Babe Ruth Item - What would you buy with $500?

[ullmandds]

Originally Posted by packs

I paid $515 for this one three or so years ago. It's possible to score one on your budget:

not one like that!!!

[packs]

It happened to me. It could happen to you. Just be patient.

[brian1961]

Leon and Packs have shown you compelling cards from Babe's career that are do-able, though probably for more than 500 smackers. Period cards, those from the man's playing career, are the best. If you wish to have but one Ruth in your collection, and your heart's desire is a period Babe, by all means, forget what I said----go for the vintage!

I do wish to make sure you understand where I was coming from in urging you to consider the 2013 NSCC Promo Card that Never Was 1915 Cracker Jack Babe Ruth. If you don't already know, this fantasy card is pure quality, and still under $500. The word "still" connotes I am suggesting some day this fantasy will take $500 to buy it. Yes, I am. It would be a first, but this is no ordinary fantasy baseball card.

Arthur K. Miller, the talented creator of this small, but massive, cubic zirconia, poured a lot of thoughtful care into his fantasy card of Babe Ruth.

Mr. Miller shrewdly toned the borders down from today's diaper-white to bone china white, so they appear precisely as a genuine PSA MINT 9 Cracker Jack would look. Nice touch. The portrait he chose was perfect. Hands on hips, with the right "tough customer" countenance that marked his successful pitching career in Boston.

The colorization given Ruth was remarkable, as rich as Mr. Miller could make Babe, and yet still subdued as the real Cracker Jacks were.

Granted, PSA did not grant these fantasy Babes with a numerical grade. However, rum-dum factory seconds most assuredly were not ensconced into any of those PSA holders. Each and every one of the 500 specimens was PSA GEM MINT 10-worthy, trust me.

For those who don't want to trust me, and remain cynical, mule-headed snobs, I'm warning you this day. The time will come when the title / catch phrase of an old 1940s radio program shall ring loudly in your ears:

"YOU'LL BE SORRY!!!!!!!!!!!!"

Just don't shoot me, as Daffy Duck did to the brave chap who tried to warn Porky Pig of his impending doom as a contestant on "TRUTH, OR AAAHHHHHHHHH", in the Looney Tunes 1947 cartoon classic, "The Hucksters".

In all seriousness, collect whatcha like. You gotta work within your budget. Don't try to please everybody, as Ricky Nelson sang, just please yourself, bro.

Hey, you ask for opinions, you're bound to get a dozen different answers. In this instance, advice is cheaper by the dozen. Though I suppose, if you acted upon all the advice, it transpires to never cheaper by the dozen.

Take your time, bro. Then, once you see the Ruth you want, don't wait a second longer; otherwise someone else might bag it and you'll initiate a thread along the lines of "DIDJA EVER MISS OUT ON A CARD 'CAUSE YOU WAITED TOO LONG?" Most painful.

Best regards, Brian Powell

[glchen]

The reason I can't really take the 2013 NSCC card seriously even though it is numbered to 500 is that Memory Lane also sent one of these cards as part of their auction catalog that shipped around the same time as that National. Same front, but Memory Lane advertising back. So who knows how many thousands of these were given away. (I have one myself.) That and the fact that it's a card that was issued way after Ruth's playing days makes me believe that this card will never really have that much value. Sure, I really like the front image also, but I also like the images of a bunch of modern Topps cards for Ruth that regularly sell on ebay for less than a dollar.

[yanksfan09]

Originally Posted by glchen

The reason I can't really take the 2013 NSCC card seriously even though it is numbered to 500 is that Memory Lane also sent one of these cards as part of their auction catalog that shipped around the same time as that National. Same front, but Memory Lane advertising back. So who knows how many thousands of these were given away. (I have one myself.) That and the fact that it's a card that was issued way after Ruth's playing days makes me believe that this card will never really have that much value. Sure, I really like the front image also, but I also like the images of a bunch of modern Topps cards for Ruth that regularly sell on ebay for less than a dollar.

+1... I got a free one with add back in my Cracker Jack Book. Same card front, why pay hundreds for an artificially limited 1 of 500? They're fantasy pieces. As a Cracker Jack set collector/owner and a huge Ruth enthusiast, the card is very well done but I don't see any real monetary value in it ever (i would expect it to decline in price). I would definitely recommend sticking to a piece from his playing days (or pre 1948 at least, which is year he died and year of the leaf issue)

[ullmandds]

Originally Posted by yanksfan09

+1... I got a free one with add back in my Cracker Jack Book. Same card front, why pay hundreds for an artificially limited 1 of 500? They're fantasy pieces. As a Cracker Jack set collector/owner and a huge Ruth enthusiast, the card is very well done but I don't see any real monetary value in it ever (i would expect it to decline in price). I would definitely recommend sticking to a piece from his playing days (or pre 1948 at least, which is year he died and year of the leaf issue)

funny thing is...in typical fashion...a question is posed...and the responses tend toward the self serving. "what is the best babe ruth card to get?" Well of course it's the one I have!!!!!!! What's the most esthetically pleasing card ever made? Well of course it's a card I own!!!!!!!!!!!

The OP stated period card...end of discussion re. a fantasy cj card...seriously people!!!!!!

[brian1961]

Gents, I was under the misunderstanding that only 500 specimens of the 2013 NSCC Card that Never Was 1915 Cracker Jack Babe Ruth were ever printed. However, as you mercifully stated, Gary, the backside of the 500 appear as a fantasy Cracker Jack would have appeared, whereas Memory Lane's have their advertising printed upon it. That makes for a different case, although I imagine PSA would not encapsulate any of the Memory Lane "ad" Ruths.

I must retract, then, what I projected---a future $500 value will likely never be reached. I based my prognostication on a couple eBay entries I saw for "Buy It Now". The cheapest was $180.

As far as being self serving, Pete, I have no intention of selling my Cracker Jack Babe Ruth. Period. I could use the $500, but I'd rather keep the card. I only have one of them, and if I had more than one then yes, I would gladly part with the duplicate.

Let me say this, in my forthcoming book, NEVER CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN, I wrote of many postwar regional / food issues. Most of them I do not own; a few of them I do own. Without owning a few of them, I seriously doubt I would be able to bring as much enthusiasm and passion to the subject at all. Moreover, I was not going to sell the cards I had, just to avoid catcalls from the likes of you. I feel certain that I will still be accused of trumpeting my own cards by a few guys. WILL ISN'T THAT JUST TOO BAD? There is absolutely nothing illegal in writing about something you own.

Borrowing from another hobby of mine, in 1980 Joel Finn wrote the most thorough and authoritative work on the 1957 - 1962 Ferrari Testa Rossa racing sports cars. Without going into great detail, today they routinely auction for over $15,000,000. Mr. Finn happens to own one of them, beautifully restored, and several fine studies of HIS VERY OWN TESTA ROSSA appear on the front of the book's dust jacket. At the time he wrote his landmark book, the car was worth $1,000,000 at the very most. Try not to choke on your carefully flavored coffee, Pete, when you read these words.

Hey, I'll make ya feel better, bro. So are collecting ultra rare hyper-expensive Ferrari racing sports cars my other hobby. Well, no; collecting fine detailed 1/43rd model cars of them is my other hobby.

Many collectors, including myself, rave over the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle. I owned a beautiful specimen for about 24 years. I miss it terribly. I will never be able to own that card again. That has not stopped me from still admiring and speaking very highly of it.

Lastly, I must embarrass myself again. I was also under the misunderstanding the original poster was inquiring about period Babe Ruth cards produced during his playing days. My bad. I chimed in on the Cracker Jack Ruth when someone else encouraged him to buy that instead. I guess my "chimed in" was more like a Quick Draw McGraw EL KABONG.

---Brian Powell

P.S. Pete----I know you think the fantasy Cracker Jack Babe is a real crock and should not be taken seriously in the least. I still seriously love this card, which is what card collecting is all about. I cannot afford a period Ruth at all. The CJ Babe gives me a card collectors fantasy at a fraction of the price a genuine would cost today. Come on, Pete, some of us are struggling financially, yet we have the nerve to like old baseball players and old cars anyway.

[Shoeless Moe]

Originally Posted by brian1961

Gents, I was under the misunderstanding that only 500 specimens of the 2013 NSCC Card that Never Was 1915 Cracker Jack Babe Ruth were ever printed. However, as you mercifully stated, Gary, the backside of the 500 appear as a fantasy Cracker Jack would have appeared, whereas Memory Lane's have their advertising printed upon it. That makes for a different case, although I imagine PSA would not encapsulate any of the Memory Lane "ad" Ruths.

I must retract, then, what I projected---a future $500 value will likely never be reached. I based my prognostication on a couple eBay entries I saw for "Buy It Now". The cheapest was $180.

As far as being self serving, Pete, I have no intention of selling my Cracker Jack Babe Ruth. Period. I could use the $500, but I'd rather keep the card. I only have one of them, and if I had more than one then yes, I would gladly part with the duplicate.

Let me say this, in my forthcoming book, NEVER CHEAPER BY THE DOZEN, I wrote of many postwar regional / food issues. Most of them I do not own; a few of them I do own. Without owning a few of them, I seriously doubt I would be able to bring as much enthusiasm and passion to the subject at all. Moreover, I was not going to sell the cards I had, just to avoid catcalls from the likes of you. I feel certain that I will still be accused of trumpeting my own cards by a few guys. WILL ISN'T THAT JUST TOO BAD? There is absolutely nothing illegal in writing about something you own.

Borrowing from another hobby of mine, in 1980 Joel Finn wrote the most thorough and authoritative work on the 1957 - 1962 Ferrari Testa Rossa racing sports cars. Without going into great detail, today they routinely auction for over $15,000,000. Mr. Finn happens to own one of them, beautifully restored, and several fine studies of HIS VERY OWN TESTA ROSSA appear on the front of the book's dust jacket. At the time he wrote his landmark book, the car was worth $1,000,000 at the very most. Try not to choke on your carefully flavored coffee, Pete, when you read these words.

Hey, I'll make ya feel better, bro. So are collecting ultra rare hyper-expensive Ferrari racing sports cars my other hobby. Well, no; collecting fine detailed 1/43rd model cars of them is my other hobby.

Many collectors, including myself, rave over the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle. I owned a beautiful specimen for about 24 years. I miss it terribly. I will never be able to own that card again. That has not stopped me from still admiring and speaking very highly of it.

Lastly, I must embarrass myself again. I was also under the misunderstanding the original poster was inquiring about period Babe Ruth cards produced during his playing days. My bad. I chimed in on the Cracker Jack Ruth when someone else encouraged him to buy that instead. I guess my "chimed in" was more like a Quick Draw McGraw EL KABONG.

---Brian Powell

P.S. Pete----I know you think the fantasy Cracker Jack Babe is a real crock and should not be taken seriously in the least. I still seriously love this card, which is what card collecting is all about. I cannot afford a period Ruth at all. The CJ Babe gives me a card collectors fantasy at a fraction of the price a genuine would cost today. Come on, Pete, some of us are struggling financially, yet we have the nerve to like old baseball players and old cars anyway.

Leon I call for random drug testing of all board members!