Posted By:
Judge Dred (Fred)I wanted to bring closure to this thread. I have included a scan of the card that accurately shows the condition issues that this card really has. I stand by my offer to the seller as a fair offer. This card is pretty beat, but it's still a 16Z Claxton.
The seller showed a lot of honesty and integrity because they agreed upon a price and followed through with the sale even though (larger) offers were being made after the ebay sale was completed. Perhaps some people may not understand that the acceptance of the terms for sale and purchase creates a contract when both parties agree and the deal is recorded on ebay. I guess some people just don't care though. I'm pretty sure that when everyone sees the scan below that they'll agree that the card is in P condition (maybe P-F on a good day) at best. The last Claxton I can recall seeing in auction sold for around $7200 but it was in GAI3 condition. I've included a scan of that card also below the card that I purchased.
I had a a lot of correspondance with a lot of other collectors after this thread was started. Most of it seemed positive. I received a few very nice offers for the card after the ebay deal was made. Now that people are getting a better look at the card I'm guessing that the people that made the offers are now happy that I didn't take them up on the proposed deals. I've been wanting this card for a while now. Like a lot of us, I've procrastinated on getting certain cards over the years because we figured that the cards will always resurface and be available. After watching the exponential price run up on this card I figured I'd better take a shot at this one, even though it's as beat as it is. I bet there are a lot of you out there that have wanted that Goudey Lajoie for a long time. That card was available for under a grand for a long time, we all could have gotten it but we all figured it'd always be there... well, it's still there but it just doesn't show itself very much anymore.
This Claxton card reminds me of that SGC10 D304 Cobb that we all see on the 10 and 20 cent dump your chump days on ebay. Is that idiot ever going to sell that card? 
I've heard people use the term RARE or SCARCE when they make referece to this card. Does anyone want to take a guess at "about" how many of these cards are out there? I think people will be surprised at the estimated population of this card. In any case, I don't think it's rare. People desire the card because of the dark history behind the demise of Claxton from organized baseball in 1916. This card is desireable for historic reasons, not for reasons of rarity. Even if you bring the supply/demand factor into the equation there are many examples of this card out there, it's just waiting for one to become availble for sale.
Thanks to those that have corresponded with me about the card. For the mean time, I think I'll send it in to SGC for encapsulation so that the card will be protected. I don't think we'll see it back on ebay anytime soon.