beware

cohocorp · January 9, 2007 9:42PM

beware of these type items. these were never made by the manufacturer. only 1cent individual, 5 cent individual, and 5cent bricks were made in '52. these are after market repacks, as i am sure is the case with the rest of this guys auctions. i figure that this has been discussed before but i am just noting it for anyone not already aware or anyone new to collecting.

http://cgi.ebay.com/1952-Topps-Christmas-Rack-Pack-Great-Condition_W0QQitemZ150079518588QQihZ005QQcategoryZ44827QQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

edited to add: of course i forgot how to correctly link an auction. help from someone would be nice. thx

pat

jlbsquared · January 9, 2007 10:01PM

link

RipublicaninMass · January 9, 2007 10:34PM

Those x-mas packs are filled with off condition commons. I lost some money on them before I knew about these boards

cohocorp · January 10, 2007 12:31AM

thanks for the link jlbsquared. appreciated.

pat

onlyanumber · January 10, 2007 1:31AM

I don't think that's the regular seller who scams these things on Ebay. These are common to find however on Ebay. Pretty much any year up to '75 has been listed at one point or another and it's all the same as been mentioned--aftermarket repacks of offgrade and common cards. Yeah, sometimes they through a nugget in there, but it's still crap.

grote15 · January 10, 2007 9:03AM

I remember when Mark Murphy first began offering these Christmas racks. Back then, no one knew they were after market packs and they went for huge money. Even now, they sell for more than they should.

cohocorp · January 15, 2007 11:34AM

FINAL PRICE WAS $1025. HOLY MOLY. WHAT A SHAME.

Estil · January 15, 2007 5:19PM

I thought Mark Murphy was one of the most respected dealers in the hobby?

1989FleerBillRipkencollector · January 15, 2007 10:52PM

Thats sad. I asked buyer if he knew.

tkd7 · January 16, 2007 1:47AM

Was the repackaging done around Christmas of the year of the cards by a third party retailer or was it done recently by a guy with a heat sealer, color printer and vintage stapler?

cohocorp · January 16, 2007 2:06AM

these repackages were NOT done in the 1950s.

jlbsquared · January 16, 2007 2:33AM

<< <i>Thats sad. I asked buyer if he knew. >>

Sure he does - look at his feedback - the dude LOVES holiday rack packs..

qmayer · January 16, 2007 4:39AM

This question and answer was posted on Jan 10 (4 days before the close):

Q: am familiar with the basic story behind Christmas rack packs. am very curious as to why some years are rarely offered. never a 1952 rack pack before. know they put wax and cellos, but would like some background beyond what I know
Jan-10-07

A: Hello, What I know about these packs are they were purchased in bulk by a third party packager and they were packaged in these I believe in the 60's. It was all the left over stock topps had. When I was doing my research to see what these were worth, I came across on google a couple of months ago 53,54,55,56,57,58,59,60 &61 topps packs up for past auctions. I have never seen 52 on the web or 62. But I saw recently someone is selling a 62 on ebay though. Where my packs came from: My uncle purchased a whole bunch of these packs at auction in the early to mid 80's in upstate NY. The Boxes had all different years. The only thing I can guess why we have never seen a 52 on ebay is 52 is a very rare year. Any packs that survived were probably opened. Even my uncle only gave me 6 to sell, and he is saving the other 52's to sell in the future. I hope I was able to answer your question. Thanks! elegantantiques2007

The buyer had the information in front of them even if they didn't know.

cohocorp · January 16, 2007 6:47AM

qmayer-- excellent point. i didnt scroll that far down the listing. i guess the seller was upfront especially with posting the Q & A in the listing.

jlbsquared-- you are right. the buyer does love the christmas repacks.

grote15 · January 16, 2007 9:25AM

The misleading aspect about these "holiday" or "Christmas" racks to me is that they will contain cards that are EX-MT or NM at best (most EX-MT) and because they were packaged years after issue by a third party they are not authentic Topps product IMO. Over the years, some sellers have now mentioned the fact that the cards inside these racks are NOT "pack fresh" so it's a little better now than it used to be when they were first being sold years ago for ridiculous prices. I noticed, however, that this seller did not state that the cards are not pack fresh and that is misleading to me, though I suppose he may not have known better. In any case, I hope the buyer knows what he is getting.

Kurtman9 · January 16, 2007 9:41AM

This is a good thread. I learned a lot in reading it. Thanks!

1989FleerBillRipkencollector · January 17, 2007 7:12AM

I emailed winning bidder. Heres his reply....

yeah i know, but it still contains ANY card from any series!!! For I have seen many packs like this one from other years that contain clemente's, spahn's etc. and mantles! so I dont believe the company took out the star cards.

***********Yeah he's seen them on top. I bet a dollar to a doughnut thats their never inside. Dollar to a doughnut ?? Thats about the same eh?

gregm13 · January 17, 2007 7:19AM

I've seen plenty of stars on the holiday racks - it's just the condition is brutal. I bought a 58 christmas rack and the cards were in the vg range...forget about EX-MT.

Greg M.

RipublicaninMass · January 17, 2007 8:17AM

<< <i>I've seen plenty of stars on the holiday racks - it's just the condition is brutal. I bought a 58 christmas rack and the cards were in the vg range...forget about EX-MT.

Greg M. >>

If there were any stars, they were usually plaedon the front to entice buyers. I have never heard of a "nugget" being inside the packs. I have seen a bunch with EX stars ontop thouh

beware

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