Spike in unopened
 

Just saw where a 77 baseball wax box just went for 8k on eBay. Noticed the big spike in mid 80’s as well. This reminds me of the “buyer’s group” a few years back. Same concept but instead of targeted vintage rookies just plugging in early 80’s unopened. Paying 8k for a 77 wax box does not add up to me...

Even "junk" wax from the late 80s is going up in value.

People are chasing the grade, hoping theres a few 10's in those boxes..

Basketball
 

Prizm select basically any case insane prices,soccer pokemon i mean whats next ,,omg.non sport vintage crazy prices on wax ,,market is healthy.

there is very little chance to get your money's worth buying unopened.
They are extremely overpriced. Pack fresh cards from the 70s/early 80s are typically 6s, 7s at best.

Except supply is only going down over time.... not a bad investment at the right price

Well, the 9s and 10s are coming from somewhere. :)

They're being manufactured! I believe this is due to these "breaks" that are being done...modern lottery mentality.

REA has four 1977 Topps baseball wax boxes from a sealed case that currently are at $7,500, $7500, $7,800 and $7,800! Maybe that $8K figure isn't so crazy?

So a case of 77's or a T206 Cobb green portrait?

I know what line I'll be standing in, and it won't be the one to get a chance at a gem mint Mark Fidrych...

I was shocked when I saw the bids on those boxes in REA. My jaw dropped. What the hell man? For a 77 Topps box? Really?

I agree. Very strong prices. Interesting that having four of the same box in one auction hasn't negatively impacted the bidding.

Encase you have had your head up your arse the last 6 months just about every freaking thing has spiked.

It's hard to get a read on this board. Now that everything is expensive and your collection is worth more than ever before, there is thread after thread about a bubble and what's real and what's not and all this bickering about where prices will be.....and this is at a time when your collection is worth the most.

Every year in between there is the dread thread where everyone laments how prices have crashed and what's real and what's not and all the bickering about where prices will be.

When will you guys enjoy something?

haha! I'm happy!!!!

It’s human nature to an extent...same reason we complain it’s too hot in summer and too cold in winter. :)

I know I look at prices I paid for cards the last few years and am amazed how much they look like great deals...didn’t feel that way at the time in retrospect.

Now with prices up I’m not buying as much of the graded HOF stuff I was...but am having fun looking for value where I can find it.

With a little luck, 2024 me will think 2020 me is as smart as I think 2017 me is today. :D

Nothing is getting cheaper. Buy what you want when you can afford it. Remember the guy in 1990 who thought $200 was too much for a Goudey Ruth.

“Yeah, I can buy FOUR Kevin Maas rookie cards for that!”

Yes, don’t be that guy! :D

Even when supply isn't going down, there are still plenty of bizarre price inefficiencies around in this market.

The one that stands out to me is the '81 Topps baseball set. There is nothing of value in a typical raw set with most of the cards being 6s or 7s, so it was even overpriced at $30 before the '80s Covid boom.

But it's still gone up the same amount as the other sets from '80 to '85, where you actually get at least one big card that's worth something. Now you can't get that type of '81 T set for less than 60 or 70 bucks + lots of shipping.

Funny thing is it's my favorite design from that era. I love the caps. But I really doubt that others share that opinion (to the point where the set is worth almost as much as an '83).

Sometimes a market price for something just doesn't represent anywhere near its true worth. There are examples on the other side of this as well, where the set gives you more value than it "should"

Something I learned while hanging out in the Blowout forums is that there appears to be a niche of our hobby that enjoys collecting unopened wax. They keep it unopened, display the unopened boxes, etc. Not just vintage, but modern wax. They like the way it looks. So it’s possible that the unopened 70’s boxes aren’t being bought to be opened, and sent for grading. But maybe just to be collected and enjoyed. I can’t imagine there are TONS of unopened boxes from the 70’s?

I've only followed the situation with the unopened boxes sporadically, but that's my understanding of what's happening. They are collectibles apart from the possible value of the cards inside. There is some aura of the potential for what may be inside, but the fact that they are unopened and, to varying degrees, rare is the actual appeal.

Unopened is something in and of itself. It's not merely a collection of cards.

To that point: boxes of 1987 Topps are now $40+ with cases going for $800+.

A little variance from the topic.

I watched a youtube video of someone breaking open a sealed box of 1972 wax (if I recall correctly) that he purchased. It was BBCE sealed but I don't know if that was the seller. Apparently, he sold the individual wax packs and was announcing the purchaser of each pack prior to opening them, on his video.

After opening the first several packs, it appeared that the gum had caused the last 3-4 cards in each pack to become stuck to each other and causing rips as he attempted to separate them. The guy announced that he was not going to open any more packs and intended to contact the seller of the wax box for a refund or substantial discount.

Is this a thing? If you purchase an unopened box isn't the only guarantee that the box was unopened. I don't see how there can be any guarantee as to the condition or viability of the enclosed packs.

Am I missing something?

I felt the need to have at least one unopened pack for each of my Topps set 51 to 2020. Only a wrapper for 48. Most of the older ones would sell for much more than the value of the cards inside. The mystery of what might be in them in greater than the value of what is actually in them

opening cards is fun. thankfully you can buy a box of 1989 donruss for like $15 and it provides a ton of entertainment.

The unopened box you were referencing was a 1972 OPC series 2 wax box that was sealed with the BBCE wrapper. He opened 4 or 5 packs and the majority of the cards were worthless because they were all stuck together and stained by the gum. I think he paid $5500 for the box. It was kind of sad to watch actually. The best looking card was a Reggie Jackson that looked to be in decent shape.

That's half of the deal with unopened. You don't know what's inside. If you knew, and knew the conditions, what would be the point?

There was a big debate on that, and most felt that, unless it turned out to be not-unopened, he wasn't deserving of a refund. But BBCE refunded anyway, I'm sure for PR.

Are you referring to the '72 OPC baseball box that just happened last week, or the '79 T baseball box from awhile back that had all cards from sheet C?

I remember he got to buy another '79 T box from BBCE for half price (even though that wasn't their fault either). Both situations were clearly not a spot where the seller should bear any responsibility for what happened.

But then, the guy who runs that channel isn't exactly a beacon of solid ethics. So it's not surprising that he went after refunds in both spots.

I think it’s more that prices spiked so quickly since April. Just doesn’t feel right. Usually it’s a slow and steady climb. Also lots of members on this board buy for our collections and not just for investments so we sit and wait for the right card to pop up since it’s not to going to be flipped but probably be with us for years and years. So when some of the cards on my ‘watch list’ suddenly tripled in price in 4 short months, yes it’s a bit upsetting. As I mentioned before, a few cards that I had been watching and had been relatively stable for a year or so are now out of my price range. Yes, it’s great my collection is now worth more, but since I have no plans on selling right now, it’s just numbers on a computer screen. I enjoy buying way more than selling.

May have missed noted above, but another possible source of 9/10 quality 1970’s cards could be from vendor boxes (instead of wax boxes). 1975 Topps vendor boxes were the source for my high grade Brett & Yount rookies.

My point is there is never a right time for people looking for the right time. The cards you're talking about spiking could have been picked up in years past I'm sure but at the time you thought the price was wrong. Fast forward to the future, the price is still wrong.

So I'll just repeat my montra one more time: buy what you want when you can afford it.

I collect vintage unopened boxes and packs with no intent of ever opening them.

My oldest box is 1974. I think it would be a shame to break it open. I already have a 1974 set, so I just don't see the point of opening it. They're just fine the way they are. Plus after watching the 1972 box opening video, I'm even more leery about busting any vintage Topps with gum.

I imagine if I collected T206, I'd try to find an unopened Piedmont pack to own. Actually, that sounds pretty cool to own anyway. I can only imagine the scarcity and cost.