Demand for Mantle cards - what years would you choose?

KendallCat

After seeing recent prices on some Mantles in the last few weeks(notably the 1962 for over $6500) as well as high prices on several others was pondering this question.

* Take out his 1952 rookie which is always high in demand and probably the card to have not named Honus, and take out the 1953 Topps as well.

* Also, take out 1968 and 1969 due to the sheer numbers of these cards available in strong grades.

That would leave us with the years 1956 through 1966 to deal with. If you could have any 3 years of Topps Mantles in PSA 8 which ones would you take for long term investment as well as overall eye appeal and collectibility?

PSASAP

1956
1957
1960

Runners up:
1959
1962
1961

thesouthdoesitagain

As a person who had collected these. First, to also remove the 60 post ceral (very nice salmon card) and the Oklahoma Today and some very few may say the plaque/mask which is unique in its own way. Then of course you removed the Bowmans, Dan-Dee, Berk Ross, Stahl-Meyers, and the Brigg-Meat.
Of course the 53 & 56 are next to follow, key cards no doubt. If i took a wild guess. I remove those brown type cards 62 because of chipping edges. I was partial to the green(63) and pink(65) colored ones, but its gotta be the 58 gold colored one. Some may like the 67 head shot.

OAKESY25

56
57
61

perkdog

1956
1957
1961

begsu1013

tough question considering all the variables...

all basic topps mantle cards are great investments, however 50's mantle cards are on pure fire.

not to say 60's cards aren't, they are just a lil more readily available.

depending on the budget...

I would either go w. "the return to topps" 56 that's dead centered or...

a 62 w/ no chipping and no green line on the bottom...

close runner up would be a centered 57 that has that nice green hue coloring and no washout.

best of luck, esp if you go for that 62 w/ those qualities...

let us know what ya go with and when ya score!

vintagefun

56
60
63

ThoseBackPages

56
58 - Centering is REALLY difficult
59 - Centering is REALLY difficult

mattinglymint23

<< <i>1956
1957
1961 >>



+1 sans the Pats avatar

bobsbbcards

<< <i>

<< <i>1956
1957
1961 >>



+1 sans the Pats avatar >>


+1 sans the Pats and Batman avatars.

DM23HOF

For Topps only, post 53, I would go with the lowest grade I could find that made my eyes happy, of these three (none of these are 8s, though I would put them all in a Pepsi Challenge against most 8s, labels covered; in fact with the way prices are going lately, one could possibly get all four of the specimens below for the price of any one of them in 8.). I would DEF take the 51B right after the 52T, the 53B and 52B even before the 53T, and I put the 54B one click under the 56T; that 54B card looks like a propaganda portrait for "The All American Ideal Man," LOL.








Honorable Mention: 1965 Topps, for the nice picture and how brutal it is to find without tilt.

KendallCat

<< <i>1956
1957
1960

Runners up:
1959
1962
1961 >>



Great responses everyone and lots of good suggestions. I would have to say that if I was choosing I would also agree with the above - '56, '57, and '60. I have loaded up on 56's in high grade with multiple examples, and have some nice cards from the 60's. Next on the list is finding a nice '57 that is centered which is tough to find along with a nicely centered 1960. Have owned '58, 53, '66, '68 , and '60 all in PSA 8 or above - still kicking myself for selling the '53 about 15 years ago at the National which is to this day the best 8 I have ever seen. Hopefully I can find a couple of nice ones at the National in a couple of months or sooner if anyone has one for sale

begsu1013

that's the exact combination sample of the 57 i was referring to, matty!

the green hue your example boasts is simply gorgeous.

DM23HOF

Here's a fun hypothetical, related to the topic at hand:

Would each of us rather have the PSA/SGC/BVG 8 of any TWO of our personal top three in response to the question in the first post, or would we rather have a copy of the 51B in whatever grade costs the price of the two PSA 8s? So if we assume just 4k for each 8, for a quick example, that would be about 8K toward the 51B. With low-end 5s of the 51B getting 6k now, that would lead one to assume a "6"ish copy of the 51B. I'd take the 51B in lower grade over the two higher grade later year cards in a heartbeat.

Thanks, B! It concedes some tilt but the print quality really won me over on that example a year or so ago, so I pulled the trigger.

KendallCat

<< <i>Here's a fun hypothetical, related to the topic at hand:

Would each of us rather have the PSA/SGC/BVG 8 of any TWO of our personal top three in response to the question in the first post, or would we rather have a copy of the 51B in whatever grade costs the price of the two PSA 8s? So if we assume just 4k for each 8, for a quick example, that would be about 8K toward the 51B. With low-end 5s of the 51B getting 6k now, that would lead one to assume a "6"ish copy of the 51B. I'd take the 51B in lower grade over the two higher grade later year cards in a heartbeat.

Thanks, B! It concedes some tilt but the print quality really won me over on that example a year or so ago, so I pulled the trigger. >>



Good question. I think a nicely centered 51B Mantle is a beautiful card and one I would add to my collection in a heartbeat. I think where you are going Matt with your question and it is one I think of a lot when acquiring cards. In some cases is it worth an extra $3-5k to get an 8.5 versus an 8 where you can get another say 1963 Mantle in an 8 for the amount of money saved?

At this point I think acquiring the best card you can for the grade and at the best price is the way to go. Value is never a bad way to go, and it allows me to pick up cards I like that I can also use to upgrade to a better grade or a card from a year I want. With the way prices are right now I have a couple of 1956's - Mays and Mantle in 8's that would do very well IMO. The PSA 8 Mays that sold this evening for $1300+ was a nice card, and if that goes for $1300. I am thinking mine might fetch $1500+ If I ever sold it.

DM23HOF

Yeah, my thinking is that any beautiful card will do well in terms of appreciation over the long haul, if God Forbid it ever has to be sold. As a collector, I am almost always buying with the intent being to enjoy looking at the card for my lifetime, use it as a fun tool in discussing the game's history with my kids, and eventually pass down to my kids. Occasionally a new card will surface that does prompt me to sell some cards, and I've found that by having spent the same amount on quality and variety over one card in higher grade, when it does come time to sell, the collection gives me more options, and doesn't feel gutted because I had to part with a piece that has so much into it. Going the value/variety route allows one to hold onto their favorite images if a sell ever needs to happen for whatever reason, and also allows one to target-raise just the needed amount of funds.

That Mays is a prime example; with that GORGEOUS card in hand I could never see upgrading the sticker as opposed to getting another card just like it. What a sharp, clean, perfect looking card. Never even held the 56 Mays. Staring at it just now has put it on my list! Thanks for showing it.

mattinglymint23

<< <i>

<< <i>

<< <i>1956
1957
1961 >>



+1 sans the Pats avatar >>


+1 sans the Pats and Batman avatars. >>



Working on it. Nice cards.

bishop

Is that a bat between his legs....or not

Nathaniel1960

1964 is poised for a run.

olb31

1) 1963
2) 1958
3) 1956
4) 1957

Stingray

<< <i>For Topps only, post 53, I would go with the lowest grade I could find that made my eyes happy, of these three (none of these are 8s, though I would put them all in a Pepsi Challenge against most 8s, labels covered; in fact with the way prices are going lately, one could possibly get all four of the specimens below for the price of any one of them in 8.). I would DEF take the 51B right after the 52T, the 53B and 52B even before the 53T, and I put the 54B one click under the 56T; that 54B card looks like a propaganda portrait for "The All American Ideal Man," LOL.








Honorable Mention: 1965 Topps, for the nice picture and how brutal it is to find without tilt.

>>



Didn't know Mantle had a lazy eye??

jmaciu

I like 1956 and 1960 the most. All of this Mantle talk got me wanting one. I really like the 1966 Topps set, so I came across this one last night that fit my budget:

KendallCat

<< <i>I like 1956 and 1960 the most. All of this Mantle talk got me wanting one. I really like the 1966 Topps set, so I came across this one last night that fit my budget:

>>



The 1966 was the first Mantle I have ever owned back in HS, and I picked up one up about a year or so ago that was pretty decent. Very nice '66 you picked up there.

KendallCat

Was talking at dinner last night about cards with a few buddies and discussing cards to pick up and put back for later. Amazing to think that if Mantle cards never existed would the high end part of the hobby exist. If you look at almost every year he has a card except for the mid to late 60's his cards are the most expensive card in the set every year. Take him out of every set and what do we have left? Aaron and Clemente rookies, Koufax rookie, Ryan and Bench rookies from 1968, Rose rookie card.... Best best is to load up on Mantles when you can find them at a good price along with key HOF rookies.