1952 Topps Mantle vs T206 Wagner

[ullmandds]

that's a tough call for me. The mantle is a gorgeous example...and the most iconic card of the 2nd half of the 20th c. The wags is butt ugly...only 80% of a card really. But the t206 wags is "the" card of the hobby. I'd take the wags and I'd consider having a custom case made that would "add" the missing borders...I could live with that!!!

[Johnny630]

Mantle

[mrreality68]

I would go with the Wagner and I actually like the look of the card.
Both are great cards but I believe the upside potential on the Wagner is still greater than on that Mantle(although both have upside potential)

Lower inventory and great demand for them.

The Mantle has a lot of inventory (not at that grade) but a lot of inventory and even with great demand there is so much total inventory easier to get a Mantle vs a Wagner

[notfast]

Wagner and its not close for me.

[hcv123]

If the question was Mantle or Wagner as a player long term - from a value perspective my answer would be Mantle because I think he will have more staying power 50-100 years from now.
BUT, that wasn't the question.
The T206 Wagner I believe will retain its iconic status for generations to come and has status in its own right that is larger than Wagner himself. So will the 52 Mantle.
While I agree in an absolute sense there are more Mantle's than Wagners, when you throw those 2 specific cards into the mix, you are comparing one of the best quality 52 Mantle's against one of the worst quality T206 Wag's.
I've gotta go with the quality on the Mantle over the Wagner.

[bnorth]

The Wagner al day. I have owned many beat up and trimmed tobacco cards. I couldn't care less about centering but hate cards with a tilt to them. Unless it is a horrible picture that is one ugly Mantle.

[Tyruscobb]

There are less than 60 known T206 Wagners. It is the world’s most iconic sports card. ‘52 Mantles are relatively plentiful. Across all the TPGs, there are more ‘52 graded Mantle 8s than there are Wagners.

Give me the Wagner. Value aside, I’d even probably take the Wagner that is almost cut in half over this Mantle.

[111gecko]

Wagner..just because of the scarcity. ('52 Mantle is still my favorite card though)..

Love this question though as it brings up an interesting point:

How many Mantles vs. Wagners are still in homes/barns/buildings that haven't been graded or known of?

My vote would be there are less than 5 "unknown" Wagners vs. 100s if not a couple thousand Mantles sitting in boxes.

[parkplace33]

The mantle and it’s not close.

[Wanaselja]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

that's a tough call for me. The mantle is a gorgeous example...and the most iconic card of the 2nd half of the 20th c. The wags is butt ugly...only 80% of a card really. But the t206 wags is "the" card of the hobby. I'd take the wags and I'd consider having a custom case made that would "add" the missing borders...I could live with that!!!

Me too.

[sb1]

Having had both, the Wagner is a fugly card, always reminded me of Mad Magazine's Alfred E. Neuman, the Mantle is a work of art...

[Peter_Spaeth]

Originally Posted by sb1

Having had both, the Wagner is a fugly card, always reminded me of Mad Magazine's Alfred E. Neuman, the Mantle is a work of art...

Funny, I have the opposite take, that the Wagner is a fabulous image that captures his likeness and character perfectly, whereas the Mantle is a poor rendition of the photo on which it is based, and in the translation lost much of its resemblance to him. If you think it looks like him it's only because you're so used to it. It still is what it is, a top two iconic card, but with an asterisk IMO.

[Fred]

I'm definitely into prewar vintage more than post war cards. However, when I see that Wags, it's just so "off". I picked the 52T PSA8 Mantle because at least it's iconic and in really nice shape.

If it were a Wags in a "2"grade (complete card with a few small issues), then I'd take that over a PSA9 52T Mantle. I'm going to guess a PSA 9 Mantle would probably be valued higher, but having a whole Wags would be like reaching a collecting dream. Someone mentioned "restoring" that cut down Wags. I'd accept something like that instead of the PSA 8 Mantle because the most important parts of the card are "real".

[Rich Falvo]

I'd pick a complete Wagner over the Mantle, but I'd pick a PSA 8 Mantle over a trimmed Wagner w/o borders.

[babraham]

Originally Posted by Rich Falvo

I'd pick a complete Wagner over the Mantle, but I'd pick a PSA 8 Mantle over a trimmed Wagner w/o borders.

That's what I'm thinking as well.

[Popcorn]

love the 52 MM but it’s wagner. it’s a small fraternity that owns one and most of us ain’t in it.

[bnorth]

You can always cut the borders off another T206 and glue them to the Wagner. I heard someone done it to a Ted Williams rookie.

[bbcard1]

You can get a 1952 Topps Mantle any day of the year. It just takes a lot of money. I don't think you can say the same about a Wagner.