Comic Book Empire

If you are just getting into comic book collecting, you will quickly find out that protecting your comic books is going to be the most important thing you can do. There are a lot of people that would consider buying one a good investment.

Take a look at some of your older comics. There are a couple that can go up to as much as $500,000. Even some newer ones are worth much more than their original cover price. So protecting your comic books is an extremely smart decision

You would be surprised at how easy it is to protect them. There are companies out there at have things designed to accomplish this.

Boxes are commonly used to store comic books. This probably is not the most secure way, but it is better than just laying them out on your desk waiting for coffee to be spilt on them. There are special boxes that come in a couple of varieties. They are either “long boxes” or “short boxes”. The name implies the difference. Both have the same width and depth, but the longer ones will hold another stack of comic books. Shorter boxes are great for just storing them in your closet as the length is only 15 inches. A long box is 25 inches.

Your second thing to think about is boards. Have you ever left paper on top of your desk with just the edge hanging over slightly. If you leave it there for a long period of time, it becomes bent. The paper no longer has a nice straight and flat appearance to it. The same applies to a comic book. You should always use boards to back each comic. You can get these online or from your local comic book store.

The third thing to think about is the little bags that will keep junk off of your comic book. It happens, everyone spills something or has their child puke on the floor every now and then. Having your comic book in the middle of that mess would devalue it quickly if it was not protected. Polypropylene or “mylar” bags will help keep these types of things away from your comic books. It is very important.

You were probably thinking this whole time, “I wouldn’t leave my comic book on the edge of my desk unprotected if it was valuable”. That’s true, but you wouldn’t be reading this article if you did not think that there was something to learn here. It pretty much takes common sense. Store your comic books in a nice, dark area, protected from children and animals. Doing this will give them a longer life without damage.

The grade of “mint” has been abused by a lot of comic book sellers. There are tons of people that have some very nice looking comic books to the naked eye, but technically there are only very few comic books that should be able to reach this level.

The CGC takes this grade very seriously. They do not roll out many “Mint” comic books. Also, just because your comic book is graded as mint, you still should know that not all will be worth the same value. For example, a mint comic book of one of the premier storylines such as Spiderman or Batman will sell for much more than a Youngblood or West Coast Avengers.

The following are criteria for a Mint comic book:

First view the outside.

1. No creases should be on the cover

2. There should be no fading on the cover

3. It should lay flat on a flat surface. There should be no curving

4. There should be no rolling on the spine of the comic book

5. Stapes on the comic book should not have any rust on them

Second view the interior of the book

1. Absolutely no cuts or tears within any of the pages

2. No discoloration or fading in any of the interior pages

3. No stains or marks

4. Autographs are accepted

Generally, the comic book should appear as if it had just come from the store.

So what is the difference between Mint and Near Mint?

The only differences are that the cover may be a bit crooked or off center. Minor binder tears are fine but should be no more than 1/16^th inch long. There is also allowable very minor fading within the interior pages.

So what is the difference between Near Mint and Very Fine?

First off, be leary of anyone who is selling an older comic book above this grade. With the way paper ages, discoloration is almost expected. The comic book does not have to lay all the way flat and can contain some wear. There is often expected to be some fading of the cover. There can be slight creases on the corners of the comic book. General slight wear on the spine, including lines, is acceptable. The spine, however, should still remain flat. Minor printing or binding problems are okay for a near mint comic book. Slightly discolored pages are accepted, including the typical yellowish tint that older paper will have. Absolutely no stains or major discoloration is okay for a near mint copy.

So if that is the case of a Poor Graded Comic Book look like?

Pretty simple, these are not going to be worth much. You probably will not see them for sell very often because they are mainly just readers. Only those very old and rare comic books would be worth anything if they were graded at this level. You should expect to find missing pages, bends, tears, and/or unprinted markings throughout the comic book. The grade explains what you should expect to receive.

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