1934 Gehrig Goudey 61 New Member Intro

[marvymelvin]

Hello. I am a new member, just registered today. I have been reading posts for years and have been saving many questions to ask until now. I used to collect a lot of different things but am now just collecting pre 60's Yankees. My father flew to NY in April 1959 to watch the Yankees play the Orioles. I have his ticket stub and an 8mm home movie he took at the game. Anyway, I just bought a 1934 Goudey Gehrig #61 on ebay. I most likely paid a bit high but I liked the card. I love having a raw card and holding it, but I am only buying psa and sgc graded cards simply because I don't know all I need to know about fakes etc. However, I have also heard about fake psa slabs. I was wondering if anyone can help me out by looking at my new purchase and tell me what they think. And maybe a few pointers on fake 1934 Goudeys and fake psa slabs. (it is sitting quite crooked in the slab...is this normal?) The card is a psa 2.5 but I think it maybe a little too high of a grade. I have seen better looking 2's. Thanks ahead of time,
Brad

http://www.ebay.com/itm/161321929015...84.m1497.l2649


It is item # 161321929015 if you have trouble with the link above

[bobbyw8469]

The white background is horrid. I can't tell if the case is compromised with it against the white background. A black background is better, and I don't know why all sellers don't use a black background. Yes, the card appears to be overgraded for a '2.5'.

[the 'stache]

First of all, welcome to the forum, Brad! My name is Bill. Nice to meet you If you've been reading the pages of Net 54 for years, as you stated, congratulations on taking the plunge!

When you buy a baseball card, the most important question to ask yourself is "am I happy with the card I bought?". If you overpaid a little bit, it's ok if you love it. After all, how can you assign a dollar value to your happiness? I think at one time or another, we'll all overpaid on a purchase, so don't lose any sleep if you've done so here. You'll better learn how to gauge where the market is at for vintage and pre-war baseball cards.

That being said, let's take a look at the recent history of this particular card. There are a few different resources you can go to to narrow down what you should be paying for a baseball card.

Firstly, there's vintage card prices (VCP for short). That's a subscription service that tracks the history of vintage and pre-war baseball card sales. You may have seen this discussed on the forum before. The site can be located here. You can sign up for 24 hours if you're just wanting to price a few cards. Or, you can sign up for a month at a time. I've only used it a few times, and I've found it yo be pretty intuitive.

The second, and in my opinion the best resource, is card target. Card target is free. But it does not yet track all the sets. People are updating the site to track other sets, and those new sets are made available to the public often. It's a very useful resource that is growing, and you can find it here.

When you go to card target, go to price history in the upper left corner, and then select the set you are inquiring about. Once you have selected that set (in this case, 1934 Goudey), click on the name of the player. In this case, Mr. Gehrig has two cards in this set: #37, the one I will be buying later this year, and #61, the one you just picked up. Once you've clicked on your particular card, a page with the current auctions comes up. To the right side, you'll see a link for "sales history". Click that. You can then select the tpg, or third party grader, which is PSA. Then select the grade 2 (there's not yet an option for half grades).

Here's a quick link to that sales history: clicky



You can look at this, and determine how close you were.

The third options is to look at the history of cards sold on Ebay. I'll assume you know how to use Ebay's search, by clicking on the "advanced" link in the upper right hand corner of Ebay's home page. Put the card info in, check mark "sold listings", and go to it.

When considering a card I might purchase, if it's more than $100 or so, I will only buy from sellers I know are reputable. If you're not sure about somebody, don't be afraid to ask here. Google "net54baseball" and their Ebay id, and see if they've been discussed here before. Also, look at the seller's history. If they have a 1934 Goudey Lou Gehrig up for sale at $800, and they don't have any other baseball cards up for sale, then I might raise an eyebrow.

Two other things make me suspicious. One, they are selling a graded card, and there are no returns. Some sellers won't take returns on graded cards, but if they're legit, and the card they're selling is legit, too, then they shouldn't have a problem with a return if there's a problem with the card.

And, as has been already mentioned, if there were any substantial issues with the slab (the card case), they would be very hard to see against a white background.

When I see these kinds of things, Brad, I would contact the seller, and ask them to provide another picture of the card with a dark (ie black) background.

It's hard to give a crash course in detecting problems with slabs. There are certain things you will see as you collect more, things that will stand out to you.



This is a PSA slab. What you're looking for as a tell tale sign of tampering is "frosting", or areas of the slab edge that are bright white. Keep in mind that a little bit of frosting is natural-slabs leave PSA with a little bit showing from the way the cards are sonically sealed. But when you see whole edges displaying this frosting, or corners and the adjacent areas showing a lot of frosting, then you can be suspicious. Take a look at the lower-right corner of this case. It appears to be a brighter white.

There are people that know how to "pop" these cases, take the card out, and put a new card in, and resealing (glue) the card so it won't show any signs of tampering. So, looking for signs of tampering is not always foolproof. The advice you'll get from me, and a lot of the other members of Net 54:

Buy from reputable dealers/sellers.
Don't buy the slab. Buy the card.

If you buy from people that are trustworthy, you greatly reduce the likelihood that you are buying a card that is not authentic.
If you buy the card, not the slab/grade, you are examining the card up close. And examining a card is where you'll see things that don't look right, including cards that have been trimmed, or otherwise altered.

Do you have other 1934 Goudey baseball cards? If you do, compare one of those to the Gehrig when you get it in. Look at them side by side under magnification. You should have at least a 5 x magnifying glass or loupe. 10 x is preferred. If the Gehrig exhibits something that seems off, take a picture, or scan the card with a dark backing, and post that picture here. If you have been sold a bad card, regardless of what the Ebay seller's auction description says, you are protected. And if there's something off, we'll help you to see it.

Good luck, and please let me know when this card gets in.

Bill

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

Welcome to the Board! As Bill's great post demonstrates there is no limit to the learning you can do on this board.

[marvymelvin]

Thanks Bill, for your wealth of information. VCP and Card Target look like great resources. I will definitely post some better pictures once the card arrives. Shall I crack it out of the case to do so or can you analyze it while in the case? Also, while I am waiting delivery, what are members thoughts about the card at first glance??

[I Only Smoke 4 the Cards]

Originally Posted by marvymelvin

Thanks Bill, for your wealth of information. VCP and Card Target look like great resources. I will definitely post some better pictures once the card arrives. Shall I crack it out of the case to do so or can you analyze it while in the case? Also, while I am waiting delivery, what are members thoughts about the card at first glance??

So you pulled the trigger?

[marvymelvin]

Yes I did pull the trigger. I am not so concerned about the condition as I like the card, as long it is legit, not trimmed altered, switched slab etc.

[ethicsprof]

welcome aboard the board!
great card.

best,
barry

[marvymelvin]

Thanks for the welcome Barry. There seems to be a lot of friendly people on here. I have some neat stories to share and look forward to adding to my collection. So far I have not received an opinion on the 1934 Goudey Gehrig #61 I recently bought. What do you think?

Also, I am looking for the following right now:

Sweet Caporal Yankees pins
1949 Leaf DiMaggio (Joe that is)
T206 Hal Chase both blue and pink background portraits
1952 Bowman Mantle
Fatima Yankees (Americans) team card/photo

[Leon]

Originally Posted by marvymelvin

Thanks for the welcome Barry. There seems to be a lot of friendly people on here. I have some neat stories to share and look forward to adding to my collection. So far I have not received an opinion on the 1934 Goudey Gehrig #61 I recently bought. What do you think?

Also, I am looking for the following right now:

Sweet Caporal Yankees pins
1949 Leaf DiMaggio (Joe that is)
T206 Hal Chase both blue and pink background portraits
1952 Bowman Mantle
Fatima Yankees (Americans) team card/photo

Your '34 Goudey Gehrig purchase was fine and in line with current sales assuming you paid just a little less than the listed price. Except for the bottom border it's really nice. The fact that the bit of paper damage is mostly confined outside of the photo (in the border) makes it a nicer pick up than if the picture had issues itself. Cards slanting in their holder is fairly common.

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by marvymelvin

Thanks for the welcome Barry. There seems to be a lot of friendly people on here. I have some neat stories to share and look forward to adding to my collection. So far I have not received an opinion on the 1934 Goudey Gehrig #61 I recently bought. What do you think?

Also, I am looking for the following right now:

Sweet Caporal Yankees pins
1949 Leaf DiMaggio (Joe that is)
T206 Hal Chase both blue and pink background portraits
1952 Bowman Mantle
Fatima Yankees (Americans) team card/photo

I'm sorry, Brad, I forgot to comment on the card itself. I agree it's a nice looking Gehrig. Looking at the prices from Card Target, it's within the normal price variance.

Don't crack the card out when you get it, that is, unless you're completely happy with it. Once you crack it out, there's no returning it. Ebay would state the package was no longer in the same condition, and they'd side with the seller. If you have any questions, scan it, and show us. But I didn't see anything that raised any concerns from the picture you provided.

If you have any other questions, feel free to message me privately. I'm always happy to help.

Have a great Sunday evening!

Bill