T206 Trends

[ullmandds]

super rare backs and cobbs...the better the condition of any... are the only ways to "invest" in t206 these days.

[MVSNYC]

^^^


Cobbs & Rare Backs

[RedsFan1941]

i think most everyone agrees that cobb is king in the t206 set. i also think the consensus is his portraits are always the most popular, with the bat-on and bat-off versions a distant second. you certainly don't need a high-grade cobb, because with demand so high, nicely centered examples in 3 and 4 holders will always be coveted by collectors.

[MMantle7]

What are thoughts on Lajoie or some lesser known HOF's?

[rats60]

You are better off with Wajo, Matty and Cy Young if you can't afford Cobb. I think the gap between tiers of Hofers, stars and commons will just continue to increase.

[DeanH3]

Generally speaking, I would put them in this order.

Cobb > WaJo > Matty > Young > Speaker/Lajoie > remaining HOF'ers.

Portraits sell for more than action poses.

Eddie Collins seems to be undervalued to me.

centered copies sell for a premium.

Good luck!

[mechanicalman]

Originally Posted by rats60

You are better off with Wajo, Matty and Cy Young if you can't afford Cobb. I think the gap between tiers of Hofers, stars and commons will just continue to increase.

I think this makes a lot of sense. I've been collecting T206 HoFers for a few years and the % increases on Cobb (especially portraits) has not been seen at the same rate with Matty, Cy, and WaJo, especially on their non portrait versions. I especially think Matty is perhaps a bit undervalued. Speaker, Lajoie, and E.Collins seem like decent values as well, relatively speaking.

Also, if it hasn't been said already, the "centering premium" has become more important than ever. You won't find any "deals" on centered HoFers, but your downside risk will likely be limited.

[jasonc]

I've noticed the price of Any T206 Cobb, and the T206 Wajo portrait has gone up the last few years.

It hasn't been discussed, but I think I saw somewhere... since the pre boom era (before 1989), T206's have went up considerably, as compared to post war cards... Mind you post war cards went up but not the growth of T206's have seen.

Anybody the know what Cobb/Wajo/Young T206's were worth in mid 80's... My old beckett doesn't have a list of them; or your average commons?

[steve B]

I bought both of the Cobbs I have back in the mid 80's, one maybe late 80's. They're in pretty rough shape, each was $50.

[rats60]

Originally Posted by jasonc

Anybody the know what Cobb/Wajo/Young T206's were worth in mid 80's... My old beckett doesn't have a list of them; or your average commons?

I have the original printing of Lew Lipset's book from 1986. His prices were for Ex-Mt
Cobb green 300
Cobb bat on 250
Cobb bat off 225
Cobb red 200
Johnson 100
Matty black cap 110
Matty white cap 90
Hof 25
Commons 12-25.

I had started collecting the year before and I know that I was paying 5 for commons, so I would cut those prices in half for values before the boom.No price on Young, but I want to say 40.

[rats60]

T205 Cobb was priced the same as the t206 green. Now it is about a third.

[sterlingfox]

Top tier HOFers, especially the Cobbs and other portraits, have shot up in price a great deal in the last year or two.

Rare backs are consistently trending upwards, especially the mid to top tier rare backs (Hindu Brown and up).

As others have mentioned, oddities/mis-cuts/double names/print errors/color shifts/scrap/ghosts/missing color passes/etc, and even blank backs, have leveled off and even come down a bit.

Titus has cooled off quite a bit.