ADVICE PLEASE: $300 for long term vintage investment

[asujbl]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

to be fair, you only like your modern cards in PSA 10 form

$300 for a Jackie doesnt seem that crazy to me and i think that amount would be a significant amount to many for sure.

Incorrect

I like vintage more than modern (define vintage I suppose) in PSA 10 form… people just stash them and don’t sell them though

Hell my last 2 purchases were Sandberg and Boggs 83 Topps

Is that vintage? Or am I old?

[asujbl]

Let me make this clear… I’ll use a card we all know… I’m making up prices

Beat to hell Jordan Fleer PSA 1 for $300
Beat to almost hell Jordan Fleer PSA 3 for $750

I’d save up for the 3. This seems like a big time purchase for the OP

That’s all

If the OP is all about the best Robinson he can get for $300? That’s awesome

That’s all I’m saying

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by asujbl

Incorrect

I like vintage more than modern (define vintage I suppose) in PSA 10 form… people just stash them and don’t sell them though

Hell my last 2 purchases were Sandberg and Boggs 83 Topps

Is that vintage? Or am I old?

to me Vintage ends in 1980 when the first monopoly was ended

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by asujbl

Let me make this clear… I’ll use a card we all know… I’m making up prices

Beat to hell Jordan Fleer PSA 1 for $300
Beat to almost hell Jordan Fleer PSA 3 for $750

I’d save up for the 3. This seems like a big time purchase for the OP

That’s all

If the OP is all about the best Robinson he can get for $300? That’s awesome

That’s all I’m saying

that's fair

[asujbl]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

to me Vintage ends in 1980 when the first monopoly was ended

Hmm…

I have more vintage Football then. Just bought a 75 John Hicks for the Registry

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by asujbl

Hmm…

I have more vintage Football then. Just bought a 75 John Hicks for the Registry

in a 10 right?

[asujbl]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

in a 10 right?

Of course

[ThoseBackPages]

i am a big fan of centering. collecting low graded vintage is great, as there are plenty of examples to choose from.

i picked this up last year not just because of the centering, but because of the writing on it. it makes it extra special to me.

[towerymt]

Go low.

[vintg]

Originally Posted by towerymt

Go low.

great card !!!

this is EXACTLY what makes vintage great to me, a card you can REALLY ENJOY

and, when you go to eventually sell, you will make some money off of it.

people will pay a 3 or maybe even a 4 price for that particular card.

i think that card "best answers" the original op's question.

'56 robinson all day over a '73 clemente, even a higher grade one.

[Qubits]

Originally Posted by towerymt

Go low.

That is a SPECTACULAR PSA 2! Great card.

[Sluggerrr]

Hard to wait for a card like that when you have $300 burning a hole in your pocket!

[Toddball]

Originally Posted by asujbl

Let me make this clear… I’ll use a card we all know… I’m making up prices

Beat to hell Jordan Fleer PSA 1 for $300
Beat to almost hell Jordan Fleer PSA 3 for $750

I’d save up for the 3. This seems like a big time purchase for the OP

That’s all

If the OP is all about the best Robinson he can get for $300? That’s awesome

That’s all I’m saying

PSA 1 1956 Jackie Robinson Pop 142; 2484 higher.
PSA 1 1986 Fleer Jordan Pop 288; 25,580 higher.

True vintage like the 56 Robinson is a completely different market and completely different animal.
Absolutely go for it if you can afford it.

[Archangel1775]

Originally Posted by FreddyPancakes

Buy graded, or raw and get it graded/authenticated with a grading service (my understanding is that I can return it if I buy through eBay and it's a fake card)?
!

Even though some sellers have 30-day return policies, getting a single card graded can cost $50 itself and that's a rather tight window to receive it, send it to get graded and receive it back in time.

What I believe you are talking about is eBay's Authenticity Guarantee. The current threshold is any raw or graded card listed as a Buy it Now or auctioned off at $250 or more.

https://www.ebay.com/authenticity-gu...e/tradingcards

Personally, I'd look locally and try and strike a deal with a collector on-line or a show for a nice raw card.

[asujbl]

Originally Posted by Toddball

PSA 1 1956 Jackie Robinson Pop 142; 2484 higher.
PSA 1 1986 Fleer Jordan Pop 288; 25,580 higher.

True vintage like the 56 Robinson is a completely different market and completely different animal.
Absolutely go for it if you can afford it.

That wasn’t the point

[Bambino22]

Im going to consult towerymt before all my card purchases in the future. Nice post even not on same player but giving great information!

OP, hope you post the card after you buy.

[towerymt]

Originally Posted by asujbl

That wasn’t the point

The point wasn't clear.

[FreddyPancakes]

I don't know where to start. Man, I really appreciate all the insight, everyone sharing their experiences and lessons learned along the way, especially the thorough and detailed replies from towerymt, theshowandme, StateEx, and more. And appreciate the congrats on the bonus Lots of notes to filter through but all good stuff. A few takeaways/responses:

1. Buying raw - I'll consider it, but if I go raw, I'll probably opt for shopping on eBay (yes I love me some saved search alerts ). I forgot all about the authenticity guarantee but it'll be good to have that in my pocket. I definitely didn't think about the inability to return a fake card if it takes too long to find out from the grading company that it's not authentic. I thought there was some extra buyer protection outside of just the standard return period, but I'd rather play it safe, as, yes, $300 for a card is gonna be a lot for me.
2. If I go graded, I'll put more of an emphasis on the eye appeal, rather than blindly go with the grade. And I'm thinking, if I get more money as time goes on and want to upgrade, I'll be able to trade up with the card and some cash. I think what I'd prioritize would be centering and color. I'd be okay with less-than-stellar corners.
3. I'll absolutely post the card I get, but after all the advice to take my time and wait for "the one" it may be a few weeks, or even months, so I'll post and see who's paying attention, lol. Might even be longer if I stake some advice and put together a bit more money before pulling the trigger. I think it's really cool to see people be interested in the collections of others. When people buy cards from me on eBay, I ask about their cards and collecting styles, but I wonder how many of them think I'm just trying to sell them more, rather than know I'm genuinely interested. I don't really have any friends that are into the hobby like I am, and without social media I can't really network like that, so the response I got here was really, really cool.
4. Regarding collection vs. investment, I used to consider $100 sneakers in HS an investment. At the end of the day, it's how I spend the money and what I get out of that money spent. I could be putting elsewhere and want to make sure I'm happy with the way I spend it. I could buy stocks, or I could buy something I enjoy that'll hold value because of a player's legacy. Or I could diversify since I already have stocks (BORING :P lol jk but kinda not)

I'm leaning towards a 1956 Topps Jackie. I really like that set, showing the portrait and an action shot, and would love to collect a bunch of the old NY teams eventually (Giants, Dodgers, Yankees). I've also gotten advice that Mantle is the safest investment in the hobby, or to get a Mays as his value will go up once he passes (kinda would feel bad if this is my investment strategy but I get it, and I don't know if it'd just result in a temporary spike or it'd be a long-term increase in value), but man I just love Jackie.

Any advice on how to find the card? I see card ladder has handy links to really fine tune the eBay search (they weed out reprints and whatnot), and know 130point.com searches cards for sale across multiple sites, but still think I'm gonna have to roll up my sleeves and put in some old-fashioned hard work sitting in front of a computer screen

Again, I appreciate all the advice I've already gotten and, of course, would welcome any followups.

[FreddyPancakes]

Originally Posted by theshowandme

Your hobby dollars can be spread around much easier if you buy lower grade cards with nice eye appeal (centering, registration, etc.).

Hey thanks again for the thoughtful post, but what's registration?

Originally Posted by boxbuster7

for $300 stick to modern

What/who would you buy for $300? Ohtani? Judge? J-Rod? 300 Wander PSA 10s? Or are those all ultra modern guys, and you're saying to buy a retired player?

Originally Posted by babybull

Koufax

Funny you mention him (aside from him being one of the greatest LHPs of all time). He's def towards the top of my list, since I sold an iPhone case to him a few years ago at an Apple Store. Cool/embarrassing story goes along with that...

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

What does that say? I see Stamford CT Tues 10 24 72, but what's at the top? Bird of heart anala??

[ThoseBackPages]

Originally Posted by FreddyPancakes

What does that say? I see Stamford CT Tues 10 24 72, but what's at the top? Bird of heart anala??

died of heart attack

owner also wrote it again on the back of the card

[FreddyPancakes]

Originally Posted by ThoseBackPages

died of heart attack

owner also wrote it again on the back of the card

Oh, whoa, I didn’t realize that was the date and way Jackie went out. Man, what a find!

[FreddyPancakes]

Finally getting around to posting what I got. I think I bought this back in March or April. I didn't care too much about grade (as you can tell, it's a 1), but I loved a few things about this card:
1. the color looks great, vivid, bright, no fading.
2. to my eye, the card looks perfectly centered. in 1956, pack fresh, this could've been a 10!
3. while there's wear on all four corners (anyone remember the "just round the corner" furniture commercials from the 80s/90s?), and blemishes on the surface, nothing really sticks out as a glaring flaw that really takes away from the card
4. the background picture of Jackie stealing home. It's the most exciting play in baseball and, while the card shows him stealing home against the Cardinals with Johnny Podres at bat, something Jackie famously did against the Yankees in the '55 World Series, despite Yogi's protests.


I thought about the '54 and '55 Topps cards, too. The yellow background has grown on me, and some of the old school logos (like the Red Sox logo, a smiling sock swinging a bat) are just so dope, so special.

Ultimately, I put in a bid on this card on eBay, won it for around $270, and ended up having a great conversation with the seller. He's a Dodgers fan, from New York but living in California, who was grading and selling a number of cards his longtime friend had stashed for over 50 years. He had stories about growing up in New York City in the mid-20th century and vividly remembers seeing Jackie at Ebbets Field. I told him how the first place (time?) I'd travel to if I had a time machine would be 1950s NYC to visit those parks and see those three great teams play. He was able to tell me VIVID short stories about all three parks which really blew me away. The card would've been cool on its own, but getting to hear a first-hand account of what it was like growing up in the fifties in NYC, watching some of the best to ever do it, in some of the most historic ballparks ever, was incredible. And they way he told stories was like they took place yesterday, not 60 years ago. It was icing on the cake, for sure. More than a card, it was an experience. Super cool that I bought a Jackie card from someone that was lucky enough to see him play. Super cool to make connections and share stories, man. I'm gonna have to reach out to him again to thank him. I was worried I was pestering him with my questions but his lengthy recounts of his childhood at the old ballparks told me he didn't mind at all

Anyways, I know it's been a minute since I last posted, and a few people asked me to post my pickup, but I hope those that were interested do somehow get notified and get to see the card I picked up, and maybe even enjoy the story about my buying experience. Thanks again for all the help you guys provided!

[hxcmilkshake]

Nice card. Can't go wrong at that price.

Sent from my SM-S928U using Tapatalk

[Skipscards]

Thanks for sharing. Great card and great story! Congrats!

[mmier118]

Just read through this and wasn’t expecting much, when I saw the card you purchased it gave me a big smile. For your budget and all the different advice you got I think you did great. That is an amazing card and a great story to go with it.

I have no idea how the investment part will go but I would imagine you’ll get $300 of enjoyment out of that card so no matter what you’ll end up ahead.