Regrets of the Memorabilia kind

[ruth-gehrig]

Is there a piece you regret selling and have never been able to buy again?

A piece you placed an opening bid on and regretably ended up winning?

How about an item you missed out on because you didn't bid high enough and wish you would have pursued harder?

Did you ever sell a piece and kicked yourself because the next time you saw it sell it went for much much more than what you got out of it??

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by ruth-gehrig

Is there a piece you regret selling and have never been able to buy again? A piece you placed an opening bid on and regretably ended up winning? How about an item you missed out on because you didn't bid high enough and wish you would have pursued harder? Did you ever sell a piece and kicked yourself because the next time you saw it sell it went for much much more than what you got out of it??

Too many of all these kinds to mention or even remember. But I would never let myself indulge in a pity party for long, then it was behind me and on to the many more things that I was happy with.

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by Hankphenom

Too many of all these kinds to mention or even remember. But I would never let myself indulge in a pity party for long, then it was behind me and on to the many more things that I was happy with.

I'm aligned with Hank on this. Too many to list. But most notably, a Type 1 Photo of Christy Mathewson by Charles Conlon with his notations and signature on the back. It's the image seen on his 1940 Play Ball Card. Sold it for $2,500 only to see it a couple years later in a major auction with a $12K hammer price.

And different type of regret.... A rare Reds Satin Flannel was in a Grey Flannel Auction about a year ago. Only one I have ever seen in many years of collecting. I had read that the Reds wore Satin Uniforms in conjunction with the advent of Lights at Crosley Field. Management believed that the players would be more visible under the lights, wearing the Satin Unis. I think this one was worn by Augie Galan, but may be mistaken. Anyway, I dropped out way too early and have regretted it ever since.

Not worth lamenting though... life goes on, and in the long-haul, the wins outnumber the losses. Very blessed to own any of this great stuff.

[Hankphenom]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Life goes on, and in the long-haul, the wins outnumber the losses. Very blessed to own any of this great stuff.

This.

[ruth-gehrig]

I've never dwelled on any of the stuff I've lost out on but initially it does sting a little. 2 of the bigger things I didn't bid higher on were both in smaller online auctions within the past 5 years. One was a 1950s Yogi Berra gamer jersey that sold for a fraction of what it would have in a large auction house. The other was a beautiful Honus Wagner pro model decal gamer that matched his specs. I really wish I would have at least hit the bid button a few more time on this last one but I thought at that price, low 5 figures, there must be something wrong with it. Was it somehow fake? Has it been altered in some way? The lower prices on these items actually scared me from bidding more in a backwards sort of way. Someone got a steal or got duped. I really don't know.

I honestly can't put a finger on anything I can say I overpaid for. I'm sure there are numerous items in my collection that wouldn't resell for more than what I paid for them so in that sense I guess I overpaid lol. On the other hand I enjoy everything I buy so it really doesn't matter much

[lumberjack]

Yeah, the Horner "commons" in the BB Mag auction at Christie's East in '96.

In my do over, I sell my lungs to get those images.

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by ruth-gehrig

Is there a piece you regret selling and have never been able to buy again?

A piece you placed an opening bid on and regretably ended up winning?

How about an item you missed out on because you didn't bid high enough and wish you would have pursued harder?

Did you ever sell a piece and kicked yourself because the next time you saw it sell it went for much much more than what you got out of it??

I hardly ever…ever…sell just because of what you say about not finding an item again.

I’ve got a few things I shouldn’t have bid on. They may not be terrible but I may have overpaid.

I’ve bid too low on some things but a) this was when I had less disposable income or b) it was the early days of ebay when there was more good stuff or c) I mistakenly thought the same item would come up again. To point (c) I, to this day, regret not getting two pennants I have never seen for 30 years hence. Then again, when you lose, you never really know “how much it would have taken.”

To your final question, I can’t put too much stock on what I see stuff sell for. I’ve seen stuff not sell for 1/20 of a prior sale. For some niche stuff, once a certain number of collectors have something, the market is dead.

[Topnotchsy]

In general I'm pretty good at enjoying the hobby without dwelling on items I missed.

Over the decades, there have been a couple of misses that sting more than others:

1)

A WWII Navy Game-Used jersey of Ted Williams was being sold at an obscure auction house. I bid in an advance and IIRC, was not around when it sold. (I think it ended Saturday, and as an Orthodo Jew, I observe Shabbat so I was not online)

Checking afterwards I saw that the final sale price was my bid, so I thought I had won, but I was informed that I had not won because my bid was through a 3rd party platform and those bids registers after the in-person bids (or something like that), and so I was not the winner.

Later the item sold at Goldin for 10x the price.

It wasn't about the loss of money. It was the fact that I had no chance of affording the jersey when it hit Goldin.


2)

I was away traveling when a Christie's auction was ending. There was a ball from the 1945 team that played in Venezuela which included Jackie Robinson right after he signed.

I was working off a phone with very poor internet connection and at the time, needed to do the math on the Buyer's Premium in my head.

I thought I was the high bidder but wasn't and lost the ball. I've never seen another like it in years of searching and it has not hit the market again (to the best of my knowledge).

Both items would have been absolute centerpieces for that area of collecting.

[HankAaron755]

Originally Posted by Topnotchsy

In general I'm pretty good at enjoying the hobby without dwelling on items I missed.

Over the decades, there have been a couple of misses that sting more than others:

1)

A WWII Navy Game-Used jersey of Ted Williams was being sold at an obscure auction house. I bid in an advance and IIRC, was not around when it sold. (I think it ended Saturday, and as an Orthodo Jew, I observe Shabbat so I was not online)

Checking afterwards I saw that the final sale price was my bid, so I thought I had won, but I was informed that I had not won because my bid was through a 3rd party platform and those bids registers after the in-person bids (or something like that), and so I was not the winner.

Later the item sold at Goldin for 10x the price.

It wasn't about the loss of money. It was the fact that I had no chance of affording the jersey when it hit Goldin.


2)

I was away traveling when a Christie's auction was ending. There was a ball from the 1945 team that played in Venezuela which included Jackie Robinson right after he signed.

I was working off a phone with very poor internet connection and at the time, needed to do the math on the Buyer's Premium in my head.

I thought I was the high bidder but wasn't and lost the ball. I've never seen another like it in years of searching and it has not hit the market again (to the best of my knowledge).

Both items would have been absolute centerpieces for that area of collecting.

I feel for you on your first story there. Nothing is worse than losing a desired item over Semantics. Especially when it was in your budget.

[HankAaron755]

I don’t hold onto regrets for items I miss out on because I know the next great piece is right around the corner. I do kick myself time to time though when there are multiple lots in a live auction, and I am bidding too conservatively on the items I “like” but don’t “have to have” if they are listed before the main item I am going after.

It seems more often than not, I miss out on these “like” items that sold for a good price and don’t win the “have to have” item because it goes for over my budget.

[Snapolit1]

What kills me is the somewhat related issue of not winning an item solely because (a) in most cases I am not locking in my top bid on an automated system and (b) I don't stay up to 3 am for auctions to close. Wake up only to find that at 2:32 ET, 11:32 PT, someone put in one more bid - a bid I would have happily surpassed was I not fast asleep.

I lose, consignor loses, and AH loses. But this is the way some shops want to do things.

[steve B]

A few, even though I'm usually on the lower end of things.

A bike from a brand I really like, not the exact style I like but one of the builders personal bikes. Went for far too little and much less than I expected.
Only to be parted out on ebay about a week later.

Same auction, used their online bidding system for a few items. Look at the finished prices and it looks like I got them all and at bargain prices. Waited a few days and asked for an invoice since I hadn't heard.
"Oh, there was an internet outage for about 100 lots, you didn't win any of them"
It was years ago and I still haven't even tried beyond looking at their listings. Won't go to their related swap meet either.