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The Official Sports/Non Sports Card Pron Thread (4 Viewers)
- Thread starter Potsie1
- Start date
chipinla
Straight Flush
- Joined
- Apr 12, 2018
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RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
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RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
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Some very cool collections @RainmanTrail @PGA PRO and others!
I have been resisting the pull to get back into collecting cards, but for some reason this past week has really made me want to jump back in. Problem is, just like anything, my knowledge of cards really stopped around ~1994. I've been reading up on the grading and looking through completed sales on eBay to get a sense of the market, but if anyone was willing to share some knowledge/bullet points on what they would focus on if they were jumping in, I would love to read something like that.
My sense from just following along here and there -
-I want to get some classic cards (graded) from the 1950s & 60s. Mostly just focusing on childhood heroes like Willie Mays, Aaron, Willie McCovey, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente & Satchell Paige.
-I want to get some high graded cards of the classic 1980s overproduced baseball but still childhood favorites - Gwynn, Bo Jackson, Ken Griffey, Barry Bonds etc.
-1980s basketball cards: Obviously Jordan is the gold standard but also Magic, Barkley and a few others.
-Interested in some of the new football cards, just because that is the only sport that I follow very closely these days so I feel like I have a decent sense of whats what. This is the market I'm the most clueless on - just so many inserts and color variations, it makes my head spin trying to understand the value of even one type of card issued 4-5 different ways!
I have a pretty large (but mostly completely worthless) collection of 1980s/90s baseball at my parents place which I'm going to bring over to my apartment sometime soon just to be able to go through and maybe package a bunch of smaller things for a couple of nicer graded cards.
I have been resisting the pull to get back into collecting cards, but for some reason this past week has really made me want to jump back in. Problem is, just like anything, my knowledge of cards really stopped around ~1994. I've been reading up on the grading and looking through completed sales on eBay to get a sense of the market, but if anyone was willing to share some knowledge/bullet points on what they would focus on if they were jumping in, I would love to read something like that.
My sense from just following along here and there -
-I want to get some classic cards (graded) from the 1950s & 60s. Mostly just focusing on childhood heroes like Willie Mays, Aaron, Willie McCovey, Jackie Robinson, Roberto Clemente & Satchell Paige.
-I want to get some high graded cards of the classic 1980s overproduced baseball but still childhood favorites - Gwynn, Bo Jackson, Ken Griffey, Barry Bonds etc.
-1980s basketball cards: Obviously Jordan is the gold standard but also Magic, Barkley and a few others.
-Interested in some of the new football cards, just because that is the only sport that I follow very closely these days so I feel like I have a decent sense of whats what. This is the market I'm the most clueless on - just so many inserts and color variations, it makes my head spin trying to understand the value of even one type of card issued 4-5 different ways!
I have a pretty large (but mostly completely worthless) collection of 1980s/90s baseball at my parents place which I'm going to bring over to my apartment sometime soon just to be able to go through and maybe package a bunch of smaller things for a couple of nicer graded cards.
Also, I assume there has to be a PCF type community for card collectors, places where they bypass FeeBay (?)
My friend added an addition to his house from his MTG cards from highschool.
Another friend bought Tesla with some pokemon cards
Nearly unique items are hard to determine a market value.
@Mrs Poker Zombie was around when it all started. I just dabbled in collecting extreme rarities for a few years.
Zmasterben
Flush
So over the summer last year I decided to start a budget rainbow of Vince Williams Jr 2022-23 Panini Optic Rated Rookie cards.
Between July and December I built up a big collection, mostly the commons, buying on budget and basically winning most for a few dollars + shipping:
Then around late December his cards skyrocket because it turns out he decided to be a mid-star for the Grizzlies and all of their fans are super high on him and buying up his rookie cards.
On the plus side everything I bought is selling for 2-20x what I paid for but on the negative side everything I don't have yet is selling for 3-30x what they were before and now I am basically stuck. I can't justify the prices on what I am missing and I won't profit that much by selling unless he turns full star so my collection is probably mostly complete now.
Between July and December I built up a big collection, mostly the commons, buying on budget and basically winning most for a few dollars + shipping:
Then around late December his cards skyrocket because it turns out he decided to be a mid-star for the Grizzlies and all of their fans are super high on him and buying up his rookie cards.
On the plus side everything I bought is selling for 2-20x what I paid for but on the negative side everything I don't have yet is selling for 3-30x what they were before and now I am basically stuck. I can't justify the prices on what I am missing and I won't profit that much by selling unless he turns full star so my collection is probably mostly complete now.
@Thisfiendis138 you still collecting?! I need some advice lol
The number one question I have at this point, is what’s the PCF site for sports card trading? I’ve seen a few but either I don’t know how to navigate them yet or they don’t seem to have many classified ads. @RainmanTrail are you using sites outside of eBay to purchase cards? The fees are so crazy.
RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
A lot of collectors use Facebook groups and Twitter to buy and sell cards. There isn't really a PCF equivalent though.
Ok thanks, yeah I’ve seen the FB groups and am in a few now. Can you recommend any good ones?
Thisfiendis138
Full House
Very little, only collecting PC (Reggie
)
RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
What kind of cards do you collect? I mainly collect vintage.
I’ve only just jumped back in (literally when I posted this above two weeks ago), but my focus will be on vintage. I’ve been doing a ton of research and been following eBay auctions very closely, but for whatever reasons the nicer vintage has been selling higher than the comps were 1-3 months earlier it seems like so I haven’t made my first real large purchase yet. Bought some 1960 All Star Cards because I love the design (Mays, Aaron, McCovey) in PSA 6s just to have some kind of focus. And then collecting some stuff for my PC - 49ers & SF Giants mostly. Then sprinkling in just a few ultra modern cards to get a taste (mostly football since that’s what I follow closely). But yeah, vintage baseball and some vintage basketball is where my heart is. You got a great collection going!
RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
The market took a steep dive about 3 months ago, and then it bounced back up in January. It's pretty common in the sports card market every year. People just slow down their buying around the holidays, so it's always a good time to find deals if you have the cash. I added a bunch of cards in December that are usually really difficult to find.
With vintage cards, valuations are all over the place from one sale to the next, even in the same grade. It's all about eye appeal and centering. Most vintage cards are extremely difficult to find dead centered. Some are nearly impossible (like a Jerry West 1961 Fleer RC). Cards like that can fetch double or triple comps in the same grade as other copies that are off centered. Other things that affect values are print flaws like the image being out of registration or print lines, etc. The grading standards are pretty nonsensical at times, so the market adjusts somewhat. Also, the grading standards have shifted over time because the grading companies have drastically moved the goalposts on us. What used to be an 8 is now a 6 today, and cards that used to get 5s are now 3s or 4s today. It would be useful to read up on grading as much as you can.
Thanks for this insight, it’s much appreciated. I have been reading about making sure to get more recent PSA grades on cards because they retain value much better than the old ones - I assume they speaks to what you’re saying about moving the goal posts. I still need to understand how to understand what qualifies as recent (I’ve mostly been going by the types of PSA stickers so far but I know it’s about the actual numbering on the card).
That makes sense re: vintage. All about the centering. I made one bad purchase so far of a 1960 McCovey rookie for $400 that I’m realizing now comes up from time to time in the $275-300 range, but outside of that I’m trying to keep the purchases pretty on point. Been enjoying some of the PSA autos of HOF, especially my teams. Can find some good stuff in the $100-150 range.
I still have a few hundred Topps baseball cards from my childhood - mostly 1966-72. How can I determine if it's worthwhile to get some of the better ones graded? I probably have a dozen or so that are HOF players. Highest value cards (I think) are a 68 Mantle, and two Bench rookies. I also have cards for Aaron, Banks, Seaver, Carleton, Jackson, a Munson rookie, and others from that era that I'm not remembering at the moment. I could pull them out of my closet this weekend and take some pics if it would help. None are in pristine condition, as when I was a kid, we handled and played with our cards just like any other toy.
Yeah so unfortunately most will not be worth much. As we were discussing above, centering and overall condition is the key to the value of a card. But any Mickey mantle in decent condition is probably worth grading, it doesn’t have to be near mint for it to be worth it (will be easier to sell graded if you ever wanted to do that). Post some pics!
My Friday afternoon…
Thanks. I'll pull them out tonight after I get back from dinner. If I don't drink too much... LOL.
RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
I love 1960 Topps. I only collect centered cards. I have centered copies of pretty much every HOFer going back to 1948 Leaf (with a few exceptions of guys that made it in as coaches or some really low level HOFers). I have duplicates of most of the big name HOFers. Probably about half graded and half raw copies. Here are a few of my raw 1960 Topps cards. Someone just bought my spare McCovey RC, so I only have one left of that one now.
Beautiful cards! I'm trying to be good about understanding real centering in the vintage card market. Sometimes you have to pay pretty close attention it seems like. If you're looking to move any other doubles that are graded - let me know!
Is there a reason you haven't gotten these graded yet? Just the backlog + fees or is there some other strategy?
RainmanTrail
Straight Flush
Most of them were graded when I bought them, but I just wanted to keep them raw, in a binder for fun. To collect like I did when I was a kid. I have a HOF binder with raw copies of cards from every year going back to 1952 Topps. But most of my high-end stuff is graded, like my 52 Topps Jackie Robinsons, Willie Mays, and Mantle.
Damn that 52 Mantle is crazy - very nice. And interesting decision to say the least re: keeping those potentially well graded HOFers in a binder! Definitely seems like a throwback, I don't think I could do it myself.
Chipnut
Full House
If I wanted to post/list some graded comics for sale what thread would I use?
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