Pet Peeve: Dealers who pull out Beckett at a card show? Opinions wanted!

[bobbyw8469]

When you got to a card show and a dealer pulls out a Beckett/SMR price guide to get a price of commons, what reaction do you have? Are you mildly amused, extremely annoyed, or does it not bother you in the least?

[ullmandds]

as a pre war collector this is a non issue.

[btcarfagno]

Originally Posted by bobbyw8469

When you got to a card show and a dealer pulls out a Beckett/SMR price guide to get a price of commons, what reaction do you have? Are you mildly amused, extremely annoyed, or does it not bother you in the least?

I was amused at a mall show recently when the dealer pulled out an annual price guide and sold me a VG+ T206 Titus for $40. Certainly not annoyed!

Tom C

[ALR-bishop]

As a lowly post war collector, it is a non issue

[bobbyw8469]

Originally Posted by btcarfagno

I was amused at a mall show recently when the dealer pulled out an annual price guide and sold me a VG+ T206 Titus for $40. Certainly not annoyed!

Tom C

LOL!!! That is great Tom! I guess it works both way!

[freakhappy]

Originally Posted by btcarfagno

I was amused at a mall show recently when the dealer pulled out an annual price guide and sold me a VG+ T206 Titus for $40. Certainly not annoyed!

Tom C

Awesome! Sometimes it can work in your favor, but not usually.

At the National a few years back, I was looking at a graded mantle...not sure of the year or condition, but I asked for a price knowing exactly what that card has been selling for beforehand. Sure enough the dealer pulls out the Beckett quarterly and quotes me the Beckett price, which was about 50% above the going price...ugh. Needless to say, I moved on.


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[7nohitter]

i walk away

[D.P.Johnson]

Doesn't bother me in the least. At the card show I was at yesterday, I offered a guy 50 cents for a card that was not marked with any price. He pulled out his Beckett and told me it was a $40 card. I said, "Ok, but it's worth about 50 cents to me." He said, "How about $1.00?" I said, "OK"......

[packs]

It drives me nuts because if I pull out my phone and bring up VCP there is always some reason for why Beckett is right and my real world sold prices are wrong.

[bbsports]

As a dealer for many years & been doing card shows for over 25 years, most of the time it's not the dealer who pulls out the SMR at a card show first, it's the customer. A dealer with enough knowledge & experience, uses a better reference than an SMR price guide. All these books are what they are, price guides. He or she should follow the current on line prices, such as the more current e-bay sales. Some prefer card target or VCP. For me, I keep a record on what I pay for my items & just try to make a 10-20% profit on what I sell, pending the type of cards I'm selling. It's impossible to make money on ever card you sell, but you avoid huge losses. Once in a while, I get lucky & make more than that, but I find that if I keep a record of my sales, I sell a lot more cards at card shows than most dealers do.