Should I focus my collection on PSA 8's and 9's?

[Peter_Spaeth]

Makes sense to me. Consider spending up though for a Tiffany Bonds, get a nice 8. And IMO Maddux and Johnson should be on that list.

[stevecarlton1972]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

Makes sense to me. Consider spending up though for a Tiffany Bonds, get a nice 8. And IMO Maddux and Johnson should be on that list.

Definetly, as they were the rookies that came to mind. But as you said there are Maddux, Johnson, Alomar, and I have to go through each set to refresh my memory.

I still remember the 86 Donruss Canseco was THE card to get when I was in High School, as I would like to see how that value has fallen from its peak in the early 90's?

[Peter_Spaeth]

80s eye candy 80-84

[Peter_Spaeth]

85-89.

[HasselhoffsCheeseburger]

Okay, that makes sense. The Rickey, McGwire, and 83s are the toughest PSA 10s of the entire decade so going for 9s makes perfect sense. I think Peter is right though, go after an 8 Tiffany Bonds.

The 80s are a slippery slope. I set out a few years ago to do what you're doing now. The list has grown exponentially but I've enjoyed every step of the way.

[AGuinness]

Sweet cards, Arthur, especially the Leaf and OPC. I grew up in Vermont in the 80s and always hated running into the Canadian counterparts when trading, etc. But now I've done a 180 on them and quite enjoy them more than the Topps and Donruss varieties.

[HasselhoffsCheeseburger]

Originally Posted by AGuinness

Sweet cards, Arthur, especially the Leaf and OPC. I grew up in Vermont in the 80s and always hated running into the Canadian counterparts when trading, etc. But now I've done a 180 on them and quite enjoy them more than the Topps and Donruss varieties.

Completely agree, Garth. I enjoy the added challenge of the Canadian versions as far as condition goes. Both the Bonds and McGwire were pack pulled and self-submitted by me. That Bonds is the best I've gotten out of almost 60 '87 wax boxes.

Arthur

[stevecarlton1972]

Thanks to everyone on the info about Topps Tiffany as I honestly never knew these sets existed. Like every kid in the 80's, I collected Topps, Donruss, Fleer and UpperDeck and then the market crashed in the early 90's and most of these sets were worth nothing (except those early/mid 80's sets with Henderson, Ripken, Gwynn, etc). I just googled Toppy Tiffany after you guys posted a few pictures and now I see why those cards are a good get, as they are rare/low production compared to the mass produced Topps sets of that time period. When I sold my cards about 20 years ago, I had a lot of older cards my uncle gave to me (1965 Joe Namath Rookie, 1979-80 Wayne Gretzky Rookie)

Originally Posted by HasselhoffsCheeseburger

Okay, that makes sense. The Rickey, McGwire, and 83s are the toughest PSA 10s of the entire decade so going for 9s makes perfect sense. I think Peter is right though, go after an 8 Tiffany Bonds.

The 80s are a slippery slope. I set out a few years ago to do what you're doing now. The list has grown exponentially but I've enjoyed every step of the way.

]

Don't worry, my list has already gotten bigger over the weekend! It started very small with a select few cards that defined the decade (1980 Topps Ricky Henderson, 1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey, etc), and now I keep adding this Hall of Famer and that Hall of Famer.

And of course I have to find a Billy Ripken Fleer F**face, just because it was the one card that we all talked about in High School for a laugh!

[Shankweather]

I collect Cubs RCs from all eras. I use the PSA population report to decide which grades to pursue. I try to get cards that grade higher than 80% of the total pop.

So for a 77 Andre Dawson that means a PSA 9. The total pop is 3,690, with 50 10s, 458 9s, 57 8.5s, and 1,529 8s. I assume my 9 is average for its grade, so that means there are (458/2)+50=279 cards graded higher than my card. Which means my card grades higher than 92% of the total pop of 3,690. The 8 would only grade higher than 64%, so 9 it is.

Obviously older cards will mean a lower grade. The same math for a 33 Goudey Gabby Hartnett gets you a PSA 6.

So you could use the same process, and adjust your target % to match your budget. 70%, 50%, whatever.

[RayBShotz]

If you are set on a collection of slabs from this era, I would recommend PSA 9 grade examples. In the case of lesser stars you might be inclined to add, a PSA 10 may even be peanuts.

4 Sharp Corners is a great place for this stuff aside from eBay.
Best of Luck re-entering the hobby!
RayB

PS please share your spoils with us on this Board.