Greetings and questions from a lucky guy.

[gst22]

I recently came across a large collection of vintage cards. About 1300 total from T 54, T 55, B 55, T 56, and T 57. Most are incomplete sets with the exception of the 56 Topps. I posted on BO and they suggested I seek advice from this board. I'm not exactly sure what I should do with a collection like this. I am not in a position to get a lot of them PSA graded right away but I don't want to get ripped off by selling ungraded cards or in a large set. I've thought about the consignment route but not sure who to use or if I should get them graded before going to them to put up for auction. It's pretty overwhelming so I put it on the back burner during the holidays but want to get moving. Here are some of the major cards from the 56 set. I am terrible at taking pictures but this gives you and indication of the general condition of all of the cards. I am assuming I should eventually get all of these graded but do you have any suggestions on which ones would grade the highest and should get sent first or if any should don't warrant a PSA grade. Thanks for the help, I know how fortunate I am to have these even if I don't have the same connection that actual collectors do.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/JfiQwFU5toS95whT9

[japhi]

Some very nice cards that would probably do well consigned to Greg Morris. I suspect your net return would be the same or better then spending the money on grading then reselling.

[brianp-beme]

I do not have personal experience with him, but many on here would suggest Greg Morris on Ebay for nice raw, individual cards. There will be consignment fees, and I imagine now buyers will be charged sales tax, which will affect the final outcome.

As far as auction houses, I can personally recommend Scott Brockelman, where you will be treated honestly and with integrity, there is no consignment fees to sell, and the buyers's premium is 12-1/2%, which is much lower than the the industry standard of around 20%, and evidently no sales tax added to the purchase, which should net you better results, because most buyers factor all the extra fees into their bidding. Except for the bigger star cards, you would likely be submitting the cards in group lots.

brianp(arker)-beme

[scooter729]

From the looks of those, I would suggest the star cards do get graded. I wouldn't bother grading the commons (unless you're able to learn if you have a particular card in super high grade which is hard to find in a high grade), but those star cards likely would be worth the grading investment. It would take some time to have them sent to PSA but high-end stars should net you a nice return on your cost of grading.

Good luck!

[perezfan]

Originally Posted by brianp-beme

I do not have personal experience with him, but many on here would suggest Greg Morris on Ebay for nice raw, individual cards. There will be consignment fees, and I imagine now buyers will be charged sales tax, which will affect the final outcome.

As far as auction houses, I can personally recommend Scott Brockelman, where you will be treated honestly and with integrity, there is no consignment fees to sell, and the buyers's premium is 12-1/2%, which is much lower than the the industry standard of around 20%, and evidently no sales tax added to the purchase, which should net you better results, because most buyers factor all the extra fees into their bidding. Except for the bigger star cards, you would likely be submitting the cards in group lots.

brianp(arker)-beme

Sound advice...

But are any auction houses still not charging sales tax by now? Seems like every one I deal with has now implemented the applicable tax (with Mile High, REA, Hunt, and Lelands being the most recent).

If anyone can provide the short list of AHs NOT charging the state tax, it would be most helpful... thanks!

[111gecko]

If you don't want to consign, you can always partner with someone. Many on this board have done transactions like that. You may not have the time or don't want to extend the additional capital for grading etc..
You could set a fair basis and then maximize it with the 2 of you. There are several people on this board I would trust to do that. It may help if you share what region you live in.

Just another thought.

[brianp-beme]

Originally Posted by perezfan

Sound advice...

But are any auction houses still not charging sales tax by now? Seems like every one I deal with has now implemented the applicable tax (with Mile High, REA, Hunt, and Lelands being the most recent).

If anyone can provide the short list of AHs NOT charging the state tax, it would be most helpful... thanks!

I do not know of any others. Just yesterday I received an email from Brockelman Auctions with this info included, which I pasted from the email:

As a consignor to this auction you receive two instant increases to your take home money over most other auction houses. We offer only a 12 1/2% buyers premium which is well below the major auction house levels AND as a small volume auction we are only required to collect sales tax from Texas residents, saving most bidders 5-8% and enabling them to place more bids to buy an item at the same "all-in" price. This extra money is going to the consignors pocket rather than being bled off in the form of sales tax. Combine the two and consignors will get a much bigger piece of the final sales price!

Brian

[Aquarian Sports Cards]

We are still small enough where we are under the sales tax collection threshold.

[brianp-beme]

Originally Posted by Aquarian Sports Cards

We are still small enough where we are under the sales tax collection threshold.

I haven't consigned with Aquarian (Birmingham Auctioneers), but have been very pleased as a buyer in the past.

So now there are two auction houses that we can list as not charging buyers sales tax:

Brockelman Auctions
Birmingham Auctioneers

Brian

[JollyElm]

Jeez, that grouping is quite drool-worthy. Wow!

[todeen]

Originally Posted by JollyElm

Jeez, that grouping is quite drool-worthy. Wow!

+1

[hcv123]

Originally Posted by gst22

I recently came across a large collection of vintage cards. About 1300 total from T 54, T 55, B 55, T 56, and T 57. Most are incomplete sets with the exception of the 56 Topps. I posted on BO and they suggested I seek advice from this board. I'm not exactly sure what I should do with a collection like this. I am not in a position to get a lot of them PSA graded right away but I don't want to get ripped off by selling ungraded cards or in a large set. I've thought about the consignment route but not sure who to use or if I should get them graded before going to them to put up for auction. It's pretty overwhelming so I put it on the back burner during the holidays but want to get moving. Here are some of the major cards from the 56 set. I am terrible at taking pictures but this gives you and indication of the general condition of all of the cards. I am assuming I should eventually get all of these graded but do you have any suggestions on which ones would grade the highest and should get sent first or if any should don't warrant a PSA grade. Thanks for the help, I know how fortunate I am to have these even if I don't have the same connection that actual collectors do.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/JfiQwFU5toS95whT9

If it were my collection - I would be carefully looking at the cards picking out stars I thought could grade 6 or better and commons or minor stars 8 or better. From your pictures it looks like you have some in those ranges. It is time consuming and takes a trained eye to be in the ballpark - I'm usually about 80%. From the sound of your post - I am questioning how much time and money (grading fees) you want to invest in the collection. Are the other sets in similar condition? An auction house is a viable alternative, but as mentioned - get their piece too. Not sure if you are better off in a "smaller" auction as those mentioned or a larger one for the sets you mentioned. If you are interested in partnering - I would be open to the conversation - shoot me a PM.

[Bigdaddy]

As posted earlier, I would consign with Greg Morris who sells on Ebay. He consistently gets strong prices and sells the cards individually. I would bet that he would rank very high on the return/time investment scale.

[Bram99]

Originally Posted by Bigdaddy

As posted earlier, I would consign with Greg Morris who sells on Ebay. He consistently gets strong prices and sells the cards individually. I would bet that he would rank very high on the return/time investment scale.

+1

[4k6]

Originally Posted by Bigdaddy

As posted earlier, I would consign with Greg Morris who sells on Ebay. He consistently gets strong prices and sells the cards individually. I would bet that he would rank very high on the return/time investment scale.

Another yep. Simple and most likely the most profitable.

[mattsey9]

Originally Posted by Bigdaddy

As posted earlier, I would consign with Greg Morris who sells on Ebay. He consistently gets strong prices and sells the cards individually. I would bet that he would rank very high on the return/time investment scale.

As someone who is working on the 56 Topps set and buys a lot of cards on Ebay from Greg Morris, I certainly hope you go that way.

[Ronnie73]

Everyone has given great advice so far. The direction you go in basically depends on a few things.

How involved you personally want to be in the sales? (Selling yourself takes up a lot of your time but can result in a better profit)

How quickly do you need to sell them? Instantly? (There are many great members here that would probably purchase all the cards but offer much less than if you sold them as singles because they would need to make a return profit for their time and money. Asking on this main board for references before a final sale is fine and recommended.)

How quickly do you need to sell them? Not Instantly But Soon? (Consign to one of the great businesses already mentioned. Ask questions if all your cards will be sold as singles or only the high value ones and the others would be put into lots. Personally I don't like selling older cards in lots. It can leave a lot of money out of your pocket. Also ask about time frames and fees.)

As far as grading them..... There would be a lot of up front costs and time taken. I don't see any PSA 9 or 10 grades there, if I did, I'd say take the time to grade them. As long as you choose a seller that has the ability to scan both the front and back of your cards in high resolution (no small blurry pictures or cell phone pictures), many will bid on what they see and sometimes over bid, in hopes that when they send it in for grading that it comes back with a high grade which in most cases is likely not to happen and they get an average graded card.

Either way, great find and nice looking cards. I've come across a few original owner collections like this over the years and since I didn't have much money tied up in my purchases, I went on to complete the sets and sell off the lower grade duplicates.

[gst22]

Thanks to everyone for their advice. I'm still not sure what exactly I want to do and I guess my biggest problem is not being able to reliably judge what potential grade a card may receive. I have spent a lot of time looking at cards online but obviously lack the experience that would give me that ability. With everything that has happened in the industry and the issues of having to only look at online pictures, its overwhelming to say the least. Cards that I see online surprise me all the time...both good and bad. My cards are in good condition but in a real sense, its hard for me to distinguish what makes a card a 5 vs a 7 or 8 in a lot of instances.

Obviously with cards like this it means a lot. Someone could look at this Koufax and give me a grade and I would have no idea if it was legit. I would think its over a 5 but beyond that...its would be a guess.

[scooter729]

The corners on the Koufax look great (can't tell quite how sharp from the pic), but do appear Near Mint. The centering will be a bit of an issue and a drawback for some on the card. Many place quite a premium on a well centered card.

For example, a straight 7 Koufax rookie might be $2,500, but a PSA 7 OC would be $800.

[rgurtowski]

Start a detailed spreadsheet (Excel) by year, card #, and accurate condition of the cards. Any buyer will request that from the start. Maybe a juvenile response, but you'll maintain accountability.

[tsalem]

I am interested in buying all of it if you want to reach out. We just purchased a complete set run from another board member

[Fuddjcal]

Originally Posted by gst22

I recently came across a large collection of vintage cards. About 1300 total from T 54, T 55, B 55, T 56, and T 57. Most are incomplete sets with the exception of the 56 Topps. I posted on BO and they suggested I seek advice from this board. I'm not exactly sure what I should do with a collection like this. I am not in a position to get a lot of them PSA graded right away but I don't want to get ripped off by selling ungraded cards or in a large set. I've thought about the consignment route but not sure who to use or if I should get them graded before going to them to put up for auction. It's pretty overwhelming so I put it on the back burner during the holidays but want to get moving. Here are some of the major cards from the 56 set. I am terrible at taking pictures but this gives you and indication of the general condition of all of the cards. I am assuming I should eventually get all of these graded but do you have any suggestions on which ones would grade the highest and should get sent first or if any should don't warrant a PSA grade. Thanks for the help, I know how fortunate I am to have these even if I don't have the same connection that actual collectors do.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/JfiQwFU5toS95whT9

The 56's are BEAUTIFUL!!! They will stand on their own with out the fraudsters at PSA giving their fake seal of approval.

90% of my 56's are 6's and 7's in stupid plastic cases. I really wish I had these instead as they are very nice! You don't need the "billion dollar fraud" BS plastic holders for these, IMHO.

[Leon]

Originally Posted by gst22

I recently came across a large collection of vintage cards. About 1300 total from T 54, T 55, B 55, T 56, and T 57. Most are incomplete sets with the exception of the 56 Topps. I posted on BO and they suggested I seek advice from this board. I'm not exactly sure what I should do with a collection like this. I am not in a position to get a lot of them PSA graded right away but I don't want to get ripped off by selling ungraded cards or in a large set. I've thought about the consignment route but not sure who to use or if I should get them graded before going to them to put up for auction. It's pretty overwhelming so I put it on the back burner during the holidays but want to get moving. Here are some of the major cards from the 56 set. I am terrible at taking pictures but this gives you and indication of the general condition of all of the cards. I am assuming I should eventually get all of these graded but do you have any suggestions on which ones would grade the highest and should get sent first or if any should don't warrant a PSA grade. Thanks for the help, I know how fortunate I am to have these even if I don't have the same connection that actual collectors do.

https://photos.app.goo.gl/JfiQwFU5toS95whT9

Keep us updated if you can.

[chalupacollects]

Try6 the BST here! Its free and if you don't realize your prices here then go the auction route...why pay fees if you don't have to???