So Your Beckett Says Your Card Is Worth How Much??
- Thread starter mikefri
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Look at any basic set in a Beckett and the prices fall into groupings. Take a 1993 Pinnacle base set for example. The $$ values are off, but it is for comparison only.
You'd find the top 2-3 players at that time in the $2 range. Guys like Ryan, Ripken, Griffey, etc
Then there would be the next tier, maybe $1.50. Guys like Thomas, Piazza, McGwire, Bagwell, etc
So on and so forth, the price would drop as the number of players in that tier expanded until we reached the common prices.
Cards were not selling for this, they just projected their tiered pricing across sets based on player popularity and set pricing (Finest singles were more than Pinnacle which were more than Collectors Choice).
There are rare examples where card BVs are nowhere near the real prices cards would sell for on the open market, much higher than stated BVs, but most cards are going to sell for some sliding scale % of the BV.
So, no, Beckett staffers who collect or deal in cards would probably not give you 100% BV for your 1985 Topps George Brett card.
You'd find the top 2-3 players at that time in the $2 range. Guys like Ryan, Ripken, Griffey, etc
Then there would be the next tier, maybe $1.50. Guys like Thomas, Piazza, McGwire, Bagwell, etc
So on and so forth, the price would drop as the number of players in that tier expanded until we reached the common prices.
Cards were not selling for this, they just projected their tiered pricing across sets based on player popularity and set pricing (Finest singles were more than Pinnacle which were more than Collectors Choice).
There are rare examples where card BVs are nowhere near the real prices cards would sell for on the open market, much higher than stated BVs, but most cards are going to sell for some sliding scale % of the BV.
So, no, Beckett staffers who collect or deal in cards would probably not give you 100% BV for your 1985 Topps George Brett card.
if you can only get 10% of a $10 card the correct value of the card is $1 not $10 .seems to me that some of the staffers may be trying to save an all out collapse of the card market which at some point may be unavoidable as most of the young collectors have all but left the hobby. but if you are making a price guide and a card sells for $1 on a regular basis but the book says $10 it is still a $1 card therefore its value is $1 not $10.
Suppose to be guiding us : ) Best regards, David
Are ebay values really that much better?
Here's a $105 1985 Topps McGwire
here's a lot of 83 Topps
How much of the final sale value goes to the Gwynn, how much to Sandberg, How much to Ripken and Ryan, and how much are the other 101 cards?
Same with player lots, how much credit does each card get?
What about bad pictures, bad listings, typos? do those sales just not count? Does shipping count?
What about local shows? and shops? I know people who don't look for cards, they pay dealers to assemble sets/collections for them, working off ebay would skew the numbers well below what they pay, so it is just as inaccurate.
i agree but i am not paying them to be a guide for card values.
So what's the point of your original post?
I equate card prices to the stock market. They are always fluctuating and there is no true set value.
I just made a killing on David Freese & his World Series MVP! 6 months from now those same cards I sold won't sell anywhere near what I sold them for.
Seems like wasted space because this topic has been hashed over numerous times.
yes newer cards do fluctuate but older inserts of nomar etc really never seem to go down in price why is that? seems like these prices really are geared for dealers and shop owners and dont seem to really care if the collectors buying their magazine is given poor information.i know everyone likes to look in these magic books and see the value go up or at least stay the same but is it really the service you are paying for or is it the service the dealers are paying for to try and maintain a false sense of value on cards that have long lost their value but yet to lose it in the guide.
You are also wrong about older inserts. Check out this auction.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DEREK-JETER...0669619915?pt=US_Baseball&hash=item2eb8d766cb
Beckett lists the card at $30.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/DEREK-JETER...0669619915?pt=US_Baseball&hash=item2eb8d766cb
Beckett lists the card at $30.
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It's the nature of the beast. Take a look at virtually any price guide for any type of collectible and you find the same thing. And really, how could they be anything other than a GENERAL GUIDEline ? Ebay prices are different than flea market prices..... flea market prices are different than auction prices.........auction prices are different than dealer show prices......and on and on and on. AND depending on the area you're in, the desperateness of the seller/buyer, who saw the item for sale, etc etc, those prices fluctuate wildly !
correct so looks like the seller still got bad information in the other direction if these items are selling at double bv on a consistant basis then they still havent done the job they are being paid to do which is to give accurate information on pricing so making these guides useless as the information within is not valid and the values seem to be more off then on.
So what do you use to come up with values when you make trades?
Nobody ever said they were accurate. Like I said this topic has been hashed over numerous times & is a waste. Beckett is not going to change because you posted a thread on a message board.
Nobody ever said they were accurate. Like I said this topic has been hashed over numerous times & is a waste. Beckett is not going to change because you posted a thread on a message board.
i know they wont but i was bored and felt like trolling.
You are basically saying you believe that a guide like Beckett would chart the actual sales and report them as accurately as possible. This is obviously not how it is done, based on my previous example. Maybe some of the more unique cards may reflect some recent market values, but how accurate is a price if there has only been 1 sale to report. You need to average out a decent number of sales to come up with a reasonable price.
Beckett is probably best described as a suggested starting point for items that are not really unique or popular at the moment, based very loosely on past performance of cards that were similar. Rare items and hot/popular cards or players price nowhere near BVs that may be stated for them.
The sad point is that the so many people do care about the value beyond a guide for swapping in what is really a HOBBY. Sports cards were always a hobby, where kids (and adults) would collect for fun with no regard for future value. Now they have turned into a potential investment for many, but the cards that will ultimately hold their value best are still the oldies that were not saved in great condition in any quantity, thus their higher values now and greater demand when found in good shape. I don't believe most of what is being made and collected now will have a great deal of staying power with regard to value because just about EVERYONE keeps their cards in great shape now and nothing gets tossed aside. The card makers have resorted to artificially making items rare by limiting print runs, but even the novelty of that wears thin as time passes.
Beckett is probably best described as a suggested starting point for items that are not really unique or popular at the moment, based very loosely on past performance of cards that were similar. Rare items and hot/popular cards or players price nowhere near BVs that may be stated for them.
The sad point is that the so many people do care about the value beyond a guide for swapping in what is really a HOBBY. Sports cards were always a hobby, where kids (and adults) would collect for fun with no regard for future value. Now they have turned into a potential investment for many, but the cards that will ultimately hold their value best are still the oldies that were not saved in great condition in any quantity, thus their higher values now and greater demand when found in good shape. I don't believe most of what is being made and collected now will have a great deal of staying power with regard to value because just about EVERYONE keeps their cards in great shape now and nothing gets tossed aside. The card makers have resorted to artificially making items rare by limiting print runs, but even the novelty of that wears thin as time passes.
A card is only worth what someone will pay for it. What may be a steep price to you might be a bargain to someone else. What might have no value to you might be the crown jewel for someones collection.
Almost every collector-based hobby must have a price/value guide to support it, otherwise it has no foundation to build on. I think that Beckett started out 20+ years ago as a valid price guide, but with the massive expansion of the hobby, being an accurate, up to date price guide is an next to impossible task.
Almost every collector-based hobby must have a price/value guide to support it, otherwise it has no foundation to build on. I think that Beckett started out 20+ years ago as a valid price guide, but with the massive expansion of the hobby, being an accurate, up to date price guide is an next to impossible task.
depends how many card im getting back in trade pretty much as most of the #d cards i buy from .10 and .25 bins i look how low the card is #d to determine its true value or ebay ending auctions .if i buy a 2011 topps gold card for .25 and get myself 4-5 topps chrome cards i need i feel as though ive made out pretty well as chromes would cost me .10 each and the gold would cost me .25.gu cards depends how low they are #d book value on those are a joke and autos depends who it is sure wouldnt trade a boggs auto for 2 nomar gu cards because the bv = out .this is the reason i hate the BOOK as it has wrecked the hobby over the years and removed alot of the fun from it.part of the fun of trading when i was a kid was there was no book so if you liked a card you would trade a card or cards to get something you wanted not break out the beckett bible so you could look at what the price says even if it doesnt make sense.if you remember the 90s you remember many of the issues with rc cards that would hold there value or have just slight decreases oh no not a down arrow until the big dealers could dump their stock.so the point is even though it really doesnt matter is everyone uses a guide that is dictated by card dealers that need to maintain the prices as to keep their control on the hobby.a card is only worth what someone is willing to pay not what someone says you should.also another point that the guide doesnt matter is your point on ebay sales many people buying there dont use a book they buy what they like at a price that they think it is worth and it really is worth that as it was bought at that price.
Or this hot little number from the same seller.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/PATRICK-EWI...LM&otn=15&po=&ps=63&clkid=4119806736380846257
Tough basketball inserts and parallels from the late 90's have been hot lately.
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