IRON MAN #248

Cover shows sharp corners, strong color and gloss with no visible spine ticks, creases, or color breaks. The Spider-Man head direct-edition logo box is clean and crisp. Book is in a protective sleeve which limits assessment of edge wear and any minor surface abrasions; interior and back cover were not assessed.

Iron Man #248 arrived in November 1989 during John Byrne's tenure as writer and artist on the title, a run remembered for streamlining Tony Stark's supporting cast and armor continuity in the wake of the Armor Wars storyline. This issue falls in the later stretch of that run, offering competent Byrne linework and plotting but no first appearance, death, or other landmark event that would elevate it beyond a solid entry in a well-regarded creative period.

Market data reflects a low-census Copper Age book with limited certified population and thin trading activity: only 23 Universal copies are recorded across the grading scale, with a single sale reported at the top grade of 9.8. Demand is driven almost entirely by completists of the Byrne Iron Man run and readers assembling full sets of the series rather than speculative key-issue buyers, which keeps raw-copy activity modest and pricing concentrated at the high end of the certified population.

This is a book that trades as a run-filler rather than a standalone investment target. Raw low- and mid-grade copies move cheaply through back-issue bins and online bulk listings, while a well-preserved 9.8 slab carries a modest premium simply due to scarcity of top-graded copies rather than any narrative significance. Collectors building complete Iron Man sets, especially those focused on the Byrne era, represent the primary audience across all grades.