Speaking of 52 Mantles...

[pokerplyr80]

I thought the SGC 70 would have went for a little more

[CW]

That's a nice, strong price for the PSA 3, although it's also a nice card for the assigned grade.

http://sports.ha.com/itm/baseball-ca...links-12202013

[MattyC]

Agreed the 3 was a real healthy price and not surprising since the card was nice for the grade.

IMO the 6 was a bit weak looking with that scuffing and it still went BANANAS.

The others had the usual woeful centering issues.

[wheels56]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Agreed the 3 was a real healthy price and not surprising since the card was nice for the grade.

IMO the 6 was a bit weak looking with that scuffing and it still went BANANAS.

The others had the usual woeful centering issues.

Yeah, I agree on the 6. The surfaces are not great, significantly impacting the eye appeal. The centering is nice, but I have a bit of a contrarian point of view in that I think centering, while important, is a bit overrated.

The 6 that sold last year for *$14K less* is WAY nicer, IMHO:

http://sports.ha.com/itm/baseball/19...a/7105-80477.s

Both 4.5s (the PSA and the SGC) are nice as well. I think they both represent decent value for the money. I'd take either of those over the SGC 5.5 any day, again, based on the surfaces.

In retrospect, I actually think the 3 might actually be the best overall value.

Other thoughts?

[MattyC]

The 6 on eBay right now is really nice. Comparing it to the Heritage 6 the asking price is very logical, too. Hits my eye like a 7 all day. For all the meh examples let alone fakes we see for sale, a nice one really stands out.

[begsu1013]

we talking the sgc @ $65K? this was the one that was just auctioned off, right? maybe @ $54K if I recall...not sure if that includes buyer premium or not...

it's really hard for me to follow all the auction houses and buyer's premium, extended bidding sessions and such....

regardless it's a stunning version!!

wondering if it would cross? I can't see it in a psa 5 holder, but then again I don't see your 4.5 in a 4.5 holder either (in a good way)!

[MattyC]

Thanks, B.

I agree. That 6 on eBay is lovely. It's a very personal call on how one pulls the trigger and at what price points, but the way I buy, I could not give a flying f&@k what PSA or SGC says about a card as nice that SGC 6 on eBay. It blows away many PSA 6s in the looks department, including the Heritage card that just sold for over 50k. The sad but understandable politics of crossing are such that one TPG would NEVER give it the same grade unless it was cracked and subbed raw.

But even in a PSA 5.5 holder, that eBay SGC 6 card would and should command more than the PSA 6 that Heritage just auctioned.

In terms of how holders can often be dismissed in this day and age, where the old adage of "Buy The Card, Not The Holder" seems to be the prevailing philosophy among so many collectors, the collector who won a recent 6 at a big auction called me before placing his winning bid, and offered me only two less grand for mine than he paid for the 6.