Category: Comic Collecting 101

Collecting 101: Foxing, Color Breaks, and Spine Rolls

"Light foxing." "Color breaks." "Spine creases." Collector's jargon, and if you're new to collecting, these can be baffling. Get out a sheet of paper because I'm covering some basics to help you with the vocabulary. FOXING...

Where in the World is Mark Jewelers?

Being a collector can be frustrating at times.  Every collection has a natural evolution, but the goals remain the same.  First: find the best comics that fit your scheme and second: find the rarest available comics that fit said scheme...at least that's how I simplify it. ...

Oh Canada! Price Variants

There are certain topics that you should not discuss with friends:  politics, religion, and in the comic book world...comic price variants.  If you go to any message board on the topic, you will inevitably see a comment along the lines of "why would I pay higher...

Newsstand vs. Direct - The Basics

I am a big fan of finding the rare stuff.  The lower the census, the better.  However, sometimes you want a comic that may not be as rare as you'd like, for example there might be 2,838 grade 9.8 copies of a comic on the census...wait,...

Pressing Concerns

Comic books like all collectibles have value based off condition. This is not the lone determinant but it definitely quantifies the range of prices for a book. For instance, what is the range on a Spider-Man #1 in fair condition with a rating CGC of 1.0 grade?...

Notes on Collecting Comics (Pt. 3)

Last time I was looking at how demand drives value up on collectibles, and especially how different kinds of comics grab the attention of collectors at different times, leading to premiums regarding prices for select genres and titles that the same collectors fervently desire. ...

Notes on Collecting Comics (Pt. II)

In my last post I was looking at the various factors that make comics desirable and valuable to collectors. This post picks up from where I left off. This time I want to turn attention to the difference between fads, or short-term impulse buys, versus...

Notes on Collecting Comics (Pt. I)

Blogging for the “GoCollect.com” website I’ve noticed something peculiar about the collecting community. While generally an accepting and open bunch (and I’m focusing here on collectors of comic books), there are some within the community who have very strong opinions about how to collect, which books...

Comic Book Collecting for Newbies: Speed-Grading

Comics are great collectibles, they bring joy into millions of lives, are simply fun to read and can even make you money. The great comic book hunt for that elusive issue is the fun part. Finding that recent variant copy that has been mismarked in...

Don't Get Conned at the Con

Comic book conventions (Cons) are just plain fun and a magnet for collectors, fans, and speculators. The number of diversions is almost unlimited. Many people let their inner superhero out and dress up (cosplay) some do this so well they look like the superheroes they...