75 Topps Mini "investment"
cravetopps
Posts: 1,134
I'm thinking about starting this set but have not watched it at all and have no idea what the discount or premium is to published SMR. With the exception of the '71 Topps set, most, if not all of the 70s sets seem to be selling at steep discounts to SMR with a few notable exceptions. I love the look of the set (and maybe that's enough) but I still would like some opinions as to the potential. I would shoot for PSA 9 or higher. Thanks.
Mark B.
Seeking primarily PSA graded pre-war "type" cards
My PSA Registry Sets
34 Goudey, 75 Topps Mini, Hall of Fame Complete Set, 1985 Topps Tiffany, Hall of Fame Players Complete Set
Seeking primarily PSA graded pre-war "type" cards
My PSA Registry Sets
34 Goudey, 75 Topps Mini, Hall of Fame Complete Set, 1985 Topps Tiffany, Hall of Fame Players Complete Set
0
Comments
-Scott
1977 Topps Star Wars - "Space Swashbucklers"
<< <i>I wouldn't even take into accout SMR. At its best, It is a very far derivative of the real world. Your best bet is ebay completed listings. The best is probably buying a monthly subscription to their Marketplace Research which allows you to search back 2 months. "Book" values have little if any relavence in today's marketplace.
-Scott >>
I would like to add that some of the unopened wax comes with off-centered cards and print marks and in my experience wasn't a good investment, so unless you're a gambler that might not be the way to work on the set.
Seeking primarily PSA graded pre-war "type" cards
My PSA Registry Sets
34 Goudey, 75 Topps Mini, Hall of Fame Complete Set, 1985 Topps Tiffany, Hall of Fame Players Complete Set
-Scott
1977 Topps Star Wars - "Space Swashbucklers"
Bosox1976
Lee
<< <i>someone (Keith Abrams) pointed this out to me that on a per card basis, there are fewer PSA 9s in the Mini set than there are 8s in the 33 and 34 Goudey (avg. per card). Interesting. Thanks for the feedback. >>
1933 and 1934 Goudeys are not rare in PSA 8. It is not the limited supply that makes the prices so high. It is the huge demand for these cards that drives the price up. Just look at the PSA Registry, and you can clearly see 7 collectors who are collecting PSA 8 or higher cards only. That means if there is a pop of 8 in a 1933 Goudey, it is very likely each of those top 7 guys have one...and there is only 1 left for the rest of us.
<< <i>75 Mini wax is the cheapest it will ever be right now. That's your best bet I think. A lot of it has been dumped on the market over the past 5 years by somebody that invested in hundreds of cases back in the late 70s. You can get a fresh wax box from Steve Hart at BBCExchange for $1450 and grade everything that has a chance at 9 or better. Sell off the 10s and 8s and buy what you need. You can actually turn a profit if you pull a 10 of a star or a few low pops. I don't believe racks were ever made of the minis.
Lee >>
That sounds easier than I think it really is. PSA 9's from the 1975 set are dirt cheap right now compared to opening packs. I've had 9's that I've had to dump for like $7. Considering how hard 9's are to get, I would suspect that opening and grading 75's would be a big money losing proposition. After buying that box and grading the best stuff, you'd be in it for about $2000. In all honesty, you're almost guaranteed not to get a Brett or Yount 9 in the box, or probably any other major card in a 9, they are just too hard. I would guess you might get 20 or 30 common PSA 9's, a stack of common PSA 8's, maybe a couple big cards in 8, and some off center stars for your $2000. PSA 10's? Forget about it. The POTENTIAL for big cards in big grades is factored into the box price. If cracking them would be worth doing, Steve Hart would have already done it.
Seeking primarily PSA graded pre-war "type" cards
My PSA Registry Sets
34 Goudey, 75 Topps Mini, Hall of Fame Complete Set, 1985 Topps Tiffany, Hall of Fame Players Complete Set
I wouldn't say wax is as bad an option as some have made it to be. At the same time I don't challenge the fact that it would be a risk to crack wax in order recover your investment.
The important thing to remember when buying wax is to seek a dealer with a great reputation for their unopened material. Avoid the great deals offered by unknowns selling unopened material as the deals you may find are to good to be true. Many of these great deals yield re-sealed packs of cards you will not be happy with. I fell for the to good to be true deal once and was lucky enough to recover my money back on that deal gone bad. Other collectors I've dealt with have had similar experiences. But, if you abide by the simple rule of buying from a dealer with a great reputation you will have a fighting chance of getting a wax box of 75 Topps Mini's that will yield quality material. Yes, most of any legit wax box you purchace will be PSA 8 in quality. A good box will yield anywhere from 30-50 PSA 9's and a couple of 10's. A great box will yield 50-70 PSA 9's and as many as 5 PSA 10's. Don't count on finding many great boxes.
Steve Hart (bbcardexchange) would be a great source if your looking to purchase unopened 75 Topps Mini Wax. Any new set builder should purchase at least 1 or 2 unopened wax boxes if their buget allows. It was a lot of fun for me opening wax packs that were 30+ years old. It's not just about recovering your money. It's also about the thrill of actually cracking your own wax box. It's very much like opening them when you were a kid only even better because now there maybe a Gem worth thousands of dollars in one of them? Be happy with one that is worth hundreds....lol. Out of 4 unopened boxes I purchased I found a Brett and/or Yount in everyone....so those that say you probably won't find a single one perhaps were not so lucky. I didn't find a PSA 9 (nq) of either player but I did catch a couple of 10's in most of the boxes I opened.
I agree that a majority of the set would best be put together purchasing pre-graded cards. But don't loose sight of the fun in dabbling with the unopened material.
If your interested I still have a large number of graded 75 Topps Mini's for sale at reasonable prices. Just contact me at my e-mail address listed in the 75 Topps Mini Set Registry under the #1 Set.
Good Luck and have fun putting together a graded set of the best looking cards of 70's
Ron and I have opened 5 boxes in the last several months and have only gotten 1 Yount (wax stained on front, cleaned, and now in PSA 8 holder) out of 180 packs. We did score well with several stars in Mint 9 and an average of 3 PSA 10 commons a box that you traded for.
Having done this, saying that these cards are TOUGH to get in high grade (9-10) is a huge understatement. Most of the submitted cards we received came out of 2 boxes while the other 3 yielded almost nothing but OC pieces.
Yes, I would agree that with the 75 Topps Mini Wax Boxes it is feast or famine when it comes to centering. You'll pretty much know after opening the top row of cards if you have a majority well centered box or a majority off center box. That's one of the reasons buying individual unopened packs can be a far greater risk than an entire box. It's likely that the knowledgable owner of a 75 Topps Mini Wax box will cut their losses once they notice the box is littered with off center cards in the first several packs opened. They will then sell off the individual packs to unsuspecting buyers? This is purely speculation, but from my experience and those of many others I've talked to, it seems to be a common theme.
Ron definately was fortunate to find 2 outstanding unopened Mini Wax boxes. Those are the boxes that all collectors hope they find
Yes Len, you confirm the truth about getting these 75 Topps Mini's in PSA 9 or better......TOUGH!......VERY TOUGH! Collectors need only look at the population report and realize that Mini's in 9 and/or 10 are extremely rare in comparison to many other popular topps sets!
I'm sad to add that Ron informed me that he fell victim to some re-sealed packs/boxes. The fact that 2 boxes of re-sealed packs had been graded authentic by a popular grading company I'll not mention should also be cause of concern to potential buyers! It is totally unacceptable for a grading company to miss re-seals when authenticating unopened material. What good are they to collectors if they can't recognize re-sealed packs? 1975 Topps Mini Wax Boxes were not factory sealed and therefore a grading company would have access to the packs and should without fail be able to confirm or deny re-sealed packs within the boxes! If they can't provide this guarantee then I guess I as a collector would have to say I can't buy product authenticated by this grading company!
Seeking primarily PSA graded pre-war "type" cards
My PSA Registry Sets
34 Goudey, 75 Topps Mini, Hall of Fame Complete Set, 1985 Topps Tiffany, Hall of Fame Players Complete Set
Bosox1976
Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
1977 Topps Star Wars - "Space Swashbucklers"