Card prices tipping point?

Brent G. · #1 11-21-2025, 03:53 PM

I just walked out of the bi-annual Chicago Sports Spectacular without buying anything. I am NOT cheap, but prices were higher than the National that occurred less than 4 months ago, some ABSURDLY so. I have no idea where some people are coming up with their numbers, COMPS BE DAMMED. Many items — of all eras — 1.5-5x logical value with minimal negotiation.

The funniest things I saw:

• Signed/ungraded 1984 Topps Eric Dickerson RC: $400 ... only like 6x actual value.

• 2025 Johnny Furphy (an injured 10th man off the Pacers' bench) Flawless jersey card: $650

I won’t attend another show until the National next year. Happy to spend my $ right here.

raulus · #2 11-21-2025, 04:07 PM

Good for you!

But I'm guessing plenty of people were eager to still buy, even at those prices.

I suspect that there's a psychology of not wanting to make the trip just to come home empty handed.

Brent G. · #3 11-21-2025, 04:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raulus

Good for you!

But I'm guessing plenty of people were eager to still buy, even at those prices.

I suspect that there's a psychology of not wanting to make the trip just to come home empty handed.

I didn't want to walk out with nothing, and never have at a show, but being 20-minutes away helped that need, I suppose.

gregndodgers · #4 11-21-2025, 07:52 PM

To a large extent, prices reflect demand. If the price is set too high, we can always negotiate the seller down.

Brent G. · #5 11-21-2025, 09:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gregndodgers

To a large extent, prices reflect demand. If the price is set too high, we can always negotiate the seller down.

No, you can't ALWAYS do that — especially on opening day of a 3-day show, I guess. Some are immune to sensible negotiation, while others are simply waiting for dumb money to walk in.

gregndodgers · #6 11-21-2025, 09:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

No, you can't ALWAYS do that — especially on opening day of a 3-day show, I guess. Some are immune to sensible negotiation, while others are simply waiting for dumb money to walk in.

I stand corrected! We can always TRY to negotiate down! LoL

But seriously, I think high prices are a sign of a healthy hobby! And when I NEED a particular card, I don’t let the price stand in the way!

raulus · #7 11-21-2025, 09:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gregndodgers

I stand corrected! We can always TRY to negotiate down! LoL

But seriously, I think high prices are a sign of a healthy hobby! And when I NEED a particular card, I don’t let the price stand in the way!

Hot damn! Just make sure you line up to buy my stuff, and don’t let my high prices get in your way!

Brent G. · #8 11-21-2025, 11:37 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by gregndodgers

i stand corrected! We can always try to negotiate down! Lol

but seriously, i think high prices are a sign of a healthy hobby! And when i need a particular card, i don’t let the price stand in the way!

Send me your wantlist!

sb1 · #9 11-22-2025, 06:21 AM

One thing to remember is that comps are yesterdays prices, what it brought prior, not what it is in todays market. A rare or even scarce/popular card will theoretically keep moving in an upward trend, so there is no reason for one to assume it will bring the same or less, if demand is the same or higher.

I doubt any dealer is going to buy a card as above and price it for what he paid for it(comp price), they will seek a higher price level and set the new price level going forward.

Brent G. · #10 11-22-2025, 07:06 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

One thing to remember is that comps are yesterdays prices, what it brought prior, not what it is in todays market. A rare or even scarce/popular card will theoretically keep moving in an upward trend, so there is no reason for one to assume it will bring the same or less, if demand is the same or higher.

I doubt any dealer is going to buy a card as above and price it for what he paid for it(comp price), they will seek a higher price level and set the new price level going forward.

Clearly now is the time to SELL. Whether it's regular dealers overpaying for inventory, breakers trying to squeeze people to finance the currently obscene prices for sealed high-end, or repackers paying 90% (there were many signs at this show saying that), the whole thing feels way overcooked. I'm not here to pay for someone else's bad purchases, at least that's how I felt at this show. I was there offering good prices for a handful of mainstream items based on recent sales history. Maybe people just wanted some extra Christmas money.

There eventually comes a point when the buyer just has to say, "No."

BillyCoxDodgers3B · #11 11-22-2025, 07:11 AM

Don't go to big shows unless you want to overspend. For me, they have been an almost complete waste of time for decades. Sadly, the same can be said about the vast majority of retail stores. It's cheaper and easier to buy online.

I would much rather have the best of both worlds, as attending shows 35 years ago was fun and exciting. For the longest time, it's just been a case of walking around and wishing I had used the time to accomplish something more productive.

If you like the idea of attending shows and have the goal of buying items at agreeable price points, perhaps smaller, local/regional shows might still be the best option. Booth space is cheaper and travel costs for dealers are usually a lot less if they're native to the area. As an added bonus, you will be more prone to encounter people who aren't doing this full time and may have their items priced more in tune with your actually being willing to purchase something! It's a roll of the dice, but to me, the smaller shows are far more worthy of further exploration. As an added bonus, the promoters of these shows should be easier to contact. You could phone or email ahead of time to see if they might know if there's anyone selling who fits your needs. This has definitely helped save me time in the past.

Vintagedeputy · #12 11-22-2025, 09:16 AM

I tend to look at things like this:

1) Comps are BS. What someone else sold something for at some other time is irrelevant. THIS card (that I’m looking at, whether buying or selling) is not THAT card and THIS time is not THAT time and I’m not that guy.

2) We can look at price guides and sold sale listings and comps all day long, but that’s not accurate to the situation we’re in at that moment. Collectible values are determined in the moment by a number that a buyer and seller agree upon for that particular item. For example, I’m a reseller. If I buy a whatever for $1 at a yard sale, the seller asked a price and I agreed to that price. If I sell that item a week later for $100, that’s the number that me as the seller and the new buyer agreed upon. So what’s the “actual value”? Well, first it was $1 and then it was $100. That’s pretty simple to understand.

BillyCoxDodgers3B · #13 11-22-2025, 09:22 AM

The nicest aspects of not shopping in person at shows or stores:

--Not having to inquire about price. People who want to sell things always have an actual price attached. (If something is listed on a venue such as Marketplace with a price of "$1" or "Free", immediately pass it by. It's not $1 and it certainly won't be free or priced realistically. "i'M aCcEpTiNg oFfErZ!!!" = I'm only looking to sell to someone with no idea of actual value and who is willing to give me thrice that.)

--Not dealing with someone reaching for a price guide or their phone to access past sales records for every single item they are selling, thereby letting you know this was likely a few moments of your life you'll never get back. (With online offerings, people who are doing this are easily ascertained and avoided if necessary simply judging by their prices.)

--No hemming and hawing/having to listen to someone's life story when all you want to do is purchase something and move on.

ezez420 · #14 11-22-2025, 09:29 AM

Curious Brent I see you joined in 2024. Are you new to the hobby and just making this observation?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Brent G. · #15 11-22-2025, 09:34 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Vintagedeputy

I tend to look at things like this:

1) Comps are BS. What someone else sold something for at some other time is irrelevant. THIS card (that I’m looking at, whether buying or selling) is not THAT card and THIS time is not THAT time and I’m not that guy.

2) We can look at price guides and sold sale listings and comps all day long, but that’s not accurate to the situation we’re in at that moment. Collectible values are determined in the moment by a number that a buyer and seller agree upon for that particular item. For example, I’m a reseller. If I buy a whatever for $1 at a yard sale, the seller asked a price and I agreed to that price. If I sell that item a week later for $100, that’s the number that me as the seller and the new buyer agreed upon. So what’s the “actual value”? Well, first it was $1 and then it was $100. That’s pretty simple to understand.

If someone wants to ignore extensive sales data over the past 12, 6, 3 months, or even the past week, and price an item at way above those numbers, that's certainly their right. A used car salesman can ignore Kelley Blue Book and price an '86 Ford Escort at $20,000 if they want. And they can sit on that thing when no one buys it.

Brent G. · #16 11-22-2025, 09:42 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ezez420

Curious Brent I see you joined in 2024. Are you new to the hobby and just making this observation?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I collected as a kid from 1981-90, then like many my age, got back in a couple years ago. I understand ultra-rare items are different. I'm talking about items that are more easily found, in which significant sales data is available. I'm not a seller, unless it's to help finance something else I want.

Zach Wheat · #17 11-22-2025, 09:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

One thing to remember is that comps are yesterdays prices, what it brought prior, not what it is in todays market. A rare or even scarce/popular card will theoretically keep moving in an upward trend, so there is no reason for one to assume it will bring the same or less, if demand is the same or higher.

I doubt any dealer is going to buy a card as above and price it for what he paid for it(comp price), they will seek a higher price level and set the new price level going forward.

very true

Vintagedeputy · #18 11-22-2025, 09:52 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

If someone wants to ignore extensive sales data over the past 12, 6, 3 months, or even the past week, and price an item at way above those numbers, that's certainly their right. A used car salesman can ignore Kelley Blue Book and price an '86 Ford Escort at $20,000 if they want. And they can sit on that thing when no one buys it.

And by sitting on that Escort at 20K, they’ll eventually figure out that the market at that moment isn’t interested. Either they accept that and hang onto the car, or they lower their price. If no one buys it, oh well. If someone gives them 20K, job well done.

Every transaction is different for any number of reasons. If you went to Costco right now and bought a hotdog, what is the cost? $2 maybe? Now, let’s say you’ve been walking through the dessert for two weeks with nothing more than a $100 bill in your pocket. After two weeks, you stumble across a hotdog stand where hotdogs are $100 each. Are you buying that hotdog, trying to negotiate the price down, or walking away because you know hotdogs can be found elsewhere for $2? Different people may have different responses. Is the dessert hotdog vendor crazy for asking $100 or is the value to him determined by what’s involved in getting that hotdog out to the dessert?

We know that there are tons of low value cards that just don’t come up for sale often. Set builders may go nuts looking for that last card that they finally find after 20 years for $2. Would they have paid $100 ten years earlier to complete that set? Some say yes, some say no.

hcv123 · #19 11-22-2025, 10:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

If someone wants to ignore extensive sales data over the past 12, 6, 3 months, or even the past week, and price an item at way above those numbers, that's certainly their right. A used car salesman can ignore Kelley Blue Book and price an '86 Ford Escort at $20,000 if they want. And they can sit on that thing when no one buys it.

Who made Kelley blue book the authority on price? It is a "guide" - a starting point. If that 86 Escort had never been driven or only had a couple hundred miles on it, is it not worth more than 1 with 100,000 miles on it? Garaged/not garaged? maintained "by the book"/not maintained. Lots of degrees in between of any of the aforementioned factors.

Example to illustrate the points that:

1) The historical pricing you are looking at is only a portion of the sales that have taken place. There are a multitude of private sales that are not public information that will vary from the public sales we all have access to.

2) The inconsistency of the grading process has been discussed ad nauseum in multiple places - even looking at the public sales data - you will see discrepancies - often huge for cards of the same "grade". It has become relevant to "grade the graders" - making determining fair market value much more elusive

In conclusion, while many would like to think of determining fair market value as scientific an simple as looking at past sales as the determiner of current fair market value, it is far from that simple.

That all said, I would say that the greater the number of recent (for retired players - 1-2 months) data points that exist for a particular card in question - the closer together those data points are "should" be a good starting point of a predictor of current price. The bigger the skew in time or variance of price - the less reliable those data points are. If we are talking about true rarities - the last sale is almost meaningless.

While I have certainly seen a fair share of what I would call "overpriced cards" at shows, there are plenty there that are either priced fairly or within what should be negotiating distance of fair.

Brent G. · #20 11-22-2025, 10:18 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by hcv123

While I have certainly seen a fair share of what I would call "overpriced cards" at shows, there are plenty there that are either priced fairly or within what should be negotiating distance of fair.

You are absolutely correct. My point was that I've simply seen an increase in unrealistic pricing and an unwillingness of some sellers to come off those prices, whatever their individual reason may be.

I don't really get the rejection of sales data, but if it works for anyone out there, have at it. I know a lot of people here do value it, and I've reached many deals with those folks.

jingram058 · #21 11-22-2025, 10:47 AM

If anyone gives a good hoot, the reason I have disappeared from the forum is money.

I have a very nice income, in my retirement years, far beyond what my parents ever had. But I do not have the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars lying around to plunk down on baseball cards, nor the desire to do so.

So color me out, I guess. I'm not throwing any tantrums over it. It just is what it is.

raulus · #22 11-22-2025, 11:03 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jingram058

If anyone gives a good hoot, the reason I have disappeared from the forum is money.

I have a very nice income, in my retirement years, far beyond what my parents ever had. But I do not have the thousands or tens of thousands of dollars lying around to plunk down on baseball cards, nor the desire to do so.

So color me out, I guess. I'm not throwing any tantrums over it. It just is what it is.

I’ve missed you, James!

But totally respect your decision to opt out based on financial and/or philosophical/moral objections.

I suspect most of us are also having to be strategic in our approach. Even those of us who have money to burn are probably wondering whether it makes sense to blow it on cardboard. Certainly I have revised my approach to be much more targeted, and my pace of acquisitions has slowed dramatically. But part of that could also be that there aren’t many items left on my wish list, and like you, most of the upgrades would require far too many zeroes to leave my bank account.

vintage321 · #23 11-22-2025, 08:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

I just walked out of the bi-annual Chicago Sports Spectacular without buying anything. I am NOT cheap, but prices were higher than the National that occurred less than 4 months ago, some ABSURDLY so. I have no idea where some people are coming up with their numbers, COMPS BE DAMMED. Many items — of all eras — 1.5-5x logical value with minimal negotiation.

The funniest things I saw:

• Signed/ungraded 1984 Topps Eric Dickerson RC: $400 ... only like 6x actual value.

• 2025 Johnny Furphy (an injured 10th man off the Pacers' bench) Flawless jersey card: $650

I won’t attend another show until the National next year. Happy to spend my $ right here.

Brent,

i collect vintage hof's and yes , alot of prices were high, BUT
i ended up buying from 6-8 different dealers, and made other offers
to another 6-8 dealers that were turned down.

(i live 20 minutes from rosemont, went both yesterday and today)

the thrill/reward is in the hunt.

cards acquired:
'58 mantle psa 4
'55 koufax (rc) psa 2
BOTH blazers for the grade, cracking and sending to sgc

'56 koufax psa 6
'56 koufax sgc 4.5
'64 rose sgc 4.5
'64 rose sgc 4
'65 rose psa 6
'67 rose sgc 6.5
'58 aaron psa 3
'58 t. williams sgc 4.5
'69 seaver psa 6
'63 brock sgc 4.5

with vcp at my fingertips as usual, i was able to see AVERAGE vcp prices
and buy high eye appeal, centered cards very close to average, BUT,
with far greater upside. it took ALOT of work and hustle, but , working
with a relatively modest budget, i came home with some GREAT cards,
in my humble opinion. you are correct though, the vast majority were "fairly
high" and others stuck to their "sticker price" price when i made legitimate offers. which is their right.

just a different experience for me, that's all.

now $11.50 for a coors light....... that's a whole other story, haha.

BioCRN · #24 11-22-2025, 09:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raulus

Even those of us who have money to burn are probably wondering whether it makes sense to blow it on cardboard.

I have more money to spend on cardboard than I do, but I don't desire to sink a large amount of loot into something I don't plan on selling until I feel I'm close to death (if I'm lucky enough to have the time to plan).

While I have a dozens of cards worth 1000s, I have none worth 10,000+ and I've never been in that market. I just don't want to play in that realm.

I would rather spend time hunting down a low-grade "high dollar" card that presents well rather than spending big money on a high dollar card. The chase for the right card at the right price keeps my collections from becoming ever-expanding financial drains because I don't often throw money at a card simply to check it off the list.

Aquarian Sports Cards · #25 11-22-2025, 09:42 PM

I've been hearing about how pointless shows are for buyers on a budget for a long time now. I don't get to walk around much at shows, but in the little bit I do, I see things that are interesting to me at reasonable prices every show.

Yoda · #26 11-23-2025, 01:17 PM

I Have been watching on YouTube a series of lectures given by none other than Warren Buffet on the state of current financial markets. Warren basically states that markets are about to go into a major correction period, pointing out such morbid things that the current inverted yield curve on bond prices was present in 1929, 1987, 2005 when crashes occurred. He urges people to diversify, moving into alternative assets such as real estate and, yes, collectibles, art, wine etc. but no mention of sports stuff. He hates gold. Maybe when the market correction comes we will be alright. Maybe we will all be living in caves.

BioCRN · #27 11-23-2025, 01:44 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Yoda

I Have been watching on YouTube a series of lectures given by none other than Warren Buffet on the state of current financial markets. Warren basically states that markets are about to go into a major correction period, pointing out such morbid things that the current inverted yield curve on bond prices was present in 1929, 1987, 2005 when crashes occurred. He urges people to diversify, moving into alternative assets such as real estate and, yes, collectibles, art, wine etc. but no mention of sports stuff. He hates gold. Maybe when the market correction comes we will be alright. Maybe we will all be living in caves.

So much is relying on AI and the companies that support AI. It's a bit early for those industries to wash out, but at some point winners and losers in the race for monetizing the heavy up front investments will need to be realized.

So many other corps are making "record revenues" but also experiencing record expenses.

Beyond that, a lot of money is tied up in private lending debt...banks are still the big boys in lending to companies, but there's a lot of not-very-transparent private debt funding very important parts of our economy.

Speaking of debt, household debt and credit (which is much easier tracked) is getting concerning.

I have no idea how to handicap any of this overall, but a big chunk of the positives are holding onto a single industry that's not established enough to make a reliable roadmap for how things may play out.

Republicaninmass · #28 11-23-2025, 02:32 PM

When even the biggest collectors on this forum are selling, it has to at least give one pause. Sure there are other buyers out there, but...

sb1 · #29 11-23-2025, 05:07 PM

As most know, Buffett loves a choppy/down market, he has made his fortune by buying during market uneasiness and then holding for the long term. Don't be the one selling into a dropping market(if in fact it does make a larger correction).

In all likelihood, the recent retraction might have been the low and we take another leg up. Most S&P companies are reporting good earnings and revenues. All is not doom and gloom. Short-sellers love to paint that picture.

Hankphenom · #30 11-23-2025, 05:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

There eventually comes a point when the buyer just has to say, "No."

This all day long, and it can feel great! Like everything else we buy, what's the price, how much do we have, and how much do we want it? At the intersection of those...DEAL!

Exhibitman · #31 11-24-2025, 08:23 AM

We are here:

I don't think you can say "sell' or "buy" based on any one thing...but just once I would like to see the "sell" warriors actually sell off their collections.

What concerns me is wealth concentration. The top 10 stocks by market cap in the S&P 500 account for 40% of the value of the market. The top 10% of Americans by wealth own 90% of all securities and account for 50% of all consumer spending. The S&P 500 is overvalued by historical measures. A downturn, perhaps an invidia or other Mag 10 company having a crappy quarter, ripples across a rather narrow constituency that plays an outsized role in discretionary spending and could generate a contraction in their spending that would push us into recession. That would certainly seem to be a big indicator to sell. On the other hand, various financial opinion makers are starting to look hard at alternative investments as hedges against a downturn, inflation, or both together. That might drive people used to spending big into cards and would increase prices for the best stuff. Candidly, we are all:

The real bottom line on all of it is that prices cycle and if you don't need to liquidate now there is no reason to think that prices are irreversibly up or down. If something exceeds what you are comfortable spending, don't buy it. Odds are you'll see it again.

parkplace33 · #32 11-24-2025, 08:55 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by sb1

As most know, Buffett loves a choppy/down market, he has made his fortune by buying during market uneasiness and then holding for the long term. Don't be the one selling into a dropping market(if in fact it does make a larger correction).

In all likelihood, the recent retraction might have been the low and we take another leg up. Most S&P companies are reporting good earnings and revenues. All is not doom and gloom. Short-sellers love to paint that picture.

True, but I think we are in for a rough ride in 2026. Hang on!

sb1 · #33 11-24-2025, 09:12 AM

Not too worried either way, if we go down, that only means the next wave is up and probably too a higher high than previously. These little corrections are in fact good. Have no need to sell either way, just hold and reinvest the dividends.

What would be the reasons for a 2026 downturn?

Inflation, nope....
High unemployment nope....
Global unrest nope...
Delay of rate cut maybe, but temporary drop until they do make the cuts...
Collapse of Snype nope....

Seven · #34 11-24-2025, 09:18 AM

I've come to the conclusion that barring a monumental crash, or complete disinterest in the sport due to a strike, these prices are here to stay. And when I say "These Prices" I'm referring to all the big names and players. Mantle, Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Mays etc are never coming down in price.

Brent G. · #35 11-24-2025, 10:49 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Seven

I've come to the conclusion that barring a monumental crash, or complete disinterest in the sport due to a strike, these prices are here to stay. And when I say "These Prices" I'm referring to all the big names and players. Mantle, Ruth, Gehrig, Cobb, Mays etc are never coming down in price.

I've only been in the vintage game around 18 months. I picked up a '53 Topps Satchel Paige in a 2 early on for $580. I saw one at this Chicago show tagged at $1,000. Wild times.

raulus · #36 11-24-2025, 12:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

I've only been in the vintage game around 18 months. I picked up a '53 Topps Satchel Paige in a 2 early on for $580. I saw one at this Chicago show tagged at $1,000. Wild times.

All of the centering disciples will tell you that the $1k version was probably better centered. Or if they're eye appeal disciples, then the eye appeal was better. Or the buy the card not the holder disciples will tell you to ignore the holder altogether and just look at the card, in which case you should never compare cards at the same grade, because they're inherently different, and the prices should be as well.

jsfriedm · #37 11-24-2025, 01:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

I've only been in the vintage game around 18 months. I picked up a '53 Topps Satchel Paige in a 2 early on for $580. I saw one at this Chicago show tagged at $1,000. Wild times.

Could be worse: there's one guy on ebay with a bunch of high grade T205s asking like 15-20x a reasonable market price for a lot of cards. Keep listing that PSA 5 Addie Joss with the 95K+ opening bid. One day inflation will catch up.

Brent G. · #38 11-24-2025, 01:24 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jsfriedm

Could be worse: there's one guy on ebay with a bunch of high grade T205s asking like 15-20x a reasonable market price for a lot of cards. Keep listing that PSA 5 Addie Joss with the 95K+ opening bid. One day inflation will catch up.

Holy shit -- Sports Cards Forever is worth about the same as Apple according to his prices!

LINK: https://www.ebay.com/sch/i.html?_dkr..._oac=1&_sop=16

Gotta be a huge audience for a $186,739 '73 Goose Gossage! What in the actual f--k.

jsfriedm · #39 11-24-2025, 01:55 PM

It's possible that Sports Cards Forever is actually a performance artist and his work is a commentary on the absurdity of card collecting.

BillyCoxDodgers3B · #40 11-24-2025, 02:33 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raulus

All of the centering disciples will tell you that the $1k version was probably better centered. Or if they're eye appeal disciples, then the eye appeal was better. Or the buy the card not the holder disciples will tell you to ignore the holder altogether and just look at the card, in which case you should never compare cards at the same grade, because they're inherently different, and the prices should be as well.

Not to mention that the $1000 was an asking price, not a sold for price.

raulus · #41 11-24-2025, 02:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by BillyCoxDodgers3B

Not to mention that the $1000 was an asking price, not a sold for price.

Good point!

I was kinda expecting that I'd get more abuse from people who would suggest that you should never buy a PSA-graded piece, because raw is inherently better. Or it should only be purchased with a plan to crack it out. Or that SGC is the only grader worth buying, because SGC rules and PSA drools.

ValKehl · #42 11-24-2025, 05:17 PM

After seeing their eBay prices, Sports-Cards-Forever should change its name to Sports-Cards-Forever-Unsold.

vintage321 · #43 11-24-2025, 05:38 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raulus

All of the centering disciples will tell you that the $1k version was probably better centered. Or if they're eye appeal disciples, then the eye appeal was better. Or the buy the card not the holder disciples will tell you to ignore the holder altogether and just look at the card, in which case you should never compare cards at the same grade, because they're inherently different, and the prices should be as well.

raulus,

i actually think you're correct on all three points, but, really,
they are all (centering, eye appeal, buy the card) INTERTWINED

if interested, look up cert # 131105713 on my '58 mantle
which i paid slightly less than the "average" vcp price. interestingly enough,
the "average" was brought up by 3 significantly higher sales

thanks

vintage321 · #44 11-24-2025, 05:50 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

I've only been in the vintage game around 18 months. I picked up a '53 Topps Satchel Paige in a 2 early on for $580. I saw one at this Chicago show tagged at $1,000. Wild times.

if it's a psa 2 , vcp is showing the lowest at 675, ave. 778, and a high of 922

so, you've done "well" on yours, and most probably the 1k was obviously
on the high side, but then the "skill" comes in, WHERE/HOW does your
example honestly compare to the others SOLD.

vintage321 · #45 11-24-2025, 05:56 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by raulus

Good point!

I was kinda expecting that I'd get more abuse from people who would suggest that you should never buy a PSA-graded piece, because raw is inherently better. Or it should only be purchased with a plan to crack it out. Or that SGC is the only grader worth buying, because SGC rules and PSA drools.

no abuse necessary, 80-90% of the time, it's a fact, psa gets the higher price.

and that is coming from a guy who prefers sgc, me.

that is precisely why i set up once a month to sell, LISTEN to customers, what are their wants, opinions, purchases. tremendous help on MY purchases.

bcbgcbrcb · #46 11-24-2025, 05:59 PM

I previously messaged that seller through eBay recently chastising them for their outrageous prices and they replied with eye appeal.

Exhibitman · #47 11-24-2025, 05:59 PM

One thing I wonder is how many sales are driven by people buying the slab.

raulus · #48 11-24-2025, 06:19 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

One thing I wonder is how many sales are driven by people buying the slab.

Well, if you assume that the slab is the commodity, then it's got to approach 100%.

Hankphenom · #49 11-24-2025, 06:21 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Brent G.

I've only been in the vintage game around 18 months. I picked up a '53 Topps Satchel Paige in a 2 early on for $580. I saw one at this Chicago show tagged at $1,000. Wild times.

Pure speculation on my part, but Satch would seem to be one of those old-timers whose cards and stuff could be regarded as in the ascendance in appeal, and this guy has his card priced at "replacement cost" or some such anticipation. The test, of course, is whether there are other examples of this card to be had cheaper, and how many, in which case he might be waiting awhile for this ship to come in. If not, and his theory is correct, he will probably get his price before too long. I can see where this is frustrating for collectors trying to pick up this card for one of the recent "comps." Of course, if collectors can't find one, that tells me the comps have moved on. If they can, though, they are happy to buy those and don't have to spend time worrying about this guy's price.

gregndodgers · #50 11-24-2025, 06:57 PM

The three rules of buying vintage:

Buy, buy, buy

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