More interest in raw cards in 2024 - Observations

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

1990 Score, for example, the Bo Jackson BB/FB card is worth as much as the rest of the set. Pull the Jacksons and a few of the rookies (Thomas, Schilling, Sanders, etc.) and big stars (Griffey, Ryan, Bonds, etc.) and junk the rest.

Groan.... That's what I hate about the mentality of sport card collectors these days. Non-sport card collecting is much better balanced or sensible in that regard.

[Exhibitman]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

Groan.... That's what I hate about the mentality of sport card collectors these days. Non-sport card collecting is much better balanced or sensible in that regard.

Oh, please, give me a break; that is such nonsense. It's the same mentality, just cheaper. You ever try to sell base sets from modern cards, like the Skybox Star Trek sets? Or Pokemon? Costs more to ship than they sell for. Pure junk wax. Nonsports collectors chase the insert cards and throw away the rest just like the baseball collectors do, and they contest good cards with the same passion, just at a much lower cost.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Oh, please, give me a break....

Breaks? From me? Come on. You should know better than that.

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

You ever try to sell base sets from modern cards...? Nonsports collectors chase the insert cards and throw away the rest just like the baseball collectors do....

But you were talking about a few of the cards from the base set being worth nearly as much as or even more than the rest of the base cards combined. You weren't talking about the insert/chase cards:

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

For some sets, you can. I bought a large collection of junk wax sets, ended up with maybe 100 cards from it. 1990 Score, for example, the Bo Jackson BB/FB card is worth as much as the rest of the set. Pull the Jacksons and a few of the rookies (Thomas, Schilling, Sanders, etc.) and big stars (Griffey, Ryan, Bonds, etc.) and junk the rest.

There's no equivalent in non-sport sets of one base card being worth as much as all the other cards in the set combined. (Until of course the very recent emergence of foolishness around the Batman "rookie" card from 1966.)

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

It's the same mentality, just cheaper.... Nonsports collectors chase the insert cards and throw away the rest just like the baseball collectors do, and they contest good cards with the same passion, just at a much lower cost.

Granted. But in the real world a "much lower cost" makes all the difference in the world!

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

You ever try to sell base sets from modern cards, like the Skybox Star Trek sets? Or Pokemon? Costs more to ship than they sell for. Pure junk wax.

Never. But that's why I said "these days". I'm all about vintage which to me is 35 years old or more. And when it comes to vintage non-sports cards, there is rarely much of a premium accorded to certain cards from any particular set.

[Exhibitman]

Really, rarely any premium:

1932 US Caramel McKinley
Marquis de Lorne
Any SP Wacky Package like Ratz Crackers
1977 Star Wars C3PO "Goldenrod"
1959 Fleer 3 Stooges #1
Any N or T card of George Washington or Thomas Edison
T70 signing of the declaration of independence
1883 Pratt Oil Statue of Liberty trade card
I collect William Sherman's N cards and they are always at a premium to other generals in the same sets.
1979 Warner Bros Prince, Bob Marley sell at 100x what Wire or M or Foghat fetches.
The N76 Lincoln in a PSA 6 went for over $13,000 last week. Any other five-figure sales in that set? Four-figure sales??

I could go on and on listing cards with large relative premiums to others in the same sets.

Your precious nonsports is collected by the same sorts of people who are here: humans. No differences in behavior, just magnitude.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Really, rarely any premium:

Any SP Wacky Package like Ratz Crackers.

Short prints such as the Wacky Packages cards whose distribution was terminated by Topps are an exception for obvious reasons. The Topps Davy Crockett #20A "Ambush/Ambush" is another excellent example.

But you're still going to be able to list only the relatively few non-sports cards which are the exception to the general rule. Meanwhile is there a sports card set that doesn't have certain specific cards that trade at very substantial premiums to the rest?

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Your precious nonsports....

My "precious" non-sports cards? Interesting choice of words given that you're a collector of non-sports cards yourself and you know full well that I collect many sports cards as well as non-sports cards.

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

Your precious nonsports is collected by the same sorts of people who are here: humans.

Not humans in general. The comparatively small subset of humans who are card collectors.

[obcbeatle]

Is it possible there will be a significant uptick in raw card set collectors pursuing raw vintage Topps cards primarily in VG condition, i.e. less than VGEX condition? Because many set collectors will get priced out with the current flurry of activity in the TPG grading market? And, because A LOT of vintage cards in VGEX or better condition are getting graded, increasing their value, and significantly decreasing the number of VGEX cards in raw condition? Thus vintage raw VG Topps cards with some eye appeal may enjoy a bit of demand increase, kind of like the T206 market? Maybe there will be more NEW set collectors entering the hobby without the financial means to pursue anything better than VG? Because of inflation, shrinking middle-class, etc? Perhaps all/most vintage HOFERs in VG condition will also get graded, further increasing their value, and further pricing many set collectors out of the market? I know this has happened to me for a set I was working on. I had to give up on VGEX, or better. So I pretty much just stopped collecting cards for now. It wasn't fun anymore. And I know I'm not the only one. I understand the hobby and economics are cyclical. But alas