It grinds my gears when...

[keithsky]

I have lost many auctions to dealers or other auction companies only to find the item in there auction or on there website or Ebay at inflated prices a few weeks later. Everyone is entitled to bid and win and the ones with deep pockets you wouldn't have a chance anyway.

[bender07]

Originally Posted by keithsky

I have lost many auctions to dealers or other auction companies only to find the item in there auction or on there website or Ebay at inflated prices a few weeks later. Everyone is entitled to bid and win and the ones with deep pockets you wouldn't have a chance anyway.

Totally valid points. Sour grapes on my part.

[jimjim]

Mill Creek Sports does it all the time. Buy an item, slap a PSA/DNA sticker on it, and then charge a crazy high price. Drives me nuts!

[keithsky]

Yea there are a few big dealers on Ebay that I won't name that do the same thing, throw a PSA cert on it and charge an inflated price.

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by keithsky

Yea there are a few big dealers on Ebay that I won't name that do the same thing, throw a PSA cert on it and charge an inflated price.

If they are dealers, I would assume they are successful at selling stuff, but if their prices really are too high to result in sales, then just wait until they go out of business.

My guess is that the real problem is that people are willing to pay so much for items with PSA or JSA certs, that it's pricing you out of the 'unslabbed' autograph market. Not sure who is responsible for driving those prices up, but I hear a lot of support for TPA's here in this sub-forum.

[jimjim]

One of the issues is that the dealers get super discounted prices from TPA so they are already at an advantage. I could care less about TPA but they buy a Mantle ball for $300, get a COA, and then charge $500 - 600.

[Runscott]

Originally Posted by jimjim

One of the issues is that the dealers get super discounted prices from TPA so they are already at an advantage. I could care less about TPA but they buy a Mantle ball for $300, get a COA, and then charge $500 - 600.

That's true with almost any business - high volume results in discounts. You might not care about TPA's, but they seem to be the root of this particular problem. If TPA's didn't exist, you would be able to bid higher than the dealers being complained about, since you both would be competing for an end product, and they would require a profit margin that you don't.