T3 collectors - price decline?

[Archive]

Posted By: nbrazil

Any T3 collectors actively purchasing, selling and/or tracking auctions notice a marked decline in prices the last, say, two to three months? I've won a few ebay auctions recently of what i think are higher demand cards from the set for what seemingly are low prices. Is it just me? thanks in advance.

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

I think its almost all sets. T3's are taking a hit just like everything else. I think now is a great time to buy just about anything if you could hold unto it for a couple years and hope the econmony bounces back...that is unless folks think card prices wont bounce back.

[Archive]

Posted By: Matt

noli - I agree with your observation.

Dave - then how come the stuff I'm tracking in REA is set to sell for all time highs?

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

Matt-

because someone has it out for you and I.

Unless what your tracking is the Wagner and Ruth..then I just can't relate

[Archive]

Posted By: nbrazil

i was thinking it was the REA/Mastro effect. I recently nabbed a T3 Rhoades for what i thought was an absurdly low price. I set a very low snipe...got home late from work...and 'lo and behold, i won it for like $200 below by snipe!

usually scarcer and high demand HOF cards stay relatively stable, even for less scarce sets like T3. This is largely due to demand and perceived scarcity. but some of the wins and purchases i have had recently for key T3s have been significantly low (relative to my other recent purchases).

[Archive]

Posted By: jay wolt

NB - I used to track all the T3 prices when I was working on my set.
Now w/ VCP the work is done for you. I sold my set last fall and have
been out of the loop.
What cards did you obtain that you felt were bargains?
Perhaps w/ the glut of quality material via Auction houses w/ so many
ending in April & May. Maybe eBay is taking a hit due to this.

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

It could easily be argued with all the auctions houses currently having/just had stuff out that it has effected ebay and private transactions. But, I still feel its moreso due to the economy. I just can't recall this time last year prices having dropped on so much stuff. Perfect time to pick up the nice T3's that would be more expensive later...

[Archive]

Posted By: nbrazil

jay - prime example is a rhoades i recently picked up for way below what recent auctions have gone for. i've always felt the horizontals, young, mathewson, johnson, speaker, lajoie, cobb and rhoades were the tougher cards to acquire (price wise).

dave - you may be right. i think it's an interaction of the economy and big auctions coming up (which feature many T3s..especially high grade ones of the higher demanded cards i mention above).

[Archive]

Posted By: Dave F

You got a good price on that Rhoades. A far cry from what that exact card when for not 5-6 months ago.

[Archive]

Posted By: nbrazil

i was amazed...i missed out on one a week or so ago that went for about $250 more. And THAT card was sold a lot lower than others of the same or lower grade within the past half year.

it's not just that card, though. it is other T3's. And T3s were escalating in price by absurd amounts just 4-5 months ago.

[Archive]

Posted By: Mark

It seems to me that mid and low grade cards are not selling well across the board. I have bought a few cards lately for prices that I would have paid a couple of years ago. But I find it hard to sell many cards right now. I, too, think that some money will come back into the market after the auctions and the rebates take place.

[Archive]

Posted By: Josh

I am thinking about starting to collect these. Any really important information I need to know before I take the plunge? Thanks in advance!

[Archive]

Posted By: Matt R

I've wanted to pick up one of these T-3's for a while even if it's just a common player. I guess now is the time to make a move. Too bad I've already spent my tax rebate. I "wasted" it on an Upper Deck Authenticated Mantle autographed ball.

[Archive]

Posted By: Scott Levy

I agree that these cards have started to dip in price. I've also been contemplating putting a set together. Some observations that I've made are....
1) There are a few cards that are rarer than others. Specifically Rhoades, and some of the team variations (as well as a few others)
2) These cards get much tougher in nicer shape. PSA 5+ conditions are really quite uncommon and VERY expensive
3) Many cards have pinholes, it just seems like a natural for someone back then to get one and tack it up on the wall.

Regards,
Scott

[Archive]

Posted By: Jeff Prizner

T3 prices seemed pretty soft in Mastro last night.

[Archive]

Posted By: Marc S.

T3s are an astoundingly beautiful set.

That said, prices skyrocketed when PSA and SGC started grading this issue. Much of the prices increases, I believe, were driven by a small handful of Registry participants who were competing to have the "best" numerically graded set out there.

Additionally, this demand and price increase brought out a significant supply of T3's that were previously not available in the market. There are over 900 T3's registered on PSA, and over 125 registered on SGC. With over 1,000 graded examples sitting in the Registry, I think we're at a point that the set (in the aggregate) is perhaps not as rare as some thought. It is not easy by any means -- certainly not compared to T-206 or other sets. But the point remains that there are thousand(s) of T3s now professionally graded...

I think the demand was over-amplified for a short time because of Registry and new custom holders. Now that that has subsided, the prices have mean-reverted a bit to more rational levels.

[Archive]

Posted By: Craig D

My two cents..

I very much agree with what Mark noted above. When PSA began grading the cards, demand surged for those examples. A relatively small group of collectors really drove the price levels up. That in turn brought out more supply. I personally sent in well over 300 cards. Now that some of the initial demand has been satiated, prices have settled down. A softening economy has also played a role.

My addendum to Mark's comments would be to note the following. As of last week, there were 2862 T3s noted on the PSA population report (plus 467 T9s). I've tracked the pace of T3 submissions and it has slowed dramatically over the last several quarters. Also, there are currently nearly 1,000 T3s listed in the registry. I personally know where another few hundred are, which are not on the registry. Being able to easily account for 1/2 of all the graded T3s says a lot about the supply. There isn't much. As Mark said, they aren't extremely rare, but I contend that a great many of them were graded over the last few years and there just aren't that many more raw cards around. Especially in high grades (PSA-4 +). I believe that T3s will always be highly sought after and that over the years, even slight upticks in demand will have a big effect on prices. They just aren't making them anymore.

I'd say that if you're considering putting together a set of T3 Turkey Reds, now would be a great time to start. Go ahead and buy 'em now. If you don't, I will.

Happy Collecting,
Craig