1976 Topps George Brett PSA 9 Pop 10 with no PSA 10's...
Dpeck100
Posts: 10,912 ✭✭✭✭✭
This card seems to me to be an excellent investment card to me and a true rarity in high grade.
There were two that sold in the past few days on EBAY with one ending in auction for $3,199.89 and the other selling for $3,000 even in a Buy It Now.
Time to update the SMR with the price listed at $1,000.
There have been a number of threads asking about cards to invest in and this is one I would if I were a baseball card collector.
A very cool card!!
There were two that sold in the past few days on EBAY with one ending in auction for $3,199.89 and the other selling for $3,000 even in a Buy It Now.
Time to update the SMR with the price listed at $1,000.
There have been a number of threads asking about cards to invest in and this is one I would if I were a baseball card collector.
A very cool card!!
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Comments
I agree that it is a great card!
Robert
There are experts on the board that could tell you more about the issues this card generally faces but one thing I can tell you is that a card of a player this popular that is this hard to find in high grade and is so close to their rookie card can make for an explosive trading card.
George Brett was a tremendous baseball player and played with passion and enthusiasm like very few.
I think because his rookie card was in the amazing 1975 Topps set that he is more on collectors radar and that adds to the momentum that a card like this can get.
I really like this one!
It's a tough card. I just think there are too many ungraded examples out there to really get an accurate picture of it's rarity.
Jason
"Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don't matter and those who matter don't mind." Dr. Seuss
<< <i>There is still a ton of unopened material from this set and it only takes a couple 9's or one 10 to diminish the value of the card.
It's a tough card. I just think there are too many ungraded examples out there to really get an accurate picture of it's rarity. >>
When you have nearly 1200 of the best known examples submitted over a period of 20 years, and there are only 10 PSA 9's and zero PSA 10's, I think a pretty accurate picture has been drawn.
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<< <i>There is still a ton of unopened material from this set and it only takes a couple 9's or one 10 to diminish the value of the card.
It's a tough card. I just think there are too many ungraded examples out there to really get an accurate picture of it's rarity. >>
When you have nearly 1200 of the best known examples submitted over a period of 20 years, and there are only 10 PSA 9's and zero PSA 10's, I think a pretty accurate picture has been drawn. >>
It's like everybody that argued against Nate Silver in the past few months.
<< <i>I would disagree with the statement that there is a ton of 1976 Topps baseball that is unopened out there. Some years are easier to find unopened material but 1976 is not one of them. 1191 graded and only 9 PSA 9's with no tens- this proves this is a very hard card to find in really high grade. If you were to add 10 more PSA 9's to the POP, I would doubt the value would drop that much. There are many collectors of Brett and set registry guys. >>
I think there's still a lot of '76 material out there. I picked up a few thousand pack fresh cards a few months back. Gaspipe was breaking a cut card case on here last month. I think he has dozens of Aarons that are unmolested. I'm sure Fritsch still has a hoard in his warehouse. However, I'll reiterate that I don't think it's likely that a bunch of pristine, well centered Bretts will surface. I just think that it's possible. Moreso than, say, a bunch of mint 1969 Lou Brocks appearing out of nowhere.
Current obsession, all things Topps 1969 - 1972
The 1978 Topps Brett is another card almost always found with print flaws, namely black spotting around his face and a broken yellow border. I've never seen a PSA 10 of that one that looked truly perfect, though it may be out there, somewhere. Funny how Brett has two notoriously tough early issues.
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.
And every 9 I've seen was borderline, could just as easily have been an 8 on a different day.
The amount of unopened out there has no relevance here.
I think the best shot at a 9 is to find a centered 8 with limited print marks and try several
times for a bump
<< <i>Impossible card. Smothered in print defects and always O/C.
And every 9 I've seen was borderline, could just as easily have been an 8 on a different day.
The amount of unopened out there has no relevance here.
I think the best shot at a 9 is to find a centered 8 with limited print marks and try several
times for a bump >>
Exactly. Dead on.
You can rip 76 packs all day. Kind of like 75 Minis. Finding this card in 9 condition is lotto luck.
Any chance for these to get a 10?
<< <i>Just decided to rip my 76 rack and man o man centering is brutal. Got a Fisk and Carlton but not one centered card.
76s are undervalued as a set imo as the vast majority of cards are quite inexpensive in 9 or even 10 grade with some notable exceptions. Frankly, you get better
bang for your buck ripping 75 unopened as opposed to 76.
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.
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<< <i>Just decided to rip my 76 rack and man o man centering is brutal. Got a Fisk and Carlton but not one centered card.
76s are undervalued as a set imo as the vast majority of cards are quite inexpensive in 9 or even 10 grade with some notable exceptions. Frankly, you get better
bang for your buck ripping 75 unopened as opposed to 76. >>
I do have a 75 but I do not want to rip that one:
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<< <i>
<< <i>Just decided to rip my 76 rack and man o man centering is brutal. Got a Fisk and Carlton but not one centered card.
76s are undervalued as a set imo as the vast majority of cards are quite inexpensive in 9 or even 10 grade with some notable exceptions. Frankly, you get better
bang for your buck ripping 75 unopened as opposed to 76. >>
I do have a 75 but I do not want to rip that one:
Very nice! PM me if you ever want to sell it!
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.
Even when you open the material, it is very hard to make a pull in 9 or 10 condition due to the technology they used -- off-center, registry issues, print marks, etc...
I think Brett's 1976 card should be worth more than his rookie card due to scarcity & condition.
By and large you can find a lot of great deals of 70s cards in 9 or 10 condition and I believe they will go up. I picked up a 1979 Topps football card in PSA 9 after 7+ years of tracking one just to come up. When it did, I hit BIN for under $10 shipped and thought I made a out like a bandit. I bet you could open 5 cases of this product & not get another one.
Erik
Wallst32 it is impossible to know the depth of buyers for a card like this. I have read many posts in the several years that I have been on this board about collectors who have reentered the hobby.
Many have similar interests but not all and you can never discount the fact that someone may come to the table who has a great deal of interest in either 1976 Topps, George Brett cards in general, or just rare high grade cards and has a lot of money.
it will likely never happen as so many different flaws complicate it, cut, centering, bleed & especially the registration and focus on the image of Brett, it just never looks sharp.
he might as well be Johnny Briggs.
Current obsession, all things Topps 1969 - 1972
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.
<< <i>Many have similar interests but not all and you can never discount the fact that someone may come to the table who has a great deal of interest in either 1976 Topps, George Brett cards in general, or just rare high grade cards and has a lot of money. >>
Yes, but you can never bank on it, either. Is the theoretically possible TRUE PSA 9 1976 Brett an awesome card? Hells yes-- but it is not a well-known card in the popularity-league of other, more obvious "investment" cards. I'd say it's for the advanced/serious collector. Granted, many of these have serious bank as well, but not all are into 1976 Bretts. Personally, I've been a huge fan of this card since I was a young boy and always was impressed with how routinely unappealing every example was. It's one of the most slept-on toughies in the hobby, in my opinion.
I think the word "investment," once it enters any card-related discussion, lends itself to lots of debate. The word inherently implies speculation. What we can say for sure is that (A) it is a beast of a card to find in true 9-grade or even appealing 8, (B) that many of the existing 9s are sliders at best, (C) that it is the 2nd-year card of an elite and well-collected player, and (D) it sells today for around 3K.
Those facts said, there are good arguments on both sides as to whether in five or ten years one of the current PSA 9s will sell for more or less than $3000, and whether another card acquired today for the same $3000 will sell at that same future date for more. Making that investment decision will all depend on personal bets: Does one think Brett will be as widely collected then as he is now? Does one think the pop will stay in pace or below the pace of demand for the card over time?
My two cents: the pop/supply is not exploding on this one. But neither is the collecting base/demand. I'd bet it therefore holds its value in ten years, because there are enough interested collectors who don't have one (like me) or who already do but would be happy to own another (especially if it's a real solid 9) who will gobble up another two or three PSA 9s at the current price point. I don't see collectors in the future bidding one of these PSA 9s to levels that would make it a fantastic investment today (say double or more the current price).
Rarely I think is pure investment potential the sole determinant of a card purchase-- for a collector. There is so much personal taste and nostalgia at play in all our choices. I personally buy what I love and can afford (though sometimes I can't afford it but buy it anyway). I want to enjoy cards, and just be able to break even if I ever have to part ways with them down the line.
If you are a huge fan of the 1976 Brett and find a nice PSA 9 and can afford it, I don't think you'll lose a bundle on it should you ever have to part with it. But really-- if you are bidding on a 1976 Brett PSA 9 the safest bet is that you know what it is and you want it badly, and are not very likely to ever sell it once it's in your wall display. So investment talk may very well be moot, lol
Out of the top 11 collectors for the George Brett player registry only one has a PSA 9 uploaded into their sets.
I personally just do not think you can know for certain who is in the market for cards.
Less then a year ago I was winning cards from the sets I collect fairly easily and out of the clear blue a collector came along and raised the stakes dramatically. I was winning no name PSA 10 Pop 1 cards for in many cases less then $50 and no more then $150. Today these are going for $1,000 to $1,500 off EBAY and it is not me buying them. Never in my wildest dreams would I have thought that would occur.
The baseball card market is by far the most heavily collected and when there are thousands of collectors and only 10 to go around the price will remain high. I am not suggesting this card will be a $100,000 card but if in the next 10 years it went from $3,000 to $5,000 that is a 66.67% return which would be fantastic.
It would seem clear that the easy money has been made here but certain cards gain a reputation in the hobby for being a very hard card to find in high grade and I believe this card has that mystic.
Time will tell but my guess is this is going higher over time.
WTB: PSA 1 - PSA 3 Centered, High Eye Appeal 1950's Mantle
All it takes is two collectors with a lot of money and the sky is the limit. That is what makes rare collectibles so intriguing.
i believe the inference is that while it is HIGHLY UNLIKELY that we'd ever see the Brett card in a 10 holder, based on what we already know about the 9's in existance, were it to actually happen, it would once again become the topic of contentious debate, particularly here, and advanced collectors may not be fooled by the label if they actually look at the card.
might drag the hammer price down on a 1 of 1.
then again, give a dog a bone and he'll bury it, but throw it between 2 and watch the fun begin.
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<< <i>
<< <i>Just decided to rip my 76 rack and man o man centering is brutal. Got a Fisk and Carlton but not one centered card.
76s are undervalued as a set imo as the vast majority of cards are quite inexpensive in 9 or even 10 grade with some notable exceptions. Frankly, you get better
bang for your buck ripping 75 unopened as opposed to 76. >>
I do have a 75 but I do not want to rip that one:
GAI graded packaging sucks. How dare they place a rack pack like that in such a hideous encasement. The presentation of anything is very important. I'd want a rack pack encased to its' size verse some freakazotic cheesy holder that rack is in. Most excellent pack though, too bad GAi puts it in frisbee tempting holder.
I think they bid it higher.
All of this is hypothetical until one hits if it ever does.
The 1990 NNOF Frank Thomas PSA 10 sold for $27,500 and was certainly not what most would say is deserving of a PSA 10 but that did not stop buyers from bidding it up from the prior sale of $7,500 to $27,500.
<< <i>I am not certain what I missed. He said a card ends up in a 10 holder and they bid it to 10k. >>
predicated by the theory that a grader f'd up.
which to me seems about the only way it'll ever happen.
Many thought the Thomas was a PSA 8.
My focus in that post was on the likelihood of the eventual 10 being less than a true PSA 10. Mickey kind of put it perfectly
I have seen a good many of that card and always get excited when I get the alert email that a PSA 9 is up for auction-- I always hope that this will be the high-end, tiltless 9 that I'll bid aggressively on. It's always a very nice, but IMO still generously graded card that is not worth the huge difference in price over the best PSA 8s. A real solid 10 with no flaws, that card would get the maximum number of collectors bidding and as Dpeck said who knows where it ends up. What we can say is that though there are likely many guys out there who get blinded by the flip and pay 10-money for a generously graded 9-card, a real, "true" 10 will bring out even more bidders and sell for even higher. This poor card is so often messed up with ink bleed or centering or tilt or all three I think it's one of the safest bets in the hobby to say we'll never see a true 10 of it. Same goes some other of my favorite cards, the Star Jordan 1984 RC, #288, and #195.
It does kind of suck when you have some favorite card or cards and because of print issues it's impossible to find an unflawed example! Would be nice to have a list of these on another thread.
Then again, it's probably best some of those never exist in a true GEM MT state because I'd go literally broke buying them, or be salty as hell after losing them in auction, lol.
What's funny is that, as a Brett fan, I always dreamed of having his 75 (mini, for me the favorite),76,77,78 in GEM MT...and his 78 is another absolute beast to find in a perfect state. The 10s of that 1978 card are like the 9s of the 1976 Brett-- always very, very nice, but they don't strike my eye as so strong or elite for the grade that I feel good with dropping the big loot. I know I'd have the flip I want but not the card.
of course, were one to actually surface, we'd all need to agree that it's really a 10.
then, it might be worth more than the Royals.
you see the #2 guy on the registry? he's #2 because that's his primary set (his "secondary" set is #4 on the list) which he is only adding PSA 10s too. Nothing lower, ever.
if he wanted to simply be "#1" on the list, he would combine both of his sets and be #1, no problem. Not to mention the tons of other Bretts he has. ive not talked with him in some time, but i wouldnt be shocked if he had 4 or 5 sets going at once
WTB: PSA 1 - PSA 3 Centered, High Eye Appeal 1950's Mantle
Did not know that about the 79, thx. Is it the usual centering issues or does that one have its own unique problem like the ink bleed on the 76 and the black spots and broken border of the 78?
and...
and...
Erik
<< <i>Those look like they could slide into 10-holders on a good day! Very clean image on that 78. >>
If they could, they would have already
Would be interesting to see if they could, as by scan alone they look very strong for the grade at the very least. I believe
estang simply favors SGC for his PC (I may be wrong about that but that is my impression) and has not submitted them
to PSA.
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.
borders. If the corners were sharp and there was no chipping it would have graded a 9 but it ended
up in a 7 holder. I have never seen a 9 on this card I liked but like everybody else says its an absolute
bear. I love this 76 OPC and if I had the money I would buy this because it most certainly a lot rarer then the 76 Topps counterpart.
The whole top row of that sheet that was posted are tough in a solid PSA 9..
ON ITS WAY TO NEWPORT BEACH, CA 92658
WOW this is a very strong example.