How to Buy Comic Books

This guide will give you the tools you need to buy comic books that are actually worth money.

Difficulty: Moderately Easy

Instructions

Things You'll Need:

• The Official Overstreet Comic Book Price Guide or Wizard Magazine is very helpful determining worth.

1. Know what you are buying. If you're going to collect comics, know what comics you want to collect. You must become an expert on that line of comic books.

2. Look at the cover, note any creases, tears, water spots, folds, markings or any other defect. On some of the older comic books, the cover was longer than the pages. Make sure that's intact. If the cover has a defect this will dramatically decrease the valve. Do not buy this book for investment purposes.

3. 
   Notice the defects in this spine

   Look at the spine. Check for staples, make sure they aren't rusted, bent, or missing. Look for stress marks around the staples. There should no defects on the spine.

4. 
   Overstreet's Page Color Reference

   Now look at the page edges, if you're extremely careful open the book. Check the color of the pages. The more yellow they are the less it's worth.

5. Now if everything about is good, then carefully look through the book noting each page for any creases, tears, water spots, folds, markings or any other defect.

6. Final step. Inside the cover usually on the first page, there is an information block. This block tells you everything about that book. Name, Year Published, Issue, Volume , Publisher. If it doesn't say reprint there then it's a first run edition. 2nd and 3rd printings are worthless.

Tips & Warnings

• Remember this saying "It looks good for its age" it means it's not worth buying
• To spot potential comics to buy look at the original cost of the book. 10,12 cents is worth taking a look.
• Be careful there are scams out there where people have replaced covers or are selling reprints.
• Just because Overstreet Price Guide says it's worth $500 doesn't mean you can get $500 for the book. Most comic book stores will only give you 50% of worth. Exceptions would be anything in the golden era Vol. 1, Issues 1-5.

[carrotmall]

on 10/7/2008 useful info for all collectors

[Heart-C]

on 8/6/2008 Any guide to investing is worth bookmarking! 5 stars!