Let's figure out this Freak Brothers #1 print run...

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

Yes, along with all the black spots on the front cover between Fat Freddy's face and the stairs.

[Brother J]

Yes, along with all the black spots on the front cover between Fat Freddy's face and the stairs.

ok, so who has one like the one pictured?

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

Funny thing is I think I recall one being on eBay about a year or more ago.  I haven't seen any others.

[Comix Junky]

OK i was wrong about Gray being a 5th color.

Sorry 50cent,
Staple placement is meaningless, if they're stiched on demand, in small batches, on a hand-fed sticher.

As per JDavid:
"...They were stapled on a foot-operated saddle sticher from the 1920s as needed.  The operator simply slid the book over and nailed another staple...."
"...The position of the staples would depend on whether we bound them in house with the ancient saddle stitcher or sent them to the modern bindery in South San Francisco.  When we had back orders and needed copies quick, we did them by hand..."

We have a similar "foot-operated saddle sticher from the 1920s" where i work, but i won't bore you with horror stories about how sloppy we are (i am) when we use it. (i'm the one who usually gets asigned those miscellaneous jobs, on my shift)

Trimming comes next, so would also be trimmed in the same small batches. Making book size meaningless too.

JDavid; What kind of cutter did you use?

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

Is the stitcher a single staple stitcher or dual?  does it staple one staple at a time, or both at the same time for each book?

[Comix Junky]

One staple at a time.

In JDavid's own words:
"The operator simply slid the book over and nailed another staple."

[Comix Junky]

So what do we got at this point?

(1) Gray tire; smudges on cops; fire escape; black flag

(Be advised, the smudge won't always look the same.
If they was fighting with it, the smudge will get better and worse.
There might even be some "perfict" coppies.)

(2) White tire; black flag

(3) Gray tire; black flag
    half with orange patch (JK 1st); half with hidden fire escape (JK 2nd).

(4) White tire; blue squiggle flag. (JK 3rd)

(5) White-wall tire; blue .50;  blue squiggle flag. (JK 4th)

[Comix Junky]

1st print with black toning:
"...The run was only 5000, out of the millions printed, so it must be rare."

Yeah, I never even heard of this before.

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

This is what I've come to understand (with the purple .50 cent printings).

1st print gray tire with black smudges done 01 Feb. 1971 (5,000 copies done on the 1-up DD)

(was there more than one printing of Freak Brothers #1 done on the 1-up DD printer?  I suspect there might have been.)

2nd print "A" (with orange rectangle) and "B" (without orange rectangle) done around May 1971 on the 4-up Ebco.

3rd print white tire printing with black flag on back (June 1971?).

4th print white tire printing with blue flag on back, done around July 1971

5th print white tire printing with blue flag on back "A" and "B" (with green cover) done with Armadillo #2 (2nd print) and Subvert #1 (3rd print) (after July 1971, date?)

6th print starts blue .50 cent printings...

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

4th print (notice on the back just left of the big black "D" the black frame is broken leaving a white area)

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

5th print "A" (notice the black frame by the "D" is fixed, but there is a slight sliver of white still by there, also my copy also has the yellow dot in the orange frame under the character at the bottom)

"B" (green soles on boots on front cover and green fence, back has the sliver next to "D" on my copy in yellow, as well as a small bit of yellow on the opposite side of the orange frame on the left, along the whole side of the orange frame on the left is also a long scratch down the whole cover right in between the yellow slivers mentioned previously, just like the one barely visible here)

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

My copies that seem to match the above pics.

4th print (colors a bit muted)

5th print "A" (fence is a rich brown)

5th print "B" (Notice on this one that the sole/bottom of the boot next to the trash can is green.)

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

J. Dave,

Here's a couple questions we've got regarding Motor City Comics #1 if you've got time,
http://headcomix.info/forum/index.php/topic,689.msg4726.html#msg4726

And if you've got any info. on this FB #1 (3rd print) regarding this anomaly on the fence (the "peg" inside the black splotch shaped like a "P" always confused me because it's not on any other printing I've seen and seems to be too clean for an artifact)?

[Comix Junky]

"...it's not on any other printing I've seen and seems to be too clean for an artifact)?"

Clean?
Ah, contrare!
The very essence of la artifact, it is.
La dried ink chip. La disintagrating roller.
How you say, la hickey!

[50Cent #II (1st print)]

Anyone have a copy of the JK/UGComix.info FB #1 (8th print)?  Could you scan the front and back or would you be interested in trading for a NM .50 cent pink edition (you pay for both shipping though)?  You can tell this printing as it's the same as the 10th print but with glossy covers, not matte (which is the same as the 9th pink paper print), the Jesus ad on the last page is for .50 cents and the blue peaks are removed on the glossy cover.