Vintage card regrets

[Ricky]

So, maybe I wasn't clear enough.

Certainly, my daughter and her education was and is, absolutely, #1. I don't regret what I did - at all. Looking back, it was a decision that my wife and I made and we probably did so in haste. We panicked a little at the price tag of the university that she chose and as it turned out, we were able to help pay for her education in subsequent semesters with no future baseball card sales involved. Probably could have done so without the selling the ones that I did.

My only intent in starting this thread was to see if there were others among you who had, over the years, sold cards that you miss today and wish you still had. That's all.

[pokerplyr80]

Tough crowd this morning. I knew what you meant Rick from your first post. I was buying a house a couple of years ago and sold a few more cards than I needed to in order to free up some cash. I regret letting a green cobb go as it was really nice for the grade and would probably cost me 2 or 3x what I sold it for now to replace.

[ALR-bishop]

Welcome aboard Ricky. You too Markcal, but if Rick'y's post generated a WOW you may find this place really entertaining.

[gregr2]

First off, welcome to the forum. Second, I have only been collecting for a few years and I can't afford the type of cards that could pay for college tuition. For me, I buy stuff that I like, some stuff I keep, other stuff I turn and sell but I have yet to have any regrets.

[Ricky]

I started collecting vintage cards in the late 1970s and continued through the early '90s, so I was lucky in that I was able to pick up some great cards at very reasonable prices. This was all in the years before graded cards entered the scene. I stopped, at least as far as the vintage cards go, when life - marriage, mortgage, kid - entered the picture and recently have begun to collect again. Amazed at the changes in the hobby and how the prices have exploded.

[dk1216]

Yep... A few years ago I sold several T206 scraps and a proof. The money I got for them was more than was fair, but I regretted it the minute I dropped them off at the post office. The only cards I've ever sold outright.

[JollyElm]

How about a friend's regret? My buddy sold all of his Mantles (in the 90's before the slab craze) to buy his girlfriend an engagement ring. Broke his heart, but he knew he had to do it. Yup, you guessed it, their marriage didn't last. I refer to it as 'the day the cardboard died.'

[ls7plus]

1925 Exhibits Gehrig rookie in PSA VG and 1959 Bazooka Mantle in Near Mint (all dotted lines intake and no real flaws in the card) in the early 2000's when my focus had shifted to putting a 650 HP, 540 CID big block motor in my '72 Corvette, plus strengthened TCI Turbo 400 trans, custom 3" exhaust and fabricated headers, etc., etc. The car still runs great, and has been very reliable, but that's now a total of about $60K or more in cards. I could get them back if I wanted to, but really have no interest in investing that much at any one time in that area. Other priorities rank higher. Still, a lesson learned, as there were other avenues I could have taken with the car to get it to what I wanted it to be (yes, I am a certified gearhead in addition to card collector).

Best of luck to you all,

Larry

[Steve D]

I regret having to sell my N172 Mike Kelly, T227 Ty Cobb and 1954 Bowman Ted Williams back in 1991. I was in the Air Force, and had just been transferred to Texas, after two years in Germany. I needed money to buy a car and furnish an apartment, as I was moving out of the dormitory/barracks. Like you, it was the right thing to do, I just regret that I had to do it. These three cards were but a small part of a much larger group of cards (including every T206 HOFer card except Wagner and Plank). I've subsequently re-collected the T206s, but have never been able to re-acquire examples of the Kelly, Cobb and Williams.

On the buying side, my big regret is coming in second on a T206 Eddie Plank about 12 or so years ago. I bid $16,100, and it went for $16,200 on ebay.

Steve

[hcv123]

So, In contemplating the question and thinking about many cards I've sold - As close as I could come to regret was a 1971 Bazooka numbered panel of Clemente - which is a legitimately tough item to find and I am not sure I will own one again. Other than that, seeing some of the prices of cards today that I sold years ago, it would have been nice to have them to sell for today's prices, but I don't much regret not having the cards and got at the time very fair prices for them - the worst - I sold a raw 1968 3D Clemente at the time PSA was becoming more known and there was much controversy whether they would last and be accepted in the hobby. It was in great condition - I would have called it near mint. I sold it for $6500. The collector I sold it to immediately sent it to PSA for grading - it came back a 9 - within a few months I watched a 9 sell at auction for about $30k!! Pain - yes, regret no.

[brianp-beme]

Originally Posted by Steve D

On the buying side, my big regret is coming in second on a T206 Eddie Plank about 12 or so years ago. I bid $16,100, and it went for $16,200 on ebay.

Steve

Just tell yourself that the person who won the card had a top bid of $25,000, so you never had a chance anyway.

Brian (self-delusional since the Eighties)

[riggs336]

In the late 70's I sold off most of my duplicate stars via The Trader Speaks. I still remember some of the prices: 1958 Aaron $3.00; 1954 T Williams #1 $4.50; 1948 Leaf Spahn $4.50 (the check bounced on that one).
I didn't regret selling them at the time and regretting it now would have to go really low on my list of Most Wanted Life Mulligans.

[Steve D]

Originally Posted by brianp-beme

Just tell yourself that the person who won the card had a top bid of $25,000, so you never had a chance anyway.

Brian (self-delusional since the Eighties)

Oh, believe me, that's what I've been telling myself ever since the auction ended.

It helps some, but not completely.

I am very glad though, that the winning bid was a full normal increment, and not some odd small amount where it was obviously the winner's high bid.

Steve