Dean's Cards - Deja Vu All Over Again

[Yoda]

There is an avalanche of Ebay cards ending tonight from Dean's. Most all are BIN's, and I just don't understand his pricing model. If he wants year-end clearance and cash flow then he ought to run a straight auction, take his chances and not ask such sky high prices.
On a somewhat related subject, my hit ratio with PWCC has hit an all time low and I am now batting below .100. For example, one the cards on my want list for so long the paper is brown and curled is the M116 Tris Speaker from the last series. To me, Tris looks like a noble young warrior, which he was, ready to do battle on the diamond. Anyhow, the example was a PSA 7 and had all the qualities I wanted. I bid well over a grand and was blown away by a bid three times mine. Anybody have a similar experience?

[kmac32]

Dealt with Deans before and he does discount if you buy directly from his website and not ebay. It is a graduated teir depending on how much you buy.

Kmac

[phikappapsi]

I have also dealt with them in a positive way (though years ago)- for their BIN's that I wasn't willing to go all the way to, I just sent a message with an offer, and have had decent success

[x2drich2000]

Originally Posted by Yoda

There is an avalanche of Ebay cards ending tonight from Dean's. Most all are BIN's, and I just don't understand his pricing model. If he wants year-end clearance and cash flow then he ought to run a straight auction, take his chances and not ask such sky high prices.

Whose to say he needs/wants cash flow? Just cause he has stuff listed doesn't mean he needs to sell it right now. One thing I've learned in this hobby is there are more people than you would expect who just don't have to sell something all the time. The answer is quite simple, you either pay their price, make an offer, or go find it somewhere else. My guess is he's doing alright since he's been at it for quite a while and yet he's still willing to wait to get the price he wants.

[ALR-bishop]

Add me to the list of people who have done ok with them off line

[JollyElm]

Their slogan is: "Why pay much, much less when you can get fleeced by Dean?"

Every time you see their dumbass red logo on ebay in the list of cards you're looking at (I set up my searches to eliminate that ridiculous pest, but no matter how much Raid you use, some ants still appear), simply check above it or below it to find out what you 'should' be paying for the exact same card...

1969mantledeans.jpg

1966mantledeans.jpg

1963mantledeans.jpg

PATHETIC!!!

[mechanicalman]

I used to be adamantly opposed to buying anything from them, but for some reason, I've found that he undervalues Mathewson relative to other dudes. I recently purchased a nice T206 and T3 from him directly and didn't feel like I got completely hosed.

My only issue is that his eBay scans are downright nuclear and cannot be accurate representations of the cards offered.

[Tabe]

Originally Posted by mechanicalman

My only issue is that his eBay scans are downright nuclear and cannot be accurate representations of the cards offered.

That was my thought when I saw the examples posted - the scans are so obviously altered that they alone would cause me to not buy from Dean, never mind the prices.

[Zan]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Their slogan is: "Why pay much, much less when you can get fleeced by Dean?"

PATHETIC!!!

This demonstration made me laugh. I have purchased one card at market value but it was raw. Maybe the prices are inflated for graded cards only?

[conor912]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Their slogan is: "Why pay much, much less when you can get fleeced by Dean?"

Every time you see their dumbass red logo on ebay in the list of cards you're looking at (I set up my searches to eliminate that ridiculous pest, but no matter how much Raid you use, some ants still appear), simply check above it or below it to find out what you 'should' be paying for the exact same card...

PATHETIC!!!

Jeez. Is an honest guy asking strong prices really your idea of pathetic?

[ALBB]

You cant spell dependable without D E A N

[egbeachley]

Originally Posted by conor912

Jeez. Is an honest guy asking strong prices really your idea of pathetic?

I think “Pathetic” refers to the people who buy from Deans when they could get it cheaper without hardly looking. It’s the buyers that keep these overpriced sellers going.

[JollyElm]

Originally Posted by conor912

Jeez. Is an honest guy asking strong prices really your idea of pathetic?

Nice narrative using "honest guy" and "strong prices." Really??? He's a complete rip-off artist with his pricing, and it doesn't matter where you go--ebay, Amazon, COMC, etc.--you can't avoid his BS. He has infected everything. Ebay is Pompeii and Dean is the ash from Vesuvius. And the pictures I showed were the result of looking at ebay for a mere 7 seconds. If I spent any time on it, I could post a million other examples of his ridiculousness. If you enjoy paying his laughable prices, feel free and have fun, it's your money. Me? I'll buy the same cards from other sellers at half the price.

[JollyElm]

Well, the OP did name the thread "Dean's Cards - Deja Vu All Over Again," because it is a never ending curiosity as to how that company stays in business.

Decided to do a bit of an experiment, so I searched ebay for a bunch of random star cards that I looked at/for recently, then I decided to sort by "Price + Shipping: highest first" and took some screenshots. Take a wild frickin' guess who kept appearing on top. Anyone? Anyone?


1968 Mantle PSA 7. The top listing isn't for the card alone, it's for the team set...

1968mantlepsa7deans.jpg


1965 Koufax PSA 7. Only two listings...

1965koufaxpsa7deans.jpg


1966 high number rookies PSA. This search was for all PSA graded cards, and Dean-o's is a lower grade than the less expensive ones...

1966591psadeans.jpg


1966 Choo Choo high number PSA 7. Again, our buddy's card is much more expensive than equal and higher graded examples...

1966choochoopsadeans.jpg


1968 Seaver PSA 7...

1968seaverpsadeans.jpg


1966 Mays PSA 7...

1966mayspsa7deans.jpg


1966 Rose PSA 8. The top listing is for an OPC Rose...

1966rosepsa8deans.jpg


For full disclosure, other cards I searched for didn't have anything from this wonderful company listed, so they aren't included here. And most, if not all, of these examples include one or more cards with comparable (if not better) characteristics such as centering.

Mmm...this dead horse meat is getting so tender.

[SetBuilder]

Dean's is banking on people who have saved/bookmarked his store and browse his eBay storefront as opposed to searching through the eBay listings generally. I'm guessing that some people are weary of buying from sellers they have no prior relationship with and will pay a premium for safety. In my opinion, it is likely an older crowd who have no idea how eBay/PP buyer protections work.

This is honestly the only logical reason I can think of for why people pay these crazy prices for common cards.

[itslarry]

While not baseball, I purchased my 1st pau gasol autograph from him. Talked about 15% of the bin on his website.
Felt it ended up being pretty fair.

[Peter_Spaeth]

I've bought some cards from him at the low end of the price scale where I just didn't care all that much if I was paying $30 instead of $20, and I will say that on raw cards his grading is very solid, but yeah I don't know who (if anyone) is paying these huge premiums for graded cards.

[PowderedH2O]

I have bought some lots from him on a few occasions. He posts photos of every single card and grades every single card. I was pleased with that, and the prices were about the same as everybody else. I didn't buy any star cards, but that's ok. I got what I wanted at a fair price with good service. I think his star cards are priced too high. So, I stay away from those. But, I could say that about 75% of the sellers on ebay, or here for that matter. He can ask any price he wants. He will get my business only when the price is right, which is a couple of times a year.

[youguysplayingcards?]

I have always treated online buying much like in person show buying. When I walk into my local show there are typically 5 types of tables:

1) Won't buy from because carries only new cards
2) Won't buy from because of price
3) Won't buy from because dealer/dealers running table is someone I don't want to deal with
4) Table to check out because I don't know/haven't seen before
5) Someone I will buy from

I only stop at #4 and #5 which saves a lot of time. I utilize this same strategy online which seems to work perfectly. Not sure why everyone gets worked up. I can price my items at 10 times current market or 10 percent of current market--I don't get why other people care that much how people go about selling THEIR stuff. If they are not in your consideration set move along.

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by youguysplayingcards?

I have always treated online buying much like in person show buying. When I walk into my local show there are typically 5 types of tables:

1) Won't buy from because carries only new cards
2) Won't buy from because of price
3) Won't buy from because dealer/dealers running table is someone I don't want to deal with
4) Table to check out because I don't know/haven't seen before
5) Someone I will buy from

I only stop at #4 and #5 which saves a lot of time. I utilize this same strategy online which seems to work perfectly. Not sure why everyone gets worked up. I can price my items at 10 times current market or 10 percent of current market--I don't get why other people care that much how people go about selling THEIR stuff. If they are not in your consideration set move along.

In theroy I agree with you 100%. And no, I don't spend a ton of time on it - sorry if my post indicated otherwise. It's just inconcevable to me that someone would get away with those type of prices. I guess for entertainment value, I'm curious to know specifics if indeed Dean does move a substantial volume in grossly overpriced vintage material.