5/25/2018
Topic:
Best way to pack and ship
iear
|
Hi all - I'm thinking of beginning to sell off my collection of Marvel Comics. The shipping costs seem like they could cut into any potential profits. Any suggestions as to the most cost effective and safest way to ship? What about single books versus shipping a number at a time? Insurance? And lastly, I am scanning each every front and back cover - will that be enough? I'm going to grade them using my best guess ... I don't think I have titles that warrant paying for the grading. How do I assure that there is no challenge on the buyer's end? Most of my comics were read once and then bagged and boarded since they were purchased - and I am the original and only owner. I believe they are all at or close to 9.2/9.4 - does that seem reasonable?
Thanks! |
5/25/2018
Topic:
How to know how much shipping is when selling comi
iear
|
What kind of envelope would you use with a single comic book? It seems like a large cost for the buyer if I use USPS Priority Mail Flat-Rate envelope to ship in. I have thousands of Marvel comics that aren't worth more than a couple of bucks each and I have no idea how to make this a worthwhile endeavor. There are a few comics that are worth real money and that will make sense but the vast majority of my collection from the 80s is not going to fetch that much.
solarno wrote:
The best option may depend on what you are shipping. How many books at a time? How often? Where are they going? What is the value?
- Regardless of the value I want to make sure that what I'm shipping arrives in exactly the same condition I sent it in. This means using a box when possible. I found some great adjustable boxes on Amazon that will work for one book (with a couple pieces of filler chipboard) and all the way up to 20 or so books. https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00BT5JDE4/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 You have to buy 50 at a time though, so that could be cost prohibitive if you're not mailing very often.
- I almost always use USPS Priority Mail. It's fast and includes a tracking number along with small amount of insurance. If you're entire package weights less than 16oz. you can use USPS First Class Mail, but you don't get the insurance or tracking.
- If you don't have boxes, USPS Priority Mail Flat-Rate envelopes are a great way to go. They're free at your local post office, and you can stuff them with as much that will fit and it will ship for $6.70 to anywhere in the US. (If you are selling through eBay, they offer discounted USPS rates) If you are using envelopes you really should reinforce with sheets of cardboard to stiffen the envelope. There's nothing worse than getting a comic in the mail and having it all bent up.
Jim |
6/5/2018
Topic:
Best way to pack and ship
iear
|
Thanks for such a detailed response. I'm still looking for an actual shipping method ... including how and what to use to pack and which company or service to utilize. I'm pretty sure that all my comics are near-mint but I know that most people can disagree. How do I guarantee that I don;t get into a back and forth on the grading? I can always have it returned but how do I know that the potential buyer hasn't torn it or messed it up in some fashion? Is USPS the best and most reasonable service? Is there a specific box I can buy to ship a single issue? To ship 10 issues?
On paper, my collection is worth good money but the more I think about it, the less excited I am in trying to make this happen. I have issues that the Comics Price guide says are wroth good money but then I have long stretches of titles that are worth $3 each. Like I said, most of these have been read only once by me and then boarded and bagged.
Thanks again for the response ... |
