Calling comic book collectors ... is there a freeware comic book database?

[FulciLives]

Hello

I am looking for a database program that will allow me to input my comic book collection. I don't have Microsoft Access and Microsoft Works, which I have, has a really suck ass DataBase that doesn't seem to allow images to be in a field although you can add pretty ClipArt to reports ... oh joy!

I found a somewhat inexpensive program (it is $39.95 US Dollars) at Collectorz.com that is very kewl!

Basically it has a database on-line that you connect to and you can use that to enter your comic books and it already fills in fields about the comic and even adds a picture ... if no picture is available (I played with the demo and found some like that) you can scan your own image and add it.

Very kewl program but then I realized that this is essentially the same thing as a on-line DataBase made for DVD Videos called DVD Aficionado so I was wondering ... is there something like that for free when it comes to comic books?

BTW here is a list of my DVD collection at DVD Aficionado ---> CLICK HERE

In case that list seems short ... it is because even though I update it from time to time I have a lot of DVD discs I have yet to add.

Anyways I gave the link to give people a chance to see what I am talking about and if such a thing exists for comic books. Well there is that program I mentioned above which is pretty much the same but then again it ain't free either!

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Abbadon]

Hi,

I cannot help you there, but I am curious, do you have The Mighty Thor Comic Books collection by any chance, including the Celestials series?

In case you don't know what I am talking about, read here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celestials

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thor_%28Marvel_Comics%29

[lordsmurf]

Yes there is. I forget what it's called. There are several.

[teegee420]

Looks like a cool program.

[FulciLives]

Hi,

I cannot help you there, but I am curious, do you have The Mighty Thor Comic Books collection by any chance, including the Celestials series?

In case you don't know what I am talking about, read here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Celestials

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thor_%28Marvel_Comics%29

A friend of mine is a big time Jack Kirby fan and was just explaining the whole Celestial thing to me a couple of weeks ago.

However I don't have any comics from that era ... I have recently been getting into mostly bronze age horror titles (some of which are reprints of gold age material and of course I love EC Comcis).

I am fairly young though as things go (my Jack Kirby loving friend is in his 50's whereas I am still in my early 30's ... well 34 anways). The bulk of my comic book collection is stuff I bought int he late 80's and early 90's ... all my late 70's and early 80's stuff got thrown out by my uncaring grandmother although I'm sure if I still had that stuff it would be in bad condition as I was a kid then.

I still can't believe that (only fairly recently) I got bitten by the comic book bug (yet again) and have been buying bronze age comics for as much as $15.00 a piece at times on eBay.

I am buying this stuff to enjoy it but it would be nice to think that in 30+ years from now when I retire that I can sell this stuff (if I need the money which I am sure I will then) for at least the same price if not much higher than what I am paying now.

I mean if a 30 some odd year old comic is "worth" $15.00 now will it be worth $30.00 in another 30 some odd years? I don't know but I sure am digging them.

I do wish though that more of the older stuff got printed IN COLOR ala the Marvel Masterworks series. As expensive as those are it is still cheaper than buying the originals and you can't beat the quality of the presentation.

BTW I hear that hardcover full color books are coming out soon of the EC Comics that should be much higher quality than the 90's reprints. The first volume is due mid October and contains the first x number of issues of WEIRD SCIENCE. Other volumes are to follow including of course TALES FROM THE CRYPT.

The last time they got such royal hardcover treatment the artwork was b/w instead of color except for the 90's reprints which were in color but printed as regular comic books on crappy comic book paper and even then those reprints were not complete.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[Faustus]

I have some but not enough to worry about a program to keep track.

[Supreme2k]

The first volume is due mid October and contains the first x number of issues of WEIRD SCIENCE.

You a fan of Kelly LeBrock?

[FulciLives]

The first volume is due mid October and contains the first x number of issues of WEIRD SCIENCE.

You a fan of Kelly LeBrock?

LOL ... I do hope you are joking

I am referring to this:



For more info check out this link ---> CLICK HERE

For more on EC COMICS check out this link ---> CLICK HERE

I will say that Kelly LeBrock was pretty hot in that movie though :P

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[teegee420]

I was really into the "Tales From the Crypt" TV show so I bought a bunch of the reprints you mentioned. All of that stuff got thrown out, as the old story goes.

[FulciLives]

I was really into the "Tales From the Crypt" TV show so I bought a bunch of the reprints you mentioned. All of that stuff got thrown out, as the old story goes.

I still have all of the GLADSTONE reprints from the early 90's for TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE VAULT OF HORROR, WEIRD SCIENCE etc. but those were not "complete" reprints ... stuff was missing and what is there is re-arranged etc.

So I am looking forward to these EC COMICS ARCHIVE editions even though they are MSRP $49.95 each!

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[lordsmurf]

I still have all of the GLADSTONE reprints from the early 90's for TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE VAULT OF HORROR, WEIRD SCIENCE etc. but those were not "complete" reprints ... stuff was missing and what is there is re-arranged etc.

My mom has a ton of the 1970s comics, from those lines. I was sorting them for her a few weeks ago, into new boxes and with newer plastic sleeves, and the whole time I was thinking to myself "who would read this crap" and I doubted it had any value.

My mistake.

[thecoalman]

with newer plastic sleeves,

Been a while since I did comic books but I was told the dull garbage bag like ones will react with the paper over time. It was suggested to use the clear mylar ones.

[lordsmurf]

I'm really picky about what sleeves I use. I prefer the 3mil 100% polyethylene sleeves that will not stick to paper.

I use these: http://www.mycomicshop.com/megastore/search?qry=Comic%20Bags%3A%20Silver%20100pk%20Pol...&pcat=Supplies

For LPs, I suggest a heaver 5mil or so thickness. They make them for records and magazines.

Polyethylene is inert, translucent and creates a lower static charge than polypropylene, and those are the three main characteristics which make it a superior archival or storage material. An inert substance, according to chemists, is not readily reactive with other elements, in that it cannot produce other chemical compounds. In other words, molds, mildews, and discolorations will not occur with an inert substance, so there's no way a polyethylene sleeve can damage your collectible, nor can damage readily occur to it. Polypropylene is also inert, but that's where the similarities end.

I'm not fond of Mylar. If anything, those stick to paper and the glue from tape tend to disintegrate and get really nasty after a short while. Mylar really has no advantage unless you vacuum the air out and then seal it.

But you're right, there are a lot of crappy sleeves out there.

Polypropylene is also some really crappy stuff.

Acid-free backing boards and boxes are also important.

[FulciLives]

I still have all of the GLADSTONE reprints from the early 90's for TALES FROM THE CRYPT, THE VAULT OF HORROR, WEIRD SCIENCE etc. but those were not "complete" reprints ... stuff was missing and what is there is re-arranged etc.

My mom has a ton of the 1970s comics, from those lines. I was sorting them for her a few weeks ago, into new boxes and with newer plastic sleeves, and the whole time I was thinking to myself "who would read this crap" and I doubted it had any value.

My mistake.

The original EC COMICS are from the GOLDEN AGE (the 1950's) but a lot of other horror comics from that era got re-printed in the BRONZE AGE (the 1970's) in titles such as VAULT OF EVIL and DEAD OF NIGHT and a whole slew of others ... mostly MARVEL titles.

The guy that was EC COMICS (William Gaines) died a while back (I think it was in the 1990's) and recently I saw a slew of auctions on eBay for original 1950's EC COMICS (like TALES FROM THE CRYPT) and the company that was selling this stuff said it was from Gaines' personal "files" so these copies were locked away all these years and were still in as MINT condition as can be. I don't know how well they were selling as they were all BUY IT NOW transactions but the asking price was in the $1,000 to $3,000 range per individual comic book!

On eBay the original 1950's EC COMICS go for $40 or $60 on average and so few are anything remotely near mint. I've also seen issues go to $100 plus.

As for the reason I started this thread ... I really like the Collectorz.com comics program and intend to register it as soon as I can afford to (I have a month to use a $4.00 discount coupon they sent me in the mail).

However I did find a website called comicbookdb.com which is an on-line comic book database that allows you to load titles into your collection so not only can you keep track of what you have but you can see what else is out there ... along with info like artists and writers and cover images. However I have found that many entries are missing or uncomplete and so far the Collectorz.com comic program seems to actually have more info and cover art available.

I also found the The Big Comic Book Database website that is interesting because once you register (it is free) they have prices on comic books in their catalog that are updated (although how updated they are and from what source I don't know but it does beat thumbing through the OverStreet guide not to mention it is free). The only problem is this website is also missing a lot of good stuff.

I should point out that both of the website databases listed above do tend to have more in-depth data than the Collectorz.com comic program when they actually do have info but the Collectorz.com comic program seems to have the basics for everything I have looked up so far which makes it more meaningful to me. Another nice feature of the program is that you can export your collectioin (complete with thumbnail cover graphics) to HTML and post them as a website and I tried it ... it is very kewl! I still have a lot to enter though before I can think of posting them on my website.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[FulciLives]

But you're right, there are a lot of crappy sleeves out there.

Polypropylene is also some really crappy stuff.

Acid-free backing boards and boxes are also important.

I bought some silver age comic bags and boards made by a company called BCW and I liked them because the board perfectly fits the bag ... but the bags ... although very clear ... have some "imperfections" on them like little indents ... as if someone ran a perferated cutting tool (think a round pizza cutter with a wavy edge) all over them ... it made indents but didn't cut. When holding them at a certain angle to the light it ruins the clearity of the look of the bag.

I then bought some current/new size ProBags (made by Diamond) and those are ultra clear and very nice (best bag I have bought yet I think) but the backing boards I bought (supposedly very good ... called thin-x-tenders) are a bit short for the bag ... long enough for the comic ... but when you fold it you fold the flap plus the top "back" part for a not so nice fold over.

I used all the BCW silver age bags/boards and needed more of this size so I bought some more and these were the one's you mentioned LordSmurf ... the ComicCare brand (although I think the one's I got are 2.4mil) and I bought the "matching" ComicCare brand silver age boards but again the boards aren't high enough so I have to fold the flap and then some. I find that annoying LOL

I don't know if those BCW bags were just a bad batch or what but I'm tempted to get them again since they fit with BCW boards so nicely.

However I do like those thin-x-tenders boards but damn they are SO thin that you really need to put two per bag to make it stiff enough ... at least for my liking. Supposedly they are the best boards though without spending an arm and a leg. One comic book shop was selling them (current size or new size I forget now) for $10.00 per 100 (cheaper than on-line prices I have seen) which ain't a bad price BUT that's really $20.00 per 100 if you stick two per bag. Now that's kinda getting "up there" in price.

Sometimes I feel like I am making the whole bagging thing harder than it should be LOL

- John "FulciLives" Coelman

P.S.
OK I hate to sound stupid but ... what is the difference between Polyethylene and Polypropylene. Looks like of the batches of bags I have bought I have some of both. For instance the ProBags say Polypropylene but the ComicCare bags I bought say Polyethylene. Both seem the same to me though as far as looks (both are very clear and "clean" looking)

[FulciLives]

Oh and one more thing ... the one comic book shop I was at showed me two types of bags ... one was the ProBags which I bought (the bag says 2.4mil Polypropylene) whereas the other bag they showed me was (brand and type unknown) thicker but also not "crystal clear" looking either. What was that? The difference was sorta like glossy ink jet printer paper vs mate printre paper if you know what I mean LOL.

So far all the bags I bought (both Polypropylene and Polyethylene) are "crystal clear".

Also note the PS I added to my post above ... what is the difference between Polypropylene and Polyethylene?

- John "FulciLives" Coleman

[teegee420]

The guy that was EC COMICS (William Gaines) died a while back (I think it was in the 1990's) and recently I saw a slew of auctions on eBay for original 1950's EC COMICS (like TALES FROM THE CRYPT) and the company that was selling this stuff said it was from Gaines' personal "files" so these copies were locked away all these years and were still in as MINT condition as can be. I don't know how well they were selling as they were all BUY IT NOW transactions but the asking price was in the $1,000 to $3,000 range per individual comic book!

Did you see the History Channel comics doc from a few years ago? There was a segment that talked about the comics code and the public outcry for censorship in the 50's which was spearheaded by some quack psychologist. The industry decided to police itself rather than fall under government scrutiny. However, the comics code was written in such a way that specifically targetted the EC books, probably because they were top sellers at the time. That pretty much sealed the fate of EC's horror and crime books.

[FulciLives]

Did you see the History Channel comics doc from a few years ago? There was a segment that talked about the comics code and the public outcry for censorship in the 50's which was spearheaded by some quack psychologist. The industry decided to police itself rather than fall under government scrutiny. However, the comics code was written in such a way that specifically targetted the EC books, probably because they were top sellers at the time. That pretty much sealed the fate of EC's horror and crime books.

Yes and that was a shame.

Although I found out only recently that DC had a series called THE HOUSE OF MYSTERY and a new editor started on issue 174 (which I think was around 1973 or so) and he had worked at EC COMICS and brought a lot of the boys back on and for a while there THE HOUSE OF MYSTERY was like an EC COMICS revival ... but perhaps at times not as gruesome.

Recently DC published one of those mammoth size all b/w books (like the Marvel Essentials but DC calls it Showcase) of HOUSE OF MYSTERY starting with issue 174 ... but again this b/w nonesense ... it drives me crazy! I hate reading comics in b/w that were originally published with color. I mean I know a lot of Japanese manga is made to be b/w but that's different if it is made to be that way ... know what I mean?

I've been trying to win some eBay auctions for some HOUSE OF MYSTERY titles but damn they go for a lot of money for that "ec comics" like period. I mean they aren't an arm and a leg but still they tend to go for a bare minimum of $10 to $15 each ... at least in Very Fine condition (and sometimes less than that). I've only managed to win a couple issues so far at reasonable prices.

- John "FulciLives" Coleman