Are regular set, set registries becoming a thing of the past?
olb31
Posts: 3,371 ✭✭✭✭✭
The cheapest price for grading is $9 per card with the new changes. There are a lot of people who collect 1987 and older sets, currently. Back when I was paying $4.75 per card, it was worth the gamble to send in 100 or so, now I'm not so sure. Even getting a 9 might not cover the cost of grading, ebay, shipping and paypal fees. You would need to get around $15 for a 9 in order to break even. If you get an 8, you are probably SOL. I have a 1957 PSA 8 common for sale for $25 and I can't sale it.
ANy thoughts? Maybe the existing ones go up in price?
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Interesting. I thought you could still bring the price down by submitting larger lots of cards (200?).
You are going to lose money on any and ALL modern cards that grade lower than a 9, and only a very few, like the 1987 Barry Bonds card ($15.00-20.00) will be a "break even" or make a little in a 9. The 1986 Canseco Donruss rookie seems to be one of the few that would be a money maker in a 9. While you ponder this, realize these two cards are incredibly hard to get a 10 in. Canseco gets a 10 only .093% of the time and Bonds .097. Plus the fact that most of the modern are submitted are in super high grade to begin with.
There seem to be less and less people trying to complete modern sets, and why should they? 792 cards in the 1987 Topps set. $7,000.00 minimum in grading fees. The 1964 set is still big but at 587 cards a lot smaller.
Moving to vintage the problem is getting almost as bad. I noticed that the guy I collect, Harmon Killebrew, cards are often dropping in value in PSA 8. He isn't a "top tier" HOFer, but that does seem a bit disturbing.
There are 130-150 collectors chasing the 1964 and 1965 Topps basic sets. The top 20 in the 1964 all have a rating of 8.00 or higher and their sets are at 100% complete, except for 3 at 99.83%.
In 1987 Topps there are 32 people pursuing the set but only 2 collectors have the set more than 28% complete and they are almost without exception buying only 10's.
Still PSA is swamped with orders. I am assuming it's a lot of high end rookie cards. Set collecting in graded cards seems to be dying, too much money to do modern and the older sets are becoming completed.
You need a modern star card in a 10 or a vintage in a 9 to make money. There are a few low pop cards out there as well, but your risk gets even higher on grading those for profit.
Player collectors are still hanging in there a bit, but there are a LOT of modern HOFers that have only one or two desirable cards and they better be 10's. Look at Jim Thome's card values.
I agree and it’s getting very hard to get graded cards that you want or need on eBay. I always check the sold prices on PSA before buying. Without fail, or at least very rarely all the buy it nows are way over what said card has sold for and Is overpriced, BIN are usually not at or near the PSA sold cards. For example say a card sells generally in the $80 range. Likely the lowest BIN you will find is $125. Don’t understand why almost 100 percent of sellers over price their cards.
I think so. I am less and less interested by Key card registries because the wrong key cards get added to what has historically been used. Case in point I am actively involved with the All Time Saints registry. When the original submitted compiled the list he included players he should not have an omitted key players in their history like Bobby Hebert. So way back when I put the 84 Topps USFL Hebert RC to vote. It got voted down. Fast forward to a decade later someone put the 86 Topps Bobby Hebert up for a vote and it passed. Even though the 85 USFL Sam Mills was already included not the first NFL 1988 Topps. I sent this in an email to PSA and they said I cannot use the 1984 Topps Hebert. Makes no sense and has no consistency.
I know I went down a side track but I agree with the post that fewer and fewer people will attack a full graded standard set as well
Very useful info. to consider going forward.
Thanks. Not sure it's useful, but just some observations.
It's too bad so few people want anything less than a 10.
I can live with 9's. I have two OPC sets I started about a decade ago, that has many 9's. I may still try to finish them at some point. But I would few people to compete with since no one is really collecting the sets.
Recently I requested a 2014 Topps Chrome Rainbow set for Zack Martin. There are a number of key card rainbow sets on the registry presently, including sets for 2014 Topps Chrome, however the set request was denied as sets of this type aren't being created at this time. I was disappointed as I had just purchased a number of items so I could submit the set request. I'm still happy to have the items, no doubt, but I don't have to get the others I have to complete the rainbow graded if I don't have a set to register the cards in. With player collecting being so popular vs set collecting, I hope over time to see this policy change.
Steve
The Doomsday Collection
Dallas Cowboys Ring of Honor | All-Time Dallas Cowboys | Bob Lilly Master | Pro Football HOF Dallas Cowboys
Yep. Kind of have been for a while now already.
They would not let me do the 2017 Heritage Action set either. Tone deaf.
Probably bulk
ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240
Value/bulk
On another note, what does TCG stand for?
They wouldn't do a Nolan Ryan rookie set because they didn't deem the other 3 versions of his card to be rookie cards. OPC's are certainly in other rookie sets. I won't even go into the modern era rookie card debacle vs the Ryans.
Topps Chewing Gum
So does that mean if I were to attempt to submit under the "Value TCG (all years) 100 card min" level all cards would have to be Topps?
I sell mostly vintage graded commons. My sell through rates have never been stronger. There are still a lot of people building graded sets. Sure the run of the mill high pop commons will always struggle to earn back grading fees. But there are many cards in every vintage set that sell for higher values. The higher gradng fees will likely result in fewer submissions of high pop cards which may result in a slight increase in resale value over time for those cards. Sets like 1987 Topps have never had much of a market of set builders.
I can’t think of any reason to do a modern set in all PSA. Not sure how many cards are in a set any longer but when Upper Deck made 800 card sets in 1989 it became almost impossible to do. Just the grading fee for commons would be too costly. You would never recoup a tenth of your investment and just the shear volume , weight and bulk would be astronomical. Yes I know collectors have done it but most have a nice raw set with graded stars. I think since the lottery of autos, patches etc more collectors go for sub sets or player collections.
"I spent 50% of my money on alcohol, women, and gambling. The other half I wasted.
I think for the set collection concept for the 1980's, it makes the other sports all the more appealing. Depending on the year, the Topps hockey sets are all varying quantities under 200, or 264 if you go with OPC. Basketball might be moving towards the pricier end due to Jordan mania, but the sets from that era are still manageable quantities too. Football are certainly less expensive than the basketball ones, and do have the most cards compared with hockey and b-ball, but still come in at approx. half the size of baseball sets.
The way to get baseball sets from the '80's down to a more attainable total card count is to go with OPC and Leaf instead of their American counterparts, since the total cards per set is significantly reduced.
I sent my entire 396 card 1982 Topps Blackless set to PSA. I will send the entire 1985 Topps Mini set soon too... The rare sets I have I want the entire set slabbed for protection more so than if it grades high or not.
I might only grade the stars of my Desert Shield set though since that is a more common set.
I like looking at pictures
82 Blackless
85 Mini
91 DS
Because of the increased prices, I can see Set Registry collectors going the way of the dinosaur, and what was once a big part of their revenue will go away. As a single player collector collecting senitmentally, I will stick with it when I find more I need graded. As long as people keep submitting the newest, hottest rookies, they wont have a problem.