Do you believe there are any undervalued Mantle items?

[AustinMike]

Originally Posted by KCRfan1

Brian,

Are there some Mantle cards that are a little too obscure? Someone mentioned Transogram. Is there a market for them or the 68 Topps game cards? Both sets have star power, are they undervalued or just no interest from collectors?

I don't think there are any Mantle cards that are too obscure. And as far as undervalued, I guess what you're really asking is, 'Are there any cards we think will see a significant uptick in price?"

As we all know, the main determination of price is supply and demand. Supply is supposedly (legally) fixed (or decreasing as items are destroyed). Demand fluctuates. So the question boils down to, "Will demand increase enough in the future to cause an increase in the price?" That's the $64,000 question; and I think mainly a question for speculators. If enough speculators think it's value may go up, they may jump in causing a self-fulfilling prophecy. If that were to happen, in my opinion, that would make the card overvalued. Only if the collector base were to significantly increase in the future (in relation to a card's supply) would the card be undervalued today, again, in my opinion.

An example, the 1968 Topps game card. Like Chris said, the supply of the 1968 Topps game card exceeds the demand, hence it has a low "price." Is it undervalued? No, not according to today's demand. Will demand increase for this card in the future? It's anyone's guess. In my opinion, there are enough cards out there that, I think, the demand for this card will be met for some time to come.

There are some cards that may not have a large supply, but they are butt ugly and only a completest would want it (e.g., the 1965 Bancroft Tiddlers Giants of Sport (that's just my own personal opinion)). I can't ever see a card like this being in high demand.

Generally, I'm a pessimist in regards to the long-term "value" of Mantle cards and I'm amazed at the price increases I've seen. I'm also disappointed; there are still a bunch of his cards I'd like to get and I hate to see their "value" increasing before I can get them.

[Bestdj777]

Originally Posted by AustinMike

There are some cards that may not have a large supply, but they are butt ugly and only a completest would want it (e.g., the 1965 Bancroft Tiddlers Giants of Sport (that's just my own personal opinion)). I can't ever see a card like this being in high demand

Wow, in my opinion the Bancroft Tiddlers card is one of the nicest period pieces of Mantle there is, I mean apart from the fact it does not really resemble him, the colors are all off, and you have to purchase two cards to get both the front and back. Other than that, not sure why it isn't seeing the same prices as the 52 Topps I actually wanted that one because I have a thing for foreign issued cards and generally think they are underrated, but I agree it's far from an ideal piece.

[brian1961]

Originally posted by AustinMike-----An example, the 1968 Topps game card. Like Chris said, the supply of the 1968 Topps game card exceeds the demand, hence it has a low "price." Is it undervalued? No, not according to today's demand. Will demand increase for this card in the future? It's anyone's guess. In my opinion, there are enough cards out there that, I think, the demand for this card will be met for some time to come.

YES, THAT'S FOR SURE. FOR A FREEBIE IN A 1967 TOPPS NICKEL WAX PACK, HOW IN THE WORLD DID WE COME TO HAVE SO MANY OF 'EM? WHEREAS, THE BASIC 1964 COINS ARE MUCH TOUGHER. THE ALL-STARS SEEM MUCH MORE PLENTIFUL.

There are some cards that may not have a large supply, but they are butt ugly and only a completest would want it (e.g., the 1965 Bancroft Tiddlers Giants of Sport (that's just my own personal opinion)). I can't ever see a card like this being in high demand.

YOU GOT THAT RIGHT, BROTHER. 1965 TOPPS PUSH-PULL, TOPPS WHO AM I?, 1965 TOPPS EMBOSSED CAMEO, TOPPS PUNCH-OUT, and a few etcetras.

Generally, I'm a pessimist in regards to the long-term "value" of Mantle cards and I'm amazed at the price increases I've seen. I'm also disappointed; there are still a bunch of his cards I'd like to get and I hate to see their "value" increasing before I can get them. [/QUOTE]

YOU GOT THAT OH SO RIGHT AGAIN, BRO. WISH I HAD HELD ONTO SOME OF MINE. WISH I HAD TRIED MUCH HARDER TO GET A FEW OF THEM YEARS AGO.

PART OF THE LIFE OF A COLLECTOR. IT HAPPENS. IT'S HARD; VERY HARD.

THANKS FOR A GOOD POST. ---Brian Powell

PS--The 1960 Post Cereal was the very first Mickey Mantle card I ever saw. I've got a very compelling story about the experience in my forthcoming book, NEVER CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN. I don't want to tell it here for obvious reasons, and it may not be that compelling of a tale to some, but it left a huge impression on me as a little 6-year old boy. Did you happen to see the photo of an example PSA graded AUTHENTIC? The owner cut it on the inside black frame where it just shows the picture, and no wooden frame to be seen. Kinda like a beautiful Bengal Tiger with his teeth pulled out. Made me sick.

[AustinMike]

Originally Posted by brian1961

PS--The 1960 Post Cereal was the very first Mickey Mantle card I ever saw. I've got a very compelling story about the experience in my forthcoming book, NEVER CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN. I don't want to tell it here for obvious reasons, and it may not be that compelling of a tale to some, but it left a huge impression on me as a little 6-year old boy. Did you happen to see the photo of an example PSA graded AUTHENTIC? The owner cut it on the inside black frame where it just shows the picture, and no wooden frame to be seen. Kinda like a beautiful Bengal Tiger with his teeth pulled out. Made me sick.

Yes, I did see it. It made me very sad, but not sick. I can imagine some kid at the time thinking the frame was unnecessary and doing away with it. Considering these were free on the back of cereal boxes, I figure there's nothing to feel sick about some kid making the card the way he wanted. It's sad that that was the fate of that particular card, but mine ended up in the dump. Which is worse? Like you, I was 6 when these came out in 1960. When I think about it, I'm sure the condition of my post cereal cards was not that great. I'd be willing to bet that I let the scissors stray inside the border. I handled mine constantly so I'm sure there were creases, bent corners, etc. Instead of feeling sick about it, I marvel that any survived in decent condition.

[brian1961]

Originally Posted by AustinMike

Yes, I did see it. It made me very sad, but not sick. I can imagine some kid at the time thinking the frame was unnecessary and doing away with it. Considering these were free on the back of cereal boxes, I figure there's nothing to feel sick about some kid making the card the way he wanted. It's sad that that was the fate of that particular card, but mine ended up in the dump. Which is worse? Like you, I was 6 when these came out in 1960. When I think about it, I'm sure the condition of my post cereal cards was not that great. I'd be willing to bet that I let the scissors stray inside the border. I handled mine constantly so I'm sure there were creases, bent corners, etc. Instead of feeling sick about it, I marvel that any survived in decent condition.

AUSTINMIKE---

You are right on all counts. It would be far better to have that glorious picture of Mickey Mantle, than not have the card at all.

I guess where I was coming from is that I interpreted from viewing the piece that the gent recently cut up a card having a damaged frame, submitted it, and PSA gave its AUTHENTIC, which in fact is justifiable. At least the picture area had been preserved well, which counts for something.

Moreover, on the side of the cereal package, the company provided explicit instructions as to how to mount the card. Without having them in front me, you were to fold the corner frames outward, following the frame line at each of the four corners. Once done it would resemble a three-dimensional framed portrait of the star. Like most six-year-olds, you would not have been able to read the instructions, though most kids that age would tend to seek the help of a parent or older sibling, if one had one. The instructions were carefully illustrated, however.

Me, I never got a Post Cereal package with the Sports Stars. Boy they were beautiful!

Your fascinating response of your own experience with the 1960 Post Cereal Mantle was marvelous, and so epitomizes what I wrote in my book's second chapter, where I discus this particular card. If I ever do a revised version, I would love to include your brief, pertinent story and comments if I may.

I love our gent's 1959 Bazooka Mantle. That's part of the focus of my book's eighteenth chapter. Mine's SGC AUTHENTIC. I'm extremely fond of this card, having bought it from none other than Lionel Carter, in the summer of '72.

All the best. ---Brian Powell