Step by Step Advice for INVESTING in CGC Comic Books 2024

[@306Marvin]

SUPERB video! I'm going to share this with my non-comic collector friends. That's how good it is!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Marwan. That comment made my day!

[@MetalBum]

I just watched this video a third time. Thanks Keston. I’m learning more to become a “sophisticated” collextor

[@MetalBum]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 just ordered guide and CGC guide great advice

[@Sammmmmmmm617]

Currently saving up to get myself a key. Now all I need to know is how to haggle 😆

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Sam. Best of luck to you. I hope you get the book you want.

[@damianlau6777]

Your content is so under-rated. This was a great walk through on investment. I aspire to have more silver and golden age books in my PC. This is the best way to achieve thet goal. Thank you.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks CerealkilaZ. God luck on your grail journey!!

[@horvathsogranfume658]

agree, very meaty content in every video

[@MetalBum]

Agreed 👍

[@DanSchawbel]

You’re the goat in the hobby

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Love the compliment Dan!!

[@MetalBum]

Agreed

[@MetalBum]

Fantastic channel and production. Share this guys.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Metal Bum. You've been a fantastic fan and promoter :-)

[@MetalBum]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 I try to get word out on quality video creators man

[@MetalBum]

Third time I’m watching this and still learning golden nuggets. Thanks Keston. 😊

[@willmartins168]

Yeah I wish I would have seen this I thought I was getting my collection back together like a pro and I got one I'm very proud of but the kind of money I spent I could have major major grill or a few big ones rather than five short

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Will. Thanks for sharing my friend. Yeah, man...that's common. I definitely started with a wider net too.

[@MoneyballComics]

Very informative! While you say this video is for beginners, you offer great tips and advice for collectors of all skill levels and experiences. Thank you!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

You're welcome brother. Yeah...I smuggled in a few more advanced tips for folks like you!

[@dcpsyficomics3119]

Overstreet,Gerber and Sir Keston 🏆🏆🏆

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Heh, heh. I'd love to be a benchwarmer on a team with those pioneers. Thank you my friend.

[@dbulls33]

Thank you so much for all this important information, as Novice collector I have a better sense of direction of what to research! Thanks again!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

My pleasure. I hope it serves you well, my friend.

[@KozysGhost]

Nice work Keston. Glad to see your channel back in action! really good content in a market that isn’t talked about much (Gold & Silver). Keep them coming!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Kozy! Thanks my friend. Yeah, this video took a while longer than I thought. Glad to be back.

[@pauld_77]

Great video, many thanks for taking the time to put this together Keston 👍

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

You're welcome Paul. Thanks for taking the time to comment.

[@RedRockShane]

Are you the best comic book youtuber? Yes

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Shane! My absence from posting was due to putting together this video (it took a while). Thanks for the kind words.

[@michaeladkins8750]

This was a great video! I started collecting 15 years ago and wish I saw this then!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Michael. Appreciate the kind words, my friend.

[@coydogf23]

That was such an a amazing video! Been collecting since just prior to the bubble and this was very insightful. Thank you!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Flex. Yeah, it's been a weird couple years. I hope the market can stabilize in the next year or two.

[@latenite.comics]

Saved; this will be referenced multiple times until I can hone down the concepts.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks latenite. I hope you find it useful. BTW: That's how I got started. I just kept watching auctions -- sorted by highest priced first -- to get a sense of what's valuable. If I didn't know a book, I'd investigate. Eventually, I got a sense of what's valuable and also a sense of my personal taste. It's fun!

[@PrazerComFormatinho]

Recently I discover your channel and is great. Very informative and fun to learn all those details about grading and old comics. I feel a little two sides about slabbing, because is kinda of sad a comic you can´t open. But at same time all your videos give me more perspective about the collection of slabbed comics.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Prazer. Appreciate the kind words. I like raw books too. That said, for high value books, I feel safer when they are slabbed.

[@richardzaric2524]

Great video! All collectors should view this.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Richard. I hope the algorithm promotes it!

[@luisvillanueva35]

Wow!!! Congrats! What an awesome video! Nice work.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Luis! Thanks for the kind words, my friend.

[@davidtorres2048]

Keston, you’re awesome man. Thank you for all your amazing content!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks David! Much appreciated my friend.

[@LandMisfitComics]

Even though i am not an investor. I gotta say BRAVO A+ on the video and the explanations down to the T.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Land of Misfit Comics!

[@dhartist]

Some serious investment opportunities! Thanks for sharing!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

You bet!

[@hazeldan1216]

Great video and insights for all levels of collectors and investors

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks so much HazelDan. I originally set out to provide buying tips for both silver age and golden age and realized that it was too much for one video. Trying to come up with FMV for golden age is tough.

[@horvathsogranfume658]

Keston what are thoughts on low print modern books like bone, evil ernie, tmnt, crow, invincible, etc?

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Horvath. I generally don't collect anything beyond 1970 but if I did it would be books like the ones you are talking about. Low print runs, come by honestly. I'm not a fan of manufactured scarcity (e.g. 1 in 25 variants).

[@horvathsogranfume658]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 ty for the reply!

[@johnmoran6418]

Great video, just back collecting after a long break, this helps

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks, John! I'm glad you found the info helpful. Good luck with getting back into collecting!

[@dansxmencomics]

Great knowledge, and concise advice! ❤

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Glad it was helpful, my friend.

[@andrewt1801]

Hey Keston. Excellent tips. Great video!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Drew! Thanks brother.

[@jacobbornowsky4013]

Great video Keston appreciate the time and knowledge you put into this 👊🏼

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks brother.

[@rocketfighter8]

Very good and educational video, Keston. I was scammed one time on eBay by an unscrupulous seller for a Hulk #1 but fortunately got a refund. Since then whenever I win anything more than $100 I've always used PayPal Credit. That way I will get the item before I even make a first installment. If the item never arrives at least I'll still have my money. I make sure to pay it off within 6 months to avoid paying interest. This adds a lot of peace of mind and also spreads out the payments over time especially for big ticket items.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Rocketfighter! Great to hear from you my friend. That's a great idea for added safety. I buy through eBay and use PayPal. If I buy anything big off again off e-Bay, I'll likely use your PayPal Credit option.

[@marcloev2072]

Great video. Appreciate your candor and insights. New sub!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Marc. Glad to have you as a subscriber.

[@half_a_kman977]

Great video, Keston!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Great to hear from you again Half_a_KMan.

[@davidkennedy6612]

fantastic video, so much sense

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Appreciate it David.

[@williamedwards5704]

Great post

[@leeniren3706]

Very informative great job

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Lee. Glad it was helpful to you.

[@DrVonChilla]

"No One Should Be Investing In Comic Books Right Now Except For The Uber-Wealthy".....THERE.....I corrected your video title for you. You're welcome. 😄

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Haha. Hi doc. Definitely tougher to get nice books these days!

[@tec31kid]

Great analysis and video as usual Keston 😊 Marvel Comics 1 - the greatest comic book ever published ❣️

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Ben. Agree re Marvel 1. Maybe one day we can both get copies. BTW: Our collabo videos continue to get views.

[@strangeapprentice]

This is great info. Is it good to buy NEW comics of 2023? I'm thinking on getting into this but I don't have that amount of money yet so I'm thinking getting new comics and the budget is around $300 - $500

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Strange. Thanks so much for the kind words. Regarding new comic books, I can't speak to them, but you may look to a KZbinr like ComicTom who speaks more to these books. For me -- I'm a silver and gold guy -- at that price point I would buy something like a low grade FF48, FF52, Iron Man 1, or Silver Surfer 1. These are late silver age iconic books that I think would fit your price range at this level. Good luck!

[@strangeapprentice]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 Ok thanks! Looking into ComicTom. I was thinking of buying it now in hope that they will get higher priced when I pass them on to my kids? I wonder if it worth getting into or just save the money and get into the SilverAge comics...

[@demonslayer8085]

DON’T waste your money on modern/current books! Most of them have VERY high print runs and since they are modern, there will be LOTS of high grades on the census. Meaning 9/10 of them will DROP in price in the future as more and more 9.8s populate the census!

[@strangeapprentice]

@@demonslayer8085 Ohhh thank you for this info! Glad I never get into it as of yet.

[@ThatGuyReviews]

great video!!!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Appreciate it, TGR!

[@ProBlueCheese]

Just purchased Issue #1 death of the venomverse cgc 9.8 for 94$ after shipping first graded comic book I ever purchased, mainly because I like the cover art; just wondering if that wasn't a dumb purchase, will probably get issues 2-5 in a slab aswell.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Jered. Great to hear from you. Congratulations on the purchase. If you like the book then it's nice to have it in your collection. Regarding price -- if you got a good deal -- the easiest approach is look up past ebay sales in the grade. Make sure to look at past sales as opposed to current listing prices. That may help you with determining a reasonable buying price for issues 2-5 that you seek. The best way to learn about serious comic collecting is by being in the game. Much better to make mistakes or slightly overpay at the $100 level than the $1,000 plus level. I learned the most and the most quickly from my first 20 or so purchases. And, then I went after bigger books.

[@alee1374]

Keston, what are you thoughts of the Fortesss Comic Preservation slab vs. CGC slab? Kept some notable childhood comics in Fortress slabs....think they are worthwhile keeping them IF i am not CGC grading them?

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Chaddy, Good to hear from you. I've never owned a fortress, but I have some friends -- big time collectors -- who still keep some valuable comics in them...for what that's worth.

[@alee1374]

Thanks! And awesome content!

[@horvathsogranfume658]

ive been liking green & purp for golden age stuff, i get the presenting covers i want at much cheaper

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

I'm with you there. A nice presenting purple or green is a reasonable way to go with mega-expensive (whatever that means to the buyer) golden age books. I put out a video a few weeks ago, if you are interested: kzbin.info/www/bejne/l5msmKp-gNCWoZo

[@horvathsogranfume658]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 i will check it out!

[@davidbooks.and.comics]

Always an education

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Haha. Yeah, I have a little bit of the teacher gene in me :-)

[@andrehanderson]

Excellent video. I'll subscribe

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Glad to have you as a subscriber Andreh!

[@Doc_Dooom]

Great video! Are you certain the very low grade range vs price has historically been linear untill the recent boom? I thought it was always the inverse of the high grade range with only the mid grades apearing linear. As prices have come down this past year i dont yet see a return to a linear relationship between grade and pricing in the very low grades. Yes a 3.0 is half the price of a 6.0 but a 1.5 is still more than half the price of a 3.0.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Jon G. Appreciate the kind words. Good question. The relationship between price and grade has changed over time. For example, in the first Overstreet (1970) a "mint" copy was only worth 50% more than a "good" copy. That seems crazy today. In the early 2010s I recall big time dealers and collectors talking about the linear relationship from 0.5 to 6.5 then double from a 6.5 to 8 and double again from 8 to 9. That seemed to hold up pretty well for most of the 2010s when I was collecting. I looked back at AF15 in 2007, and it seemed to have this patter too. Agree that the current market is still favoring the low grades over the linear relationship. I'm speculating that the low grades will "get back on the line" but haven't seen evidence of it yet. Just a guess :-)

[@ComicCollectorGeek]

Excellent guide for comic collectors.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks CCG. Glad you liked it!

[@ComicCollectorGeek]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 You covered a lot of ground in one video. We should do another collaboration again.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

@@ComicCollectorGeek Sounds good CCG. I'm on the road for the rest of March but have availability in April. Let's think about something that would be fun.

[@ComicCollectorGeek]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 Would you like to do a part 2 interview on my channel and you can interview on your channel.

[@demonslayer8085]

Great vid! I just subscribed. Are there any copper or bronze age keys that you think are worth investing in? I ask because I honestly don’t like the art style of MOST silver age books!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi, Demonslayer. Thanks for the comment, and the sub! If I were buying in copper and bronze, I'd go with Hulk 181, ASM 129, and TMNT 1. Even though none of these is rare (TMNT 1, I would consider scarce), the staying power of these characters is undeniable. Just be patient and buy at a price point you think is good.

[@demonslayer8085]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 Thanks for the reply! Hulk 181 is definitely on my list of books to buy as Wolverine is my favorite Marvel character. For TMNT, I know the book had multiple printings. Should I just get low grade 1st print or a higher grade 2,3rd print?

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

@@demonslayer8085 Hi Walter. You're welcome. Personally, I'd go with a lower grade 1st print 🙂

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

@@demonslayer8085 Low grade 1st print is my opinion 🙂

[@demonslayer8085]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 I know this book had a low initial 1st print but do you know how many copies were sold for 2nd, 3rd print etc?!? If those are low as well, I think I would prefer to get a higher grade 2nd/3rd print, as that would present well.

[@thegreyprepper520]

Number 1000 baby!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks, Grey Pepper! Glad to finally hit that milestone :-)

[@comicbooknarcissist]

Are or did you work for the post office? Just curious :)

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Comic Book Narcissist. Indeed. Worked a couple summers as a remote entry operator during the mid 1990's. At the time, the post office's address scanning technology was primitive. It couldn't read hand written addresses or printed addresses that were lightly inked. So, our gang would key in these addresses manually, so that a barcode could be assigned to the offending envelope :-)

[@brandonmetro7115]

Just clicked like. I am number 812.

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thank you, Brandon! Inching toward 1,000!

[@starchad1969]

I dod not think graded books are the way to go. Buy raws, but know how to check for a grade you want. Better deals and alot of people online undergrade their raw comics.😊

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks for the comment Starchad. In my experience, folks tend to be too loose with their grades with raw books. But if you are having success, go for it!!

[@thousandaireradio3199]

I’m like #465! COME ON YALL!!

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Thanks Thousand! Almost halfway there.

[@masonpavis]

I’m saving up fro my favourite characters in hardcovers comic books for 100$ each 😆 deadpool and Rick and morty

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Haha. Thanks for sharing. I got a good chuckle out of that one.

[@LeftHandEats]

How is the market today? Has it changed much over the last year to a more stable situation?

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi LeftHand. Thanks for the comment. Here's my opinion. I think the big correction took place in 2022 through 2023. The market has been creeping slowly down since. It's hard (impossible?) to tell when the bottom will hit but I don't think we'll see another major, quick drop in the near future. Personally, I stopped buying silver-age grails in 2018 because in my opinion they were getting too hot. However, I bought a couple in the last 9 months as they are much more reasonable.

[@LeftHandEats]

@@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842 I really appreciate the reply! Thank you for the info

[@christiantolliver4042]

Golden age books aren’t as many that are relevant at least among non keys today so silver bronze and copper for me

[@kestonsoldschoolcomicbooks6842]

Hi Christian. Nothing wrong with silver, bronze, and copper -- for sure. For me, classic covers of the golden age are the next layer outside superhero first appearances. Thanks for stopping by my friend.