Golden age S/D? From a new collector 1 1

[explosive&kitkat]

Hello,

 

   Ive recently become very interested in graded golden age books. Ive quickly realized that my original thinking of anything golden age is a good investment in my collection the older the better.. What im realizing is that golden age books are not all gold (pun intended) but instead buying correctly requires being a lot more selective then when buying silver age books. What im seeing is that the age, grade or scarcity of a golden book isn't as important as whether or not the character's in said books are still remembered by todays generation. Let me explain just a little bit my thought process here.

  Ok so well looking for and buying graded books ive found tons of older comic series I had never heard mention of until I really started digging for gold. Mind you I hadn't heard of these series even though I had been reading or collecting until I started specifically searching for golden age books. Now once I started digging for gold I realized that a lot of these golden series were essential series in the  advancement of modern day comics and also some of which were amazing parts of super hero history. Then something happened I really wasn't expecting, High grades of these first generation parts of comic history were not only affordable but also not selling or in demand . Now I understand that demand drives every aspect of value, I get it but I would still think stuff as scarce and important to the industry would be a little less attainable. So I decided to think on and look into the right way to buy these gems. So far what im seeing is that unless it is a well known popular hero or just a golden book of very special importance return on investment long term isn't really there and that through supply and demand these parts of comic history may infact loose value over time (depending on the book) or just sit at the price they are at unsold. The issue im seeing is that movies are driving the comic industrys popularity (yes we all know this already and in my opinion its great and exciting) but through this modern love for comic character's and the modern spin being put on comics that the new generation of collectors either dont know about these gems that played a big part in our modern day comics or are slowly forgetting about them.. This kinda scares me in terms of investment because me personally I love these books for the art, history and out of respect for what the creators of yesteryear accomplished with these early books.

 

   What are you guys thoughts or opinions on the current or future market for non super crazy key golden age books (keep in mind for most people super key goldens are always going to be way out of reach)?

   What do you think the market for these books will do in the future and why?

   Aside from collecting because I like it are golden age books still a good investment and why?

   Is there a way to keep these golddies remembered as the comic industry grows so we dont loose the roots that started it all?

 

 

   I am a young fairly new collector. Ive always loved superheros as they gave my mind a break in hard situations as a child and made me feel better able to face the demons of my life. Every aspect of this industry holds a special place in my heart due to my understanding of how a simple written story can breath life into so many different people in so many different ways. My kids are never lacking on imaginative stories or escapes due to comics and they are well versed in why something like imaginative creation can be as powerful as any brute force due to the reach and impact it can have on so many people. Shouldn't the history always be preserved and held in higher value due to its part in creating what we know and love today?  Regardless of it being a good long term investment I am and will continue to buy these amazing books to compliment the current books and heros that I love today as a reminder of what magic was responsible for the heros I have grown to love over the years. Rant over  

[buttock]

Buy what you like and don't treat it as an investment. 

[adamstrange]

Welcome to the Boards!

Your question is an important for any hobbyist who spends a notable amount of their disposable income.  The reason there hasn't been much response is that every person needs to come to their own conclusion because it's your money that is at risk and the future, sadly, is too difficult to predict.  No one wants to lead you astray by encouraging an investment that will lose value or discouraging an investment that could do well.

Buy what you like and can afford, but not what I like, because I'm buying that.

[Ricksneatstuff]

1 hour ago, adamstrange said:

Welcome to the Boards!

Your question is an important for any hobbyist who spends a notable amount of their disposable income.  The reason there hasn't been much response is that every person needs to come to their own conclusion because it's your money that is at risk and the future, sadly, is too difficult to predict.  No one wants to lead you astray by encouraging an investment that will lose value or discouraging an investment that could do well.

Buy what you like and can afford, but not what I like, because I'm buying that.

That REALLY says it well Alan. I get at least 10-20 (no exaggeration) messages a week asking advice on what to buy and if this book should be sold or traded, etc. My question comes back to "Why are you doing this?" I also find telling someone to buy "Planet 8" and sell "Fight 33" (just random books I pulled out of the air) sets them up for failure and sets me up for blame. 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. Maybe I am even an early part of the last wave of people who came in thinking that too around 5 years ago, even though I had a lot of comic experience in the early 90's. What I found was the first year I didn't know what I was doing and I made really "bad buys" and didn't understand the market and didn't even know what I really liked. Even now I like something and then like something else shortly thereafter, but a LOT of very cool stuff that I think is sweet passes through my hands and some of it sticks around a good while and a lot doesn't. 

I think what has happened is almost everybody (not all- most) are "deallectors", a combination of collector and part time dealer usually to grow their collection. I don't know that it wasn't almost always that way but it definitely is now and it is not a bad thing- BUT it is not for everybody. Your "deallecting" should not be your rent money, your car payment money, your kids college fund. It should be whatever you want to spare and can afford to lose because you never know. I see a lot of people getting in real deep too quick and burning out. Just have fun with it. It has been a 5 year journey for me to get to this stage. I started out buying $30-100 books mostly here just 4 years ago and it has built steadily. Don't focus on building the dream collection in 6 months, think more like 5-10 years where you will be. It will feel like less pressure @explosive&kitkat

Golden age books are cool by the way and there is plenty of interest in a lot of them, but you are right, not all of them.

[explosive&kitkat]

2 hours ago, adamstrange said:

Welcome to the Boards!

Your question is an important for any hobbyist who spends a notable amount of their disposable income.  The reason there hasn't been much response is that every person needs to come to their own conclusion because it's your money that is at risk and the future, sadly, is too difficult to predict.  No one wants to lead you astray by encouraging an investment that will lose value or discouraging an investment that could do well.

Buy what you like and can afford, but not what I like, because I'm buying that.

That makes sense and for the most part I do just buy what I like and honestly I think the art it self drives my interest more then anything a lot of the time. On the other hand the actual buying and hunt I guess of the whole thing is another huge part of the enjoyment of it.

There is nothing like trying to nab a certain book that is important to you and keep missing it then scoring it under FMV. 

I will admit though a lot of times its a hard thing to just focus on the enjoyment without thinking about the future when we invest so much into years of collecting but you guys above are right it should be just about what we like.

Thanks for the insight.

 

[explosive&kitkat]

26 minutes ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

That REALLY says it well Alan. I get at least 10-20 (no exaggeration) messages a week asking advice on what to buy and if this book should be sold or traded, etc. My question comes back to "Why are you doing this?" I also find telling someone to buy "Planet 8" and sell "Fight 33" (just random books I pulled out of the air) sets them up for failure and sets me up for blame. 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. Maybe I am even an early part of the last wave of people who came in thinking that too around 5 years ago, even though I had a lot of comic experience in the early 90's. What I found was the first year I didn't know what I was doing and I made really "bad buys" and didn't understand the market and didn't even know what I really liked. Even now I like something and then like something else shortly thereafter, but a LOT of very cool stuff that I think is sweet passes through my hands and some of it sticks around a good while and a lot doesn't. 

I think what has happened is almost everybody (not all- most) are "deallectors", a combination of collector and part time dealer usually to grow their collection. I don't know that it wasn't almost always that way but it definitely is now and it is not a bad thing- BUT it is not for everybody. Your "deallecting" should not be your rent money, your car payment money, your kids college fund. It should be whatever you want to spare and can afford to lose because you never know. I see a lot of people getting in real deep too quick and burning out. Just have fun with it. It has been a 5 year journey for me to get to this stage. I started out buying $30-100 books mostly here just 4 years ago and it has built steadily. Don't focus on building the dream collection in 6 months, think more like 5-10 years where you will be. It will feel like less pressure @explosive&kitkat

Golden age books are cool by the way and there is plenty of interest in a lot of them, but you are right, not all of them.

That's one thing I think I do very well at in this stage is that I really dont scour the planet getting advice on what to buy speculative. I do think anyone willing to spend the kinda money and time it takes to do this should have a certain amount of resources they follow and game plan for buying but I never let that dictate my style or likes. I follow the movies and read the articles on alternative investments to get my dose of speculation and I wont say I haven't bought books to sell later on speculation. For the most part I try and stay away from "whats hot" because 1. what gos up must come down 2. Following speculation takes the fun out of it 3. I dont get all giddy about a few hundred dollar beat up taskmaster coming in the mail when I could have had a Whiz comics 71 cgc 6.5 for the same money with enough searching.

Im all over the place like you were for sure. Theres just so much great stuff out there, plus the heros I grew up with loving most of the books they have that I want are out of reach mostly (I will get them through trading up over time) so had to find other focusses I enjoy. I do have certain character's that I just collect though. I pretty much buy every Harley Quinn graded book I can get only because I like them.

I think being a deallector is kinda a must for most people because of the cost of being in the comic collecting world can be high. I personally do not do ebay or any of that but I have one comic auction/store that im always doing business with because a lot of times ill buy a collection or lot of books just for a few of them so being able to send whats left over out and recoup some of the money is important. I just dont have the time to really do it myself so using one service works great for me.

Thank you for the insight

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

1 hour ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

That REALLY says it well Alan. I get at least 10-20 (no exaggeration) messages a week asking advice on what to buy and if this book should be sold or traded, etc. My question comes back to "Why are you doing this?" I also find telling someone to buy "Planet 8" and sell "Fight 33" (just random books I pulled out of the air) sets them up for failure and sets me up for blame. 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. Maybe I am even an early part of the last wave of people who came in thinking that too around 5 years ago, even though I had a lot of comic experience in the early 90's. What I found was the first year I didn't know what I was doing and I made really "bad buys" and didn't understand the market and didn't even know what I really liked. Even now I like something and then like something else shortly thereafter, but a LOT of very cool stuff that I think is sweet passes through my hands and some of it sticks around a good while and a lot doesn't. 

I think what has happened is almost everybody (not all- most) are "deallectors", a combination of collector and part time dealer usually to grow their collection. I don't know that it wasn't almost always that way but it definitely is now and it is not a bad thing- BUT it is not for everybody. Your "deallecting" should not be your rent money, your car payment money, your kids college fund. It should be whatever you want to spare and can afford to lose because you never know. I see a lot of people getting in real deep too quick and burning out. Just have fun with it. It has been a 5 year journey for me to get to this stage. I started out buying $30-100 books mostly here just 4 years ago and it has built steadily. Don't focus on building the dream collection in 6 months, think more like 5-10 years where you will be. It will feel like less pressure @explosive&kitkat

Golden age books are cool by the way and there is plenty of interest in a lot of them, but you are right, not all of them.

You are a wise soul, Ricksneatstuff

[Lukesaurus]

you can read this thread to get an idea about what people are buying 

 

[entalmighty1]

12 hours ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

That REALLY says it well Alan. I get at least 10-20 (no exaggeration) messages a week asking advice on what to buy and if this book should be sold or traded, etc. My question comes back to "Why are you doing this?" I also find telling someone to buy "Planet 8" and sell "Fight 33" (just random books I pulled out of the air) sets them up for failure and sets me up for blame. 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. Maybe I am even an early part of the last wave of people who came in thinking that too around 5 years ago, even though I had a lot of comic experience in the early 90's. What I found was the first year I didn't know what I was doing and I made really "bad buys" and didn't understand the market and didn't even know what I really liked. Even now I like something and then like something else shortly thereafter, but a LOT of very cool stuff that I think is sweet passes through my hands and some of it sticks around a good while and a lot doesn't. 

I think what has happened is almost everybody (not all- most) are "deallectors", a combination of collector and part time dealer usually to grow their collection. I don't know that it wasn't almost always that way but it definitely is now and it is not a bad thing- BUT it is not for everybody. Your "deallecting" should not be your rent money, your car payment money, your kids college fund. It should be whatever you want to spare and can afford to lose because you never know. I see a lot of people getting in real deep too quick and burning out. Just have fun with it. It has been a 5 year journey for me to get to this stage. I started out buying $30-100 books mostly here just 4 years ago and it has built steadily. Don't focus on building the dream collection in 6 months, think more like 5-10 years where you will be. It will feel like less pressure @explosive&kitkat

Golden age books are cool by the way and there is plenty of interest in a lot of them, but you are right, not all of them.

Just to echo what you're saying, almost all of my interactions with newer collectors have been based around viewing this as a commodities market, instead of a hobby.  Yes, there is inherent value here.  Yes, you can certainly use this as sort of a "hedge fund" to move money into different pools.  Yes, it IS somewhat of a commodities market.  That said, if you're really in this for the long haul, you'll see that many genres in the market have ups and downs, sometimes significantly so.  Should what you currently collect experience a steep downward turn, it would probably be easier to swallow if you actually enjoy the books in your collection beyond their monetary value.  

[october]

13 hours ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. 

 

This A) is true and B) should terrify anyone who pays attention to other hobbies.

I know it worries me. A lot.

[MrBedrock]

5 hours ago, october said:

18 hours ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. 

 

This A) is true and B) should terrify anyone who pays attention to other hobbies.

I know it worries me. A lot. 

It tells me that now is a great time to sell. In a few years, when things cool down and all of the "gold rush" folks dump their books and go elsewhere, well that will be an excellent time to buy.

No terror or worries!

[october]

1 hour ago, MrBedrock said:

It tells me that now is a great time to sell. In a few years, when things cool down and all of the "gold rush" folks dump their books and go elsewhere, well that will be an excellent time to buy.

No terror or worries!

Selling things out of my collection gives me hives. 

[Knightsofold]

20 hours ago, Ricksneatstuff said:

That REALLY says it well Alan. I get at least 10-20 (no exaggeration) messages a week asking advice on what to buy and if this book should be sold or traded, etc. My question comes back to "Why are you doing this?" I also find telling someone to buy "Planet 8" and sell "Fight 33" (just random books I pulled out of the air) sets them up for failure and sets me up for blame. 

I have been watching a lot of people get into gold just the last 6 months - literally the gold rush- with thoughts of buying a book for $500 and selling it for $2000 a few months later and a really scattered collecting focus. Maybe I am even an early part of the last wave of people who came in thinking that too around 5 years ago, even though I had a lot of comic experience in the early 90's. What I found was the first year I didn't know what I was doing and I made really "bad buys" and didn't understand the market and didn't even know what I really liked. Even now I like something and then like something else shortly thereafter, but a LOT of very cool stuff that I think is sweet passes through my hands and some of it sticks around a good while and a lot doesn't. 

I think what has happened is almost everybody (not all- most) are "deallectors", a combination of collector and part time dealer usually to grow their collection. I don't know that it wasn't almost always that way but it definitely is now and it is not a bad thing- BUT it is not for everybody. Your "deallecting" should not be your rent money, your car payment money, your kids college fund. It should be whatever you want to spare and can afford to lose because you never know. I see a lot of people getting in real deep too quick and burning out. Just have fun with it. It has been a 5 year journey for me to get to this stage. I started out buying $30-100 books mostly here just 4 years ago and it has built steadily. Don't focus on building the dream collection in 6 months, think more like 5-10 years where you will be. It will feel like less pressure @explosive&kitkat

Golden age books are cool by the way and there is plenty of interest in a lot of them, but you are right, not all of them.

It seems to me that the rise in GA collectors is also the natural result of the influx of returning to the hobby collectors since the MCU (last 5-7 years).  It doesn’t take long for financially stable collectors to finish up their bronze and silver key list and they move on to the more challenging (and fun imo) hunting that only the Golden Age offers.

[tth2]

On 6/19/2019 at 3:18 AM, explosive&kitkat said:

What im seeing is that the age, grade or scarcity of a golden book isn't as important as whether or not the character's in said books are still remembered by todays generation.

There's a guy named Jon Berk who could list several million reasons why this is not correct. 

[tth2]

18 hours ago, Knightsofold said:

It seems to me that the rise in GA collectors is also the natural result of the influx of returning to the hobby collectors since the MCU (last 5-7 years).  It doesn’t take long for financially stable collectors to finish up their bronze and silver key list and they move on to the more challenging (and fun imo) hunting that only the Golden Age offers.

This. 

With the internet, common books have never been more easily available.  There have been so many cases of rich guys rediscovering their childhood hobby after a long hiatus and literally within months they had complete ultra-HG SA Marvel runs.  It was just a case of contacting a well connected dealer and writing enough checks.

Some soon got bored and sold off their collections as quickly as they accumulated them.  Others who remained in the hobby moved to GA and OA to find a challenge.

[thunsicker]

3 hours ago, tth2 said:

On 6/18/2019 at 2:18 PM, explosive&kitkat said:

What im seeing is that the age, grade or scarcity of a golden book isn't as important as whether or not the character's in said books are still remembered by todays generation.

There's a guy named Jon Berk who could list several million reasons why this is not correct. 

Character importance is one factor, but unlike the Silver Age comics, Golden Age comics and collectors have many different foci which can increase the price.  Rarity, artist (or cover artist), historical significance of book, Hitler covers, war covers, fish to the face covers, good girl art, pre-code horror, and countless others.  Collecting Golden Age comics is much different than collecting Silver or Bronze Age comics.  Golden Age comic collectors are kind of what all comic collectors were years ago where each had his focus and didn't chase the current trends.

Edited June 21, 2019 by thunsicker

[lou_fine]

11 hours ago, thunsicker said:

15 hours ago, tth2 said:

On 6/18/2019 at 12:18 PM, explosive&kitkat said:

What im seeing is that the age, grade or scarcity of a golden book isn't as important as whether or not the character's in said books are still remembered by todays generation.

There's a guy named Jon Berk who could list several million reasons why this is not correct. 

Character importance is one factor, but unlike the Silver Age comics, Golden Age comics and collectors have many different foci which can increase the price.  Rarity, artist (or cover artist), historical significance of book, Hitler covers, war covers, fish to the face covers, good girl art, pre-code horror, and countless others.  Collecting Golden Age comics is much different than collecting Silver or Bronze Age comics.  Golden Age comic collectors are kind of what all comic collectors were years ago where each had his focus and didn't chase the current trends.

+1

Bang on as GA is much more dependent upon the above listed factors and definitely much more so than movie related hype or whether a character is still recognized by today's generation.  

If it was character recognition, then why are most of the DC related character GA books so much more on the "cold" side as opposed to the genres and themes listed above? 

[Comicdey]

On 6/20/2019 at 11:53 AM, october said:

Selling things out of my collection gives me hives. 

And with that said, there are many long time collectors that have hoards or cool books that each trade/sale feels like a lost memory and that forces the hunt to begin again.     Some love the “profit” some love the “hunt” some love the “show factor” some love the “art form and history”.  I personally love it all and there’s a niche for everyone.   Buy what you like and make sure you’ve got a good day job.👍

[G.A.tor]

5 hours ago, Comicdey said:

And with that said, there are many long time collectors that have hoards or cool books that each trade/sale feels like a lost memory and that forces the hunt to begin again.     Some love the “profit” some love the “hunt” some love the “show factor” some love the “art form and history”.  I personally love it all and there’s a niche for everyone.   Buy what you like and make sure you’ve got a good day job.👍

I’m in it for the booze and women 

[GreatCaesarsGhost]

58 minutes ago, G.A.tor said:

I’m in it for the booze and women