Where are you in this card cycle?
Raptormaniacs
Posts: 79 ✭✭
Prices keep dropping for the stuff I collect (vintage hockey). I’ve been very selective in the cards that I’ve been buying.
I have about 1600 cards (raw) that I could submit for grading but I keep reading about the inconsistency out there. I figure I will save it for when the grading companies drop their prices and card prices bounce back. It makes more sense to buy the graded cards for cheap. Two/three years from now…..maybe I will change my mind.
Where are you in this card cycle?
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I have some stuff to submit for my Killebrew registry set, grades aren't important on these, but the cost of grading is ridiculous, (does it really cost $75.00 to grade a bottle cap?) holding off on those.
I have a bunch of high grade baseball rookies, most of which I pulled from unopened rack and factory sets. Some Griffey's and Thomas's, years 1989-92 various companies and sets. I will be submitting the best of the best in the next month. If PSA gives me grades in the 6-7 range, I will be sending to SGC and will compare results.
Younger - always sold much more then I kept.
Covid craze- equal amount of buying and selling.
2024- steady as she goes but have begun to buy more. Very satisfied with my collection though.
I’ve been stacking raw cards and probably have 500 that could be submitted. But the more I wait, the less I care.
And with grading standards changing….again….it feels the best play is to buy cards other guys submit and get crushed on.
I’m mostly a NM collector so those 7/8s can now be had in 6/7 slabs and with the downturn, there are some good buys. Although I’m not buying much these days at all, a little burned out, in an off cycle.
The guy who just bought the recent 8.5 agrees with you. I’m guessing you’re a hockey guy because of your username.
He bought the 8.5 for less then 8’s sold a few years ago.
Yup, hockey guy. Nice buy on the Orr.
The Gretz below is on my watchlist, prob won’t bid, and the pics aren’t great, but that card looks one grade under. Factor in how the soft market is and I bet it sells at a Covid 5 price. I’d be frustrated if I was the submitter.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/315094818108?mkcid=16&mkevt=1&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0&ssspo=37Y-cpGlQ0q&sssrc=2349624&ssuid=wnxB3Ea6RhG&var=&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY
Agreed about the pics.
That appears that it could be a recent sheet cut with that perfect centering and very smooth edges on four sides, but the pics aren’t great.
Will be surprised if that falls under 5.5k.
4SC just sold an opc 9 for $111k
What a drop in price, wow. And likely still more room to move down, the economy is still hot.
II’m always reading what the veteran hobbyists are writing. You guys have been around much longer than I have. The sport is irrelevant…
I appreciate the posts.
PSA 9 opc Gretzky was 5k 10 years ago. The population has gone from 60 to 90 since 2017.
I expect more downside but who knows.
What goes up must come down…..
Probably not down to the 5k but wayyyy off those highs.
I still look for the same 10-12 players that I have for many years. Most of them with their preferred jersey/serial numbered. And probably skew the comps by paying more than they are actually worth!
Just bought this today from a guy who lives 30 minutes from me.
With steady inflation the $5k figure from 10 years ago is higher today. If values of cards return to pre-covid days then everyone who is investing and still holding is likely to lose big.
If you are new to the hobby and think now is the time to buy then I would caution you because we know there is a lot more room for prices to fall and the outlook on the economy isn't the best. I think it may be a time to sell and invest elsewhere and only purchase stuff for your PC that you don't think you'll be able to find in a better condition elsewhere.
I'm old enough to have learned that it's impossible to predict the future of the economy. Or the prices of discretionary items like cards.
There's a reason for the old saying 'economists have predicted 12 of the last 5 recessions'.
I just buy as low as I can, hold as long as I can and I'm selling when I'm ready (that's probably sooner than later).
The good from the COVID hobby boom is that it showed the upside potential for values when a huge surge of interest and rekindled nostalgia enters the hobby. The next wave of this will be when the now 30-45 year old COVID collectors hit their earning peak ten years from now and their free time expands as their kids grow up. This will mean an upward trajectory for iconic cards in top condition over the next decade.
As such, I am buying high quality iconic rookies when they come for sale at or below the moving average of the past six months. No sense in over paying today as this market will move sideways to slightly down in 2024. Like Warren Buffet, I am a buy and hold collector.
As always, great advice from the members. I’m collecting for the long term. I have no intention of selling what I’ve collected. Save the selling for when I retire…
That’s the key to enjoying this hobby.
Always keep the stuff you enjoy and care less whether it goes up or down.
Investors will never enjoy the hobby the way a collector can.
There's a reason for the old saying 'economists have predicted 12 of the last 5 recessions'.
Or the whole "safe landing" concept as it applies to the economy. The plane is always airborne and never seems to land...
So much more to write about on that but everyone is spared.
Baseball Cards- I collect them of interest in the history of the game. I buy what I like at the time I see it. I like players that had excellent careers that will likely never be in the HOF. I do not see these types of cards as investments as I simply don't collect them at that level. Like with most collectables, I see some value in some cards as well as other cards that are overvalued. But so much depends on the interest in the history of the game. Seems the overwhelming majority collect Stars and pretty much ignore everyone else.
Experience the World through Numismatics...it's more than you can imagine.
Not sure.
Check out the two pics below.
Would PSA give that a 6 if it had mint corners but that paper issue in the white ? Would SGC give it a 9?
Who knows.
Just ended a few days ago with probstein.
Wow what a beauty, nice full borders.
The market was not soft last night. Went for $4250 which is more than double the last PSA 6 price.
As I’ve written elsewhere I am bullish and have been buying unopened baseball since June ‘23. I don’t mind buying on the way down if that’s what happens but based on my observations, the market bottomed in October. The deals started to dry up after that. The only thing I have seen continue to drop since then is 1993 SP Baseball, which was relatively oversupplied.
I’ve been noticing the same. It may be anecdotal or just what I’m tracking but things do seem to be going up.
Maybe it’s that inflation is starting to fall, folks are just getting used to it or just think deals are there. No matter which, I want those lower prices since I’m a buyer and not a seller!😂
Ya that was a good price for a card that would have been an easy 7, 3 years ago
It’s still can be hit or miss.
Here’s the most recent sale.
🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒🥅🏒
Here’s some sales before it. Prices keep going lower and lower.
Yet prices can be all over the place with other cards. In this case going higher.
The only thing going up in vintage hockey are shipping costs…