What do you mean, "Don't use the checklists as checklists"?
February 24, 2011 1:18 PM Subscribe
I have approximately 3000-5000 baseball trading cards (and a few hockey and football cards) from 1978 through 1983. What's the best way to sort through them, figure out the quality, identify the more valuable cards, and sell them?
Anecdotal reports suggest that baseball cards aren't worth squat right now.
But there used to be a "blue book" (made of pulpy newsprint, like Auto Trader) that you could pick up at card and coin shops for like a dollar. Might give you an idea as to whether this is worth it at all.
It I was a betting person, (and the boxes of cards in the back of my closet says I am, I guess) I'd say that you won't see any real value from them for another generation or so. After the big surge in popularity in the late 80's and early 90's, a LOT more people are hanging onto their cards in ways their dads did not. (Because that surge was based pretty much solely on boomers complaining that they had every one of those $2000 cards when they were kids, and their dads threw them away while they were at college.)
posted by gjc at 4:31 PM on February 24, 2011
But there used to be a "blue book" (made of pulpy newsprint, like Auto Trader) that you could pick up at card and coin shops for like a dollar. Might give you an idea as to whether this is worth it at all.
It I was a betting person, (and the boxes of cards in the back of my closet says I am, I guess) I'd say that you won't see any real value from them for another generation or so. After the big surge in popularity in the late 80's and early 90's, a LOT more people are hanging onto their cards in ways their dads did not. (Because that surge was based pretty much solely on boomers complaining that they had every one of those $2000 cards when they were kids, and their dads threw them away while they were at college.)
posted by gjc at 4:31 PM on February 24, 2011
gjc: "But there used to be a "blue book" (made of pulpy newsprint, like Auto Trader) that you could pick up at card and coin shops for like a dollar. Might give you an idea as to whether this is worth it at all. "
You're probably thinking of Beckett Baseball. You're also likely right. Cards I used to track (like from Upper Deck's Captured on Canvas autographed/artifact series) that were selling for $300 or so are down to less than $100.
posted by fireoyster at 6:03 PM on February 24, 2011
You're probably thinking of Beckett Baseball. You're also likely right. Cards I used to track (like from Upper Deck's Captured on Canvas autographed/artifact series) that were selling for $300 or so are down to less than $100.
posted by fireoyster at 6:03 PM on February 24, 2011
A friend of mine runs a site that will take all your cards and do the work for you. Depending on how much effort you want to put into the process this could be the way to go (I used it to get rid of a bunch of cards I had from high school).
posted by JasonSch at 6:59 PM on February 26, 2011
posted by JasonSch at 6:59 PM on February 26, 2011
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posted by aimedwander at 1:39 PM on February 24, 2011