1955 Topps DoubleHeader #.85 Elmer Valo / #86 Hal Brown
(A's/Red Sox)| Grade | EX/MINT |
|---|---|
| Book Value | $ 40 |
| Our Price |
$ 39.95
Add to cart
|
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on vintage baseball, football, basketball, hockey, sport and non-sports cards.
1952/53 Bowman TV & Radio Stars of NBC
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1968 Topps Action All-Star Stickers
Another one of my favorite Topps test issues !!!
In 1968, trying to catch the fancy of young collectors, Topps issued a set of
"Baseball Action Stickers", also called "Action All-Stars Stickers".
1968 was a huge year for Topps with their test/oddball issues of
Game cards, Player Posters, 3-D cards, Plaks, Discs and Punchouts. |
Sold in 1-sticker packs in 1968 with 12 packs/box; at ten cents a pack, sets could be put together
for just $1.60. Today, if you could find them, a mid four figures or more would be needed to build a set.
Today a complete 3-panel sticker with Mantle in the center commands up to $2,000 alone. 
The single panels themselves are quite scarce and in the 23 years PSA has been
around they have graded just over 200 TOTAL, less than 9 per year !!!
The pop report is on the average of only 4 to 5 of each individual panel !!!
Compare that to PSA has graded over a thousand 1952 Topps Mickey Mantles !!!
Vintage Topps collectors understand supply and demand and just how cool
these are ! 
Grade/Condition Centering, corner wear, photo clarity, edges, creases, print flaws ... all combine to determine a card's condition or grade. Along with rarity/scarcity it is the major factor in a card's value.
Graded Card As values increased the condition of cards and the determination of fakes and alterations became increasingly more important. Various companies became "graders" of your cards. For a fee they would grade your card (usually on a 1 to 10 scale) and then placed in a sealed plastic holder with labelling of the vital information.
From past experiences, most people are NOT HAPPY with the grades they receive. To keep values up, graders can be extremely picky. Things you don't see, they do so don't be surprized when the NEAR MINT card you send in ends up with an EX or EX/MINT grade.
There are TOO many grading companies - if you do, do choose carefully. PSA / SGC / GAI / BGS are some of the many companies. It is good to know that getting a card graded by a company that people do not recognize or respect will usually just cost you time and money and not help you in any way.
