Curious observation- cards that stick
 

As I am perusing the many different auctions this morning it sort of dawned on me (for the thousandth time) that there are a lot of cards that just don't stick in collections. They seem to bounce around quite a bit going from one sales venue to another. It seems the more interesting and collectible ones are the ones that "stick" in collections. (Yes, I know, Mr.Obvious here) There seems to be a supply, almost a sub-culture, of quite a few pre-war cards that have the characteristics of a hot potato. Ramblings on a Wednesday morning. If you care to comment or elaborate I would love to hear it. Or if you care to have your own rambling concerning this sort of topic please do so.

I have often thought it would be cool if you could "LoJack" a card to see just where it goes over time. Maybe some 3rd party grader could come up with this technology. :D

Hot potato...
 

How many times has that E107 Plank sold in the last few years?

card
 

I have a card that I believe is about to be transfered for the 4th time in 2 years. True to my nature, no monitary gain on my part. Some cards are like the hot girl in town, really, really want them, then find out they get stale.

Rawn

Perhaps it isn't the cards' fault. Maybe it is a symptom of the collective collector psychosis. In my own case I have noticed that many of the cards I pick up I feel like I need to have or need to save from floating off into oblivion. Once I possess them my control over the uncontrolled world has been established and I feel comfortable re-selling the item. I feel like if I was successful getting it once, I could be successful getting it again if I needed to. The initial purchase turns out to be an exercise of proving myself by asserting power or control over my environment. This is an extreme simplification of it, and takes the fun out of it, but I framed it that way on purpose to illustrate the point. If this is a common issue, and it pretty much describes almost all coping methods and addictive behavior, then it makes sense that there would be lots of one-night-stand cards around (and set-breaks for set collectors). Use 'em and lose 'em.

The sticky ones being the ones you can't let get away, or ones that have a personal connection.

Since we are probably talking about "big name" cards here, my guess is that wealthy collectors want to say they have owned certain cards and, once they have attained them, just pass them along to somebody else.

No need to buy the card to finish a set.
No emotional attachment.
No real reason to own a card (or cards) other than to be able to name drop at a future date so as to inflate their ego.

Just like with art or most other things.

For example, a wealthy person buys a Picasso; not because they like it or knwo anything about it but just because they can and to show off for other peopel at parties.

Or a person buys a Ferrari but they either have no driver's license or they can't drive a stick shift.

Same with some of these cards.

"Why, yes, I have owned an E107 Plank".

Now compare THAT to people on this board, true collectors, who are happy to share the news about the beater T206 no name that completes their team set. Or the person who once owned a certain card but had to sell it for some reason and who are now ecstatic because they were able to buy a similiar card.

My two cents,

David Smith

abothebear,

Using what you are syaing, you think it is the chase and not the conquest that cause people to sell their cards soon after they have acquired them? That sounds like a friend of mine with cars.

He will go out and find a rust bucket or junker that he just "HAS" to have. He will then take some time (and money) and fix the thing up (some times not all the way) and then decide there is another car he just HAS to have. He never buys a car to fix up to keep for himself.

I always thought to myself if I had the money he has put into these clunkers, I could have a few nice cars that would mean something to me and that I would keep and enjoy. They would be cars that I would keep for 20 or 30 years and be able to tell stories about WHY I wanted them and WHY I have kept them.

David

this is one of the things that pisses me off about the hobby these days...1st you see a card on the bst...or more commonly on ebay...then u see it for sale somewhere on the auction circuit. Most of the auction houses are just trying to resell cards that were recently on the market.

Comparison to the "hot girl in town" is spot on. Couple of years ago there was a Tony Esposito PSA OPC RC(hockey, i know lol) that must have flipped hands on there(ebay) 6 times in 2 months. somewhat bizarre looking back now. I had the card myself for 5 days before selling. Impulse buy. "I had an Esposito rc!" "Phil?" "No, Tony!" lol

For me it usually comes down to starting little side projects and then changing my mind or needing to get money for something else so away they go. My guess is most people need funds to get another card which would indicate the 'chase' is at the very core of our collecting addictions and since always looking for a another fix easiest way to get it is to sell stuff you don't 'have' to have. The bad thing is it is not very cost effective and usually lose money, especially after fees and shipping. Which is one good thing about the bst as opposed to ebay so you can minimize the loss. I can think of a few cards I bought and sold in the last year which have exchanged hands a few times and think it is all part of the 'new age of collecting' and most likey has everything to do with the internet and our fast paced tech living. They say the tv remote has dropped everyones attention span dramatically, I suppose the internet could also be to blame for the constant flipping we all seem to do with certain cards. I think most of us have bought cards we said we would never part with only to wake up one day and say goodbye it's your time to go.

I never realized all wealthy collectors were so shallow and dumb. I think you hit the nail on the head. Thanks.
JimB

Jim
 

Jim- with all due respect it's just his opinion. He is entitled to that, I believe, isn't he? I am expecting a few lemmings to jump on this bandwagon too. It's always a fun ride. All you have to do is make a comment, as an opinion of your own, and the regular crew tags on. Most of these lemmings only jump in on these types of threads. They are too busy worrying about others' opinions to actually add meaningful conversation to the board (most of the times). This isn't meant completely at you Jim....All we have to do is go back and look at opinions in threads, concerning how folks collect, and the lemmings will be all dressed up and ready to go to dinner. :)

True. Had a few that I swore I would never part with, yet did. Currently In the process of rebuilding my collection after a rough year, year and a half stretch. With the hopes, this time, of keeping what I acquire that I used to have for so many years before selling.

Sure he is entitled to his opinion. I am entitled to mine. My opinion is that his is ignorant and offensive.
JimB

Did he say "ALL wealthy collectors"? And he also complimented the people on the board, which run the full range. Not sure I see what the problem is. But sometimes I don't read carefully.

Cards that stick........
 

This is a great thread and I seem to have a problem-my cards are stuck.

When I decided to focus on T206 only (because I like them the best) it really was no problem for me to trade off my other types (even though I really liked them). This is not the case for me with T206's for some reason.......

I try to toy with the idea of trading cards (T206's for other T206's) but for some damn reason I can't seem to bring myself to do it :D. Even with cards that "aren't all that", you know, commons I know I can get another of with no problem....

I don't know if it's because I only pick up one, two, maybe three here and there, and I become attached to "THIS" particular card, or what- or it's the time and patience I've put into getting where I'm at now- I don't know.

Anyone else have this problem? :o

Sincerely, Clayton

Hey Jim
 

Jim- I think you are absolutely entitled to your opinion. I have a strong suspicion many folks don't like my moderating of the board, the way I collect, the fact I am bald, fat, stupid.....no big deal. It's just cardboard and a chat board.

Personally, what I find somewhat offensive is when people give their honest opinion then they get their throats clawed at for giving said opinion. Isn't freedom of expression something you would want on a chat board? I am sure as a very well educated person you must see the irony in this? I feel you really could have conveyed your distaste for that persons opinion in a more diplomatic manner, but I am all for you being able to say almost anything (per the rules, which are very lenient on purpose) you want to. Of course I still consider you a good hobby friend even though we might not agree on everything in the world :). Hope all is going well for you and I can't wait to hang out with you and chat at the National. regards

ps...this reminds me of some classes in college, where there were many "social" debates and I was the only Republican. The Professor liked me as it was at least a different point of view than everyone else. I wasn't the most popular person in the class though. (Please no politics, I was only making a mention of something in my past. I love everyone!!!!!)

"Using what you are saying, you think it is the chase and not the conquest that cause people to sell their cards soon after they have acquired them?"

Yeah, more or less. The conquest is the essential, but it is not the card, but the emotional high of the victory that is really the goal. All subconsciously, of course.

Then add in factors like the nature of competition in auction buying (I am more likely to be interested in bidding on an item that has 2 bids than one that has no bids. Part of competition is wanting to prove oneself against another, but another part is having the outside validation that the object of pursuit is desirable). Again, subconsciously.

Also, I wonder if another factor is that scans often look better than cards in hand. So there can be buyer's remorse, even with a great card, because it doesn't match up to what you thought when you bought it.

The self-test I devised to see if I was buying strictly emotionally is to ask myself if I would BIN for the same price. Or I ask myself if I would bid now if I knew the same card would be available at the same price next week, or next month. Then I can know that I either escaped future regret, or I know that this one is a keeper.

Sometimes I can't tell if it is a keeper or not until I have it in hand. I want it and get it and then if something else comes along, I jump at that and feel like it makes sense to move another card to make room (monetarily mostly).

Also, as a newly converted type collector, I can buy a type card which fills a slot for that particular set, but then another comes along which I feel would be a better example.

For example, I had a few E92 Crofts CAndy cards but when the miscut Dougherty came around, it had the color and uniqueness to just grab my interest. So, out go the others that I had.

That "uniqueness" is what makes a keeper for me. I think it would be hard to part with anything that I don't think I could get my hands on again.

Funny :)
I thought this thread was going to be about showing all your sticker album cards and stamps :)

:D

Jim was just giving his opinion, just like David.

I personally was not offended and I have owned an e107 Plank. :(

I think David hit the nail on the head insofar as "trophy" cards like THE T206 Wagner are concerned (the contentions that it's been altered or trimmed make absolutely no difference anymore--nothing will tarnish its iconic status). The same thing prevails with trophy coins in many instances--it just seems like the collector believes he's left a legacy in once owning such an item, but lacks the compulsion to stow it safely away for decades.

On a more personal note, I just purchased a 1907 Dietsche Cubs Mordecai Three-Finger Brown from an e-bay seller, who had only purchased it from DavidBVintage in January, 2011. As it is a very nice example (PSA Ex+) of a pretty darn tough card of one heckuva pitcher, I think its found a permanent home with me. I get very attached to these footprints of baseball history that you can hold right in your hands--just ask my wife! Sometimes the sellers do too, but these things come out sooner than they would otherwise due to prevailing economic conditions these days, which makes it a good time to buy.

Larry

Jim,

I read your responses to what I posted and was at a loss for why you were so upset. Then, I reread my post and I think I understand what the problem is.

In my original post, what I wrote seems to be a sweeping generalization-i.e. that "wealthy collectors" have no clue about what they are buying. That they just spend their money on something because of what they have heard, read or were told to buy. It sounds like I am saying these people have money but no brains.

In my haste to write a response to the original poster, I did not proof read what I had written (as you can see by a couple of typing errors that I did not correct). Because of this, I left out a VERY important word - SOME.

When I was thinking about what the OP said and what I wanted to respond with, I wanted to say that "SOME wealthy collectors" just buy big name cards because of what they have read, heard or were told about these cards. Unfortunately, I didn't type SOME and because of that, my meaning didn't come out as I wanted it to.

For those I may have upset or offended, I am sorry because that is not what I wanted or intended to do.

David