The death of back issues :(

[dupont2005]

Nope, a part of me wants to see someone buying it at those price but at the same time I don't because of how painful it would be to see someone paying at those prices.

Nobody does. Check completed listings, that's what things actually sell for. You can list it for a million dollars if you want, doesn't mean anyone is going to buy it.

[Vic Vega]

Nobody does. Check completed listings, that's what things actually sell for. You can list it for a million dollars if you want, doesn't mean anyone is going to buy it.

Yep.

Once all the guys in the 90's speculator boom found out they couldn't charge guide prices for thier stuff, they lost interest quickly.

Can't say that I blame them. They were misinformed.

Say what you will, but the speculation market did bring business to the stores.

At this point only a die hard is willing to pay guide prices for a back issue. Not when you can get whole collections in trade.

I'd would think that most store owners with limited space use it on toys, models, apparel rather than back issues.

[Shawn Hopkins]

Guide prices are an unfunny joke. They're manipulated by retailers in completely underhanded ways that have nothing to do with actual demand for or rarity of a comic.

[Mr. Rice]

Guide prices are an unfunny joke. They're manipulated by retailers in completely underhanded ways that have nothing to do with actual demand for or rarity of a comic.

True. My old LCBS had a sign: "Books in Long Boxes are priced according to Guide Prices." Like anyone's going to pay more than a buck for... I dunno, Batman #412? Let's look that up and see if it's worth more than 99 cents... Yeah, maybe Batman #412... What about Batman #544! Yeah, I'd cal that a dollar comic, not whatever some "guide" says...

Anyways... yeah you're right.

[Shawn Hopkins]

Another huge hassle with buying back issues in a comic shop is grading. Some are OK about it, but I've run into far too many that try to charge the NM price for everything, even clearly lower-grade books. Uh, no, that's not the way it works.

[J. Robb]

Back issues were fun when they were like an archaeological dig, learning about the characters' history. Not many comics today still have that connection to the past, especially at DC where retcons and reboots are the norm.

[dupont2005]

Yeah the guide. That's what we were stuck with before the internet. I know at least one contributor is one of the worst scumbags on the planet, and definitely in comics. Don't know about the rest of them but these are the people that tell you what a comic is worth pretty much based on what they have a box full of that they need to unload for big bucks.

[USArmyParatrooper]

Guide prices are an unfunny joke. They're manipulated by retailers in completely underhanded ways that have nothing to do with actual demand for or rarity of a comic.

"Guide" is all but obsolete. It's practically worthless when it comes to gauging market value for collectible comics.

[SUPERECWFAN1]

Oh good lord. If back issue bins are going away, it's not because the market is being overtaken by those dreaded *gasp* "casual enthusiasts" that the self-described hardcore of any given hobby insist are ruining said hobby. (This usually after years of complaining that their hobby doesn't get enough mainstream attention.) It's because collectors now prefer to buy and sell their books online. If a guy can sell his books online for more than a dealer would give him but for less than a dealer would charge, everyone wins. Except the dealer of course, but if he's any kind of savvy businessman he's making enough off trades and newer titles that the loss of the back issue market shouldn't matter.

Its over...its all ooooover. The death nail for back issues. The dude might as well take all his back issues and give them away. Give them all away. Just save the good old ones and I'll swing by and take them .

[macul]

It hasn't. It's just on eBay now. We aren't limited to the inventory at the corner store, and we aren't stuck with his prices either.

Yep. I don't buy many back issues, though those I do purchase come from Ebay. I get fairly good prices and it is easier to find what I want. Too many brick and mortar stores still think they can get full Overstreet price for their back issues, which is why those back issues sit there forever.

[Aaron Kashtan]

Maybe Manga4life's store is just charging too much for back issues. I've complained before about stores that charge $3 apiece for back issues that are worth a dollar at most: http://forums.comicbookresources.com...k-issue-prices

Based on personal experience, I don't believe the back issue market is dead. In Atlanta there's a local convention about every three months, and they always have a lot of good stuff at affordable prices.

[Rasputin9977]

Yep. Buying back issues from your local comic shop have been disappaering quicker than tax dollars from Obama's hands. eBay, craigslist like websites and online mega shops like Mile High and Lone Star sell comics cheaper online. Plus, the inventory is larger.

[Sabrina_Fried]

You say 'casual' like its a bad thing.

I'm one of those readers who buys TPBs and digital comics now. I don't back issue hunt anymore. Sure the 'treasure hunt' was fun when I was doing it. But it was also very expensive in terms of travelling and paying foreign exchange and the collectors' markup and once I finished a few series, I just didn't want the hassle anymore.

I've also been reading comics for over 20 years and that still includes a weekly visit to the local comic shop, even on weeks when the ship list says they are not receiving anything I am currently following. I don't think of myself as a 'casual'.

The comic shops I have been living near started eliminating their back issue bins over a decade ago. It costs them more to store the comics than they are worth.

Back issues still seem to do fairly well at conventions, where the comic shop owners can move a lot of them in a relatively short period of time. The back issue market isn't dead. It's just changing to suit the demands of the people who are spending money in it.

[The Black Guardian]

There's nothing "casual" about my comic buying, but I haven't delved into back issue bins since the early-90s.