New Mastro Auction is up for viewing

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Posted By: leon

Once again a very fine selection to choose from. I am looking at several lots...and if they don't sky through the roof I hope to win a few....Good luck to everyone that is bidding


http://mastroauctions.com/index.cfm?Action=DisplayContent&ContentName=Category%20View

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Posted By: Hal Lewis

Man, they don't waste any time.

Seems like just the other night I was up all night...

and now another one comes right behind it.

They are like a factory.

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Posted By: barrysloate

Well, everything is still affordable! Most lots have stabilized at $100. That's promising.

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Posted By: quan

my cards have not even ship from the last auction! this could be a first where i have not received cards from a previous auction and i'm bidding on the next one already.

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Posted By: Alan

This is the "Classic" auction as opposed to the "Premier" auction that just ended. They need to have a 3rd "REALLY classic" one where I could afford something.

Alan

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Posted By: Jason L

"The Value Auction" so that I can feel comfortable even clicking through it!!!

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Posted By: John Kalafarski

Tough grading on the 1914 Cracker Jack Honus!

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Posted By: JK

This one is for Jay (who doesnt like to let Mastro get away with much exaggeration):

Up for preview is an e95 cobb graded a GAI 5.5. It appears to have paperloss or some other surface imperfection to the right of his face. After noting the surface "impurity", here is how Mastro goes on to describe the lot:

"we emphasize the splendid merits characterizing this survivor. Both surfaces are immaculately clean; the white borders are unimpeachable; the image is centered perfectly and, subjectively, we're particularly impressed by the exact register that this card provides. We yield to GAI's determination that this scarce Cobbian card is Excellent-plus, but at the same time, we assert that a more precision image of Ty Cobb doesn't exist in this specie."

I particularly like the last line - "a more precision image doesn't exist". I dont think they looked too hard:

Mastro Cobb:

My Cobb (purchased earlier this year off ebay):

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Posted By: Dylan

If u ask me the GAI 3 manontherock is currently selling has better image quality then that one for sale in mastro, still not as sharp as yours though, great color!

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Posted By: Dan Kravitz

I started a thread before the last Mastro auction and I think it will hold true until something changes at Mastro. If you want to buy something out of Mastro, you should either call and have someone describe the card over the phone, or go and see the lot if you have the ability.
I hate when they emphasize the positives and dismiss the negatives. I only really want to know about the negatives anyway.

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Posted By: James Feagin

Their writing is so over the top I don't even bother with their descriptions on single cards.

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Posted By: barrysloate

We addressed this in a thread several months ago but were unsuccessful in persuading them to be a little more succinct.

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Posted By: Dan Kravitz

I agree that the one manontherock is selling is far superior to the one in Mastro.

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Posted By: John Kalafarski

Jim, you are right on in your complaint about the writing: what is the audience they're targeting? The British upper crust of the Victorian era? Or is it the automatic thesaurus at work. Stilted (artificially formal) prose.

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Posted By: JK

I had forgotten about the card being sold by manontherock - I agree, it does look nicer than the mastro cobb and its only a GAI 3.

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Posted By: Dan Kravitz

You can not go by the grade that GAI gives a card. They are all over the board in their grading regulations. The one that manontherock has is a beauty and should (but will not) sell for more than Mastros. Some people buy the grade and others buy the card.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&ih=009&sspagename=STRK%3AMEWA%3AIT&viewitem=&item=190115245538&rd=1&rd=1




I picked up a d304 common in a 3 holder that looked like a 6. Sure enough SGC gave it an 80. There is real money to be made from the mistakes of GAI. I am not afraid to buy GAI cards. You just have to be selective.

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Posted By: Jeff Lichtman

Does anyone think it is unusual that the above Cobb was said to have been graded by GAI last week? Who would submit a card like that to GAI today, knowing that it will sell for less than an SGC or PSA card?

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Posted By: quan

there is a bit of paper loss on the GAI 3 cobb. I would only buy GAI cards in person where I can closely look at the card. Much like Kyle Farnsworth's pitching, their grading is all over the place.

edited to add I agree with Jeff. Charlie maximizes the value of his cards so I'm sure he prefers PSA/SGC 1st over GAI.

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Posted By: JK

There are a couple of spots of paperloss on the reverse of the GAI 3 - Im sure it went to GAI because GAI does not seem to care about minor paperloss on the reverse. SGC would give the card no better than a 30. PSA is a crap shoot as to how it deals with paperloss - probably would get anywhere from a 2 to a 5.

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Posted By: Bob

For all you guys who gripe about trimmed cards, I am assuming none of you will be bidding against me on the E94 Cobb, right?

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Posted By: Bruce Perry

for those of you who want to bash GAI....note this...their grading is much more consistent now and tougher (and has been for some time now) with cards (especially pre war)than psa has been since 2001 when the gai people (who were major players at psa 1991-2001)left psa......psa is the company that is all over the place in grading or lack of grading cards, and is causing quite a stir in the industry by alienating a lot of dealers and collectors alike...sgc does well with pre ww 1 cards, but the rest of their graded cards do not sell as well or bring top dollar, IMO....one note about paper loss...do not confuse paper loss with a poor or non existent print strike on a particular spot on a card...this has been pointed out to me many times with pre ww 1 cards when what I thought was paper loss was actually a spot where the print is missing due to a poor strike...not an actual paper tear/scrape/loss....you can tell the difference if you closely under a 10x power loop, but there is almost no chance to see this difference on a scan...now more times than not, it will be paper loss....but this print strike issue is more commonly found than most would think....gai has told me they do not take off as much with this print strike issue than with actual paper loss..which is the way it should be

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Posted By: JK

Bruce,

Not sure why you think anyone has bashed gai in this thread. The only discussion involves mastro's description of the gai card as, essentially, the best e95 cobb image in existence - which is utter bs as we noted two cards that looked better within a matter of a few posts. The only comment regarding the gai sold by manontherock was that it had to have something wrong with it to only be a 3 - which it did. It had actually paperloss on the reverse (not a print strike issue). And for what its worth, Ive handled numerous gai cards with paperloss on the reverse that were graded as high as 3 or 4 (and yes, I viewed the cards with a loupe).

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Posted By: peter ullman

that cobb is deplorable bob...but I imagine you must! Those e95 cobbies are ok...JK...yours is the best...what a deal I remember that...but I must insist I believe mine is the finest specie ever to survive an attempted beheading!

pete in mn

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Posted By: JK

Im rolling - very funny Peter. To borrow from mastro, that "cobbian specie" is supreme.

Thanks re the cobb - it was a very good deal.