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Do you buy low grade old comics to complete runs?
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27 posts in this topic

12 minutes ago, Ladic said:

or do you prefer to slowly get high grade to complete runs?

I'll absolutely have to settle for lower-grade books to complete my Fantastic Four run.  I currently have every issue from #55 to present, and a smattering of books from #17-54.  My general rule is that 4.0-6.0 is as low as I'll go quality-wise, but to get some of the older books, I'm going to have to relax that standard.  Perhaps even as low as 1.0 for some of the more expensive books.  

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ill buy a low grade book as a placeholder.  if I never get a chance to buy a better copy or the book sky rockets in price at least I have a copy for the run.  this has happened a few times where a book skyrocketed and I became ecstatic to have bought the lower grade as at the time I wouldn't have even been able to afford that if I waited.

then if you do get a nicer copy you simply sell the lesser one and recoup some of the cost.  bottom line is either way you at least have the book.

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Heck Yeah!

I have a lot of my ASM 1-100 run in low grade copies as I wouldn't be able to afford the high end copies. its about getting the book for me than the high quality I slab and grade to preserve and maybe if I get a double of a comic sell the lower graded one. But well loved copies are A -Ok by me. Specially the valuable ones. 

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4 minutes ago, porcupine48 said:

And it's likely candidate for worst tape pull EVER,I mean,C'MON!

some one must of used packing tape on the entire cover flap and have it stick to the comic when they took it out of the bag lol 

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I mostly collect Silver & Bronze runs. I prefer having a few holes in a run rather than having a bunch of low-grade doubles.  I will make an exception when I think it may be difficult to acquire books in high grade (e.g. early SA Flash, or key Miller Daredevils).

 

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Yup, well to be fair that is what I did when in high school / college when money was more of an issue. I aimed to grab low/mid grade copies to 100% complete the first 4 Iron Man volumes (as well as the majority of issues from Tales of Suspense). Nowadays I don't like completing runs and rather prefer to buy the TPBs of the 'run' and then use the saved money to buy a high grade key from it (such as with Swamp Thing, all TPB but two mid/high copies of House of Secrets 92).

Though 99% of the pictures posted above look to be MUCH worse than what I was buying - my idea of 'low' grade raw was basically at worst a 3.0.

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I don't buy low grade copies to complete collections, but that's mainly because I have certain criteria for my comics in my collection that are there to keep me from buying more than I can afford.  So Silver Age (early) is 6.0 and up, Golden Age is 6.0 and up, Bronze Age is 9.4 and up, Copper Age is 9.6 and up.  Again, this isn't because I don't like lower graded copies, it's to keep me from spending more than I can afford.  Not because the 'higher' grade copies are cheaper, but because they appear much less frequently and even more infrequently can I afford them in those grades.  But, as I've said in other threads, I haven't bought a comic for over two years because the prices are going out of my price range even in those grades.  Also because this fall I have my second kid in college and that's costing me around $50k a year.

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