Wow Rare Air 52 Mantle SGC 5 REA

[Forever Young]

Originally Posted by Peter_Spaeth

I prefer the 4.5, but understand the opposite perspective.

I would agree with this. Centering is very important to me on any card. Perhaps even more on the mantle- prob because 1952 Topps issues are tough to find centered and I would be more picky at these high price points.
That said… the ICONICNESS (these letters together should be a word I think) of #311 is the rich Blues/yellow bat/registration/shadow on face/logo/rc sig etc. The image is what is recognizable primarily.. not the centering which is 0-100 on every card with borders.
The “snow” is a big NO for me. Color and registration needs to be on point with more wiggle room on centering imo.

The two below are close. The 4.5 is a bit too off centered for me to be happy with but the sgc 3 is just way too snowy(more than a bit for me).
Obviously still very valuable and great cards but I just wouldn’t be a player close to what they would sell for at auction.

[MattyC]

For me, those two examples above are ones that I pass on, so I would choose Option C: keep stacking my chips for a card like the 4 that was posted earlier in the thread, or my own 4.5.

The 4.5 in question above is just far too OC for me, and the 3 while possessed of decent centering has too many abrasions or scuffing, and the 311 is a card that I like with a deep, rich blue background. Sometimes it is best to holster it and pay much more for beauty that has it all.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by MattyC

For me, those two examples above are ones that I pass on, so I would choose Option C: keep stacking my chips for a card like the 4 that was posted earlier in the thread, or my own 4.5.

The 4.5 in question above is just far too OC for me, and the 3 while possessed of decent centering has too many abrasions or scuffing, and the 311 is a card that I like with a deep, rich blue background. Sometimes it is best to holster it and pay much more for beauty that has it all.

Man, to me saying that 3 has "decent" centering is like saying Hamlet was a decent play.

[Snowman]

Originally Posted by MattyC

For me, those two examples above are ones that I pass on, so I would choose Option C: keep stacking my chips for a card like the 4 that was posted earlier in the thread, or my own 4.5.

The 4.5 in question above is just far too OC for me, and the 3 while possessed of decent centering has too many abrasions or scuffing, and the 311 is a card that I like with a deep, rich blue background. Sometimes it is best to holster it and pay much more for beauty that has it all.

Ya, I'm with you here. In fact, it's why I passed on every 3 and 4 I ever had the chance to buy and ended up buying one in an authentic holder instead. Mine isn't dead-centered obviously, but I still much prefer it to either of those two above.

It's a strange market though for high-end cards in Authentic holders. I've had 3 people offer me $100k for it, and multiple people saying "it's only worth $30-40k". It's one of those cards that has a much smaller market, and is not quite as liquid as one with a number grade. I suppose it's a bit ironic that I'm as OCD as I am about eye-appeal but not about Auth holders.