Deceptive eBay Sellers - Update

The list of eBay Sellers (that sell sportscards) that have ripped people off keeps getting longer. We're going to bestow an award to the most deceptive/greedy eBay Seller for 2007. The Nominee's are:

BMW Sportscards
markssportscards
escards
sjscout
lebrju
jercole17
nolansport
intergalactic
manana1024
cotuit-kettleers
$stuff4less$
kevino35
uncanned_heat
(555)
dnadomue
fritschcardsauctions

Not all of the nominees are crooks, but all of them are guilty of doing something that's not right. They do things like take a picture of the card from a foot away, take a bad scan on purpose, incorrectly describe the card (or lie), use too many exclamation points, tell you the Book Value of the card without also telling you the BV refers to a Near Mint condition card, and other practices designed to sell the cards. Some Sellers will go on and on about how great they are, some Sellers will send nasty or rude emails after the auction, and some Sellers will be very skimpy with the card's description, relying on the Bidders to "trust" them because they have a high Positive Feedback count.

If you have a deceptive eBay Seller that you would like to nominate, then send me an email or make a comment on this blog post.

Have fun out there!
But be careful...

What Do I Collect?

Collecting cards is so appealing because you can collect what you like, and you don't have to necessarily spend a lot of money on it. Personally, I've always been attracted to "subsets" or the set within a set. What I like the most are cards that cover the World Series which Topps produced in the 60's and 70's. Usually there was a recap or boxscore on the back of the card. And they're not expensive to buy, even in NRMT or Mint condition, unless Mickey Mantle is on the card. Pictured on this Post #16 is a 1961 Topps card #312 showing Bill Mazeroski coming to home plate after hitting his walk-off homerun to win Game 7 and the World Series against the Yankees. In NRMT condition this card goes for about $20, but I've bought them for less sometimes. Now a 1965 Topps card #134 'Mantle Blasts 2 Homers' goes for about $80 in NRMT condition. Card #138 of the same set, which shows Bob Gibson winning Game 7 of that '64 Series, is priced at only $12. That's what I mean about how Mantle being on a card can make such a difference in price, even though he was on the losing team that year.

I also like to collect vintage All-Star cards, Team Cards, Record Breakers, and Season Highlights. Some of those vintage cards can be pricey, especially All-Star cards from the 60's because they were usually issued late in the season and were part of the last Series, or 'High Numbers.' In 1969 Major League Baseball went to a Playoff format to determine the American League & National League Pennant winners. So the following year Topps started to produce cards that showed the Playoffs, and I like to collect those cards too, mainly because you can get a Hall of Famer depicted on the card for a very small price.

Have fun out there!

Non-Sport Collectibles Are Hot!

Non-Sport cards & collectibles are just as prized as baseball cards and sports collectibles. The only difference is the number of collectors, with baseball cards being #1, football cards have taken over the #2 spot, with non-sports cards at #3 now. Rounding out the top five are basketball and hockey. But I will say this about hockey card collectors- they have to be the most avid, intense, and die-hard collectors out there. They're a tough breed!

The vintage non-sport cards- Star Wars, Star Trek, Elvis, and anything from the 60's & 70's is a big part of the boom now, thanks to the "Baby Boomers." The same group of Americans that has fueled sportscard collecting and pop-culture collecting. You can tell that non-sports cards are getting hot because more & more of those cards are being professionally graded, just like the old Mickey Mantles & Johnny Unitas' are.

When I was a kid in 1962, the Topps cards of that year didn't thrill me too much, except for their great subset of Babe Ruth. It just so happened that in'62 Topps came out with a non-sport set of cards that I couldn't get enough of- Civil War News. I became very interested in U.S. History because of those cards, a great learning experience. Sadly, for me, I didn't save those Civil War cards, and now they're worth almost as much as the old baseball cards. Oh well...

Have fun out there!

Other Collectibles

Autographs. They are great collectibles, and at prices to suit every budget, but expect to pay more for greats of the game and deceased players.

Footballs, baseballs, jerseys, hockey sticks & pucks, basketballs, 8x10's, cut signatures, the list goes on and on.

The FBI did an investigation several years ago into autographs & memorabilia, and the results made collectors very upset. The FBI concluded that up to 70% of the material was fake. Jaws dropped everywhere but some good came out of it, as professional authentication services arose. The top three of such services are PSA/DNA, Upper Deck Authenticated, and GAI (Global Authentication, Inc.). If you want to buy an autographed item, I would highly recommend one of these services. Their Certificates of Authenticity are top-notch and usually come with a specific number and/or Hologram.

Personal horror story: When I was doing card shows in Southern California years ago, a new one popped up in Orange County. It was a monthly show and was held in a huge warehouse-type building. The show promoter had the first six tables the people saw as they walked into the show. It was his show, so I guess he had the right. Anyway, after I set up my table, I noticed that there were some autographed items for sale at the promoter's tables. They were cheap, came with a COA, and I figured that I could make a profit by reselling them at future shows. So over the next few months I did sell the autographed items at a good profit at several other shows. But then I read in the paper that the Orange County promoter that I bought the items from was indicted on fraud charges, that his cousin Louie was in the back room signing baseballs as 'Ted Williams' and other greats. I was sick about it but there wasn't much I could do. So my advice to everyone that's interested in autographed items is to go with a legit company.

Have fun out there, but be careful...

In The Begining There Was.....Tobacco?

Early baseball cards were put inside packs of cicarettes and skinny cigars as premiums, an incentive to buy the product. So I guess it was the adult version of kids finding the prize in a box of Cracker Jack. Even CJ got in on it in 1914 & 1915 when small cards were the prize. The tobacco cards of 1887 & 1888 were the beginning of the popularity of cards but not the actual beginning. There were a couple of cards produced in 1800-that's right 1800- that depicted, oddly enough, women enjoying some kind of 'ball' game. A few cards of ballplaying were produced up until the 1860's when more cards were made. In 1869 Peck & Snyder made a couple of cards showing the first professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings. The Cincy ballclub were true professionals, going around the country beating the crap out of everybody.

The beginning of the game of baseball itself is somewhat cloaked in mystery. No, Abner Doubleday did not invent the game. But he sure promoted the heck out of it and made it very popular. There are photos that show Civil War troops having a game of baseball, circa 1864, but the game goes back further than that. There are articles and a few illustrations describing the game in 1839 publications. Back then it was sort of a hybrid, a mix of crickett and baseball. Somewhere along the way Americans decided on a third 'War' of sorts against the British and tossed out ("Yer outta here!) the weird crickett rules, evolving into the game that we know today.

Have fun collecting!

More eBay Advice

eBay Sellers live and die by their Feedback but there are exceptions. Some, and only just some eBay Sellers reach a point in their Positive Feedback Rating whereby they really don't care if a buyer gives them Negative Feedback. That's because if their Feedback is in the thousands, a Negative or two won't really hurt them. As long as the Seller can maintain at least 98% Positive then they can still be in the good graces of eBay's hierarchy. Before you even bid, do yourself a favor and read the Feedback comments for the Seller. If you have to go back more than 15-20 pages in order to see a Negative, then you're probably safe.

Have fun out there!

Don't Get Ripped Off on eBay

Today's subject is buying, or winning auctions on eBay, and some advice on how not to get taken by dishonest dealers or eBay Sellers. Let me say first that the vast majority of eBay Sellers are pretty honest, but there are more than a few really slick bunco artists out there. To some of you that have been disappointed with your sportscard auction "win", then this should help. How many times have you seen a title somewhat like this: TOPPS 1964 MICKEY MANTLE *sharp!* BV $500!!! - along with a low starting bid, such as .99cents? Well, as you can see, especially if you are a Yankee fan, Mantle collector, or want to complete your Hall of Fame collection, you would be drawn to this auction. If you're a novice at collecting and are just looking for a gift for your spouse or friend that loves baseball cards, this might look good, too. If the Seller has provided a scanned picture of the card, take a close look. Because when the title or description says "BV $500" they are referring to the "Book Value" or Beckett Price Guide value of that particular card. What they don't tell you is that the Book Value refers to the value of the card in Near Mint condition. So if you can see some wear on the corners, or a crease, or ink blotches on the card, or even a miscut (badly off-center), then the card is nowhere near Near Mint.

Another way some eBay Sellers rip you off is by giving a skimpy or vague description of the card, or worse, outright lies. In the description they might say something like this: "Wow! This card looks fantastic! I'm not a professional grader, I'm just selling some cards from my uncle's estate, but this card is of Mickey Mantle. I think he's in the Hall of Fame. Not sure what to start the bidding at but let's make it .99cents! There are even statistics on the back." Buyer beware.

Still another way that eBay Sellers rip people off (not just cards) is with "Shipping & Handling. With baseball cards, overcharging for S/H is easy to do. I speak from experience because I've sold cards since 1989, after collecting them for 45 years+. I offer cards up for auction, and what do I charge for shipping? Nothing! Because putting a card in a top-loader and sticking it in an envelope costs me .58 cents postage. I'm sure most of you out there have seen eBay Sellers charging something like $2.50 per card for shipping, and a "bargain rate" of something like .50 cents for each additional card. It spells R-I-P-O-F-F.

It's too bad that there are people like that out in eBayland, but there are. However, with the right advice and some help from people like me, you too can enjoy "America's Hobby" of collecting sportscards.

Have fun out there!