Variants5578
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Comicnewbie private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Could someone please explain to me why so many variants are selling out in pre sale and are then 5-6-7 times (at least) the cover price on the secondary market. How is it determined or by who that a certain variant is the “next hot book”. Latest example : AMS 796 Virgin Cover. A $4 book going for $18-$25. Also, what is the staying power of not just this variants but most that have such an uptick in price so quickly. Thanks. | ||
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 I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life.
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kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
| welcome to the new form of ticketmaster and stubhub, but instead of concert tickets it's comic books. the real secret is to have "liked" their facebook page, sign up for accounts with: asseenonadultswim, kevineastmanstudios, scorpion comics, comic mint, comicsexposure, 7 ate 9, sad lemon comics, jetpack comics, midtown comics, j scott campbell, marc ellerby, and tony moore's websites, etc and so on. Then when you get an email that a presale is happening saturday at 9am EST time zone, you set your calendar 10 MINUTES EARLY and be one of those people hitting refresh every 2 seconds buying that virgin 3 pack for $75 while everyone else is stuck paying $300 for the virgin art and $100 for the trade dress version. You're welcome. |
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Collector
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Comicnewbie private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @kaptainmyke wow, ok. I have an account with the comic mint and midtown comics. Do all those you mentioned have the same variants or are some exclusive to certain stores. | ||
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I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life.
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kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
| many are exclusive to their own logo/trade dress/store to unfortunately start a bookmark folder on your bookmarks bar | ||
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Collector
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Comicnewbie private msg quote post Address this user | |
| It’s like the baseball card craze of the 80’s. Too much! | ||
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 COLLECTOR
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dielinfinite private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I guess first off is that a lot of variants are never sold at cover price to begin with, even if they have a cover price printed. Retailers tend to sell variants at higher prices because availability of the books is more limited. You might have heard something like a "1:20 variant" or something similar. This means that the retailer would get one copy of that variant for every 20 copies of the regular copy they ordered. It wouldn't make much sense for the retailer to sell that one copy for the same price as the other 20. Now consider that some books may be restricted to 1 per 50, or per 100, hell, when Marvel wants to they've done 1 per 1000 variants. Sometimes variants are limited by a set production run. Many retailers have variants produced just for them but this typically requires them to order a minimum number of copies but will pretty much always be much lower than the standard copy. Typically anywhere from 1,000 to 3,000 copies. Additionally, a variant may be produced for a specific event or convention in print runs in the hundreds or even double digits. Again, supply is lower than for the standard issue so retailers increase the price. The reason books sell out in pre-sale is speculation. People will buy the book for their collection but others will buy the pre-release copies only to add a markup and resell it to people that weren't able to buy it the first time around. What determines a "hot book" is based on a variety of factors. Obviously books with a low print run grab people's attention. New character appearances tend to generate a lot of interest because no one knows how popular or important that character will become and thus raise the value of the book in the future. The artist who did the cover is also a factor as the popularity of the artist will drive further interest in the book. There are of course other factors. As for the longetivity of their value, that is another crapshoot, which is why many speculators want to resellas quickly as possible; to lock in a profit before any potential price crash. Of course with variants you'll see any number of patterns from books that skyrocket in price in the months after release only to come back down to "reasonable" prices shortly after. Some books may not generate much interest upon release but the artist may gain significant popularity some time later or the storyline or character may be the focus of a new film or tv show (and the value may vary depending on how well that project is recieved), etc |
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 Collector
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Marximus private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Demand 'now' will unlikely translate to demand 'later', especially with the glut of variants being pushed out. It's a sales gimmick that is working, forcing the addicts and OCDs to buy multiples. I liken it to the cigarette companies adding more nicotine to their products. Create addiction, then feed it. MTG has mastered it with their cards. I wonder how long til new comics are sealed in black polybags, so you won't know what cover you're getting.. |
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 COLLECTOR
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conditionfreak private msg quote post Address this user | |
| If you are looking for a sure fire formula to make money from buying new comic books and flipping. Good luck. Some do it. But most don't. It is like playing poker. You can only do so much with knowledge and skill. But luck pays a big part. And everything is set by the consumer in this hobby. Including the brand new price or the back issue price. We can control all of the prices if we want. Just refuse to buy a new variant for $40. What are they going to do? Burn them? Give them away? No, they will drop the prices and not make so many variants. But we won't and don't do that. Because half of us make money from participating in the hot variant craze, and the other half of buyers of variants are afraid to miss out on something that might double in value in a week. Vicious circle. Better figure it all out before you start throwing money at it. If you miss out on this weeks hot variant, there will be another next week. Guaranteed. |
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I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life.
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kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by conditionfreak Very wise words.  |
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 I had no way of knowing that 9.8 graded copies signed by Adam Hughes weren't what you were looking for.
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drchaos private msg quote post Address this user | |
| When I got back into comics around 2009 one of the first series I got into was Locked & Key. Despite the large number of comic stores in my area few of them carried the title and fewer still ordered enough copies to get the variant. In one case the store owner was a big fan of the book and kept the variants for herself. One reason I ordered from Discount Comic Book Service for a year or two was to get these variants. I stopped ordering from them around the time L&K finally ended it's run. |
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 Collector
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ZosoRocks private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @conditionfreak "If you are looking for a sure fire formula to make money from buying new comic books and flipping. Good luck." Yep...basically that is the bottom line for modern books....whereas, for older books it is all about condition, artist, story, and who owned it!! It's like counting cards with the moderns. Will i count right? How many do I have to count? What was the size limit again? I think variants should be treated like chase figures and cars in the toy world. They are purchased like all others and the shop should put them out for a first come first serve purchase at cover price by the customer. As we can see, this does not happen, because most LC shops are privately owned. And thus, are only out to capitalize on the variant BEFORE the secondary market. It is the patron(s) that are the ones keeping this nonsense going. It started in the 90s and hasn't really let up since. I have bought modern variants, but really, only key ones or ones I like. Mainly artist, story and rarity is what I go for, but it just goes to show I am frugal and not willing to be a "completist" - if there is such a word. *drops mike* :o) Rant over....,LOL :o) |
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 Collector
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Watcher private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I always pay too much...its my signature. | ||
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 Collector
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DavidM private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by Watcher I have a rare set of X-force # 1's still in the polybags and signed by Liefeld for the measly price of $500. I let you have it for $490. J/K   |
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Collector
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Watcher private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM ha! I just sent pay pal your way and I added another 100.00 to make sure you double boxed it.  |
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 Collector
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poka private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM Would not be surprised if x-force 1 will soon start to move upwards - don’t know about the variant set though - but who knows |
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COLLECTOR
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conditionfreak private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Do y'all consider a 2nd or 3rd print a variant? | ||
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Collector
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DavidM private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I’m old school as I’ve always considered 2nd or 3rd prints worthless. I don’t understand the attraction, but that’s just my opinion. ¯_(ツ)_/¯ | ||
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 Collector
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Drogio private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM If they have new cover art, I think hey can be cool...but it has to be a damn cool cover. Martina's artwork on Dark Nigts Metal #2 (3rd print) is a good example. |
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Collector
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Marximus private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM Not sure I'd pass on TMNT #1, 2nd printing(or even 3rd), though...but I get where you're coming from. |
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Collector
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ZosoRocks private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM I have one copy with two....yeah two...Shatterstar cards.....on sale for the first $299.99..... LOL :o) |
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 Collector
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Oxbladder private msg quote post Address this user | |
| You can make money with variants? I just buy ones I like, most at cover price. | ||
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I had no way of knowing that 9.8 graded copies signed by Adam Hughes weren't what you were looking for.
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drchaos private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by DavidM With very few exceptions I feel the same way. |
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 Collector
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Redshade private msg quote post Address this user | |
| In response to a previous post of a few days ago ( 2017 Overstreet ) I sent off for said tome. I didn't find what I was looking for but did notice something startling. On page 95 there is a single page article by RMO to the effect that Overstreet has just discovered that there were three different printings of Superman #1 of 500,000 ; 250,000 and 150,000. The article ends with : " However we would like to openly request any additional information on these issues. As always, all enlightened opinions are eagerly welcomed, but we are particularly interested in any factual data, including prices realised, regarding this issue." This is the first that I have heard of this and nearly dropped the book when I saw it. Is this a recent discovery? Am I going to have to crack open all my Superman #1's to find out which are the worthless ones?  |
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I had no way of knowing that 9.8 graded copies signed by Adam Hughes weren't what you were looking for.
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drchaos private msg quote post Address this user | |
| @Redshade Assuming they were all from the thirties or early forties even a third printing of Superman # 1 would be worth more than most cars. | ||
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I had no way of knowing that 9.8 graded copies signed by Adam Hughes weren't what you were looking for.
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drchaos private msg quote post Address this user | |
| Never mind, not a variant | ||
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 Collector
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comicsforme private msg quote post Address this user | |
| I gave up on story lines.They all seem the same over and over.The art covers are more like a painting that last for ever.If you are in for the money go to gold are silver age.The art today is totally different compared like Kirby.Dell Otto,Mattina and others today are more my kind but every bodys taste.Has nothing about the money for me any more its the art. | ||
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Collector
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ZosoRocks private msg quote post Address this user | |
| +1 to "CFM" post. But what you like. You have to live with the purchase....no one else does. Well, except your wife, if married. LOL Enjoy the hobby. Enjoy life. |
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Collector
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Redshade private msg quote post Address this user | |
Quote:Originally Posted by drchaos I didn't link it at the time but my comments were aimed at: Quote: Originally Posted by DavidM |
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I bought a meat grinder on amazon for $60 and it's changed my life.
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kaptainmyke private msg quote post Address this user | |
| anybody get the Mattina TMNT #80 cover today? I ordered the 9.8 preorder one. | ||
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