The tale of three Magees
 

I had recently picked up an SGC40 T206 Magee (Portrait) in a lot and was excited when I saw one sell on eBay last week (11/21) for $130:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/300622425109

Then Sunday (11/27) another one sold for $121 (with shipping):
http://www.ebay.com/itm/140643885037

And wouldn't you know it, a third sold last night (11/28) for a paltry $81:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/250937352768

I say this somewhat jokingly... but in one week the "market price" for SGC40 Magee Portraits dropped nearly 40%!

In my opinion the Probstein card was the nicest, but the auction only had a scan of the front of the slab. The Broadhurst card appears to have a crease (upper left), yet yielded the best price. The PWCC listing has nice large scans of the front and back, appears crease-free, but has significant rounding of the corners.

A few questions...
Is a crease more acceptable than rounded corners?
Does the lack of a back scan leave money on the table?

I would prefer rounded corners to creases. I would like to point out as a Phillies collector that both the T206 Magee portrait and batting cards really fluctuate in price for some odd reason.

Andrew

I really don't like rounded corners, in some cases it really makes the card look worse than it is. If all the corners are somewhat sharp and it has a "light" crease it doesn't bother me as long as it's not into the face of the person on the card.

i like the Magee cards in the order they are listed: broadhurst, then probstein, then pwcc.

The middle one is nice, but something to me is weird about the top and bottom cuts. Like the edges are sharper/straighter than the side edges or something. I'm not saying its trimmed cuz its probably not, but for some reason thats the appearance it gives me.

I prefer a light crease or two over rounded corners. Some light corner wear is fine. If its excessive like the PWCC Magee, its too detracting. Creases give it character :)

I'd much rather have a crease then rounded corners. If you have a cards in a binder with sharp corners but the occasional crease, to me, it looks better then having an occasional card with round corners.

A crease is instant damage for the most part. I've found creased cards with sharp corners and a great surface and not much other general wear.

Edit: I think that third magee sold for less because its not as nice as the other two...

Magee sales
 

When did the portrait sales get this high? I think the last sale is close to where I remember them selling at on average. Maybe I'm wrong, but $130 seems a bit high to me. However, looking at the completed listings, it does seem like these sale prices reflect the average...

I have yet to get the Portrait version...I better hurry before they reach the amount the error is going for :eek:

Rick probstien is a great guy!
 

I just wanted to say that EVERY deal with Rick probstien, buying or selling, is a pleasurable and fair deal. Top shelf operation----- I like them!
In my opinion the Probstein card was the nicest!

Regards,
Bill Hedin

I agree!!
 

I agree!!! Just wish he would ship to Canada....he always has great stuff

Hands down. Agreed!!

So why did it sell for less?
 

For those who find the Probstein card to be the best of the bunch (this includes me), why did it sell for less? Here are the only differences I see:
Broadhurst "appears" to have a crease, while Probstein "appears" to be crease free
Broadhurst sold first (on a Monday at 9:30pm EST) while Probstein sold on the following Sunday at 10:10pm EST.
Broadhurst listing contains a backscan.

Looking at the bid history:
only two people went over $75 for the Broadhurst; the underbidder (n***n - 3153) went to $128.
four bidders went over $75 for the Probstein; n***n bid again, but this time stopped at $110.
two bidders over $75 on the PWCC; n***n was the underbidder AGAIN, stopping at $77.

I think if there would have been a backscan on the Probstein, it would have gone $20+ higher than where it ended. Thoughts?