Thoughts on the market value of the 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle

[MansGame]

Mantles like that are entirely out of my league. Only admiring from a far for now. haha

I hear that. I probably would have to spend the $$ if the price was right but up to this point I think the most I have ever spent on a card is like $300 on an Albert Belle LOL... not sure how I would find myself shelling out $6k+ for a barely recognizable card from 1952

[dano7]

I don't have the date of purchase (probably early 2000's), but I paid $7200 for a PSA 3. Wow, have those gone up!!!

[MansGame]

I don't have the date of purchase (probably early 2000's), but I paid $7200 for a PSA 3. Wow, have those gone up!!!

Oh man, that is huge. Probably worth 5-6x that or more now?

[dano7]

Oh man, that is huge. Probably worth 5-6x that or more now?

Based on sales results, lately, yes. Which means I wouldn't have one!!!

[MrMet]

Based on sales results, lately, yes. Which means I wouldn't have one!!!

Would you buy a lower grade copy and sell the one you have for a large profit?


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[nevermore]

MansGame - You are right the best bet would be off-eBay at show/local deal. I would want something resembling a Mantle if I were paying ~$10K for a card. My high-end purchases have also been in $200-300 range. Perhaps, one day I can swing a five-figure purchase but a lot of things would have to fall into place for that to occur.

dano7 - Congrats on landing one early! That's a great price. I regret not going after vintage stuff sooner.

[dano7]

Would you buy a lower grade copy and sell the one you have for a large profit?


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ARGHHH No way!!!!! I'm a Mantle collector! If strapped for cash, there's a lot of other cards I would sell before that one!!!!!!!!!

[walt_altmen]

3 pages deep and no one has posted one yet!?!

[smapdi]

I went to the National with a 51B Mantle as my #1 want, and I saw probably 15-20. My target of $8K for a decent 4, which I thought was a real possibility, was not found. Closest I saw was $8200 for a severely OC SGC 4, or $10K for a pretty good PSA 4. Prices on mid-level 51s have risen about 20% in the last year, in my casual observations of ebay and at the big shows, and I don't think they'll ever be cheaper. Even in a recession, if some people sell they won't flood the market, and the whales out there will just keep buying.

There's been a lot of money sloshing around all sorts of collectibles, in traditional hobbies and relatively new areas, and a rising tide lifts all Mantles. As the 52 Mantle has risen, so have the others as people get priced out. What do you do when you have $8K but that won't get you a PSA 1 1952 Topps anymore? You can get 1951 Bowman PSA 4 or a 1953 Topps PSA 6, and it seems that's what people are doing.

But on the whole I just don't understand why a really nice 51B, like a PSA 7, is not $50K or even $100K. There are currently 3 7s on ebay, at $35K, $40K, and one on auction ending in a couple days currently at $30,100. It's with PWCC, so who knows, but it will probably seem like a bargain a year from now.