[jchcollins]

Totally your preference. Sometimes quantity is quality, and sometimes it's worth it to sacrifice to get that one really cherry card you've wanted for a long time. Difficult decision with Mantle more than most since in comparison to his comps, his dollar value in the vintage card game outshines everyone regardless and likely will for the foreseeable future.

My first Mantle base card (as a kid, I was about 11) was an absolutely destroyed, waterlogged 1965 Topps #350 that the kid down the street traded me. It was still in it's toploader and had been dropped in the toilet or in a lake or something, and literally still had water in it. If you had tried to take the card out, it would have disentigrated into a zillion pieces of mush.

The nicest Mantle I've ever had (that I really couldn't afford, which is why I don't have it still...) was probably a 1959 Topps #10 PSA 7.

Right now I make do with a lower grade but presentable '56 Topps that I've had since I was about 14, and a (nicer looking than the grade) PSA 5 '62 Topps #200...which you've seen, as I think we discussed over on the pickups thread. Your '61 is a very nice card!