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Fantastic Four Collecting Thread!
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13,410 posts in this topic

Opinions...  looking for some advice on ff collecting. These books are expensive in high grade!  What would you do if looking back on your collection?  Get all 9 plus or is 8 plus good enough?  I got 30 books below issue 50 to get so I can complete my ff 1 to 100 collection. Any opinions?  Kirby jack and straw man???

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1 hour ago, Karl Liebl said:

Opinions...  looking for some advice on ff collecting. These books are expensive in high grade!  What would you do if looking back on your collection?  Get all 9 plus or is 8 plus good enough?  I got 30 books below issue 50 to get so I can complete my ff 1 to 100 collection. Any opinions?  Kirby jack and straw man???

8.0 and 9.0 are an absolutely fantastic (pun intended) sweet spot for collecting FFs!

I have no idea what your budget is, but if I were plotting a course I would say:

  • Pick a grade you'll be happy with for FF#1.  This is a mega-key, so any grade is going to be a good investment.  I'm not sure if you're thinking 8.0+ for FF #1, but if you're trying to complete the run then obviously settling for 7.0, 6.0, or lower is the easiest way to afford everything else.
  • Step up in grade for FF #2 through #5.  If you get these four books in 8.0, you are a stud.
  • The next group of books would be FF #6 through ... #10, #12, #15, or #20 depending on where you want to draw the line.  You could stay at 8.0 for this group, or step up to 9.0 if you want to.  I will tell you from personal experience (see below) that #11 and #18 are really tough in high grade.
  • Then from there, the next cutoff is at least #50 -- more likely #52, #55, or #60 to clear out the last few serious keys in the run.  If you're able to fill in #21 (or earlier) through #50 (or later) in 9.0, that's something to be proud of.
  • Among #61-100, there are a handful of more expensive books but nothing as expensive as the earlier stuff.  You can go 9.0, 9.2, or even 9.4 on most of these without breaking the bank.  Again, no idea what your budget is but you seem serious about assembling a high-grade run so there you go.

In my case I got myself a #1 in 7.0, and my goal is to get #2-10 in 9.0 (I have them all, but #3 and #4 are currently 8.0).  I would then like to get #11-129 in 9.4 (my #11 and #18 are 9.0s, and I still can't find a #32).  I'm also chasing after #130-154 in 9.6, and have seven more to go.

I hope you will keep us posted on your quest!

 

Edited by Sweet Lou 14
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1 hour ago, Karl Liebl said:

Opinions...  looking for some advice on ff collecting. These books are expensive in high grade!  What would you do if looking back on your collection?  Get all 9 plus or is 8 plus good enough?  I got 30 books below issue 50 to get so I can complete my ff 1 to 100 collection. Any opinions?  Kirby jack and straw man???

I'm not terribly grade conscious, or OCD, really. I'd get the nicest I could comfortably afford (knowing you had a lot of FFs to buy), or barring that, get them in roughly the same shape as the ones you already have. I personally was always happy with attractive mid-grades. 

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Just now, KirbyJack said:

I'm not terribly grade conscious, or OCD, really. I'd get the nicest I could comfortably afford (knowing you had a lot of FFs to buy), or barring that, get them in roughly the same shape as the ones you already have. I personally was always happy with attractive mid-grades. 

Eye appeal is what it's all about.

Plus, in my case at least, OCD.

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