Posted By:
Hal LewisYes, I think by now it is unreasonable, because most of the "original" collectors have passed away and been forced to do SOMETHING with their cards.
A lot of them have appeared in big auctions since the surviving family members needed to cash out...
while others were undoubtedly sold to dealers who have since "turned" their inventory.
In other words...
the odds are AGAINST an old-time private collector passing away and leaving his cards to another young private collector -- neither of whom ever tells anyone about what they have.
Remember... vintage cards did NOT always bring big money... so 97% of the dealers were always trying to SELL these cards as opposed to "hoarding" them as "investments."
Thus, I doubt too many dealers went around scooping up rare cards in the 1960's and 1970's and then stored them away without telling anyone they had them.