Best Long Term Investment for $1000???

[yankee4jc]

I’m wondering what card/cards would make the best long term investment for $1000?

Like many people I collected heavy in the 80s/90s and then left the hobby. Got back in 2014 but grew tired of ripping/buying/selling. It seemed like I was breaking even (or even losing) and wasn’t really building a “collection”.

I decided in December to change my goal in the hobby to buy the best I could afford for long term value and love of the cards. I love the vintage guys and history of baseball. Not big into football or basketball. I’ve started a PSA set registry of 1st Ballot HOFers and love graded cards (used to have no interest) and the new buying to keep strategy.

I’m looking to invest in my first BIG card and wondering what to target?

high grade, late year Mantle? Ruth? high grade HOF RC?

[62corvette]

1). No one knows.
2). If we did, we would already have purchased it.

[yankee4jc]

Originally Posted by 62corvette

1). No one knows.
2). If we did, we would already have purchased it.

Of course no one knows. I’m looking for opinions and speculation. I have my own theories and wanted to see if others align.

And multiple people can own the same card in the same grade.

[KCRfan1]

I believe 1955 Hank Aaron is very undervalued. The 1960 Bob Gibson is also a good value, but I wouldn't drop a grand on one. Just my opinion.

[jchcollins]

Personally I'd buy the nicest graded '56 Topps Mantle white back I could find for that money. You used to be able to get about a 6 for that, but those days are long gone. You may still be able to get a nice 5 for that money, I'm not sure. That card has definitely appreciated significantly in the last decade. Even back in the heady "Beckett" days of the early 1990's the card used to list for $1400 in NM. Back then I'm not sure how many people paid that kind of money for a nice one, but today they sure do.

[71buc]

I agree on the 55 Aaron I think a 55 Williams in a PSA 7 is another good option.

[rats60]

Since you are a Yankee fan I would go with Mantle. I would aim for a higher grade and more expensive 33 Goudey Ruth for him. You can get 1960, 1961, 1963 or 1965 in PSA 7, 1957 or 1958 in PSA 6, 1956 in PSA 5 or 1953 Bowman in PSA 4.5.

[yankee4jc]

Thanks guys. Interesting stuff. So a higher graded non rookie would appreciate more than a lower graded rookie? That’s why I posted because I’m just learning how graded cards are valued amongst collectors. Thanks for the input.

Also, I’m not a Yankees fan even though my user name includes “yankee”. I’m from Ohio and a Reds fan.

lol, I might need to consider a name change.

[Fuddjcal]

Originally Posted by yankee4jc

Thanks guys. Interesting stuff. So a higher graded non rookie would appreciate more than a lower graded rookie? That’s why I posted because I’m just learning how graded cards are valued amongst collectors. Thanks for the input.

Also, I’m not a Yankees fan even though my user name includes “yankee”. I’m from Ohio and a Reds fan.

lol, I might need to consider a name change.

rookies schmookies...Go for the 1 K Mantles in the best possible condition you can afford. Clemente is always solid as is Aaron and Mays PERIOD.

And the 33 goudey ruth and gehrigs are nice as well, though I don't think 1K buys much without creases and beat up? There's a laundry list and you'll find yours! Enjoy.

[DeanH3]

Id take a look at the '54 Johnston Cookies Hank Aaron. An undervalued rookie in my opinion. Yes, it's a regional issue. But being a Milwaukee issue is kinda cool to me. Plus the lower pop total is the kicker. Good luck!

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by DeanH3

Id take a look at the '54 Johnston Cookies Hank Aaron. An undervalued rookie in my opinion. Yes, it's a regional issue. But being a Milwaukee issue is kinda cool to me. Plus the lower pop total is the kicker. Good luck!

I would agree it's undervalued, but it's going to stay that way. If you want the best Aaron card, it's a good buy. If you want a card that's going to be the best investment I would stick with high-grade Topps issues of Aaron, Mantle and Clemente - whether they are rookie cards or not.

[Bored5000]

When you look at where the Jackie Robinson Bond Bread cards have gone price wise in recent years, I think Robinson's two Old Gold cards have a lot of room to increase in value. Obviously, those cards will not supplant his more mainstream color issues, but the low population and early date give both cards room to grow, IMO. Both cards still seem crazy undervalued to me. Both cards (especially the dugout version) seem like a reasonable place for collectors priced out of the Bond Bread market to go for a scarce early Jackie card.

In the interest of full disclosure, I do own a dugout version of the card.

[brian1961]

Originally Posted by DeanH3

Id take a look at the '54 Johnston Cookies Hank Aaron. An undervalued rookie in my opinion. Yes, it's a regional issue.

"Yes, it's a regional issue." As if that's a downer? As if that's a "lesser than ...". As if that's second-rate? Or even, "Well, I guess I'll have to settle for the...?

Dean, I realize the '54 Johnston Cookie Henry Aaron was released the same year as Aaron's beautiful '54 Topps regular issue, and we both know what the hobby has done with mainstream issue rookies.

But seriously, a regional is most respectable. Some are still referring to them by the antiquated and appalling term, "oddball", but the niche of regional / food issues typically carries with it strong aesthetics based upon attractive card / coin design, very moving player photos not to seen on a Topps card, a fascinating and highly challenging promotion that made cards not only hard to come by, but even harder to hunt a desired player card down in ultra high grade condition. The number of survivors of a given regional issue depended upon what was done with the leftover, unsold "free prizes". Fortunately, some were sold to one of the very, very, very few mail order trading card mail order firms. In the case of the 1954 Johnston Cookie cards, the leftovers were sold to Wholesale Cards Company from New York / Connecticut. Had they not been, surviving specimens would have been those saved by the original intended recipients, children, who tended to handle them, or should I say, mishandle them. Back then, there was nothing to protect a kid's cards, and really, at the time they were just cheap boy's toys, and in this case, a lure to get them to get their parents to buy Johnston Cookies. As I have discovered, EVEN regional sets that were sold to a party after the promotion was over, whether many or just a few, did not eventually sift out PSA 9 MINTs as often as most collectors assume. Didn't happen.

LONG to short, the regional / food issues carry with them beauty, significance, importance, built-in scarcity and genuine rarity, and unchallenged bragging rights that fill your fellow collectors with admiration, and some other unsettling emotions.

Yes, it IS a cool regional issue gem!

Furthermore, good choice to advise our fellow collector wishing to plunk down 10 C-notes.

----Brian Powell

[todeen]

Originally Posted by yankee4jc

Thanks guys. Interesting stuff. So a higher graded non rookie would appreciate more than a lower graded rookie? That’s why I posted because I’m just learning how graded cards are valued amongst collectors. Thanks for the input.

Also, I’m not a Yankees fan even though my user name includes “yankee”. I’m from Ohio and a Reds fan.

I'm also just starting the graded card pathway. Also a Reds fan! This year is the start of the turn around. Can't wait for Senzel to get called up!

[Fuddjcal]

Originally Posted by todeen

I'm also just starting the graded card pathway. Also a Reds fan! This year is the start of the turn around. Can't wait for Senzel to get called up!

News flash Senzel is a BUM... He has never been healthy since grade school. A complete bust PERIOD Sell all your Senzal rookies now!

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Fuddjcal

News flash Senzel is a BUM... He has never been healthy since grade school. A complete bust PERIOD Sell all your Senzal rookies now!

You know who was a bum? Homer Bailey. I will still give Senzel a chance. But I don't buy modern rookies anymore. I bought a couple Ichiro and Pujols rookies, and then I watched their prices fall. Not worth it when I can buy older stuff with lasting value.

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[AGuinness]

Regardless of the price point, if the objective is to flip I would say:
1. get something you'll enjoy having even if it doesn't appreciate in value, at least you'll get some pleasure out of it.
2. be super picky, find the nicest example you can for the budget, because if it's a superb example for the grade, it will be easier to sell down the road.

It can be difficult to know what has room to grow. I've done some of it and had successes, but also ended up selling for what I bought it for. Not too long ago, I would have said the Frank Robinson rookie was a great candidate, but I'm not sure if things have already gone up after his passing. Regardless, Robinson is an all-timer who is surely underrated.

[jason.1969]

I like 1948 Swell "Sport Thrills" Jackie Robinson.

As his Leaf RC is recognized more and more as a 1949 issue, I could see the Sport Thrills taking over RC status, which would obviously impact demand significantly.

And I am aware of 1947 Bond Bread and other early Robinson cards...but I see a genuine gum card as being hard to beat.

Disclosure - I have this card.

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[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by jason.1969

I like 1948 Swell "Sport Thrills" Jackie Robinson.

As his Leaf RC is recognized more and more as a 1949 issue, I could see the Sport Thrills taking over RC status, which would obviously impact demand significantly.

And I am aware of 1947 Bond Bread and other early Robinson cards...but I see a genuine gum card as being hard to beat.

Disclosure - I have this card.

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+1
There's a zillion Mantles out there, how much room can they have really?

[Bagwell-1994]

A 1955 Clemente PSA 3.5 or 4 (if you could get it at $1000) would be a good investment IMO. That card seems to be trending higher in value over the last few years.

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[Harliduck]

Originally Posted by Bagwell-1994

A 1955 Clemente PSA 3.5 or 4 (if you could get it at $1000) would be a good investment IMO. That card seems to be trending higher in value over the last few years.

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This card.


In 2015 I bought a graded 3 Topps 55 Clemente for $380. I sold it a year later for $460. Now that I am rebuilding my set I can't get a 3 under $1000...on a routine basis. Do an Ebay search...it's crazy...several in the last couple weeks for around $1300. I was tracking this grade in 2016 and most were around $400 to $600 and I was lucky with my $380. I was pleased I made a profit at the time, but wow. If I was investing $1000 I would buy the best Clemente RC I could find.


I've done best by identifying the card I want, and being PATIENT...buying well is the best way to profit if thats what your looking for (I really don't). Going after the best BIN and you'll over pay. I'm a night owl, best buys are those auctions that end in the middle of the night or really early in the morning. Bought some killer Mantles that way. Pick your card...and scan daily...it's a sickness as MANY people here know...lol.

[todeen]

Originally Posted by Harliduck

This card.
Pick your card...and scan daily...it's a sickness as MANY people here know...lol.

Hahahahahaha my wife calls "scanning" my mistress!

[jason.1969]

I see Mantle growing less and less exciting to the next generation of collectors.

I won't confuse my experience with scientific rigor, but most of the guys I know in their 20s and 30s put Mantle a lot farther down on their want lists than Aaron, Clemente, and Jackie Robinson. Mantle is viewed as overpriced and it is thought that the main reason his cards are so expensive is that "his cards are the most valuable."

There is obvious circularity to the reasoning that is consistent with a bubble prone to bursting...kind of an Emperor's New Clothes moment.

Obviously Mantle is a legendary and iconic player and his 18 WS HR is a record that may never be approached. Still, if we look at several of the reasons for his meteoric rise in the Hobby many are generational.

I would be zero surprised if Mantle prices 20 years from now are lower than they are today. I'd put my money on Jackie whose legacy will always remain critical, relevant, and larger than baseball.

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[dio]

Most Iconic, you said it.

From what i see, as people get older, they want older stuff
todays 20-30 yrs old collecting modern, but when they're 40-50 they'll start collecting vintage.

how many of us ever seen honus wagner and babe ruth play?

[jason.1969]

Originally Posted by dio

Most Iconic, you said it.



From what i see, as people get older, they want older stuff

todays 20-30 yrs old collecting modern, but when they're 40-50 they'll start collecting vintage.



how many of us ever seen honus wagner and babe ruth play?

Except I didn't say "most iconic." Just iconic. I believe this distinction will become magnified over time.

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[JunkyJoe]

Originally Posted by dio

Most Iconic, you said it.

From what i see, as people get older, they want older stuff
todays 20-30 yrs old collecting modern, but when they're 40-50 they'll start collecting vintage.

how many of us ever seen honus wagner and babe ruth play?

Great point, and just as some of us have never seen Mantle, Aaron, Mays, Koufax (... .... .......) play. Those who love the game will want to know the game's history at some point. Kids today who are fixated with all the silly things in modern pop culture will look back and laugh about it in years to come, just as some now might look back and laugh about the days when nothing in the world was more important than cruising to the rock concert in the Trans Am, with a good buzz.

And to the original thread question, I don't think you can go wrong with any graded cards from the Postwar era, of the various hall of fame players that we often talk about here (see my list above, just to name a few). Some collectors prefer higher grades, some prefer lower to mid grades. Collect what you like and can afford. If it's late-50's Topps PSA 4 or 5 Mantles, centered or not, it's all but guaranteed there will be collectors interested in those same cards 20 or 30 years from now (IMO).

[dio]

And overtime the quantity of available vintage card will decrease due to
1) dog ate it
2) flooding/hurricane
3) fire
4) wife got mad , throw it into trash
etc....

[jchcollins]

Originally Posted by dio

4) wife got mad , throw it into trash

etc....

Yep.








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[swabie2424]

Originally Posted by jason.1969

I won't confuse my experience with scientific rigor, but most of the guys I know in their 20s and 30s put Mantle a lot farther down on their want lists than Aaron, Clemente, and Jackie Robinson.

Enjoyed your post.

But please allow me to respectfully add one counterpoint to your thoughts. Mantle has one big thing going for him in terms of value that Aaron, Clemente and Jackie don't have... he's an iconic member of the New York Yankees. This must be factored in when considering the "demand" portion of the long term equation. The Yankees are the Yankees. And Mantle is on Yankees Mount Rushmore with Ruth, Gehrig and Dimaggio. There's exponentially more Yankees collectors on the planet and will continue to be unless they go through a huge, multi-multi-decades long organizational slump.

Let me say I think Clemente and Jackie are awesome long term values

[IgnatiusJReilly]

1956 Mantle psa 5
1956 Jackie psa 7 ( higher?)


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