How many copies of Detective Comics #38 are estimated to still exist? 0

[Paratrooper]

3

 

I double your :censored:

I'll raise you a :censored: and add a

 

that's not fair you used a when we were only using a cheater

if you can't stand the heat, grab a beer!

 

Done!

and now time for another (thumbs u

Done and Done!

[G.A.tor]

3

 

I double your :censored:

I'll raise you a :censored: and add a

 

that's not fair you used a when we were only using a cheater

if you can't stand the heat, grab a beer!

 

Done!

and now time for another (thumbs u

Done and Done!

[Wayne-Tec]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

[adamstrange]

but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000.

 

Accuracy of Gerber Scarcity Ratings

[G.A.tor]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

[rockman2008]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

 

In terms of availability, it is way over 1000 when you look at the number of times this story/issue has been reprinted. The Gerber rating doesn't carry as much impact on a Detective 38 (after all it's only a scale to help quantify something that is hard to obtain) as compared to issues like the Nedors that have never been reprinted.

[greaterfool]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

 

prove it!

[G.A.tor]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

 

prove it!

[greaterfool]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

 

prove it!

 

i think your estimate is good - amazing considering the hundreds of thousands of copies that were printed that so few remain. i wish my grandparents had bought a stack of comics!

[G.A.tor]

I'd certainly agree that there are more Tec 38's then other early Batman's, but it is a 1940 issue that is graded a gerber 5 which should mean 200-1000. Question is, what end of the scale. 51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

I would say it is much closer to 1000 than 200 (thumbs u

 

prove it!

 

i think your estimate is good - amazing considering the hundreds of thousands of copies that were printed that so few remain. i wish my grandparents had bought a stack of comics!

don't we all!

naturally, my opinions are just that, opinions... no one can realistically determine quantities that are current or completely accurate, but experience, observation, communication, etc, do allow one to make a "reasonable" assessment (thumbs u

[batman_fan]

I agree with Rick on the approximate count but that said, if you are looking for a copy with nice registration, Det 38 is very tough to find in any grade. I have seen maybe three copies with decent registration.

[Mutant Manatee]

A Gerber scarcity rating of "5" is actually very common for a golden age book. When you consider that Gerber's numbers were compiled before the days of the internet, I think you can multiply that "200 - 1000" many times over. So many comic books have surfaced since the dawning of eBay and the ability of your average Joe to easily sell his own comics. There had to have been literally thousands of collections that Ernst Gerber was unaware of at the time. (He certainly never consulted with me about my collection. !)

 

I think that most of the scarcity rating numbers can still be used as a measure of how scarce a specific issue is comparatively, but I think that the corresponding numbers of existing copies are all way low.

 

From personal experience as an EC collector, I can tell you that there's no way that Animated Comics #nn should be a Gerber 8 (11 - 20 copies in existance). I have personally seen more than 20 copies just in the past 5 years. Larry Charet had 3 copies at his booth in Chicago a couple of years ago. They show up on eBay regularly, and you've got to figure that with so many EC collectors out there, many copies are residing in permanent collections. In fact, there are 2 copies of Animated Comics listed on eBay as I type this.

 

So I guess what I'm trying to convey with my rambling is that I wouldn't be surprised if there are actually 2000 - 3000 copies of Detective Comics #38 in existance. They show up in abundance on eBay, there are 4 copies listed right now, and there's even one for sale right now in the CGC "For Sale" thread.

[Crowzilla]

51 copies have been graded by cgc and even though thats more then some of the other Tec's, that's a very low number for a book that key.

 

That's more than any other of the first 40 issues of Detective, and a really high number for a 1940 book. No it's not Batman #1 or All-Flash #1 high, but listen to what everyone here is telling you - it's a pretty common book (compared to other Golden Age books from this time period).

 

[greaterfool]

A Gerber scarcity rating of "5" is actually very common for a golden age book. When you consider that Gerber's numbers were compiled before the days of the internet, I think you can multiply that "200 - 1000" many times over. So many comic books have surfaced since the dawning of eBay and the ability of your average Joe to easily sell his own comics. There had to have been literally thousands of collections that Ernst Gerber was unaware of at the time. (He certainly never consulted with me about my collection. !)

 

I think that most of the scarcity rating numbers can still be used as a measure of how scarce a specific issue is comparatively, but I think that the corresponding numbers of existing copies are all way low.

 

From personal experience as an EC collector, I can tell you that there's no way that Animated Comics #nn should be a Gerber 8 (11 - 20 copies in existance). I have personally seen more than 20 copies just in the past 5 years. Larry Charet had 3 copies at his booth in Chicago a couple of years ago. They show up on eBay regularly, and you've got to figure that with so many EC collectors out there, many copies are residing in permanent collections. In fact, there are 2 copies of Animated Comics listed on eBay as I type this.

 

So I guess what I'm trying to convey with my rambling is that I wouldn't be surprised if there are actually 2000 - 3000 copies of Detective Comics #38 in existance. They show up in abundance on eBay, there are 4 copies listed right now, and there's even one for sale right now in the CGC "For Sale" thread.

 

 

2000-3000 just seems like a lot. for valuable book like tec 38, the average joe who inherits or attic finds this book is looking at "found money" and this book is coming to market right away to be purchased by serious collectors - do you really think 2000-3000 collectors own this book?

 

[Wayne-Tec]

Gerber aside, I agree that 2000-3000 seems high. Like i said, the reason we probably see so many on ebay is because of the demand for a book that key. On top of that books are sold over and over again which could be mis-leading. But for a 1940 book, you'd have to imagine under 1000 but hey, i could be wrong.

 

Just how common is Batman #1 anyway?

[Mutant Manatee]

do you really think 2000-3000 collectors own this book?

 

No, I don't think that at all. What I was trying to say was, if you had a magic way of determining exactly how many copies have survived to this day, I wouldn't be shocked if that number was 2000 - 3000. Not necessarily owned by collectors, but sitting in dealer's inventory, safe deposit boxes and safes, personal collections, and undiscovered in attics or boxed up in closets, etc.

 

Maybe 2000 - 3000 is too high. It's not a scientific number that I can "prove", just a guestimate based on how many copies seem to show up on a regular basis. I'm certainly not claiming to be an expert on Detective Comics #38, but I do attend a lot of comic book conventions, and I do buy golden age comics, and I have seen this book a lot.

[G.A.tor]

my best "guess" would put the # of copies at just south of 1000... 750-900 is highly probable, but again, just basing it on experience (thumbs u

 

I would say there are hundreds of Bat 1's out there too!

[greaterfool]

do you really think 2000-3000 collectors own this book?

 

if you had a magic way of determining exactly how many copies have survived to this day

 

That would be awesome, totally awesome!

[Mutant Manatee]

my best "guess" would put the # of copies at just south of 1000... 750-900 is highly probable, but again, just basing it on experience

 

And I would certainly defer to the person who has much more experience in dealing with Detective Comics than I ever will.

 

(I don't know if you remember me but I was in your booth in San Diego looking at the Tomb of Terror #15 (exploding face cover) but I just couldn't pull the trigger on it.)

 

 

[G.A.tor]

my best "guess" would put the # of copies at just south of 1000... 750-900 is highly probable, but again, just basing it on experience

 

And I would certainly defer to the person who has much more experience in dealing with Detective Comics than I ever will.

 

(I don't know if you remember me but I was in your booth in San Diego looking at the Tomb of Terror #15 (exploding face cover) but I just couldn't pull the trigger on it.)

 

I recall...always nice to meet a fellow boardie!

 

I look at tec 38 this way...for there to be 750 copies, that means there needs to be, on average, 15 copies in all 50 states...well, given that I know of about 40 collectors in NY alone that have copies, you can see how easy it is to extrapolate 750 being a realistic quantity!

heck, I know of a dozen in Fl collectors hands too (thumbs u