Baseball Cards

I started collecting in the mid-70s and kept going until I was in high school in the early 80s. The first year I started my dad found an old wooden pepsi bottle case and gave it to me to keep my cards in. 24 slots for 24 teams worked pretty well until the Mariners and Blue Jays came into being.

I never did the "cards in the spokes" thing. The kids my neighborhood were big on getting together and trading cards. It seemed like we'd spend a few hours doing that every day during the summer then go out and play ball in the street until it was time for dinner.

I never bought a full set. I always enjoyed buying the single packs and trying to get a full collection that way. Never succeeded though.

 

I almost forgot to mention my mom bought me a completed set every Christmas ffor nearly 10 years. I always knew it was one a set of cards because it was one of those gifts that is hard to hide (a long thin box), but I never knew which set, which made it fun. After I moved out, I stopped getting them. Every once in a while when the GF goes to the store, she'll suprise me as well, knowing it brings back good memories to open a few packs.

 

For the record, I checked eBay last night to see if I might be able to purchase a complete set of 2007 Topps. I kept seeing sets listed as including the Derek Jeter card. That seemed puzzling. Finally, I saw the card. It's that error card with George Bush and Mickey Mantle in the background. I had seen the card, but I wasn't aware that it was in this set. It turns out that I have one. It's going for about $15, but I'm sure it will drop considerably in time.

 

For those of you who said you've sold your cards for a nice price, I'm looking to do the same. What's the best way to go - sell one by one on eBay? Or try to sell the whole collection to a card shop? Any other options? I obviously want to go the route that will give me the most cash...

 

If you want to maximize your profit, do it on eBay. Just be prepared for tons of time invested in listing, answering annoying questions from bidders and trips to the Post Office.

If you want to try to sell everything in one fell swoop, try to do so to one dealer. The thing you have to keep in mind when trying to do such a deal is go in expecting little, and be prepared to get even less.

Either way, it's not going to be an easy road. But if you have saleable stuff in good condition, you might have some luck.

 

One of my lamest card collection memories is when I got good grades one time like in 4th grade and my dad had said he would buy me a box of cards of my choice. For some reason I felt a little guilty and tried to save him some bucks by getting a cheaper box of Fleer or something. I opened the whole thing and got absolutely nothing, felt terrible, kind of sobbed. He asked what was wrong, I explained and he said he'd buy me another box. This time I got Donruss Diamonds (I think) and ended up getting a Don Mattingly card worth like $40 at the time. Needless to say, I was a crybaby that day, but it all worked out pretty good. I still buy a pack here and there occasionally, and the old collection's still with my parents.

 

I collected in the mid to late 80s and I've got my collection divided between my house and my old room at my mom's house. Probably not worth much.

As others have said, the 94 strike, the subsequent (and befuddling) price increase in packs and the explosion of "premium" sets really diluted baseball card collecting and made it cost-prohibitive for many kids.

I also think eBay has had a negative impact in the investment value of cards. It just seems like there are too many people trying to sell their cards and too few actual buyers.

 

If you don't want to try eBay, or you want to triple your odds, Beckett has a store fuction as does www.naxcom.com

They work the same way as eBay basically.

 

i own more cards from the 1950s and '60s than i do from the '70s and '80s.

i kinda "specialize" in the three new york outfielders, george brett and paul molitor.

two of my favorites are from 1961 ... both topps and fleer.

 

The best way to sell cards is to sell them as singles or as lots on eBay or another auction site. If it's a rookie or an older star card, sell it individually. If you have 200 Cal Ripken cards worth about 50 cents each, sell them as a lot on eBay. Sell each set individually. I don't think there's a good way to sell commons. You might as well give them away to the neighbor kid. At least he'll have a good time sifting through them. But be aware that a lot of what you might wish to sell will go for far less than you expected. For example, I thought the 1988 Fleer set was great. Today, I'll bet you can pick up a complete set on eBay for less than $10.

 

i'd be more than happy to buy any 1971 topps commons from anyone wanting to part with them.

 

ohhh man buck. autographed and all.

clutch, simply clutch.