I have a huge collection. Every Bantam, Del Rey and Pocket Books. I mean every, I have been buying these since the James Blish series. All the tech manuals, the making of's, blueprints (all first editions), Encyclopedia. Everything is first edition and in perfect shape. How do I judge the value?
Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collection.
- Thread starter jdurdan
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Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
In my experience, you can't make much money selling used Trek books. They're not exactly rare; if anything, used-book stores tend to have more of them than they need.
In my experience, you can't make much money selling used Trek books. They're not exactly rare; if anything, used-book stores tend to have more of them than they need.
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
You can always look on eBay to see what they generally go for. Chances are, not a whole lot.
I picked up a somewhat well-read copy of the very first James Blish book for fifty cents at a flea market a few weeks ago. And a local book dealer was actually giving STAR TREK books away free not long ago, just because he didn't have room to store them all.
You can always look on eBay to see what they generally go for. Chances are, not a whole lot.
I picked up a somewhat well-read copy of the very first James Blish book for fifty cents at a flea market a few weeks ago. And a local book dealer was actually giving STAR TREK books away free not long ago, just because he didn't have room to store them all.
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
Some of them are. Mostly out of print novels. I spent a fortune on the DS9 Left Hand of Destiny novels.....
Some of them are. Mostly out of print novels. I spent a fortune on the DS9 Left Hand of Destiny novels.....
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
And sometimes you simply have to wait some time just to get a specific novel cheaper......
And sometimes you simply have to wait some time just to get a specific novel cheaper......
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
But in general, most second-hand book dealers aren't interested in buying the novels unless they're the very latest ones. My local used book dealer told me she wishes I'd bring some of my books in (she knows my collection numbers in the thousands), but NO STAR TREK! So I told her it's a good thing that I've no interest in at all in getting rid of my Star Trek collection that's taken me 40 years to acquire (and I'm still acquiring some things, but am now concentrating on print 'zines from the '70s and '80s). However, I do have Star WARS stuff I don't want anymore (couldn't tell it from brand new), and would she be interested? The answer was yes.
Check eBay and other sites (Bonanza is another site where people sell collectibles and SF related stuff). But more important than what the listed price is, is what things actually sell for (there's a way to check that out). As a "for instance"... there's a notorious fanzine about Spock that I've seen listed for as little as $15 and as high as $500 (USD, which means the prices are higher in Canada). I got my copy for around $20 USD. I really doubt anyone's going to pay $500!
It depends on which edition. I should think that the first edition of Killing Time might be worth a bit more than the later ones, which were somewhat sanitized to tone down the slashier elements (or so I've heard; I have a first edition, so it's not something I ever worried about).
But in general, most second-hand book dealers aren't interested in buying the novels unless they're the very latest ones. My local used book dealer told me she wishes I'd bring some of my books in (she knows my collection numbers in the thousands), but NO STAR TREK! So I told her it's a good thing that I've no interest in at all in getting rid of my Star Trek collection that's taken me 40 years to acquire (and I'm still acquiring some things, but am now concentrating on print 'zines from the '70s and '80s). However, I do have Star WARS stuff I don't want anymore (couldn't tell it from brand new), and would she be interested? The answer was yes.
Check eBay and other sites (Bonanza is another site where people sell collectibles and SF related stuff). But more important than what the listed price is, is what things actually sell for (there's a way to check that out). As a "for instance"... there's a notorious fanzine about Spock that I've seen listed for as little as $15 and as high as $500 (USD, which means the prices are higher in Canada). I got my copy for around $20 USD. I really doubt anyone's going to pay $500!
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
Shipping from Amazon.com to Canada for one paperback book is $12.49, last I noticed. That's in US currency, which means it's more here.
Nice deal if you're in the US. Shipping to Canada, and even within Canada, is insane. The real cost for someone to mail a normal-sized paperback to me from the next province over is less than $3 CAD, but I still have to pay Amazon $6.49 (assuming I did the transaction in the Marketplace).
Shipping from Amazon.com to Canada for one paperback book is $12.49, last I noticed. That's in US currency, which means it's more here.
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
I think more recent out of print stuff would probably be more in demand than older stuff. I know before the omnibus edition came out people were selling the first two DS9 Mission Gamma books for $50-$100 USD.
Now, with the vast majority of Pocket's books available as e-books you're probably not going to find much demand for any them.
I think more recent out of print stuff would probably be more in demand than older stuff. I know before the omnibus edition came out people were selling the first two DS9 Mission Gamma books for $50-$100 USD.
Now, with the vast majority of Pocket's books available as e-books you're probably not going to find much demand for any them.
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
We had a rather large collection here at one time. It was built up over time by me and my two brothers. We somehow managed to acquire several hundred books between us but in the end we realized they were taking up too much room and there was only a handful that we would re-read. I could not give those things away. I'm not sure what we did with them in the end but we didn't sell them. We might have donated them to charity or just thrown them away. I have replaced some favorites with the hard copy edition (Prime Directive is one. I read it so many times my copy fell apart but I found a cheap used one in good condition on Amazon) or with the e-book if available.
I'm digital all the way at the moment but it has to do with not having enough room to have 'real' books.
We had a rather large collection here at one time. It was built up over time by me and my two brothers. We somehow managed to acquire several hundred books between us but in the end we realized they were taking up too much room and there was only a handful that we would re-read. I could not give those things away. I'm not sure what we did with them in the end but we didn't sell them. We might have donated them to charity or just thrown them away. I have replaced some favorites with the hard copy edition (Prime Directive is one. I read it so many times my copy fell apart but I found a cheap used one in good condition on Amazon) or with the e-book if available.
I'm digital all the way at the moment but it has to do with not having enough room to have 'real' books.
Re: Need help and advice estimating value of my huge Trek book collect
I'll give you ten bucks for the lot.
I'll give you ten bucks for the lot.
