Set Registry Strategy - Your Thoughts?

bleacherbum

As I'm pursuing the remaining last 30 cards for my 1971 baseball PSA 8+ set, I'm thinking of changing my approach to completing the set. Lately, the PSA 8's I'm picking up go for a hefty premium. I set my goal at the outset to go only after 8's or better but I had another thought as to how to go about finishing this set off.

Instead of dumping money into low pop 8's that will eventually go down in price, I was thinking of finishing my set off in PSA 7's and using the extra money to buy the 9's that come along. There are still opportunities to pick up 9's at reasonable prices - relatively speaking - and I'm thinking they will hold their value better in the long run than the low pop 8's.

I'd be interested in getting this board's thoughts.

Thanks,
Steve

WinPitcher

Sounds good to me BUM, some hi end 7'z can look sweet, especially in the 71 set.

CON40

Steve;

I think I'd hold tight for another 45-60 days... my feeling is that the market will be flooded with lots of high-end 1970s material as a result of PSAs $5 special... many of these cards are still at PSA so hang on and I bet you'll be rewarded with at least a few deals... I know it ain't easy to wait (I've let 2 1978 PSA 9 Ryans go by to wait for more to make their way to eBay)... just my 2¢!

Good luck with the set. 71s in PSA 8 and better are really "GAW-JUSS"!!

EDIT: I have to apologize! 71s are not covered in PSAs $5 special! DOH!! Now that I feel thoroughly embarrassed and stupid, I think you should go after PSA 7 fillers while focusing on some nice deals on PSA 9 cards!

1954

Bleacherbum- I think that is a very wise idea. Always buy the cheap nines and use them for trade bait. The PSA 8's will become more available. Sometimes it works out that the low pop cards become medium or high pop cards because so many are looking to get them graded.
1954

mojorob

Steve,
I think that there comes a point when finishing off just about any nice set, you hit the "land of deminishing returns".
Usually it is the last 5-10% of a set.
When you are forced to go on ebay and battle it out for the low pops......you are in very dangerous waters.
This is where many on these boards will proclaim: "YEA, THIS IS WHAT SEPERATES THE MEN FROM THE BOYS."
Well, I don't know about that mentality.
Certainly not always the case, but you have to ask yourself........is it worth the most likely risk of losing money to finish out a set
in straight grade fashion.
You can shop for nice clean 7's probably at a fraction of the cost, but will that make you happy??
Will you be content with that??
Your balancing act, where you pick up some clean 7's with some 9's makes good sense to me, if the 9's can be had at a decent price, not too much more than some loww pop 8's.
IMHO it is always nice to have a few 9's sprinkled in any high grade set, just because.
I think the whole key is to put the CLEANEST set together for the least amout of JACK, that makes YOU HAPPY!!
That is ...THE CHALLENGE.
Just my .02, I may be completely out in left field on this.

MojoRob

joedel

Steve,

Email me your wantlist. I may have some cards on your list.

I think, in general, that LOW POPS go much higher on EBAY, than they will be at the National, or some other large show. At a dealer's table there is no bidding war for the card. Sometimes you can even negotiate with the dealer for a slightly lower price.

If you can be patient, then prices for those tougher 8's will fall, but there will still be cards like the Lonborg which will always be impossible to find, and you will always have to "pony up" for that card. Maybe you can start another set while waiting out the drop. I agree that picking up some 9's on the cheap (if you can) would be good trade bait.

murcerfan

1. I always think in terms of cost average for those last 8's, usually i do well enough getting to the 80-90% mark that over-paying a bit towards the end can be rationalized.

2. The 1972 and later special may not be much help on those '71's in terms of large quantities sitting at PSA waiting for plastic.

3. Good luck and try being patient (i never was).

bleacherbum

Joedel,
I actually just picked up the Glenn Beckert from you last night on ebay for $102.50. I figured I'd get it for somewhere in the $50 range, but there is always somebody out there willing to go to at least $100 for most of the rest of the cards I need. That's what got me to rethinking my strategy. According to the latest pop reports, there are 15 of these out there so its nowhere near a Lonborg, Regan, etc. but it still cost me $100+. Conversely, I have 18 9's in my set which cost me less than $110 a piece.

I'll definitely shoot over my list to you since I'm still going to shoot for all 8's or above, but I think the better short-term approach is to fill in the gaps with 7's and keep adding 9's when there available.

Thanks for everyone's opinions. As usual, there is no shortage of expertise on this board!

Steve

imafishinnut

Hi Steve,

I too am collecting the 1971 Topps set and currently ranked 10th. After adding a bunch of cards this evening, I will be up to over 80% in the set. Although I am only trying start by completing the set at the PSA 7 level, I feel your pain! Many of the collectors trying to complete the set at the PSA 8 level are now starting to buy up the low pop PSA 7s when they come available in an attempt to complete the set like you are contemplating. As such, you may have more competition than you would think in this strategy. Chris Renaud is one example. He has been buying PSA 7s lately just to reach 100%. The price of low pop PSA 7s have been on the rise lately. Even low pop PSA 7s like Regan and Lonborg are costing 3 to 5 times SMR right now. Since I have a limited budget, it is turning into some what of the a waiting game for me and I am focusing on pickup the high pop cards that I need. Overall, I think your strategy is a good one.

Good luck in completing your set,
Mike

highend

the 71 topps set is my 2nd favorite set from the 70's, to me it is affectionately dubbed "THE S&M SET". i had planned to build the set in 8 or better. i have a ton of raw left to submit but my early results have made me change my mind to do a psa 7 or better set. i feel that the 71 sets notorious reputation for being condition sensitive has caused a bias in the eyes of the graders and the are evaluated with a more critical eye.
my submissions of 71's always take a beating and i continue to come back for more i prefer the 8's but i also love the 7's. a high end 7 can be every bit appealing as an 8 (for 71's). if you're not concerned about re-sale psa 7's are GREAT alternative to high priced low pop 8's.
IMO in other 70's issues a psa 7 is an eyesore, not true with the 71's.
i also think that down the road 1971 psa 7's will appreciate in value the key cards in the set; ryan, rose, jackson, clemente, mays, baylor/baker are already meeting or exceeding SMR book value the same CANNOT be said for other early 70's and late 60's issues.

bleacherbum

Mike,
My thinking with the 7's is that I can submit some of my own to bring my set up to 100%. Highend has described my grading experience with 1971's dead on - lots of 7's that look like alot of the 8's I own. I sold off most of my 7's awhile back, but I've kept 2 that I've been unable to upgrade so far (Carty and Knowles). Also, I've held off in submitting some cards since I was shooting for 8's. If I'm going for 7's, I should be able to garner more than a few more via the submission route.

Steve

imafishinnut

Steve,

That is also part of my strategy. I have a complete 1971 Topps raw set as well with 95% of the cards ranging from the EX-MT to NM-MT range. Most of the card are pretty nice. When I get closer to finishing the PSA set, I will start submitting some of my raw set to try to add some of the cards I need. Once I complete the PSA set, I am planning to sell the raw set with an PSA extras I have left over. I am in hopes that PSA will provide a special sometime this year that includes 1971. If they do, I will probably prepare a large submission then.

Mike

sjeanblanc

Hi BleacherBum,

I think a lot of people have become frustrated lately in their collection endeavors on EBay with having to pay a lot for graded cards. The only solution that I saw, because I am also one of the frustrated, is to improve your eye for raw cards and do your own submissions. Raw card prices + Grading fees = significantly less than Ebay prices (most of the time, at least for anything worth collecting).

Keith,

The $5 grading special did not include the 1971 cards, it was for 1972 and up.


Scott Jeanblanc
jeanblanc@iconnect.net
Ebay UserId : sjeanblanc
--------------------------------------
Collecting Nolan Ryan cards from (68-94)

Fabfrank

BleacherBum- My 71 set is at 90% with mostly 7's. I would say buy the 7 and than upgrade to an 8 when one becomes available at your price. 7's are like money in the bank. They definitely hold their value and you can use that to offset the price of the 8. Buy the 7 and be happy

Fabfrank

Joedel- I got your list last night and will be reponding tonight. Thanks.

bleacherbum

Frank,
I just dropped two 7's into my set yesterday and have another 15 queued up for grading that should at least net a 7. The strategy has been officially revised!

Steve