '60s comics for $1-2 each, but that one was pretty special. It was a few more years before anything equalled that purchase, and then I probably traded in a bunch to move up. I think the next big purchase was an X-Men #94 when it was around $45 in mint, but I got a VF- at $30 (some silver spray paint along the top edge), and FN+ #95 at $25 not so long after. We had a place that had the comics piled a hundred or so deep in what looked like an oversized space for shoes, but those were mainly kind of oddball '70s titles from Marvel, DC and Atlas, they were all 50 cents or 3 for a $1 I think. The better '70s and '60s comics were on a table in ordinary cardboard boxes, no bags, but a few were even on the wall by the owner's desk in ziplocks or shake n bake bags (the owner did have a Price Guide but it was well out of date and he would go with half whatever it said as being fair). IT was startling to me when during a visit to my aunt in California I went into a used bookstore and finding a wall of plastic wrapped comics all priced amazingly high (to me at the time) when all I ever saw in Phoenix at used bookstores was indifferent shop owners who just piled the stuff up in paper grocery bags or piled them up against the corner letting them fall where may. Those were glory days of 5 cent comics and buy 20 for a dollar where you actually had to DIG for gold. To place an issue like X-Men #94 on the wall for $60 (was the cheapest I ever saw it listed, usually more around $100) was an unbelievable idea to me. I was dumbfounded in thinking; who the hell would ever pay that kind of a price? Stupid, ignorant and naive me. I have always felt and believe that I should never pay more than $5 for any used comic book. And now new comic books are exactly around that price point. Scarey... I know it’s unsustainable for the market if everyone was like me, but 99 cents is the most I’ll pay for a modern comic. I buy almost all of them unfortunately, so it’s just as expensive......,
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Post by Deleted on Mar 30, 2020 20:02:06 GMT -5
Back when new comics were 30-35 cent cover prices a local convenience store used to sell them 5 for $1!! Today, new comics at $2.99-3.99 (even with a discount) are too expensive! If I see a collected edition at a reasonable price with a good discount of 40-50% off (instocktrades.com) I will get it if it is something I really want. I have been sooooo over new comics for years now!
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Post by brutalis on May 4, 2020 8:45:31 GMT -5
Today's Remember When is about finding that singular "odd" issue on the spinner rack at your local store. Just remember flipping through issues of comics you already have or don't buy but instead browsing them quickly to see what is new. Suddenly there it is jumping out at you from behind another comic book: some strange odd and new never seen before cover which instantly MUST BE YOURS. There were plenty of those "moments" for me where suddenly I was enraptured with a cover urging me to buy it. Several of my back issue collecting runs began this way for me with one mere single issue found over a long hot summer or being only able to have found 1 solitary issue over many months of searching. That itch in the back of the mind forcing me to begin hunting further and wider to anyplace carrying comic books all around the city. Some issues which sparked that flame of seeking: Marvel's Warlock #9 stating it was the pulse pounding premiere issue?!? Seeing it was Starlin I was instantly hooked and searching for anything Adam Warlock related. Captain Marvel #25, again Starlin and a revamp of a character I had a few issues of when he was clad in a green and white uniform. Amazing Adventures #11 premiering the Beast and in his new fuzzy grey form! Only ever had that 1 issue while searching and seeking until amazingly (yes, pun intentional) he was to find his way into my beloved Avengers! Amazing Adventures 23 with War of the Worlds and Killraven where for so many months I could only find that single issue which captivated me until finding several others 6 months later in a pile at a used bookstore. Astonishing Tales #36 with that incredible movie poster like cover with Deathlok which was my sole cyborg connection for many months until over the hot summer i began trading with a neighbor for 3 earlier issues. Jungle Action #5 featuring the Black Panther fighting the Man-Ape found me wanting more even though it was a reprint I had from Avengers but dang were the following issues I found (6, 13, 14, 15, 17) for several months were spectacular until finding no more. Oh those were glorious days spent endlessly reading over and again those precious few issues I had or could find. Drilling into my subconscious and having me begin to furiously search stores time and again in hopes of finding more and filling in the blanks of the stories and characters. Thankfully the LCS came around to Phoenix in 1980 and thereafter you would find me in the back recesses of any store digging through dirty and dusty boxes or bags in search of the glories of issues missed. Even today there is a special thrill and tingle in my mind and body when finding "new" old issues missed out upon or new collections (loving my recent Man-Wolf, Tigra and M.O.D.O.K TPBs) where I can delve into comics which eluded me. The finding and hunting continues...always...
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Post by Deleted on May 4, 2020 8:52:55 GMT -5
Today's Remember When is about finding that singular "odd" issue on the spinner rack at your local store. Just remember flipping through issues of comics you already have or don't buy but instead browsing them quickly to see what is new. Suddenly there it is jumping out at you from behind another comic book: some strange odd and new never seen before cover which instantly MUST BE YOURS.
When I started to buy my own comics, they weren't on spinner racks. They were bagged & boarded too. So among the regular piles of Marvels and DCs I spotted this....
I was still a pre-teen, wanted a female-title and it didn't look like some Rob Liefeld garbage. I nabbed it right away and it began my interest in Top Cow/Image.
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Post by dbutler69 on May 6, 2020 7:31:01 GMT -5
Today's Remember When is about finding that singular "odd" issue on the spinner rack at your local store. Just remember flipping through issues of comics you already have or don't buy but instead browsing them quickly to see what is new. Suddenly there it is jumping out at you from behind another comic book: some strange odd and new never seen before cover which instantly MUST BE YOURS. There were plenty of those "moments" for me where suddenly I was enraptured with a cover urging me to buy it. Several of my back issue collecting runs began this way for me with one mere single issue found over a long hot summer or being only able to have found 1 solitary issue over many months of searching. That itch in the back of the mind forcing me to begin hunting further and wider to anyplace carrying comic books all around the city. Some issues which sparked that flame of seeking: Marvel's Warlock #9 stating it was the pulse pounding premiere issue?!? Seeing it was Starlin I was instantly hooked and searching for anything Adam Warlock related. Captain Marvel #25, again Starlin and a revamp of a character I had a few issues of when he was clad in a green and white uniform. Amazing Adventures #11 premiering the Beast and in his new fuzzy grey form! Only ever had that 1 issue while searching and seeking until amazingly (yes, pun intentional) he was to find his way into my beloved Avengers! Amazing Adventures 23 with War of the Worlds and Killraven where for so many months I could only find that single issue which captivated me until finding several others 6 months later in a pile at a used bookstore. Astonishing Tales #36 with that incredible movie poster like cover with Deathlok which was my sole cyborg connection for many months until over the hot summer i began trading with a neighbor for 3 earlier issues. Jungle Action #5 featuring the Black Panther fighting the Man-Ape found me wanting more even though it was a reprint I had from Avengers but dang were the following issues I found (6, 13, 14, 15, 17) for several months were spectacular until finding no more. Oh those were glorious days spent endlessly reading over and again those precious few issues I had or could find. Drilling into my subconscious and having me begin to furiously search stores time and again in hopes of finding more and filling in the blanks of the stories and characters. Thankfully the LCS came around to Phoenix in 1980 and thereafter you would find me in the back recesses of any store digging through dirty and dusty boxes or bags in search of the glories of issues missed. Even today there is a special thrill and tingle in my mind and body when finding "new" old issues missed out upon or new collections (loving my recent Man-Wolf, Tigra and M.O.D.O.K TPBs) where I can delve into comics which eluded me. The finding and hunting continues...always... I agree! There are sooo many comics out there I still want, I could hunt and find for another 50 years and still want more!
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Post by tartanphantom on May 7, 2020 2:23:53 GMT -5
Today's Remember When is about finding that singular "odd" issue on the spinner rack at your local store. Just remember flipping through issues of comics you already have or don't buy but instead browsing them quickly to see what is new. Suddenly there it is jumping out at you from behind another comic book: some strange odd and new never seen before cover which instantly MUST BE YOURS. When I started to buy my own comics, they weren't on spinner racks. They were bagged & boarded too. So among the regular piles of Marvels and DCs I spotted this.... I was still a pre-teen, wanted a female-title and it didn't look like some Rob Liefeld garbage. I nabbed it right away and it began my interest in Top Cow/Image.
This post is totally worth reading for the Liefeld comment alone!
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Post by brutalis on May 27, 2020 9:18:46 GMT -5
Remember When you were the lone reader of comic books in your childhood? Being the nerdiest geek around and there was nobody to discuss the comic books you read with? Neither of my 2 brothers were into comics, a couple of cousins bought a few comics but we never talked about them. Only neighbor that read comics around me was across the alley behind my house and he was deaf. For the very longest time until high school the only discussions about comic books were from my mother condemning me for reading the dang juvenile things. Reading Stan's soapbox and the ads inside each comic were about the only thing keeping me looking ahead for what new and interesting comics might be coming. Reading the monthly listings in Marvel and checking off in my brain which comics might be worth me looking for after the fact. Pondering over the solicitations of past months and imagining what each issue might hold as all I had was the small blurbs to draw your attention.
High school delivered me 2 new friends who read and saved comic books. Sadly both were only available to talk comics at school. We would gather in the morning before classes began trading issues back and forth to read. At lunch we sat in the library reading over and again whichever comics we could bring to school each day. One friend was a Marvel ONLY guy and had no liking for anything coming out from DC or other publishers. The other was strictly reading war comics from ANY publisher as his dad had died in WWII and he wanted to know everything he could about war from comics, television shows, movies and books. Occasionally the 2 of them would read some of what I brought in and become slightly interested enough to asking me to bring those issues back during other weeks of school.
It's still strange looking back as we 3 NERDS to everyone freshman year became better known in the next 4 years. I was on the school newspaper and yearbook all 4 years and used my comics passion doing artwork and design and layouts for both that drew attention towards me and others began borrowing my comics to read along with teachers taking note and utilizing my comics in our classes. I watched as one friend became a football player and pulling team mates into reading his Marvel comics. I saw the other friend become a true historical historian of sorts as he expanded from all things WW II and started exploring other aspects of history while other war aficionados were reading his war comics. Suddenly we 3 amigo's where no longer ridiculed and laughed upon as the oddball's but were instead influencing others with our comic book ways.
Now I find in today's world comic books themselves have become the ridiculed cast aside and left behind as their characters have moved onto the small and big screens. Things I grew up reading and fantasizing about are now displayed each week on television and garnering large sell out crowds at the theaters. While I gladly partake of whatever comic book fun there is whether it is in cartoons, television or movies I still find myself remembering the simpler times when comics were my own special unique entertainment that only a handful really understood the joy and fun of. How time changes and evolves everything around us, eh?
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Post by tartanphantom on May 27, 2020 11:35:06 GMT -5
My situation was different. Prior to middle school, I bought comics whenever I could even before I was in first grade. When I lived in NJ (see my post earlier in this thread) I had 4 or 5 close friends on our street that loved to swap and read comics... ANY comics! After I moved back to Alabama in 1972, I had 2 close neighbors that were into comics like myself. I also had two more friends about 2 blocks away that were also rabid comic readers. Between the five of us, we swapped a whole lot of comics. Of course, back then the "discussion" of the hobby was more about who was "better", Sgt. Rock or Sgt. Fury, Easy Co. or the Howling Commandos, Hulk or the Thing, etc. Back then, it was mainly super hero and war comics for me, with a sprinkling of sci-fi and horror when I could find them. This was the early 1970's, and although I liked horror comics, when it came down to choosing between the latest copy of "Weird War Tales" and "Baron Weirwulf's Haunted Library", the Weird War Tales would win my hard-earned quarter just about every time. However, I remember being really, REALLY into the Fleisher/Aparo Specter stories in Adventure Comics... those were a guaranteed buy when I could find them. I moved to a different town the summer of my 13th birthday, an we lived in a very rural location, so I didn't have my old comic buddies to pal around with. Comics took a back seat in my life until around the 10th/11th grade, when I started buying them again after the end of my first "serious" heartbreaking teen relationship. I became a bit socially reclusive for about 4-5 months (after all, I was dealing with "real" heartbreak! ). During this time, I re-discovered the joy of comics and started to collect them seriously. When I came to the realization that life would go on without my previous high-school girlfriend, I re-entered the social scene, but I continued to actively collect on through college and beyond. I didn't give up comics again until around 1996, when I became totally disillusioned with where the hobby was headed with the whole "comics as an investment" B.S. I took about 10 years off from serious collecting, perhaps buying an odd book here or there, but I didn't collect actively. Luckily, I never got rid of my collection. My son grew up with my comics collection, and about the time he entered the 10th grade HE began to take an interest in serious collecting-- primarily golden and silver age books. So I again re-entered the realm of active collecting around 2006. Ever since then my son (who just turned 30) has been my "comics buddy". Even though we maintain two separate collections, we go to shows and shops together and do a little trading here and there. And every now and then one of us will surprise the other with a gift of nice vintage book or two. Neither of us actively collects post-modern (after 2000) or current stuff, although we both have a bit in our collections. Instead, we both tend to focus on gold, silver and bronze books. As a result, we are each aware of what the other is generally looking for (sometimes we're hunting the same books!). So, it sort of comes full circle for me-- my collection, that I started in my teens became his playground as a child, and then his continued interest and the start of his collection in his teens re-kindled my love of the hobby. Now, we're just a couple of nerdy guys looking for "paper gold."
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Post by Deleted on May 27, 2020 13:47:34 GMT -5
Remember When you were the lone reader of comic books in your childhood? Being the nerdiest geek around and there was nobody to discuss the comic books you read with?
Not really fond of the 'nerd' stigma that goes with collecting comics....but then some of these guys who come mulling around, who take no pride in their appearance and have the aura of being a complete loser, especially around girls....no, I don't want you breathing my air and talking to me about comics.
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Post by brutalis on Jul 16, 2020 2:01:55 GMT -5
Do you Remember When you saw your 1st LCS wall of new comics? The sheer awe, wonder and delight it brought? It amazed me that there was so MANY comics and so MANY other publishers creating comic books. I must have spent close to 2 hours just gazing at row after row of never seen before comics and looking through them. Perusing from title to title accruing a rather largish pile of potential purchases. It was so much easier during the 70s with a limited distribution system. You had Marvel and DC and Archie along with occasional finds of Gold Key, Dell, Charlton or Disney to choose from. Now with the LCS suddenly a cornucopia of known and unknown comics are exploding the brain. How are we to choose from such an abundance? How can we ever try to discern good from mediocre to poor with our eyes melting from such a sight as the long wall of new comics? It was stupendous as well for overwhelming. A limited amount of cash in your pocket is the limiting and deciding factor as that large pile of floppies must be sorted into the yay and nay and hmmmmmm that looks quite interesting groups. Wow, talk about forcing one into growing up fast and facing the harsh realities of economics with the truth of cash ebb and flow. Now you count every penny, nickel, dime and quarter you might find hoping to add with those dollars in your pocket. Every cent counts as your making your choices. You walk out with a handful or your arms full with comic books of favored series and potential new favorites while your head is still spinning in wonder and amazement for you can't wait to return. Already you start counting down the minutes, hours or days as you are on your way home. Contemplating how you might earn, save or find more money for your next visit. Oh those were incredible days of wonder and splendor were they not?
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Post by Deleted on Jul 16, 2020 6:00:03 GMT -5
My First LCS Experience:First a little background... when I was in elementary school we lived near a news stand where I bought comics every week. Then in 7th grade we moved to another town where there was no news stand to buy comics. For 4 years I had several subscriptions (Superman, Batman, Flash, Spider-Man, Hulk, Capt America) by mail. About once a month I did get to buy comics off the news stand when my parents went for groceries... then I turned 16 and got my driver's license. So like any 16 yr old with a brand new driver's license I was out cruising and noticed my very first comic book store several miles from my house. I parked, went in and like brutalis I spent an hour exploring. Here was a store that sold nothing else... JUST comic books! And they had back issues! Suddenly my part time job that I had to pay for my car had to now include increased spending on comic books! Needless to say I quickly established myself as a weekly customer and even got to work there several years later when I was in college.
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