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Post by Kan-Man on Nov 5, 2016 14:20:41 GMT -5
Forgive me in advance, this could take a while to explain...
My friends and I were avid collectors from the early 70s to the mid-80s. While we were in college, one of my friend's family relocated from NY to Virginia and asked my parents if he could store his comics at their house on Long Island. The original plan was for him to come get them when he was settled. Cut to 30 years later, and they're still in my parents' house. It's become a running joke, but that's the way it goes.
Two weeks ago, the same friend sent me a photo of the cover of Iron Man 55 and told me it was worth a lot of money and it was sitting somewhere in my parents' house. My parents are extremely patient and supportive people, but they're in their 70s and I figured enough was enough, it was time to sell.
My friend collected only Marvel and I figured he might have quite a few "key" issues, but first I'd need to see if I could find someone interested in buying them. I saw an ad for the former Lone Star Comics (now operating as mycomicshop.com) and gave them a call. They're based in Texas and they told me if they were interested, a local rep would contact me.
A day later I got a call from Jersey who was very interested. He gave me a big sales pitch (which I thought was weird because I contacted them, not the other way around). He said nobody beats their offer and he encouraged me to shop around. I told him that wasn't necessary, that I believed him. He said other places would only offer a dollar a book and then he went on and on about how key issues, regardless of condition have value, but so do filler issues because most stores can't keep a lot of inventory.
We got off the phone and I was pretty encouraged. My friend has about 3000 comics, so I thought this could be serious money. But I still needed to get organized. Over the past two weeks, I re-boxed everything and re-bagged and boarded the 200 or so best issues - Iron Man 55, Iron Fist 14, Daredevil 158 & 168, Spider-Man 122, etc. Then I sent the buyer the list just so he knew what he was dealing with.
We spoke again to set up a date and I told him I'd be making one more trip to pull out anymore key issues. Last night I headed back out to my parents and pulled out another 50 or so. Avengers 93-100, X-Men 102-143, etc.
Today, the guy came out with his partner. As soon as he got there, I knew I was in trouble. His tone had totally changed - one excuse after another. Lots of questions - no X-Men 94, no GS 1? No Hulk 181, etc. I kept reminding him I sent him the list. At one point he said, "well, I don't see anything that could sell for over $100." In rapid fire, I list a dozen titles that his site was selling for well over $100. More hemming and hawing and lectures about inventory.
Then, the moment of truth. He asked what I wanted for them. I said make me an offer. They retreat into the other room and come back a few minutes with their "best" offer.
$600-800. So basically 20 cents a book. I reminded him about the disparaging remarks he made about other dealers "that would only offer a buck a book." I pointed out that on his site alone, the books I pulled out are selling for over $4,000 and there was still another 2500+ comics in the boxes.
$600-800.
Believe me, I understand the need to make a profit. And I know full well something only has value if someone else is willing to pay for it. But this is ridiculous and a tremendous waste of my time.
Anyway, sorry to vent, but you folks are among the few that I figured could appreciate this story.
Sermon over.
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Post by wildfire2099 on Nov 5, 2016 14:31:45 GMT -5
Sounds like you definitely picked the wrong guy to sell to... sorry you had a bad experience. I'd like to think that's a rarity, and not typical of comic book stores. I'm not sure if the prices are what you're looking for, but you might want to check out Lone Star (Mycomicshop.com).. you can either sell stuff on consignment for a price you set (sorta like e-bay) or sell to the store for price you can see on their site.
You can also check on Mile High comics, but I think Lone Star give better prices.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2016 14:33:48 GMT -5
Sounds like you definitely picked the wrong guy to sell to... sorry you had a bad experience. I'd like to think that's a rarity, and not typical of comic book stores. I'm not sure if the prices are what you're looking for, but you might want to check out Lone Star (Mycomicshop.com).. you can either sell stuff on consignment for a price you set (sorta like e-bay) or sell to the store for price you can see on their site. You can also check on Mile High comics, but I think Lone Star give better prices. I think, from what he said, the dude was a rep for Lonestar, who has initiated an affiliate program, i.e. they have people who travel to collections who buy for Lonestar rather than sending the books in. Lonestar usually does better, but with the affiliates, it's a crap shoot. -M |
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Post by Kan-Man on Nov 5, 2016 15:41:48 GMT -5
Yup, it was a rep sent by Lone Star. Wasn't aware there were any other options with them.
I am thinking of complaining to the company, though. They should know who's representing them.
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Post by Deleted on Nov 5, 2016 17:51:27 GMT -5
I had a better day...we had a comic sale, I went for 3 hours and...sold out (just over 150ish). It helped that over two thirds of the books I had on offer were reserved in advance so it was just a matter of picking them up. We also gave away some Rebirth #1s free.
Your prospective buyers were a couple of sharpies. I avoid sharpies by letting them know upfront I can afford to lose their sale. Which means I (a) remain in control, (b) eff with them and (c) let them know they cannot bargain with me in the future. My way or the highway.
Simply put, make me an offer I cannot refuse...and in Jezland, I can refuse whatever I want.
20c per book is absolutely crap in my world. That's the price of a bag and board.
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 5, 2016 18:27:09 GMT -5
I sold the best part of mine, which had tons of good Bronze Age stuff, a good representation of Silver, and plenty of desirable indies and got peanuts for it. i didn't want to deal with the hassle of trying to sell piecemeal and I was mostly done reading them and was buying book collections of stuff I really, really liked. I have digital of everything, anyway. In the end, I sold maybe 200, got less than a dollar per, didn't really care much, at that point, and ended up donating the bulk of the rest to a boys' home, where a friend was a volunteer. He questioned me parting with so much and that they would probably end up in ragged condition. I told him they were designed for reading and he had been looking for reading donations and I knew the kids would read this stuff. Besides, the joy it gave me to know that kids were going to get to enjoy them was greater than anything money would bring, especially kids who had seen the worst parts of childhood.
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 5, 2016 19:51:29 GMT -5
I sold the best part of mine, which had tons of good Bronze Age stuff, a good representation of Silver, and plenty of desirable indies and got peanuts for it. i didn't want to deal with the hassle of trying to sell piecemeal and I was mostly done reading them and was buying book collections of stuff I really, really liked. I have digital of everything, anyway. In the end, I sold maybe 200, got less than a dollar per, didn't really care much, at that point, and ended up donating the bulk of the rest to a boys' home, where a friend was a volunteer. He questioned me parting with so much and that they would probably end up in ragged condition. I told him they were designed for reading and he had been looking for reading donations and I knew the kids would read this stuff. Besides, the joy it gave me to know that kids were going to get to enjoy them was greater than anything money would bring, especially kids who had seen the worst parts of childhood. You're a man after my own heart. Comics are for reading and 99% are worthless after reading. I told my wife to burn my entire collection when I die. |
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Post by codystarbuck on Nov 5, 2016 20:29:52 GMT -5
To me, the best comic is one that is so dog-eared it almost crumbles in your hand. That is a much loved comic and read and re-read endlessly. That is the legacy of a great story and that is the true value of a comic.
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Post by Randle-El on Nov 5, 2016 22:15:23 GMT -5
I sold the best part of mine, which had tons of good Bronze Age stuff, a good representation of Silver, and plenty of desirable indies and got peanuts for it. i didn't want to deal with the hassle of trying to sell piecemeal and I was mostly done reading them and was buying book collections of stuff I really, really liked. I have digital of everything, anyway. In the end, I sold maybe 200, got less than a dollar per, didn't really care much, at that point, and ended up donating the bulk of the rest to a boys' home, where a friend was a volunteer. He questioned me parting with so much and that they would probably end up in ragged condition. I told him they were designed for reading and he had been looking for reading donations and I knew the kids would read this stuff. Besides, the joy it gave me to know that kids were going to get to enjoy them was greater than anything money would bring, especially kids who had seen the worst parts of childhood. That's a great story. There's a good chance that out of all those kids, a few will either pick up the hobby, or develop some interest inspired by the comics (illustration, writing, etc). |
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Post by hondobrode on Nov 6, 2016 1:36:35 GMT -5
Let's not forget, by donating to a charitable group, you can write them off your taxes, but only for what you paid for them. I looked into doing this one time and contacted the IRS directly. I passed on getting my ComicBase software upgraded this year but am definitely doing it either at Christmas or in the summer when they come out with their newest version. They also have an ebay-type site where collectors using their software can click and offer items out of their cataloged collection for sale. It's at www.atomicavenue.comI've bought stuff off of their direct collector-to-collector and have always had good experiences (except for a lady who sent my order Media Mail, the post office opened it and saw it's not educational materials, and charged me the extra $ 18 due). Other than that, everything has been great. As I sort through my collection, eventually, this is how I'm going to sell mine. No listing fees and you only pay if they sell. It's on a sliding scale but very reasonable. |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2016 14:02:39 GMT -5
You're a man after my own heart. Comics are for reading and 99% are worthless after reading. I told my wife to burn my entire collection when I die. Gotta ask...why burn? |
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Post by pinkfloydsound17 on Nov 6, 2016 14:42:33 GMT -5
Forgive me in advance, this could take a while to explain... My friends and I were avid collectors from the early 70s to the mid-80s. While we were in college, one of my friend's family relocated from NY to Virginia and asked my parents if he could store his comics at their house on Long Island. The original plan was for him to come get them when he was settled. Cut to 30 years later, and they're still in my parents' house. It's become a running joke, but that's the way it goes. Two weeks ago, the same friend sent me a photo of the cover of Iron Man 55 and told me it was worth a lot of money and it was sitting somewhere in my parents' house. My parents are extremely patient and supportive people, but they're in their 70s and I figured enough was enough, it was time to sell. My friend collected only Marvel and I figured he might have quite a few "key" issues, but first I'd need to see if I could find someone interested in buying them. I saw an ad for the former Lone Star Comics (now operating as mycomicshop.com) and gave them a call. They're based in Texas and they told me if they were interested, a local rep would contact me. A day later I got a call from Jersey who was very interested. He gave me a big sales pitch (which I thought was weird because I contacted them, not the other way around). He said nobody beats their offer and he encouraged me to shop around. I told him that wasn't necessary, that I believed him. He said other places would only offer a dollar a book and then he went on and on about how key issues, regardless of condition have value, but so do filler issues because most stores can't keep a lot of inventory. We got off the phone and I was pretty encouraged. My friend has about 3000 comics, so I thought this could be serious money. But I still needed to get organized. Over the past two weeks, I re-boxed everything and re-bagged and boarded the 200 or so best issues - Iron Man 55, Iron Fist 14, Daredevil 158 & 168, Spider-Man 122, etc. Then I sent the buyer the list just so he knew what he was dealing with. We spoke again to set up a date and I told him I'd be making one more trip to pull out anymore key issues. Last night I headed back out to my parents and pulled out another 50 or so. Avengers 93-100, X-Men 102-143, etc. Today, the guy came out with his partner. As soon as he got there, I knew I was in trouble. His tone had totally changed - one excuse after another. Lots of questions - no X-Men 94, no GS 1? No Hulk 181, etc. I kept reminding him I sent him the list. At one point he said, "well, I don't see anything that could sell for over $100." In rapid fire, I list a dozen titles that his site was selling for well over $100. More hemming and hawing and lectures about inventory. Then, the moment of truth. He asked what I wanted for them. I said make me an offer. They retreat into the other room and come back a few minutes with their "best" offer. $600-800. So basically 20 cents a book. I reminded him about the disparaging remarks he made about other dealers "that would only offer a buck a book." I pointed out that on his site alone, the books I pulled out are selling for over $4,000 and there was still another 2500+ comics in the boxes. $600-800. Believe me, I understand the need to make a profit. And I know full well something only has value if someone else is willing to pay for it. But this is ridiculous and a tremendous waste of my time. Anyway, sorry to vent, but you folks are among the few that I figured could appreciate this story. Sermon over.
I feel like these places are out to lowball. They want to make three, four even five times what they pay if they can get the off of someone unsuspecting. I would be interested in what you have. I live in Canada...at the very least, message me and I can offer some tips on selling or even help with that. I do a fair bit of buying and selling and might be able to help if you are interested in selling online or want a quick sell.
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 6, 2016 15:31:49 GMT -5
You're a man after my own heart. Comics are for reading and 99% are worthless after reading. I told my wife to burn my entire collection when I die. Gotta ask...why burn? It's just paper, after all. Plus, most of all the comics published are worthless or near to it. But my wife is talking me out of the burning solution. I always pictured myself in a funeral pyre , like in Conan , and the books being tossed on top of me.  |
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Post by Deleted on Nov 6, 2016 15:34:37 GMT -5
It's just paper, after all. Plus, most of all the comics published are worthless or near to it. But my wife is talking me out of the burning solution. I always pictured myself in a funeral pyre , like in Conan , and the books being tossed on top of me. Well I know that, but I thought you might be in the 'give it away to starry-eyed kids' crowd |
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Post by Icctrombone on Nov 6, 2016 15:39:32 GMT -5
I might rabbit, I might.  |
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