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Hard-to-find Trade Paperbacks and Hardcovers

Started by Scott Goodman,

160 posts in this topic

FlyingDonut

FlyingDonut

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Keep your eyes on Abe Books - things always pop up there. I found (for example) a first printing of the 1977 Bill James Baseball Abstract, which had a print run of 75 out of James' basement.

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Scott Goodman

Scott Goodman

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How much does a 1st edition of Marvel Firsts HC go for (1994)?

 

Pat

 

I believe that's the Marvel Limited Hardcover, right? I see those for sale on eBay, but I've never kept them on my watch list. I'll definitely check to see if any have sold recently. That's one for me to watch! Thanks!

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Scott Goodman

Scott Goodman

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And there were a few of the Marvel Limited hardcovers, including a Daredevil Man Without Fear, a Hulk Future Imperfect and a Captain America The Early Years and all of these are super expensive. I saw a Hulk sell for $100 last week.

None of these are as rare as the second printings of the Marvel Masterworks and Marvel Premiere Edition variants. My Magik Marvel Premiere Edition is limited to 1,000 copies and I know most of them don't even go above 2,000.

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the blob

the blob

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not that i want to be a "what i collect is good, what you collect is bad" collector. those marvel fireside editions...bring on the bad guys, etc. have sentimental value for me...I read our copies practically into dust when i was a kid in the 70s. between me and my brother they literally fell apart. it would be neat to own pristine copies of those.

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Scott Goodman

Scott Goodman

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$33+ for a TPB sounds like a lot, so i guess there's some demand for it + not a huge # of copies

 

That's a real tough book to find for cheap. I found my copy for $17 on eBay a few months back and haven't seen one that cheap since. It's also a pretty good story. I read it in the single issues and it was controversial to say the least, but also a really enjoyable story with great Kyle Baker art.

Also, a couple of tough trade paperbacks are the two Kyle Baker Plastic Man TPBs, the first of which is super rare with the plastic bag still on it (it came in a clear plastic comic book bag that sealed at the top). The bag was really flimsy and tore easily and was usually discarded. I am not even sure if my copy still has the bag (it was a DC comp copy they sent to me and I don't remember if the bag was already damaged when it arrived or not).

And, mentioning the DC comp copies I used to get, some of the review trade paperbacks DC sends out are really rare, because they are marked as such and even have different covers on them.

These are trade paperbacks sent out for review purposes only and they are marked NOT FOR RESALE. Many times, the covers say the review trades are not the final product. I have had several throughout the years.

These review trade paperbacks would have to be limited to under 100 most likely, since they don't send them out all that often unless it's something they think will be big.

For awhile, before DC changed its comp policy, I had them all except the Death review trade.

These rarely ever pop up on eBay and when they do, not many people know what they are and they sell for very little (if they sell at all). I sold a couple copies back several years ago to a collector for a large sum of cash and trade, but he was trying to complete a collection and wanted them badly.

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arzach42

arzach42

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Keep your eyes on Abe Books - things always pop up there. I found (for example) a first printing of the 1977 Bill James Baseball Abstract, which had a print run of 75 out of James' basement.

 

:cloud9:

 

Sabermetrician!

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wormboy

wormboy

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The first Gotham Central HC is starting to go for $50 and up. Probably not that rare, but must be out of print. Fantastic story and art.

 

(Sorry if someone has already mentioned this).

 

Tim

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Scott Goodman

Scott Goodman

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The first Gotham Central HC is starting to go for $50 and up. Probably not that rare, but must be out of print. Fantastic story and art.

 

(Sorry if someone has already mentioned this).

 

Tim

 

Man, I knew when those came out they would eventually go up in value because they were on the shelves and then gone... There's one I missed out on.

Did anyone see that a Lost In Space Voyage To The Bottom Of The Soul TPB sold this morning on eBay for nearly $150? Wow!

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Scott Goodman

Scott Goodman

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TPBs that were on shelves recently and are gone now are the Black Lightning Year One, Vixen and Simon Dark... These may have some investment potential if they are as hard to find as I think they are. And, again, these were ordered in low quantities from what I gathered at my local bookstores.

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FlyingDonut

FlyingDonut

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TPBs that were on shelves recently and are gone now are the Black Lightning Year One, Vixen and Simon Dark... These may have some investment potential if they are as hard to find as I think they are. And, again, these were ordered in low quantities from what I gathered at my local bookstores.

 

 

Not sure which Black Lightning you're referring to

Vixen: Return of the Lion

Same with Simon Dark - which one?

 

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Reno McCoy

Reno McCoy

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Conan Chronicles vol. 6 (from Dark Horse) was selling for good prices for awhile. Not sure if they still are.

 

One thing to be aware of with some of the Marvel Masterworks or Premier Classic books: The books themselves are the same, only the dust jackets are limited in any way. As in, the book is the same book, just with one bookstore cover and one limited comic store cover. Not a big deal, but you should be aware of that.

 

I've been buying trades and hardcovers for years. One thing I haven't figured out yet is any sort of rhyme or reason on which books start selling for more than cover price. I know it has to do with going OOP (so it hurts a book when there's a second printing), but there's no way of knowing that when a book first hits the shelf.

 

Another thing I've noticed is that very few people care about first printings the way I do. It's a big deal for book hunters, but with comic fans, it's not a big deal. Heck, with some Masterworks or books like the Bendis Daredevil oversize HCs, second prints are actually more sought after due to better coloring, better paper, or additional material.

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