My worst Valiant purchase

David_Cody · Post by **David_Cody** » Thu Jul 01, 2004 11:32 pm

I see y'all exclaiming over your "Best Valiant Purchase" and I thought I'd chime in and tell you my worst.

I started collecting Valiant back when Valiant was at its peak. Like Shakespeare mentioned in a post a while back, I made a few mistakes in my rookie years. I read X-O #14 and got hopelessly hooked on Valiants and -had- to own every single friggin' one.

I was living with Mom at the time and had oodles of expendible income. So one day at Graham Cracker Comics in Naperville, IL, I plopped down $125 on a spankin' mint condition Harbinger #1. Oh boy was I proud. I think I might have dropped similar cash on Magnus # 12 at that time. Heck, it was a different world then and I didn't know a thing about "speculation" or that comics ACTUALLY come down in value from time to time.

- David

Daniel Jackson · Post by **Daniel Jackson** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 1:40 am

I think that there are quite a few people (myself included) who have similar experiences with that "gotta have it syndrome". I cringe to think of how much money and time I spent on the early Valiants when now you can pick most of them up for a fraction of the cost. I think it has made me a lot wiser though and I still enjoy my collection. The funny thing is I see people on ebay doing the same thing we did by some of the insane auction prices lately.

greg · Post by **greg** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 1:43 am

Good idea for a thread...

I believe my "worst purchase" would be Solar #14... I paid $14 in 1993.
It was the only "important Valiant" in my price range at the time.

I probably would have purchased a set of Solar #1 through #10 for $500+
if I had that kind of money at the time. Lucky for me, I didn't.

johnpaulbill · Post by **johnpaulbill** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 6:28 am

Here's my "worst purchase". I spent $140 for a Magnus #1 and #12. At least it went to a friend and not a comic book store, and he needed the money for his baby (so there is a good side).

cinlach@aol.com · Post by **cinlach@aol.com** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 9:30 am

how about $45 for shadowman #1, $40 for deathmate yellow gold?

i was such a boob.

depluto · Post by **depluto** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 9:51 am

$2.25 for an X-O 60.

ckb · Post by **ckb** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:04 am

Well, a truly dead mint Harbinger 1 is worth a heck of a lot more than $125 right now. Doesn't sound so bad to me.

Of course, chances are it isn't CGC NM/MT.

david_albuq wrote:I was living with Mom at the time and had oodles of expendible income. So one day at Graham Cracker Comics in Naperville, IL, I plopped down $125 on a spankin' mint condition Harbinger #1. Oh boy was I proud. I think I might have dropped similar cash on Magnus # 12 at that time. Heck, it was a different world then and I didn't know a thing about "speculation" or that comics ACTUALLY come down in value from time to time.

- David

Brother J · Post by **Brother J** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:46 am

I'm sure I had a lot of poor purchases back in the day with Valiants. I know I paid about $40 each for Rai 3 and 4. My first Magnus #12 had a $65 price tag though I don't recall paying that much for it. I think the ones that hurt the most were the Unity and just post Unity books which I bought at back issue prices at the time. I'm sure I paid $10 each for some of the Unity chapters, like Archer & Armstrong #1 and Magnus #15.

justin · Post by **justin** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:51 am

I was lucky, I bought magnus 12 for cover as I plucked that one from the shelf. I remember needing Rai 3 and 4 and paying 60 and 80 respectively, but hell I was 17-18 and living at home with what I had thought as endless amounts of money.

-A

Shakespeare · Post by **Shakespeare** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:12 am

Magnus #5 for $35.

But just think...what if it was the beginning of a new age of comics. What if, instead of Spider-Man opening weekend, we were watching Harbinger 2? Then this thread would be "wish I'd bought more Harbinger #1s at $125!"

Just a thought. Let's see...Harbinger would be at about #140 right now

hillmanthe2nd · Post by **hillmanthe2nd** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:23 am

I paid $100 for a Harbinger #1, which happened to be the only pre-unity Valiant I paid more than cover price for during that time.

hillmanthe2nd · Post by **hillmanthe2nd** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:24 am

hillmanthe2nd wrote:I paid $100 for a Harbinger #1, which happened to be the only pre-unity Valiant I paid more than cover price for during that time.

Oh yeah, I also TRADED an Amazing Spider-Man #7 (Fine) for a Magnus #0...That one still hurts! OUCH!

cjv · Post by **cjv** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 12:58 pm

I bought an XO 0 Gold autographed for $50. I also bought a 2nd print of Solar 10 for about $5, and a Rai 0 for $10.

Everything else was either cover price or less.

Recently (since I have gotten back into Valiant) I don't know if anything could be considered a "bad" purchase, but I bought the Rai Flip #3 for $10, thinking is was the regular series #3.

Chris

ZephyrWasHOT!! · Post by **ZephyrWasHOT!!** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 4:28 pm

I paid $10 cash for Magnus #1. Most I ever paid for a Valiant. (I think)

I turned down Harb #2 at $50, though it was tempting...

Also turned down Unity #0 Red for $40.

One store I was at had 3 copies of Magnus #12 for cover price ($3.25, natch) and they royally screwed me on the EW #1 deal...so I folded them all in half, lengthwise.

I was a bad guy back then.

ZephyrWasHOT!! · Post by **ZephyrWasHOT!!** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 4:29 pm

Oh...also....traded a New Mutants #90 and #91 for a Spidey #17 in Good- and #40 in G/VG condition. To date, the best trade ever. Still have both. The guy also had a Spidey #7 that was a Fair at best, totally spine roll of death, but I TURNED IT DOWN cause it was so damaged.

DUH.

Oh, and a NM #90 for a Fine copy of Batman #234.

ZephyrWasHOT!! · Post by **ZephyrWasHOT!!** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 4:51 pm

Shakespeare wrote:Magnus #5 for $35.

But just think...what if it was the beginning of a new age of comics. What if, instead of Spider-Man opening weekend, we were watching Harbinger 2? Then this thread would be "wish I'd bought more Harbinger #1s at $125!"

Just a thought. Let's see...Harbinger would be at about #140 right now

Man oh man. Spidey #1 was a $500 book by 1983, 20 years after publication. That's 4166 times cover price.

So....by 2012, Harbinger #1 should be an $8,123 book...right?

whetteon · Post by **whetteon** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 5:06 pm

ZephyrWasHOT!! wrote:
Shakespeare wrote:Magnus #5 for $35.

But just think...what if it was the beginning of a new age of comics. What if, instead of Spider-Man opening weekend, we were watching Harbinger 2? Then this thread would be "wish I'd bought more Harbinger #1s at $125!"

Just a thought. Let's see...Harbinger would be at about #140 right now
Man oh man. Spidey #1 was a $500 book by 1983, 20 years after publication. That's 4166 times cover price.

So....by 2012, Harbinger #1 should be an $8,123 book...right?

Absolutely correct!

VH2 X-O Manowar #1-8 for $10.00.

David_Cody · Post by **David_Cody** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 7:15 pm

Yes, the Harbinger #1 I own is dead-on and once I get out of school, I have a whole heck of alot of books I plan on slabbing.

Speaking of bone-head sales, when I first got to NM, I didn't have a job so I sold my dead-on run of Amazing Spidey #100-325. In that run was what I'd catagorize as EASILY 9.8 ASM # 121, 122, and 129. I saw the other day that a 9.6 first Punisher went for something like 8 grand or something on eBay. Now THOSE hurt!!! Course there's other sales in the past where I sold my grandpa's Zepplin stamps for motorcross bike parts or selling my ASM #50 9.2 - 9.6 to take a trip to China...

- David

ZephyrWasHOT!! · Post by **ZephyrWasHOT!!** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 10:17 pm

david_albuq wrote:Yes, the Harbinger #1 I own is dead-on and once I get out of school, I have a whole heck of alot of books I plan on slabbing.

Speaking of bone-head sales, when I first got to NM, I didn't have a job so I sold my dead-on run of Amazing Spidey #100-325. In that run was what I'd catagorize as EASILY 9.8 ASM # 121, 122, and 129. I saw the other day that a 9.6 first Punisher went for something like 8 grand or something on eBay. Now THOSE hurt!!! Course there's other sales in the past where I sold my grandpa's Zepplin stamps for motorcross bike parts or selling my ASM #50 9.2 - 9.6 to take a trip to China...

- David

EASILY 9.8's? <raises left eyebrow *really* high>

There's no such thing as an EASY 9.8.

dellamorte · Post by **dellamorte** » Fri Jul 02, 2004 11:30 pm

So one day at Graham Cracker Comics in Naperville, IL, I plopped down $125 on a spankin' mint condition Harbinger #1.

Hey, I worked in that store back then. Don't feel bad I dropped $125 on a Harbinger #0 and all kinds of other silly prices for most of the pre-unity books. I don't think of them as bad deals because I still have them and still enjoy them.

David_Cody · Post by **David_Cody** » Sat Jul 03, 2004 8:48 am

Yes, "EASILY" might have been too strong a term, but I'm telling you, they were super-tight. John the manager of Graham Crackers and Jaime the owner knew that I only bought the highest qualilty so they were frequently on the lookout for me. When Jaime found the ASM 129 he said, "Dave, this is best copy of this book that I've ever seen."

- David

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