What do I do??

nichols78

Hi, I was recently given thousands of baseball cards. They are from the 70's up to the early 90's. The thing is, I have no clue what to do with these. Should I sort out the good ones, then what with the rest? I have looked through and found some good cards. I dont know much about baseball cards and need a place to start. Thanks for any advice!!

Stone193

Hi Nichols78

Welcome!

Sounds like you have a big task ahead.

This is gonna take a bit for you.

It's like asking a guy to perform a root canal and he hasn't been to Dental School yet.

Do you have a scanner - I can help you post some pictures.

You will get plenty of advice here.

So good luck - have patience and don't be a stranger.

And no jackets are required
your friend
mike

ToppsCo1lector

Just for your 411, "Stone 193" is a class act. I've been a long time reader and short time contributor to this forum and my advice is don't be afraid to ask. Go to a card shop or purchase penny sleeves and "card savers" online. They're cheap and they'll protect your cards. Next also purchase a "beckett price guide" to figure out what is what. Also, save a list on your pc of who and what you have. Spreadsheet it and it'll be a breeze and very accessible. Anything else, just ask.

Boopotts

In all honesty I'd forget about grading them. Just put them on Ebay, raw, with a very large scan of the card. When collectors see NM-MT or better raw cards go up on Ebay that are being sold by a 'newbie' (i.e., someone who isn't a serious hobbyist or dealer) they start to smell blood and will frequently pay much more for the card then they would if it were graded. This happens because a PSA 8 (or even a PSA 7) can look like a gem mint card in a scan, and guys are willing to take a chance that the card you're selling will be PSA 10 quality; thus, they'll pay more for the care ungraded then they would if the card was in a PSA 8 holder. Now most guys know that if an established collector or dealer is selling mint looking cards raw there's probably something wrong with the cards. But if a newbie is doing this they'll assume that the guy 'just doesn't know about grading', and will put in some astronomical bids in the hopes that the card looks as sweet in person as it does in the scan.

cravetopps

I had some friends of mine who had a bunch of cards from the same timerframe and they thought they were in great condition. I looked through almost 90% of them and maybe there were 25 cards that were gradeable. Still, if it were me, I would find someone local who could look at your cards who is knowledgeable and trustworthy. I would definitely not rule out grading certain cards. For example, if you had a 1971 Topps Rose, and there are many other examples from the 70s, particularly through 1975, certain HOFers in Mint condition would fetch a nice sum if they were graded and actually graded PSA 8 or 9. Problem is unless you're an expert it is very tough to figure out which cards will meet the criteria. I would take Stone 193 up on his offer, pick up a Beckett Guide and find the cards worth grading and then post a few scans. I think all of us would have fun ofering opinions about what to do next!

nichols78

Thanks everyone,
I do have a scanner so I will put up some of what I have. I need to start going through these. Its just quite a task because ther's so many.

Stone193

Nick

You're on your way...

Great advice.

Let's start with the oldest first - since hopefully you might find a "diamond up a goats ass."

Sort the 1970s, e.g., by number. Any star cards? Woman and children first is what I say.

Do you know anything about grading?

If not - take the ones that LOOK THE BEST and have DECENT CENTERING and scan them.

Let the eagle eyes here be your guide.

That would be a good jumping off position.
What do ya think?
mike

RichG

Good morning:
If you're doing this for fun....great. However, if your sorting, listing, packaging, and mailing these cards to soley make money, you must remember that time is money. If you normally make $50 an hour at your normal job, make sure that the amount of money you will make per hour will reflect this hourly wage. Since I don't consider the work required to sell a card/item to be fun (and I figure that it takes 10 minutes per item to perform all the tasks listed above), I'll never start an auction for less than $15 (I usually add enough cards and make one lot as to get a minimum of $50 per item/lot, buy my bare minimum is $15).
Rich

helionaut

Easiest thing is to find out if there's a card shop near you, and go in and ask for help. DO NOT sell anything until you know what's what. If you go into a shop and the dealer makes you an offer, you can be sure you have something good, so hold out until you know what it is. Buy a Beckett magazine or if you want to splurge get one of the big annual books, like the SCD Standard Catalog, that have pictures from all sets. They don't have to be the most recent, so you can save some money buying an older one from a used bookstore or Amazon or ebay or someplace. Mainly you just want to sort and identify what you have, and then you can worry about values. For your oldest cards, there may be value in cards of players you don't know. What you consider "good cards" might be good, but not the best of the bunch. If you have, say, some 1972 Topps, high number cards of common players could be the best ones compared to 1990s Nolan Ryan cards. Or you might have a rare and desirable error card you wouldn't otherwise identify. Once you know what you have, if you are thinking of selling them, ebay is the best place to find true current values as well as the best place to sell. Keep in mind that condition is critical on older stuff, sometimes more important than the actual player. A perfectly mint 1970s common card is likely worth more than a worn 1970s star card, and a perfectly mint star card is probably worth more still, but not always.

This board is a tremendous resource, so you can always post questions and pictures here and get an answer very quickly.

ralstonpurina

Iv'e had two or three dozen people have me look at card collections found in parents/grandparents/whoever's house over the last 10 years. Only one time was the box of cards ever worth anything, and boy was it (1959 to 1962, almost all NM plus almost enough for sets in all three years). Most of the times if the cards are "worth" anything, they are too beat to waste time on.