Old Comic Books -- collectables or kindling?

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

I have a big plastic bin FULL of them, mostly from the 50's and 60's, and don't know what to do with them. The writer (?) in me hesitates to throw away or burn anything in book shape, the clean freak in me hates that they take up space. I thought about selling them about 15 years ago, but there was no place around here that dealt with old comics, and I really wasn't comfortable paying to ship them off to the other end of the country for dealers to appraise.

They have been kept clean and dry for years, the covers are in new condition, some have rub marks on the spines, there are no dog ears or creases in them. Thanks for the info, Derek, about the sleeves. I'll get some of those to protect the books. I've been googling dealers, but I really don't know how to do this, once I contact them, and I really don't want to get taken for a ride if these things are worth anything.

Is it expected that I will ship them to get appraised by whomever might be interested? Are these things really worth shipping away to get appraised?

Sheryl Nantus · Apr 15, 2008

we had to get rid of about 5000 comics a few years ago - my husband's HUGE collection had to be liquidated in order to get some french drains in the house...

we looked around and finally settled on a dealer who not only came TO the house but also paid in cash...

let's just say we got a tidy sum that far outnumbered the number of comics.

seriously, it's hard to find a reliable dealer who'll come and get the comics if you're not willing to pay for the shipping. And that's a pretty penny these days...

bluntforcetrauma · Apr 15, 2008

Go easy with the funnybooks. Some of 'em are priceless.

JoNightshade · Apr 15, 2008

Don't burn!!! You never know what you might have there. Are there NO comic shops in your area? I've found that most comic shops will also buy old comics... after all, that's what the whole trade is about, mostly. If they don't buy, I'm sure they could recommend someone who would.

The other option is going through and valuing them one by one yourself - you can find estimated values online of most stuff. You can use that to determine if you have anything particularly valuable.

Also... there's always ebay. If you don't want to search through your piles, just put it up as a lot, describe the range of dates, etc. There are many people (who own comic shops, etc) who will buy bulk.

Ken · Apr 15, 2008

I had a collection too.
I gave them away to a friend who was really into comics.

JoNightshade · Apr 15, 2008

That's true... you could find a kid to give them to. I gave all my legos to a little boy years ago and he was my best friend forever.

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

JoNightshade said:
Don't burn!!! You never know what you might have there. Are there NO comic shops in your area? I've found that most comic shops will also buy old comics... after all, that's what the whole trade is about, mostly. If they don't buy, I'm sure they could recommend someone who would.

The other option is going through and valuing them one by one yourself - you can find estimated values online of most stuff. You can use that to determine if you have anything particularly valuable.

Also... there's always ebay. If you don't want to search through your piles, just put it up as a lot, describe the range of dates, etc. There are many people (who own comic shops, etc) who will buy bulk.

Many years ago I contacted the half-dozen or so dealers in Vancouver, but unless I shipped the lot down there, they didn't even want to talk to me. My two closest options are Vancouver and Calgary... I'm working on a list for each place.

dpaterso · Apr 15, 2008

If you burn them I'll never forgive you. Really. Not for a week, at least.

What if you have rare collectors' items? They could be worth a fortune! I'm not saying they are. But they could be, especially from those eras. Put down the matches. Seriously.

Have you listed them? And sorted them individually by title and/or series? That's what you need to do. Just spend an hour or two making piles of comics, and let us know what you have.

This is the digital age! You don't need to ship them across the country to let dealers see the goods. It's easy to display web pages like this one (just for random example's sake):
http://www.psu.edu/dept/inart10_110/inart10/cmbk6silver.html

-Derek

Jean Marie · Apr 15, 2008

Uh, those aren't kindling, dearie. Listen to Derek!

I cannot believe my ears...ack! You'll be kindling if you do...that...to those, poor, innocent little beings

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

dpaterso said:
If you burn them I'll never forgive you. Really. Not for a week, at least.

What if you have rare collectors' items? They could be worth a fortune! I'm not saying they are. But they could be, especially from those eras. Put down the matches. Seriously.

Have you listed them? And sorted them individually by title and/or series? That's what you need to do. Just spend an hour or two making piles of comics, and let us know what you have.

This is the digital age! You don't need to ship them across the country to let dealers see the goods. It's easy to display web pages like this one (just for random example's sake):
http://www.psu.edu/dept/inart10_110/inart10/cmbk6silver.html

-Derek

I can PM you a list... lots of DC and Marvel stuff. There's 11 pages that I've done up, according to publisher. I have two that I can't figure out who published -- Bravados (#1, Aug 1971) and Daniel Boone (#8, Feb 67).

dpaterso · Apr 15, 2008

Ooh yes please, list please.

-Derek

Maryn · Apr 15, 2008

I'd be quite surprised if those didn't have some value, enough to make them worth selling on ebay if no other market is handy.

In fact, have you searched their listings to see if anything similar or identical to an item in your collection is on the market?

I hear that childhood nostalgia--kids' books, comic books--from boomers' formative years sells much better than leatherbound classics twice that age.

Maryn, not really surprised

JoNightshade · Apr 15, 2008

If you had any eighties Batman I might be interested.

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

JoNightshade said:
If you had any eighties Batman I might be interested.

Sorry Jo. Nothing from the 80's, but there are some older Batman ones, superman, spiderman...

Bravo · Apr 15, 2008

i'll pay for shipping to me.

no joke.

dont burn them, let me know and i'll take them off your hands.

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

Bravo said:
i'll pay for shipping to me.

no joke.

dont burn them, let me know and i'll take them off your hands.

but you don't even know what's in the box!

Sheryl Nantus · Apr 15, 2008

bah - send them to me instead.

jst5150 · Apr 15, 2008

RCD, there's something called the Overstreet Price Guide. You might want to write down a few titles, head to your bookmart and peek in Overstreet. That will give you a guide as to what the things might be worth. You're naming old Batman, Spiderman and Superman. That sounds like Kirby country to me. And, umm, whoa, as the kids would say.

I'm not sure where you are geographically, but if they are Golden Age (which is what it sounds like, you might have a gold mine there. So, I'd suggest peeking at the prices, then showing up at the major Comic Convention that is closest to you and then watch the $$$ roll in.

Otherwise, I'll have my mailing address handy when you need it.

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

jst5150 said:
RCD, there's something called the Overstreet Price Guide. You might want to write down a few titles, head to your bookmart and peek in Overstreet. That will give you a guide as to what the things might be worth. You're naming old Batman, Spiderman and Superman. That sounds like Kirby country to me. And, umm, whoa, as the kids would say.

I'm not sure where you are geographically, but if they are Golden Age (which is what it sounds like, you might have a gold mine there. So, I'd suggest peeking at the prices, then showing up at the major Comic Convention that is closest to you and then watch the $$$ roll in.

Otherwise, I'll have my mailing address handy when you need it.

I'm in BC. This is why I love this place! I had no idea what 'comic conventions' were, or that I could go there with these and try to sell them. I already have a list of what's in the box, and what condition they're in. I'll get my hands on the Overstreet Price Guide. Thanks so much!

jennontheisland · Apr 15, 2008

You wouldn't seriously burn them would you???

Add me to the shipping list!

kikazaru · Apr 15, 2008

Take some titles that you have and check them out on ebay. If you find a match, place the titles on a "watch list" and see what sort of prices the title brings. This is not always the true worth given that the price can skyrocket just because people get in a bidding war or some other reason, but in general you can find out a lot of information just by watching what sells.

Here is the category.
http://collectibles.search.ebay.com/comic-books_Collectibles_W0QQfsopZ32QQsacatZ1

reigningcatsndogs · Apr 15, 2008

jennontheisland said:
You wouldn't seriously burn them would you???

Add me to the shipping list!

Hi Jenn! Welcome to AW!

Probably not

. I would have a hard time burning anything that looks like a book.

BenPanced · Apr 15, 2008

I'd say you're better off trying to sell them to the posters here or at comic cons than wasting your time on eBay. It's destroyed the secondary market for anything even once remotely considered "collectible", and considering the fact the producers have flooded the market by creating artificial demand (comic crash of the 90's, anybody?), it ain't worth it.

bluejester12 · Apr 15, 2008

BenPanced said:
I'd say you're better off trying to sell them to the posters here or at comic cons than wasting your time on eBay. It's destroyed the secondary market for anything even once remotely considered "collectible", and considering the fact the producers have flooded the market by creating artificial demand (comic crash of the 90's, anybody?), it ain't worth it.

That is true, but something really collectible can make some cash on ebay.

Definitely check a comic book price guide. A random issue may have the first appearance of a popular character. With the influx of comic book movies, some have gone back up in value.

Condition also matters. Have they been kept in good condition?

Yeah, make a list!

CDarklock · Apr 15, 2008

When I first became homeless, I had a collection of several hundred X-Men comics collected for many years. Went all the way back to issue 1, although there were several gaps. I sold them and have always regretted it. I console myself by remembering I had no choice, since I couldn't very well carry all those comics around on the street.

Old Comic Books -- collectables or kindling?

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