Autographed cards

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Posted By: Jim Ed 14

I am fairly new to this racket. I would appreciate it
if one of the many knowledgeable VBC members could explain
to me the value added by having a player's card personally
autographed as opposed to the autograph being part of the
original printed card. I think some people's thinking is
that the origianl card is altered if signed in person by
the player. Others, I'm sure, see it as making the card
a rarer species and, thus, more desirable. What is the
basic collective thinking on this subject? I am specifically
addressing this to cards printed in the late 40's, 50's and
60's. EX: is a Topps 1960 Mantle PSA 8 more/less valuable than
a Topps 1960 Mantle with Mickey's authenticated autograph on the
face of the card? Many thanks.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

For an average grade card (Good to Ex), an autographed card will usually be worth more than the unsigned card-- that's whether the player is Mickey Mantle or Don Aase. For the autographed card, the value is dependant on both the value of card and the rarity/popularity of the signature.

You often have a different audience (with overlap) bidding on one or the other. An autograph collector may not be an autograph collector, but will bid on a 60T Mantle if it's autographed. A 1960 Topps collector may only be looking for an unsigned Mantle card. It's the card-only collectors who focus on the Mint 9 and Gem Mint 10 stuff. To the autograph collector, it may make no difference whether the card grades a 5 or 6 ... The two types of collectors will often use different critereon for judging the quality and value of the card.

For the card collector looking at a signed card, he should consider the value and rarity of the signature-- including how it relates to the value of the naked card. A Ted Williams signature can raise the value of a 2 cent reprint to $150. On the other hand, adding a $5 2005 Bob Feller signature to a Gem Mint 10 1938 Goudey RC might not be a good idea.

I do deal with autographs, including autographed card, and can tell you that an autographed 1960 Topps Mantle would be popular on the market. However, I don't follow or have interest in the prices for grade 8,9,10 cards, so can't compare the value to a plain PSA 8 card.

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Posted By: warshawlaw

Dramatically narrow the audience for the card. Some folks (like me) collect autographed cards from favorite sets as a side line to the set itself. We would pay a premium for a vintage tough autograph. Most buyers of high end cards do not do so and if you are talking about a high grade card, you kill it with the autograph except for a very few collectors who would want the card signed. That said, where the new "product" of slabbing and grading autographed cards will take this is anyone's guess. I suspect that some collectors will accept high grade slabbed cards with authenticated autographs.

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Posted By: Anonymous

Many thanks for your excellent insight.

John

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Posted By: T206Collector

Anybody else got any pre-war autographed cards?

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Posted By: David McDonald

Here are one pre-WW1 and two pre-WW2. Have posted the Wood and the Gehrig before. Won the Dean in the recent Huggins & Scott auction. These are not high-grade cards by themselves but they are favorite cards of each ballplayer and each is enhanced immeasurably, for me at least, by the signatures. Especially love the Gehrig. The sense of connection across 64 years (and a few millimetres of plastic) to a God of Baseball is intense.

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Posted By: davidcycleback

Assume the Gehrig cost you a penny or two.

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Posted By: David McDonald

"Assume the Gehrig cost you a penny or two."
Cost many pennies and, to me, worth every one. I paid what I had to pay. The card is beautiful. I don't mind telling you guys what it cost but I am under the impression that it would be a breach of forum etiquette for me to say so.

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Posted By: Scot

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Posted By: chris bland