What Kind Of Premium Is Placed On M101-4 Commons With Gimbels backs?

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Posted By: addie_Joss

I recently picked up an M101-4 common graded a PSA 3 with a Gimbels back. I paid 150 for it. Is this about the price range a card with this back in this condition goes for or did I get lucky and spot a deal? It is the Itallic Gimbels back and not the large block print.

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Posted By: leon

I think that price is in the ballpark. Maybe $75-$150, imo, so you did pay near the top. The italics one is the more common of the 3 from my experience......As a back collector I always enjoy these....

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Posted By: addie_Joss

I figured I was probably paying near what I should expect. I had just never seen one before and picked it up. Its Nap Rucker, maybe he's a little higher tier than a common but probably not by much.

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Posted By: leon

I consider Rucker a star player but not a HOF'er (obviously).....so I do agree with you....a small premium for him, imo.

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Posted By: Todd

I have a Gimbels, George Stallings.....nice looking card.

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Posted By: Tim Newcomb

That price is on the high side of the range. Gimbels backs, at least the italics in M101-4, tend to bring about a 35% premium over blank backs, which makes them one of the more common backs. The nonitalic backs are a lot tougher, and M101-5 a lot tougher too.

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Posted By: Scot Reader

Tim,

35% premium seems low to me. Do you have a sense of the percentage of M101-4/5 that have Gimbels Italic? I would think it is sub 2%--perhaps more like 1%. I just don't see them around very often as compared to blank, TSN and Famous and Barr.

Scot

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Posted By: Tim Newcomb

Hi Scot,

I think Todd and I in our article estimate the Gimbels' cards at about 5% of total M101-4s. That sounds low, but there are 18 backs in M101-4 alone, after all, most of them more like .1 to 2%. So at 5% Gimbels is among the more common backs, though nothing like as common as blank or Sporting News. (F&B is pretty common in M101-5 but scarce in M101-4.) Maybe you're right, maybe 35% premium is low. But M101 premium values are notoriously inconsistent from sale to sale, so it's hard to pin down a clear figure for any backs, even the blanks.

As far as the three types of Gimbel backs, it's even harder to estimate with much certitude-- the numbers seen are just so small.

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Posted By: Scot Reader

Tim,

Thanks for the information. At 5% of the population, a 35% premium seems about right; although I'm kind of surprised to hear your view that 1 in every 20 M101-4/5 cards out there have a Gimbels back. I would have guessed more like 1 in every 100 since blanks and TSN are so ubiquitous.

Scot

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Posted By: leon

I am far closer to your thinking than Tim's on this. If we use a 35% premium I think that is an absurd number. A blank back common in vg goes for about $25 on any given day. An italics type (the most common) Gimbel goes for at least $75 on any given day. As long as 35% equals 300% I think we are in good shape. regards

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Posted By: Tim Newcomb

Well, I've never been good with percentages, for some reason--can't get my head around them easily. 35% does look kind of like the goofy premium estimates in the old SCD books. Maybe what I meant was 300% of a typical common. That makes a lot of the tougher backs in the range of 1000% premium. And I'm sticking with about 5% for the total Gimbels % of M101-4. Not that anybody has any way of knowing for sure.

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Posted By: leon

I was looking for a good fight from you. .......no big deal....I suck at higher math but on the percentage stuff and lower math I am pretty quick.... When the analysts on the board get to talking about the markets my head starts spinning......I love cards though and these M101 backs are some of my faves.....take care