Check out the graded football cards I flipped recently on eBay & COMC

[y2kcards]

Flipping graded football cards, mainly late 90's Hall of Famers

[SleeperCards]

I watched the video (listened to it would be more accurate) out of morbid curiosity, thought it could be an iHusteHard type production. Interesting to see what the new people are doing, hope it works out for you. Not a huge profit, but better than losing money in your first month! Good luck in the future.

[y2kcards]

Hey, thanks for the kind words! I agree, it went fairly well for the first effort; and like you hinted at, it could have gone much worse.

[Archangel1775]

COMC is tough. I've found most key rookie cards (HOF's, FHOF's) tend to have some type of damage/issue to them. Newer released stuff is the way to go.

[RedMike]

There are so many different ways people can make money in this hobby and I am very happy for anyone who can grind a profit and enjoy the hobby and smile.

Obviously, the community has to police itself because there are so many new people coming in and etiquette is not always clear but ultimately, the more people who have interest in cards (for whatever reason) the better it is for our card value to stand the test of time.

[2010GBPackers]

Originally Posted by Archangel1775

COMC is tough. I've found most key rookie cards (HOF's, FHOF's) tend to have some type of damage/issue to them. Newer released stuff is the way to go.

Once COMC gets their hands on them and runs them through their scanning system, they're all damaged.

[f2tornado]

Originally Posted by 2010GBPackers

Once COMC gets their hands on them and runs them through their scanning system, they're all damaged.

I've had very good luck landing PSA 10 material on COMC. Yes, the cream of the crop rookies are often rejects and even some that are not. But, if you have a discerning eye and a good computer monitor then you can find a lot of nice cards. My most recent shipment of about 660 cards, a mix of stuff from 1990 to present, contained 210 that are legit gem candidates. A lot of the stuff that wasn't gem was courtesy of surface issues that, unfortunately, are difficult to detect on a computer screen. 1:3 is pretty good but it's probably 1:5 to 1:6 once PSA has it's turn... Don't overpay just because it looks nice.

[y2kcards]

Originally Posted by Archangel1775

COMC is tough. I've found most key rookie cards (HOF's, FHOF's) tend to have some type of damage/issue to them. Newer released stuff is the way to go.

I hear you. So far for grading I have only ordered about 7 Iverson rookies and 2 or 3 were gem candidates, so it wasn't horrendous. But as much as I appreciate you're advice, my heart is in the late nineties stuff. Even if the ratios are horrid, I am moving forwards with my mission of grading '98 Topps Chrome and Metal Universe. Those are my favorite sets.

But yeah, I have noticed how surface issues are easily disguised in COMC scans. So I am not getting my hopes up for a huge COMC order that is on the way of mainly the aforementioned sets

Part of the value for me is in creating fun video content.

[y2kcards]

Originally Posted by RedMike

There are so many different ways people can make money in this hobby and I am very happy for anyone who can grind a profit and enjoy the hobby and smile.

Obviously, the community has to police itself because there are so many new people coming in and etiquette is not always clear but ultimately, the more people who have interest in cards (for whatever reason) the better it is for our card value to stand the test of time.

It's true, and as much as I feel I have learned in the way of etiquette over the past four months, I think there isn't really a solution for all the thirteen year olds who will be bidding on stuff then not paying, for example. I was once that kid, though, having bid on a vintage red Schwinn bike when I was 12 without a way to pay for it. Oops

Originally Posted by f2tornado

I've had very good luck landing PSA 10 material on COMC. Yes, the cream of the crop rookies are often rejects and even some that are not. But, if you have a discerning eye and a good computer monitor then you can find a lot of nice cards. My most recent shipment of about 660 cards, a mix of stuff from 1990 to present, contained 210 that are legit gem candidates. A lot of the stuff that wasn't gem was courtesy of surface issues that, unfortunately, are difficult to detect on a computer screen. 1:3 is pretty good but it's probably 1:5 to 1:6 once PSA has it's turn... Don't overpay just because it looks nice.

I am hopeful for a big order I have coming in from COMC of maybe 150 cards, I don't know the exact count. But I agree that there are prospects there, and feel that I do have a discerning eye with my background in photography and video editing.

It sounds like you've got a very realistic take on what to expect with the 1:6 ratio, and I would still play those odds. PSA 8's are not tragic either IMO. At least if you're unloading those, it's a streamlined process.

And yes you're right, as I said in a comment above, I have noticed how scans can disguise surface issues; like with Topps Finest coating. You won't see bubbles underneath in a scan that you would in hand.

[Southpas2013]

That's a great job OP. It is always better to start at the ground level , understand the principles of buying and selling on smaller margin and lower priced stuff and work your way up. You will be much more successful down the road applying what you learn during this process.

I wouldn't worry about buying the "ebay branded tape" or nice envelops, I think you can find clear tape in a little higher volume and much cheaper and the regular bubble mailer (maybe) for less. That will help widen your margins and all though some people will appreciate the nicer packaging, it only lasts a few minutes before we rip them open looking for the card itself.

Cheers and good luck

[Selanne00008]

Solid info and refreshing to hear about the negative along with the positive.

Interesting to see the movement on 1990s HOFs before a 2020 season kicks off.

I agree there’s Probly more profit to be had dealing with 2020 in season players (like Kyler). But there’s risk there as well (like Saquon torn acl right away).


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[Davis]

Fun idea for a video.

Does anyone see videos or articles like this and think 'man, I better make sure my records are accurate and gains are reported because it's only a matter of time until the tax man comes hard at collectibles."?

[Glebe]

Originally Posted by SleeperCards

I watched the video (listened to it would be more accurate) out of morbid curiosity, thought it could be an iHusteHard type production. Interesting to see what the new people are doing, hope it works out for you. Not a huge profit, but better than losing money in your first month! Good luck in the future.

haha iHustleHard was a legend

[y2kcards]

Originally Posted by Southpas2013

That's a great job OP. It is always better to start at the ground level , understand the principles of buying and selling on smaller margin and lower priced stuff and work your way up. You will be much more successful down the road applying what you learn during this process.

I wouldn't worry about buying the "ebay branded tape" or nice envelops, I think you can find clear tape in a little higher volume and much cheaper and the regular bubble mailer (maybe) for less. That will help widen your margins and all though some people will appreciate the nicer packaging, it only lasts a few minutes before we rip them open looking for the card itself.

Cheers and good luck

Thanks so much! I am pleasantly surprised by the encouraging responses here. What a nice surprise

And you're totally right, I'm glad I started relatively small; although knowing what I know now I would have started even smaller. Coincidentally I turned on Moneyball on Netflix in the background when I was filming some stuff and the principle in that movie really applies to what I'm practicing here. So, currently I'm tied up in a few higher value cards of around $1000 that I stand to make an average of maybe $40 each on. But now what I've seen is how I can more efficiently use those few thousands to focus on stuff like $90 cards I can flip for a $15 profit.

And I know you're right about the packing materials, but what I'm doing with those is to basically brand my packages to bring attention to my store and online content. So it's worth it to me. And hey, look at Apple. They could certainly lower margins by creating cheaper packaging; but that is a significant part of the value of their brand. I digress...

Originally Posted by Selanne00008

Solid info and refreshing to hear about the negative along with the positive.

Interesting to see the movement on 1990s HOFs before a 2020 season kicks off.

I agree there’s Probly more profit to be had dealing with 2020 in season players (like Kyler). But there’s risk there as well (like Saquon torn acl right away).


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Thanks, man! And yeah, I wanted to basically invest in the hobby by buying cards with a good floor because I didn't want the purchases to be total gambles. The gamble that I want to make is on the growth of the hobby itself; specifically that a lot of guys in their thirties will be entering the hobby with money to spend and that the big name HOF prices will go up because of it. I did make a small foray into some gambles on active players like Tyreek Hill, Tyler Lockett, and as you said Kyler. So those I pretty much looked at as buying a scratcher lotto ticket with really good odds. That was something new, but in the limited capacity I did that I was OK losing what I spent. And full disclosure, I have since lost on a graded Amari Cooper, so it feels like breaking even on gambles is appropriate. Because I totally agree, it is so risky buying active players in any sport, especially football. Injuries are basically expected.

Originally Posted by Davis

Fun idea for a video.

Does anyone see videos or articles like this and think 'man, I better make sure my records are accurate and gains are reported because it's only a matter of time until the tax man comes hard at collectibles."?

Thank you, I thought so too. I actually read a comment on Blowout a few months ago basically wishing that there was a video like this where someone showed what they paid and what they sold it for. I thought that was a fun idea for a thing to do and a video to make, so I went for it. I'm also working on some videos of grading raw cards. That's pretty fun too and what I like to watch on YouTube.

I second your sentiment. I think the market is about to break the threshold where the government starts being intimately interested. eBay now collects every seller's bank account info, so that seems to me related to a push to do better bookkeeping by the government on collectibles sales. I formed an LLC for all of this, so fortunately the requirement of filing taxes will help me stay on track with records.

Originally Posted by Glebe

haha iHustleHard was a legend

LOL, I thought that was just an archetype for hypebeast resellers that SleeperCards made up. Because I can picture the type by only reading the name.