Comparing card values of HOF's pre-war vs post war 1950's
 

This is a very broad question open to much discussion.I am comparing more common prewar sets ..T206,T205,Goudey etc. vs 1950's HOf's.Condition wise..low to midgrade.
The reason I'm asking is I look at the values of some mid 50's cards Aaron, Mantle,Clemente, Koufax etc. and the asking price is roughlythe same ballpark as some prewar HOF's I've been looking at for ex.T206 Mathewson lower grade.
In a round about way what I'm asking is this...my collecting is very cyclic...usually within 2-3 years of buying I sell..either to change up the collection or to help finance a non collecting purchase...mountainbike/roadbike upgrades etc.Do you feel the 50's material moves and holds the value as much as some of the more common prewar material.
Apologies again as this is a vary broad question.Almost all of you have more experience then I do as far as buying/selling so i'd like to tap into that experience.
Thanks in advance.
Scott Altland

IMO, Yes, the prices will hold, especially the caliber of players you mentioned, Mantle, Clemente, Koufax, Mathewson...all the really big names both pre war vint and post war vint.
Hope this helps, Paul

For 50's material absolutely. I would probably say that the 1950's was the last decade of cards that can hang on roughly the same level as pre-war when it comes to rising and maintaining value, especially the HOF players.

Really? I had thought even the top HOFers from the 50s had seen big drop in value in recent years (where most of the early pre-war did not). Maybe you mean that NOW they will hold value....

As far as the OP is concerned, and as far as the 50's hot HOFers, or a Matty, he is buying NOW and plans to sell in 2-3 years. I can't see much difference there will be in price at that point, especially in the lower-style condition he is going for.

The reason I asked this was my experience recently.Over 1 1/2 years I had bought high grade 1954 Topps Hockey...including HOF's..all graded with the ex of 2 cards at NRMT.The other 2 were graded at arounf ex. condition.Wanting to fund a bike purchase I sold some privately but the majority on "fee-bay".I was feeling confident that high qualitycards from such an important set would at minimum would allow me to break even.I even waited until hockey season started to feed off seasonal collecting habits.When the smoke cleared...some was loss of $ due to sale fees...I probably lost about 25%.
Granted hockey is probably rated 4th in popularity in this country as compared to baseball so its not really a comparison .Although I may sell down the road I still enjoy both time periods of cards.
Any other input or personal experiences I would enjoy reading.
Scott Altland

In the world of card collecting baseball is king... Personally I have no idea about values of hockey cards... But I would guess the market is somewhat different from baseball.

I go into every purchase assuming that, if I was ever to sell, i would only get back about 75% of what I spent. I chalk up the loss as the cost of owning and being able to enjoy them. If I get back more than 75%, which is more often than not, then great, but setting the bar low helps.

I like that...its true.If you buy not just to sell but actually enjoy them..which I do..its not so much as a loss.
Scott

When you sold the hockey cards, were they sold BIN or auctions starting at 99 cents? Frankly, these days, if you sell on ebay auction-style starting at 99 cents, in most cases you're probably going to take a loss.

I agree with Greg. With a few special exceptions, 1950s cards in lower grades have gone down a lot. People now know there is a TON of that stuff out there. Many, many multiples of almost any pre-war set you could name. And the '50s stuff is available all the time in high grade...which really depresses the prices on off-grade material.

For me, '50s HOF - even top HOFers - in off-grade (or even mid-grade) is about the last thing I'd invest in within this hobby.

Cheers,
Blair

I started them about 25-30% less then what I paid.Most instances only 1-2 bids.

Since we're talking $$...what would you buy in mid price range.I haven't owned any yet but some of the more obscure E issues such as E99/100 intrigue me.Along with lower grade Hindu backs T206's.Opinions on the future of rare backs?Thoughts on rarity vs popularity etc.Again a very broad subject.
Scott