A way to search all auctions for prewar?

[obcbeatle]

Is there a way to search all current or upcoming auctions (non eBay) for prewar cards? For instance, if I want to search all auctions for a T206 Cobb or M101-2 Wagner, etc, is there currently a search engine that can do that effectively? Just thought I'd ask.

There are so many auctions and auction houses these days that it is often just wasted time to try to keep up with them all, and to try to find a few prewar cards (at least for my tired eyes) The best thing I've found so far is to get on Auction Reports mailing list (thank you AR!). But still takes a lot of time to browse, register ... Also, I'm finding advanced search functions sadly lacking on many auction web sites :-(

Lastly, are there auctions houses that specialize in just lower to mid grade cards? I find all the TPG 7-10's mind numbing.

Sorry if this sounds like a rant. But I just spent (wasted) most of my one day off trying to browse sport memorabilia web sites for cards to spend $ on, and didn't find much :-) Thank you.

[Vintagecatcher]

This site has a lot of the major auctions usually.

http://www.oldcardboard.com/calendar.asp

Patrick

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

As a dealer I have always been a collector friendly company (read I can't afford to stock a bunch of 4 and 5 figure cards) since those are the guys I know that is sort of the niche my auction fills now.

The vast majority of our pre war cards will be 5 or lower. Huge stars more like 3 and lower.

[obcbeatle]

Thanks for the link Patrick. I had missed that! Aquarian, thanks for the heads up. I just check your eBay store.

Now that I think about it, perhaps my original question should have been, what are the top 2-3 prewar card auction houses? And same for auction houses that specialize in lower/mid grade post war cards?

Thanks again for the replies.

[jasonc]

It actually would be a good idea to globally search for a certain card or lot and have it show the results from all the auction houses. I dont think there is a way of doing that specifically ..which is what I am assuming Jerry is wondering.

[conor912]

If you figure out a way, please let us know. The thought of searching and tracking each individual auction is so daunting that I often ignore most of them. I want one site where I can enter my want list and then get an email when something on it pops up, regardless of where. I would pay for said service for the amount of time it would save me. I’m not the kind of person who generally enjoys spending my time browsing.

[dstudeba]

There have been ways in the past to do it, but those sites/applications aren't available currently.

As for auction houses that have mid-grade cards I would recommend checking out Sterling Sports Auctions.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by obcbeatle

Thanks for the link Patrick. I had missed that! Aquarian, thanks for the heads up. I just check your eBay store.

Now that I think about it, perhaps my original question should have been, what are the top 2-3 prewar card auction houses? And same for auction houses that specialize in lower/mid grade post war cards?

Thanks again for the replies.

My Ebay store is virtually empty. I run Birmingham Auctioneers. We run two auctions a year that are exclusively pre-war. Nothing after 1941.

[obcbeatle]

Thanks again for all the replies. Yes, I thought maybe I remembered an app that advanced searched all auction houses (or many), but my memory is not what it used to be :-( An app like that would certainly be useful to collectors. I guess I'll just find a few auction houses to check along with eBay. I've looked at Sterling and Love Of The Game so far, with positives. Many of the others seem to cater to investors/businesses. Which I understand. But too bad there don't seem to be many auction houses that cater to collectors of lower/mid grade cards. Seems like there is a market there for someone. But I could be wrong.

Aquarian, I just checked Birmingham Auctioneers. Nice. But looks like I just missed your last auction :-( I'll check your next one. Thank you!

[x2drich2000]

Jerry, with collectiblescentral.com you can setup a want list and they will send you emails notification with things that match your want list. I know it doesn't cover all the auction house, but I know I've gotten notifications of matches for Sterling, Mile High, LOTG, SCP, and Brockelman. It has been a long time since I modified my searches so don't remember how easy it is.

The other thing i've done is simply to network with other collectors. We keep an eye out for things that we know the other person is looking for and let them know when we find stuff (and occasionally just buy it and sometimes just buy it to ensure they get it). I know this has helped me get a couple cards and I've made other collectors aware of things that they have ultimately acquired. This works well if you are looking for a specific set or two or a small number of specific cards.

[BobbyVCP]

Sorry to plug VCP but you can set up a Want List and we cover most of the above auctions and then some more...this way you only have to create on Want list instead one for every auction house...

[Case12]

Maybe exists already. A continuously updated monthly forum of nothing but auctions names (Leyland), types (pre-war cards), dates (May 22) and links (leyland.com),- keeping simple. The current auction forum doesn't seem to do this. The closest so far is when Leon sends out emails making us aware. It would probably be a lot of work for someone though.

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

Originally Posted by obcbeatle

Thanks again for all the replies. Yes, I thought maybe I remembered an app that advanced searched all auction houses (or many), but my memory is not what it used to be :-( An app like that would certainly be useful to collectors. I guess I'll just find a few auction houses to check along with eBay. I've looked at Sterling and Love Of The Game so far, with positives. Many of the others seem to cater to investors/businesses. Which I understand. But too bad there don't seem to be many auction houses that cater to collectors of lower/mid grade cards. Seems like there is a market there for someone. But I could be wrong.

Aquarian, I just checked Birmingham Auctioneers. Nice. But looks like I just missed your last auction :-( I'll check your next one. Thank you!

Next Pre War is coming up in June. If you PM me your email I'll make sure you are notified.

[obcbeatle]

Thanks for the heads up on want list services and for the advice re: networking with other collectors. Good advice! Aquarian, I'll send a PM. Thanks for the replies!

PS: As I mentioned in an earlier post, I get weekly emails from "Auction Report" which looks like it's based out of Wilmette, IL. These emails are nice reminders of auctions currently running and soon to be running. However, the emails list a LOT of auction houses. And unfortunately I don't have the time to browse them all. Hence my wanting to find a way to advanced search all/most AH's, and consequently, me now just trying to find specific auction houses that cater to collectors on a budget (prewar/vintage postwar). Anyway, just mentioning in case anyone wants to see about getting weekly emails form Auction House. I'm not affiliated with AR. And in fact, I don't remember how I got on their emailing list :-)

[Gpaal]

Nice thread interesting as well