Duke Snider Bat on eBay - Am I missing something?
 

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...torefresh=true

Why did this go for $3150??? So many red flags. No visible model number, no identifiable player characteristics, and 34" which he ordered once in his whole career. Did people get excited about the deep stampings? Best case this is an index bat.

What am I missing?

The criss-cross tape pattern is actually a significant Snider identifier. The photo is really bad, but there might be a 4 on the knob as well.

The two biggest bidders= IDIOTS.

Doesn't matter if there's a 4! He never end ordered a 34 inch when this bat was made.

The seller obviously doesn't know the difference between a baseball bat and a bowling ball. We don't know what the weight and length really are. The tape pattern is a key Snider characteristic as well. A few bidders obviously felt it was worth the gamble because a nice Snider bat easliy clears $10K

You can't even make out the model number. It's not worth anywhere near what it sold for.

I believe 10k is a little bit of a stretch. Here's a nice example with all of the characteristics for around the same price. And that's a no doubter. No worrying about the length, tape, or what's on the knob.

http://paragonauctionsite.com/1960-6...ad-lot993.aspx

If the bat is in fact 34inches, then it's worth about $200. People make mistakes on length quite often, but I didn't feel like dealing with this one.

No, $10K is right on for a good example. Heritage just sold a nice one. The one you posted isn't a good example. The tape job isn't typical of Snider's bats. Here are a few with his tape pattern:

http://sports.ha.com/itm/baseball-co...a/7065-81480.s

http://legendaryauctions.com/lot-34488.aspx

Two more nice examples:

http://www.sothebys.com/en/auctions/...58.lotnum.html

http://sports.ha.com/itm/baseball/19...a/7105-82180.s

And the ebay bat didn't have criss cross tape? So not sure how you keep saying it matches his tape use.

The tape was obviously there at one point

But it doesn't look like a criss cross pattern. It looks more like a single row of tape.

I'm curious are you the one who bought the bat??? You really seem to be in love with it.

If you can't see the tape pattern, I don't know what to tell you. There was a criss-cross tapie job on this bat at some point.

The only other thing I have said about the bat is that there may or may not be a #4 on the knob. That's it. A least two bidders had significant faith to think it was a gamer. I don't think we have enough information to make an educated statement one way or the other.

And no, I didn't bid on it. Even IF you could prove that it is a gamer, it isn't in good condition. I already have a nice one that has outstanding provenance.

This is mine.

No, the examples you just posted are 1950-60 models. The eBay bat is a 61-64 model. The '61 example you posted was graded a 9.5 which would explain a high price(which I didn't look at since I didn't sign in)

Either way, the person overpaid in my opinion, and that is only if it's even a legit bat to begin with.

I agree with that. My guess is two bidders saw the tape job and took a leap. Maybe because a "safe" Snider example might have been out of reach. I would love to hear from one of the two top bidders if they are on here.

Just curious, why would there be nails in the knob?

I have seen a few bats from the 1950s/60s that had nails driven into the knobs so string could be attached and hung from a wall/ceiling. Other times, I have seen holes drilled right through bats so they could be mounted to a wall. Makes you cringe, doesn't it? Of course, this was done long before there were display cases.

I was bidding, but stopped at a certain point after only a few bids.

I felt it was an index bat all the way. In my opinion, outside of the possible 4 on the knob it was a pro stock bat with no Snider characteristics. Sure, there did appear to be some tape residue on the handle, but it seemed to me that the residue was much too far up the handle and the resulting taping style would have looked more like a Paul O'Neill tape job than a Duke Snider tape job.

Add to that the supposed 34" length and lack of visible model number and I wasn't about to sink a ton of money into it.

Now that is a beauty Chris!! A piece of lumber any collector would cherish. I do not collect gamers and am certainly not very knowledgeable in this area of the hobby but would think condition in the case of the auctioned bat would trump its potential authenticity. The eBay offering looks like it would be right at home at any garage sale. Maybe a game used bat collector could better explain why someone would buy that bat even at 30% of the value for a prime example .Buying that bat for over three grand would be comparable to myself buying a 1910s Tigers pennant with moth holes throughout and half the pennant cut off just to say I owned it . As a collector I would have no desire to own something if the condition wasn't to my liking. Just my opinion. Adam

I am the buyer. The bat does have a criss cross tape job how snider does it. It has red rack marks as of that from ebbets field. The bat was obtained in ebbets field by a doctor from the military in wwii. The bat was sold from brooklyn. It has a small 4 on the knob typical of duke. The dodgers stopped playing in 57 in brooklyn. The centerbrand is 61-64 however the barrell stamping is 55-60.
He ordered a 34"k55 in 56. So no it wasnt just a stab in the dark

Ps i dont know why the stampings are off and i do not see any reason why the seller would make this stuff up as he was selling it as a toy bat

lol. Really


This bat was produced in the 1960s. There's no way duke snider used it in ebbets field.

Just want to make sure I'm understanding....

The bat sold for over $3,000. Then, it was relisted and sold for $850 to someone else. I'm guessing you're the new buyer?

How did a doctor in WWII obtain a bat made in the 50's or 60's? I'm confused.

bat in hand
 

So..bat is in my hand. After inspection it is a 61-64 as you knew. It does have a small 4 in black on the knob. And you can see part of C117L underneath the nails. There is remnants of a criss cross tape job. The funny thing is the nails are almost knocked in the shape of a 4. Interesting as snider bats are known to have batboy nails. Anyhow, Im not sure why people on here can be so rough with their comments. I am not an idiot and I can afford a duke snider bat. Maybe I just see value in bats that others write off. Regardless, I bought the bat for $850 and think it was a relatively good deal.

So how long is it??? If it's 34 inches, Duke Snider DIDN'T order 34 inch C117 during the 1961-64 time frame.

It's weird that two bidders of $3,000+ had backed out and it was relisted and sold for $850. Kudos to you though if it measures correctly.