Your thoughts on collecting 1952 Topps in PSA 6

Maija

Hello all, I’ve been a long time reader of this forum and have gone from collecting modern cards to really considering collecting a vintage PSA set. I have been looking into what sets would fall within my limited collecting budget that I could build over several years. One of my all-time favorite sets has been the 1952 Topps but in a high-grade this would not be possible financially. I was considering building the set in PSA 6 but wanted your thoughts on doing so. I would most likely purchase already graded cards as opposed to submitting myself. Being that this would be a mid-grade set I wanted to see if this would be considered a wise investment. I’m not trying to retire on the set but do want to collect something that would hold it’s value over time. Current SMR on a PSA 6 set is about 46K, how much should I realistically have to invest in building this set?

Any thoughts or ideas, pros or cons on collecting this is would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks for your time,
John

theBobs

<< <i>Being that this would be a mid-grade set I wanted to see if this would be considered a wise investment. >>

Depends on what you pay for the cards Typically, money is made on the buy-side. If you purchased reasonably priced cards, I doubt you would lose money if you ever sold.


<< <i>how much should I realistically have to invest in building this set? >>

There was a post on the SCM board awhile back that dealt with building a 1952 set on $4000, or something like that. I'd search for that thread, as it was very informative. Several folks on this board should be able to provide a very good estimate on the cost of the set in PSA 6.

Good luck, its a great set.

qualitycards

I think you would do very well. Part of the fun of collecting a set is the cards you keep adding to it. When collectors work on a high end set, many times they must wait a long period of time for a card they need in their grade appears, and then usually a bidding war ensues. Another thing if I might add, don't limit yourself soley to PSA-6's, in many instances you can pick up a 7 at the 6 level. And if you can collect a variety of grades, you will have more to choose from. Good luck w/ your endeavour, its a classic set...jay

theBobs

Watch this auction...

brucemo

I think this would be fun. If past experience is any indicator, you will be able to buy very rapidly at the start, but the last few will take a long time. I've been working on a somewhat smaller set for three years, and for the past two years of it I've needed under ten cards.

bruce

RayBShotz

Jay - Your comments are right at the mark with my feelings regarding building mid grade vintage. Fun to build ... cards are available... buy at the right price... and dont limit yourself to one grade!

Maija - I love this thread and I love your idea! Good luck with this endeavor; I expect you would make out just fine in the long run. 52' is a classic and PSA 6 examples can at times be very, very nice. Like Jay says...keep your eyes out for the occassional PSA 7 you might be able to steal (If you could even call it that with the price of 52's.)

Go get'em.

RayB69Topps

mikeschmidt

A wonderful set -- an EX/MT 1952 Topps set certainly would not be an unwise investment -- one of the best baseball sets of all-time, and in a condition that is highly respectable. Good luck!

Maija

Thanks for all the helpful responses. I will take your advise Jay and Ray and not limit myself to one grade if a deal can be had. theBobs, I've also been watching that auction, looks like a great way to start off the set. Do you think it's being offered at a reasonable price?

Thanks again everyone.

John

mikeschmidt

I think that there is a chance that the lot may receive no bids and then you can make a reasonable private offer to the seller.

1420sports

Nothing wrong with PSA 5 either.

murcerfan

That e-bay seller has been buying 6's like mad for the past month and continues to do so.
A very odd business model?
Maybe she's selling cards from Levi's inventory.

jaxxr

I agree with 1420, a PSA 5 min. grade set would also be very nice. By mixing a few grades, and perhaps sticking to " high-end" 5s in this case, getting most in 6 with some 7s too, would yeild a nice collection.

I feel any BB sets from 1956 and prior would be somewhat attractive with an average grade around 6. Basically as sets get newer the min. grade and the overall average would get higher. Probably around 1973, the last year series issue for the cards was used, a min. or average grade would be no less than a 7, in most cases.

1420sports

I believe that there are a lot of very nice PSA 4's and 5's out there. A PSA 5 after all, is EXCELLENT, and in my own opnion very collectible. High end 5's are a great bargain ....

murcerfan - what did you mean about selling Levi's inventory?

ngfred

I agree PSA 5 in the 50's set are very acceptable. I'm starting the 50 Bowman and my criteria is 5 or better. I figure PSA 5 for 50s, 6 for 60s and 7 for 70s. Most PSA 5 are very nice, maybe just a bit of visible wear on the corners, which I'm ok with, as long as the centering is good and the surface doesn't have any visible problem.

murcerfan

1420 - just joshing...a reference to that phoney '52 Mantle auction where somebody hiested Levi's scan and was "selling" his psa 4. At least one response thought this was..........
well..........kosher. BTW, psa 6's and 7's on e-bay are selling well above SMR, there is probably still a big upside on graded sevens, but value in 6's will only be realized with smart and patient buying.
I have some damn nice looking 5's and that is my solution to those crazy high numbers.
I recommend picking up a psa 8 or two/three as they are beautiful to behold.

1420sports

Thanks, I did not know about the scan issue, but I know Levi must have every card in every condition known to man.

Too bad his prices are too high, because he is a very nice guy to talk to.

waitilltheytrytosell

SMR on the 61 cards is $1949. I think that on a bulk deal like this consisting of nothing terribly exciting or difficult, you could probably be able to pick up a group like this from a dealer at a discount of SMR. If you are the high bidder on the next 61 PSA 6's that go for reasonable levels on Ebay, you would probably be at or slightly below his minimum bid of $2495. He's probably not making or losing much at his minimum and just wants to get his money out of them. On a deal like this it would probably be cheaper to buy piles like this from a dealer. Most dealers don't like messing with 6's and would be happy to blow them out at 70 to 80 percent of SMR and let somebody else fool around with them.

murcerfan

good point. i have done as well if not better at shows than on e-bay with '52's in the 6-7 range.
everybody in the room has them on the table and it's the 8's that are "the game", so it doesn't take long for those 6's to get stale. You could probably call around to some of the bigger guys and offer to buy them out of 6's , you might just make their day.