shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
Posts: 22,388
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Post by shaxper on Mar 6, 2017 21:50:59 GMT -5
How Much Does Condition Matter? How much does condition actually matter to you? Most of us wouldn't be satisfied with a coverless book, but would you rather own a pristine 9.8 or buy eight well-worn key issues for the same cost? Would you buy an issue creased down the middle in order to complete a run, or does every issue in your collection need to meet a certain grade requirement? What's the lowest condition in which you'd accept a book if the price was right? Discuss all this and more by replying below! |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Mar 6, 2017 21:52:57 GMT -5
Condition is of zero significance to me. As long as it doesn't smell like mildew. I can't do water damage.
Honestly, I'd rather have them in a nice collected edition. Any fetish I had for high-grade actual issues disappeared many many moons ago.
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Post by pinkfloydsound17 on Mar 6, 2017 22:00:29 GMT -5
I am half and half. Do I want a high grade slabbed book? No thanks. Do I want well worn? Also no thanks.
I shoot for the 4.5-7.5 range for my books. Things that irk me include stains, water damage and loose centerfolds. I don't mind creases and spine wear, nor do I mind writing as long as it is tasteful (a name in the corner of a cover or margins of an interior page). I also do not like anything cut out of my comics, although if it was a rarer book, I would be fine with it so long as the story is not bothered. Those are my preferences in a nutshell.
I think I have managed pretty well. 80% of my stuff is from 1965-1985 and I would say most is at least mid grade, which makes me happy. I rarely seek to upgrade a book unless it is really rough.
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Post by Ish Kabbible on Mar 6, 2017 22:08:55 GMT -5
If condition does not matter, why would you not buy collected editions? Your not thinking of them as investment items, you just want to read them,you can't afford or want to spend the big bucks.So if condition does not matter, why not? And besides, a grubby old comic-I don't want to think about where it's been and who's been handling them.
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Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2017 22:17:49 GMT -5
I have 127 JLA (Done by Grant Morrison) Books in very good readable condition they are probably around 5.5 to 6.0 and that's a FINE condition that they are in and it's works for me and nothing less.
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 6, 2017 22:30:27 GMT -5
Never mattered much, as long as the comic was intact and readable. I usually went for mid-grade stuff; but, bought lower grade, if the price was much better. I'm a story guy, so collected editions were always fine, unless they were missing material, like back-up stories or background pieces. I do sometimes wish they reprinted the letters pages of issues, as some of those could be quite entertaining.
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Post by pinkfloydsound17 on Mar 6, 2017 22:43:07 GMT -5
I avoid collected editions for a few reasons: 1) I collect comics to own the comics...not necessarily the stories. I value a comic book in its original presented form (again, not original art but as it was intended for the masses when it first came out) 2) The lack of newsprint makes me sad 3) There is a great amount of joy that the first photo brings, compared to the second. Plus, I can always find the second if I have to read (be it in book form or online) but the joy of owning the book itself as a piece of art, history and a story is the reason I collect.   |
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Post by Deleted on Mar 6, 2017 22:43:56 GMT -5
Never mattered much, as long as the comic was intact and readable. I usually went for mid-grade stuff; but, bought lower grade, if the price was much better. I'm a story guy, so collected editions were always fine, unless they were missing material, like back-up stories or background pieces. I do sometimes wish they reprinted the letters pages of issues, as some of those could be quite entertaining. I agree. Plus old single issues are like time capsules. The letters pages. The ads. DC's Direct Currents/Daily Planet pages with Bob Rozakis The Answer Man column. Marvel's Bullpen Bulletins with Stan's Soapbox. They all serve as a glimpse into the past. |
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Post by Slam_Bradley on Mar 6, 2017 22:44:45 GMT -5
I avoid collected editions for a few reasons: 1) I collect comics to own the comics...not necessarily the stories. I value a comic book in its original presented form (again, not original art but as it was intended for the masses when it first came out) 2) The lack of newsprint makes me sad 3) There is a great amount of joy that the first photo brings, compared to the second. Someone doesn't like you stealing the bandwidth of the second picture. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Mar 6, 2017 22:44:54 GMT -5
I avoid collected editions for a few reasons: 1) I collect comics to own the comics...not necessarily the stories. I value a comic book in its original presented form (again, not original art but as it was intended for the masses when it first came out) 2) The lack of newsprint makes me sad 3) There is a great amount of joy that the first photo brings, compared to the second. Well, yeah; I can't even see the second!  |
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Post by pinkfloydsound17 on Mar 6, 2017 22:45:49 GMT -5
Sorry...the second picture is a shelf full of collected editions.
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shaxper
CCF Site Custodian
Posts: 22,388
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Post by shaxper on Mar 6, 2017 22:57:53 GMT -5
From a personal standpoint, I'm a comic fan because I was a comic fan in my youth. While my tastes have matured, there's still that sense of nostalgia in play, as well as a fascination with pop culture history.
Well, as a kid, condition didn't matter to me. If my dog chewed up the book, that was unacceptable, but I couldn't tell a 9.8 from a VF- if my life depended on it. What mattered was owning those key issues I was sure could never be mine. So I own nearly all the key issues I salivated over as a kid, most around GD to VG condition, and I'm totally okay with that.
And, in terms of history, worn books tell better stories. I like reading a book that seems like someone lovingly read it over and over again. Someone cut out the Marvel Value Stamp? If it doesn't affect the content on the other side of the page, that's actually a plus for me. Someone really ENJOYED this book before me. It encourages me to do the same.
So, to answer my own questions above, condition matters to me in so much as a coverless or creased book would be a major turn off for me. I want to be able to enjoy the overall intended effect of the cover without major distractions, and I want the book to hold together well enough that I can read it without fear of hurting its condition. That's actually why I prefer not to own pristine condition books, by the way -- you can't feel comfortable reading them.
So, for Copper Age and up, I generally strive for F to VF. Silver Age, VG. Golden Age, GD-.
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Post by Randle-El on Mar 7, 2017 0:17:49 GMT -5
I like comics to be in the best condition possible, but only up to a point. I'm not going to start handling them with gloves or keep them from ever seeing light for fear of fading. I'm a reader, not an investor, so I expect them to be handled as one would normally handle them when reading. That said, I bag and board and store all of my comics in proper comic boxes. I handle them carefully, but within reason. For me, it isn't so much about preserving the value of a comic. It's more a reflection of the fact that I just like to take good care of all my possessions. My view is that if you enjoy something and want to continue enjoying it for many years, you should make some effort to keep it in good condition. I do this with my cars, musical instruments, collectible toys, tools, electronics -- they all get handled and used as one normally would, but I make sure to keep all of them properly maintained so that I can keep using and enjoying them as long as possible.
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Post by Icctrombone on Mar 7, 2017 5:29:21 GMT -5
Any condition is fine as long as it has everything attached. But It also depends on which book it is, I've bought Green Lantern/Green arrow #86 for under a dollar years back for 50 cents and it was pretty roughed up. I also picked up New Teen Titans #2 ( first Deathstroke) for 1 dollar but it was a bit warped from water damage.
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Post by The Captain on Mar 7, 2017 7:29:43 GMT -5
I like nice books, but as others have written, there's a point where price based on high condition is a determining factor in whether or not I buy it.
A couple of years back I was missing one issue of Daredevil from #100 up, that being the first appearance of Silver Samurai. This was just around the time that he was making his first movie appearance and the price on that book was climbing a little higher than I wanted to go for what was just a gap in a run that I wanted to fill. I found a copy of it in Good condition, missing the Value Stamp but with story intact, for $2.50, and I bought it in less than a heartbeat. Would I have done that for the first appearance of Falcon, gone the cheap route for the sake of completing a run? Certainly not, but Daredevil is no Captain America to me.
I've bought issues of post-Crisis Flash from Half-Price Books with $.50 price stickers on the front cover, Morbius issues of Fear that are foxed to hell, and even spine-rolled issues of Amazing Spider-Man from the late double digits/early 100s, because I want to read the story and own the book in my collection. For series like Captain America, Iron Man, and Thor, I go as high grade as I can without breaking the bank, but even with those I have limits because my wallet has limits as well.
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