Central Kentucky Antiques and Collectibles

Copyright 2009 – Kimberly Clay

Vintage comic books are popular collector’s items, both for their rarity value and their sentimental value to many people. Such books are part of many children’s lives and remain a part of them until they become adults. This is one of the main reasons why prices of old comic books increase as they get older. Their value increases over time, particularly those that had a limited publication life, or even better, the initial issues of popular comics.

Many grown ups can relive their happy childhood days with their superheroes on the pages of these books. Others share their memories with their small children. Still others do it for a hobby.

The history of comic books stretches as far back as 1897, and in the absence of any other means of doing so other than by title or publisher, collectors have found a unique way of categorizing them, grouping them into five “ages”. Those that were published from 1897 to 1937 belong to the Platinum age. Those published from 1938 to 1956 – Golden Age, from 1956 to 1969 – Silver, from 1970 to 1979 – Bronze, and 1980 to present – Modern.

The value of comic books depends on several factors, but age and rarity are two of the most significant. Following are some tips on how to determine the value of a comic book. Whether you are a collector or a seller, these will help you to put the best value to your vintage comic books.

1.Check the cover. Is it intact or torn, clean or dirty?
2.Are there missing pages? Are the pages yellowing?
3.Look for price guides online and get a fair assessment of your comic book’s value.
4.Check recent online auctions. You might find out vintage comic books that are comparable to yours.
5.Set a realistic price, not based on its sentimental value to you if you are a seller, but on the prevailing market. If you are buying comic books, you should have an idea of how much you are willing to pay.
6.If you find that the market is currently unfavorable to you, then wait until prices get better. Remember, the older the comic book gets the more it is worth, but you have to take good care of it. Value increases with condition.

Among the comic books that command the best prices at auction are DC comic s such as Superman, Marvel comic books, and Archie books. Large auction houses carry rare collectibles, some of which enjoy annual sales of more that $700 million, and attract online bidders of almost half a million members.

By means of these old books, you can relive those ‘good old days’ when radio characters were brought to life with imaginative and well drawn color graphics. Think of the millions of toys and clothes that were based on comic book characters. Visit your childhood world, a world that you enjoyed back then with the same nostalgia that you’ve always had.

Original comic book illustrations command the best prices. Notable high auction prices have been Flash Gordon by Alex Raymond dated April 28, 1935 at $50,787 and the Jack Davis Tales from the Crypt dated 1954 which was sold at $47,800. For updates on such auctions, many auctioneers use Twitter, Facebook and other sites to give you the details of their activities as they happen.

Superheroes dominated the first era of comic books and most collectors would relish a copy of these priceless possessions. The Superman comic books in 1938 signaled the beginning of a superhero era that has lasted to the present day. Others prefer to collect crime comic books that assumed popularity in the late 1940s and 50s when the initial impact of the superhero began to die down. This was quickly followed by the Western, romance and sci-fi comic book.

These were not universally well received, however, and criticism of the Western and romance genre in respect of their effect on children heralded a return in popularity of the superheroes. The showcase comics introduced by DC in 1956 saw the return of Flash Gordon, the Green Lantern character being particularly popular. From them on, it was the superhero that was the dominant character in comic books.

Going back to the five “ages”, those books belonging to The Golden and Silver Ages are the main areas involved in most collections. It can safely be said that books belonging to these areas are a little more expensive, especially the more popular ones, although the early editions of earlier ages also command high prices.

However, irrespective of the price you pay when collecting, what is most important for many people is not the price but the memories that become refreshed and revitalized as they open every page of those old comic books.

Copyright 2009 – Kimberly Clay

Old Gerber knives are now collector’s items, even though the company is still in business as a subsidiary of Fiskars. Established in 1938-39 by Joseph ‘Ham’ Gerber, the original knives were made by David Murphy, who left the company to manufacture knives for the U.S. Army during the Second World War, although the very original knives weren’t made by the company at all.

The well known Gerber knives first came into being in 1910 when Joseph, then an advertiser in Portland, Oregon, commissioned a local knife maker to make him twenty five sets of cutlery to give to his clients. They were so well received, and demand for them grew so rapidly, that he decided to leave advertising and set up his own knife company, Gerber Legendary Blades.

This was an astute guy, used to spotting promotional opportunities for other people, spotting one for himself and changing his entire career on his own shrewdness and judgment. He deserved his success for taking such a chance. Some of the best knife manufacturers in the USA started out with Gerber, including Al Mar and Peter Kershaw, both much sought after knife makers themselves.

There are a number of vintage Old Gerber knives made pre-1989 that are collectible, including the Celtic Knight folding knife. This is the Gerber Silver Knight 250A with a Celtic pattern on the bolsters and with jade scales that was made in 1979. There are many other folding Gerbers that are collectible such as the wooden Hunters and the Silver Eagle series, each representing the attention to detail and craftsmanship that make these among the most prized knives in America.

This guy had an eye for beauty and practicability, and employed only the best people to design produce knives and cutlery that were the best of the best, which is why they have stood the test of time and are so popular to collectors today.

Ingenuity and innovation are just as important as quality and dependability where old Gerber knives are concerned, and all of these qualities are represented in the range of fixed blade knives such as the presentation hunting knives and the Gerber Combo sets. The rugged Bowie knife is particularly impressive, and very collectible particularly if it offers a coffin style handle. Of particular interest to collectors are Gerber Paul knives, incorporating the Paul Poehlmann axial lock design.

Paul used to make hand-made knives using his unique locking devise, originally developed in 1974, and entered into a contract with Gerber Legendary Blades for production knives to be made. These folding blades incorporated a mechanism that locked the blades in both the open and closed position in a far better way that had ever been possible previously, and the First Edition manufactured from 1977 became sought after the world over after production ceased in 1986. They are now keenly desired collector’s items.

There are many other old Gerber knives that are sought after and if you have a chrome-plated handled fixed blade knife then it is certainly worth something, as are the Abercrombie and Fitch hunting knife range. The Big Magnum, Coho and Muskie are just a few of the named knives that collectors are looking for, and many of these and others are available online for collectors.

Online auctions and collectors’ websites are popular places to find Gerbers such as the high quality folding knives, including the combat and fishing models, and also the range of combat fixed bladed knives and survival knifes. The multi-tools, with scissors and pliers are very highly regarded, as are the sports axes. The beauty of collecting old Gerber knives is in the ingenuity that resulted in such a wide range of different types of knife for such a wide variety of purposes.

Gerber collectors don’t just collect knives: they can specialize in what types of knife they collect, the folders being particularly popular, but they also collect what are literally fully functional works of art.

To say there are over 60 types of collectible knife would not be an exaggeration, such was Gerber’s ingenuity and productivity, and not only is such a knife an item to be proud to own, but also great to collect. There is something about collecting knives, where you can feel the object in your hand and appreciate its design and balance, and the craftsmanship that has gone into making it from lumps of steel, wood, bone, or whatever materials were used.

A knife is regarded as vintage if it is over 20 years old, and since old Gerber knives can be anything up to 79 years old, if you take the original set of 25 into consideration (they must be worth a bomb!), then you have a fabulous interest that should keep you occupied for a lifetime.