All PSA 8 or Better . . . Well, Almost

Vargha

A tip of the hat to Chris Porter at Superior Sports for getting me these five cards for my 1951 Bowman set. The only card left in PSA 7 is Mays and there's over 40 of his cards in PSA 8.

David Vargha - Tied for 3rd All Time Finest Set

JH

Congratulations David.... A tremendous accomplishment....

thegemmintman

All right!!!!! I know how hard you have been looking for those cards. Congrats!!

zardoz51

Well done!

One he!! of an accomplishment!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

waitilltheytrytosell

Congratulations! Only another $500,000 to go to knock off Mr. Branca.

dom

David,

Congratulations is an insufficient word. Like opening King Tut's tomb, card collectors see "wonderful things" when pasteboard archeologists preserve and share the treasures of our past. I am awed and inspired by your doggedness and accomplishment.

theBobs

V--

If I had a hat on right now, I'd tip it to you sir. Most excellent accomplishment.

Brian

FB

David,

Way to go! Do you have leads on the Mays or will you wait a while on that one?

alohaet

Great job David. You deserve a pat on the back for this wonderful set. Go get that Mays card tiger.

Ed

Vargha

I will buy Mays for the right price only. The market price for it now is less than SMR. Most dealers are asking SMR+. I will be patient on it.

aconte

Vargha,

Great job! I'd pick your set over the others. My guess is your eights are high end for sure!

aconte

BASESAREEMPTY

Congratulations, I'm sure it has been a labor of love to complete.

Three cheers for David, HIP HIP HORRAY! HIP HIP HORRAY! HIP HIP HORRAY!

GOOD JOB!!

BOB

calleocho

awesome job!

it really feels great to see vargha improve his set. from the beginning of the registry vargha has offered great insight into this set and current updates. i hope you are very proud of your set and i also hope that you never stop until you get to 1st place!

sixdart

Congratulations!

Waiting for that final PSA 8 Mays has to be tough?!

Vargha

Branca and Merkel have virtually insurmountable leads. Merkel has over 100 PSA 9's in the set and Branca has shown a willingness to pay well above the market to get the highest ranked examples. Thanks for all of the kind words everyone. I will continue to slowly pursue 9's as they dribble in as well as continue to look for a nice Mays at a good price. I doubt that I will be seeking out a new set for the next two years so the finances get back into a more proper perspective.

Wayne8348

Vargha - that is absolutely awesome!

Wayne

qualitycards

David - Great job! Very impressive! Congrats!
OK! Enough resting, whats on the agenda for your next set?, 1952 Topps? 1950 Bowman? 1948 Leaf? 1933 Goudey?
The world awaits your call ...jay

acowa

Dave,

Congrats on the set! I know that you sacrificed a lot to build it. You should feel really good about being a part of the elite group that has the determination and stamina to build such a nice set.

Regards,


Alan

pinhigh

Congrats Vargha! Just one to go. What does that feel like?

Alfiewt

Great Job David!!

I know you put a lot of hard work into it and sacrificed a lot for it.

Good luck on finding a Mays!!

Davalillo

I think that the early Bowman sets in general and the 1951 set in particular are the hottest area of the hobby right now--particularly for low pop psa 8s and psa 9s. Unlike most of the 1960s sets where its just a matter of time before more 9s appear, we may have seen most of the 9s for certain cards. Given that these sets have collectors with deep pockets, when 9s or the low pop 8s appear the prices are amazing. To finish a vintage set pre 1956 with every card 8 or better is an accomplishment but David has no chance of passing Merkel and Branca and maybe Marshall too if he gets serious about upgrading--this is a fact he acknowledges.

calleocho

vargha have you calculated how many psa 9's does it take to raise one GPA point ?

Vargha

It takes seven PSA 9 low number commons or three PSA 9 high number commons to go up 0.01 on your rating in the 1951 Bowman set if you already have the cards in PSA 8.

calleocho

jebus....whats the smr for a psa 9 common?

mikeschmidt

Calleocho-

SMR doesn't really matter with the 1951 Bowman cards in PSA 9. If it is high population, a few hundred dollars is appropriate. If it is a 1/1 PSA 9 card, it could probably go for anywhere between $750 and $1,500. Depends on who is willing to play the game given any particular day. But because of certain new players on this set, the PSA 9 cards sell for double to triple what they did two or three years ago.

Vargha

But because of certain new players on this set, the PSA 9 cards sell for double to triple what they did two or three years ago.

Even one year ago . . . It's hard to believe that I bought a Pop. 1 1951 Bowman common for $145 less than 2 years ago.

mikeschmidt

Vargha:

Don't rub it in. I paid over $303 and $486, respectively, for mine back in February - May 2000. But it is still a nice appreciation nonetheless! Better than my Worldcom stock ;-)

Scoop

Vargha....congrats.

I am now dealing with the toughest part of set building, needing only to upgrade 10 more PSA 7's...tho I am 5th on current list and will be the 7th to accomplish finishing an all-PSA 8 or better set. So I know the time, $$$$$, and passion it takes to do this.

Calculating the math on upgrading from PSA 8's to 9's in 1-rated high-pop commons (which includes selling the PSA 8 after buying the replacement 9), it comes to about $1500./.01 grading point...which is a little higher than my set. You will easily double that if dealing with low-pop cards.

You can do a little better these days with upgrading of star and semi-star cards as far as bang for your buck in pumping up the grade weighting....if you have the cash.

Patience is definitely tested when dealing with very low-pop stuff...those cards usually are already in the hands, and sets, of collectors....so when they do come up, you have to wring your hands...and your wallet too if you decide to go for it.

I always enjoy reading threads on the completion, or nearing thereof of difficult sets.

Congrats again!!