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 Friday, June 22, 2007
What exactly are buyers’ and sellers’ premiums?
Posted by Chris
 In the past couple months I have participated in quite a few auctions. I have bought things and sold things, and definitely have lost out on MANY things. In the past couple weeks I have both won items and sold items, and in both cases, am left asking a couple questions. Now, I am not going to name names, mainly because I feel that it is any business’ right to charge whatever it wishes, but I also have the right as a customer to stop doing business with anybody I choose. (It hasn't come to that yet, but it might some day soon) For my first question, I will indirectly ask the auction house who charged me a $60 processing fee to sell my items, why they feel the need to charge me this fee? I understand that there are many costs into producing an auction, but why wouldn’t the company just incorporate all fees in the sellers’ fee? As if the 15 and 20 percent it took from the final sale price wasn’t bad enough, the company also charged me this extra chunk of change. Not a big deal, but seemed kind of petty to me. On the buyer side I also have a question to a different auction house. I bought a nice signed book about a month ago. If I were to ship an item like this it cost me about five bucks. I understand that the workers at the auction have to pick the item out of inventory and that costs money, but I was charged $15 for shipping and an additional $10 service charge. I just about dropped out of my chair. Anyway, all this isn’t that big of a deal. In fact, all this didn’t stop me from bidding in Mastro’s sale that ended last night. I even was fortunate enough to win the pictured Babe Ruth Called Shot ticket stub. Happy hunting folks. Have a great weekend!
6/22/2007 4:15:07 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00) 
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Thursday, June 21, 2007
Is Sammy’s ball worth a million?
Posted by Chris
 The obvious answer is no. Sammy Sosa hit his 600th career home run last night and nobody seems to be talking about what it would sell for in auction. From what I understand, the ball actually made its way into the Rangers’ bullpen, so it may never end up being sold publicly. I just wonder if anybody would give this the hype that a ball of this historic magnitude would presumably deserve, or if it is just another piece of Sosa’s rather-sad history. We may never find out. Maybe the better question is “Will he make the Hall of Fame?” Thoughts? ********************* Tonight Mastro, American Memorabilia and Premier Auctions are all closing. Not to change the subject, but a Mastro representative called me today about its live event that is going to take place at The National in Cleveland August 3. According to the representative, Mastro will be offering some of the best material they ever have, including Mickey Mantle’s 500th home run ball. Talk about a museum piece! I am currently trying to get a complete list of items that will be featured in its auction. Stay tuned.
6/21/2007 2:52:55 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, June 19, 2007
Sometimes buyers on eBay bother me
Posted by Chris
 Last night I had a bunch of auctions that ended on eBay. I didn’t sell anything spectacular, just some odds and ends like some Packers signed prints from the 60s. The first person who paid for one of the items sent payment via Paypal. Now, I normally don’t have a problem accepting Paypal payments, but this guy sent it in the form that it takes like 3-5 days to clear (a pending payment). I am not a big fan of going to the post office, so whenever this happens, it turns into a bit of a hassle. I like to send all the items at once. Another thing that really irks me is when it takes some winning bidders a week or two to pay for an item they win from me on eBay. What’s worse is when they take two weeks to pay and then give me the business if I take a couple extra days to send out their item. I think if a person takes ten days to send payment for an item, then that should give the seller the right to take ten days to send the item. Breath deep Chris… Ok… I feel better. Sorry for the rant guys, but now I feel better:)
6/19/2007 5:43:37 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, June 18, 2007
I guess you could say I am a tease
Posted by Chris
 Sorry, I am going to keep you all guessing, but I want to get some excitement brewing for a new feature that will be introduced very soon on sportscollectorsdigest.com. This "surprise" is going to take place in about a week or so and I guarantee everyone will want to take advantage of it. I will be bold and say that it will be one of the best things any sports memorabilia website has ever offered to its readers. I know that this is all pretty vague, but trust me… It will be worth the wait. ********************
There are quite a few auctions that are ending this week. Mastro, American Memorabilia and R and R Auction are all ending on either the 20th or 21st, so I am sure there will be lots of nice items to comment on in the near future. I have my eyes on a few pieces in Mastro and I haven’t gotten the chance to go through the others yet, but will in the next day or two. If anybody wants to point on any interesting items, or has any comments on these current auctions, feel free to do so. ******************** In one final personal note, I ended up getting my new TV. Samsung 42-inch plasma was the one I went with and I am very happy with it. Got a chance to watch Entourage's season premier last night on my new toy and it was awesome!
6/18/2007 5:06:01 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, June 14, 2007
Calm down guys – Collecting game-used memorabilia is supposed to be fun
Posted by Chris
 Recently there have been quite a few discussions on one of the hobby’s popular message boards about people trying on game-used jerseys and swinging game-used bats. After reading all of the posts, I have come to the conclusion that the majority of people posting on the board think it is a major no-no to try collectibles on or “play” with them. At least that’s the message that they seem to be trying to convey. I will say, I really like sports memorabilia message boards and I am open to free speech etc., but these guys are way too serious and some are just trying to start trouble… You know who you are. Game-used jerseys and bats aren’t part of evidence in a crime-scene investigation. Gosh, collecting memorabilia is supposed to be fun. I will tell you right now, if there is a Brett Favre game-worn jersey sitting next to me, I am going to be putting it on. Period. If I am at a card show and one of the dealers shows me a game-used Lou Gehrig bat, I guarantee I am going to grip it, just like I am at bat at Yankee Stadium. It’s human nature to “play” with these great artifacts. Obviously I will make sure that I will not add any wear to the piece, but I see nothing wrong with giving them a try. Now, that doesn’t mean that I think it’s acceptable to take a Paul Molitor bat to the local batting cage and hit line drives with it. You get what I am saying. Chill out guys. For those who say they would never take part in this “horse play,” they are lying… or if they’re not lying, they are very anal.
6/14/2007 5:18:50 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, June 13, 2007
And the winner for weirdest online auction of the day IS:
Posted by Chris
 This crazy sale, features one of the weirdest items I have ever seen and it can be yours for a cool 65K. You will get an autographed photo and the all-important FINGER NAIL CLIPPINGS of Muhammad Ali! Yep, this is an eBay first for me. **************************** I recently was asked, via the Tuff Stuff message boards, a question about Brett Favre autographed photos and what they are currently selling for. I told the person my estimate and where he could go to find a legit Favre sig… I also said that he could probably go to eBay and get a better price, but that he would have to be careful because of all the fakes that make their way to the Bay. After I posted this I figured I would take a gander at what the Favre autograph situation actually was on eBay. To my astonishment, I must say that there are an awful lot of horrible fake Favre autographs currently on eBay. I am no expert on signatures, but a lot of these are not even close. Plus, the fact that some are selling for under $20 is a big red flag. Very sad that some people are getting ripped off by these worthless crooks. Part of the problem is the customer though. If you see a Jordan signature on eBay for $50, it is a fake. If there is a Mantle signature on eBay for $100, it is a fake. And if you see a Favre signature on eBay for only $15, it is a fake. Come on people. If the price is too good to be true, it is usually a FAKE!
6/13/2007 6:04:18 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, June 12, 2007
It could be a lot worse
Posted by Chris
People always say that if you can turn your hobby into your career that you will ultimately be satisfied. I am happy to say that I pretty much have accomplished this tough feat, and I am not alone among the lucky ones. The reason I bring this up is because I ran into many familiar faces at this past weekend’s Sportsfest and it is really cool that all these guys do this stuff for a living.  I knew MEARS’ Troy Kinunen when he was just out of high school and now he is one of the industry’s leading authenticators. Mastro’s president Doug Allen was a big baseball card collector and now he is head of one of the leading auction houses in the world. Memory Lane’s Dan Wulkan has been collecting cards ever since he used to obtain packs from his grandpa’s candy store in the Bronx. There are many, many others who share our good fortune. It seems that most people who start working in the hobby stay in this hobby in some capacity, even though they may not stay with a particular company. In my case, I worked for SCD Authentic, then spent time at American Memorabilia, worked for about a year at Upper Deck, and now am back at Sports Collectors Digest. Funny how things work out. Check out this great photo that was taken about ten years ago of Wulkan and the “Baseball Card Kid” Mark Murphy. The photo shows a big crowd of people opening packs of 1986 Fleer basketball cards, in search of an MJ rookie. Those were the days!
6/12/2007 5:16:59 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Monday, June 11, 2007
Sportsfest highlights, including how I watched Sportscenter and brushed my teeth at the same time
Posted by Chris
Sportsfest was pretty solid this weekend.  Friday was one of the best first-days we ever had, with a lot of action in the autograph area and tons of buying and selling between dealers and customers. Saturday’s traffic was a little on the light side, probably because it was so nice outside, but Sunday was very busy. There was constant floor traffic yesterday and it was really cool to see all the pro wrestlers in the autograph area. Talk about some nice guys that were willing to chat with their fans and smile for a picture. Check out T.S. O’Connell’s photo of King King Bundy with a six-week old baby! Good stuff. I had an interesting Saturday. SCD had a professional camera crew come in to tape our annual “What’s it Worth Day”. Bob Lemke and I were the experts on the sports side and we were happy to evaluate people’s items for about five hours straight. The video, sponsored by Mr. Mint, will be featured on our website in the next few weeks. It was really good to see some familiar faces again. I had some nice talks with American Memorabilia’s Victor and Kieta, card dealer Rick Giddings, the Memory Lane crew, card dealer Bob McLean and Gameusedforum.com’s Chris Cavalier among many other dealers.  Everybody really enjoyed the new Schaumburg facility and hotel. I really was impressed and was very excited about our hotel room, which had a flat-screen TV in the bathroom mirror. At first I thought having this feature in our room was kind of pointless, but it was very cool that I got to watch Sportscenter while brushing my teeth. ****************** IN BREAKING NEWS: Heritage Auctions is not going to be rewarding a bounty for Bonds' record-breaking home run baseball afterall. Here is a press release the company released this afternoon: Safety, Liability Concerns Prompt Withdrawal of $1 Million Bounty for Bonds' Ball (Dallas, TX) - Concerns about the safety of fans in the stadium and potential legal liability have forced Heritage Auction Galleries of Dallas, Texas to withdraw its previously announced offer of $1 million to purchase the baseball that Barry Bonds is expected to hit this season to establish a new career home run record of 756. "There's a real concern that mania over the breaking of Hank Aaron's lifetime home run record coupled with a reward for the ball could lead to fans' injuries," said Greg Rohan, President of Heritage Auction Galleries ( www.HA.com). "After personally traveling to San Francisco and meeting with a senior Security Department official at AT&T Park about the potential for a melee in the stands, and discussing potential liability with our attorneys, we have reluctantly, but we feel prudently, withdrawn the $1 million bounty for the baseball. We didn't hear of any way to prevent possible public safety problems, and we don't want a fan or a child injured or killed," Rohan explained. "We will be happy to speak with the eventual owner of that ball about consigning it to an auction, but we are no longer interested in buying the ball, and if there are indeed any injuries associated with any scuffle for the ball, we would decline to handle it at all." Heritage is the world's largest collectibles auction house. Last year Heritage sold at auction Babe Ruth's 1933 All-Star jersey for $657,250 and its auction of items from the archives of basketball originator, James Naismith, generated more than $700,000 in winning bids. For additional information, contact Heritage Auction Galleries, 3500 Maple Ave., 17th Floor, Dallas, TX 75219. Phone: (800) 872- 6467. Online: www.HA.com.
6/11/2007 5:38:15 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Friday, June 08, 2007
Off to Sportsfest
Posted by Chris
In about one hour I will be on the road to Illinois, where I will attend Sportsfest. I am hoping to meet a lot of the readers and dealers that I never had the chance to meet, and also hope to find some unique Packer items while I'm there. You never know what might turn up, but at the very least I will get to check out some of the hobby's greatest cards and memorabilia. I'm sure I will have some stories to tell on Monday, so check out Gavel Chat next week. Hope to see you at the show!
6/8/2007 3:13:47 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Thursday, June 07, 2007
Move over MJ… Lebron is the next “Greatest Ever”
Posted by Chris
 Ok, nobody really expects the Cavs to defeat the Spurs in the Finals this year, but if somehow the unimaginable happens, and the Lebron-led Cleveland squad beats the crafty San Antonio Spurs, Lebron James may propel himself into the category of best player in the NBA and eventually may even be considered better than Michael Jordan. I know that this is a stretch, but Lebron has already brought his team to the Finals and he’s only 22 years old. Lebron doesn’t have much more talent on his team than Kobe has on the Lakers and the Cavs look much more impressive than the Lake Show. I know, I know… The Lakers are in the West. Big deal. Even if the Lakers were in the Eastern Conference I highly doubt that they would be in the Finals and no matter what, you have to admit that Lebron has handled himself much better than Kobe has and King James is about six years younger. It seems like just yesterday James was placed on the cover of SI as a high schooler when he instantly became a household name. Now he is competing for the NBA’s top prize. Simply amazing.
6/7/2007 5:32:38 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Wednesday, June 06, 2007
What is your favorite card-collecting moment?
Posted by Chris
 Here’s mine… I come from a small town in Wisconsin called Marinette. Marinette is one hour north of Green Bay, which isn’t really a big city, but very big compared to my hometown. When I was about 11 years old, in 1989, my parents would usually travel to the big city of GB to watch a movie and go out for dinner. On occasion they would go shopping and even pick me up some cards or magazines that I couldn’t get in Marinette. I will never forget this… one Saturday in 1989 my parents planned their regular trip to GB and asked me if I wanted them to bring anything home for me. I somehow had $16 saved up and I said “Yes. Go to Baseball Card World and get me a pack of 1986 Donruss cards. Make sure you get the right pack. The blue pack with the baseball on it.” I will never forget that pack. Some of you will be able to remember how hot the 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco Rated Rookie was. At that time, I never opened a pack of those cards. Back then the only time I saw them was in the pages of Sports Collectors Digest. I think at that time the Canseco carried a value of $100. BCW in Green Bay was known for charging quite a bit on its vintage packs of cards. They got away with it because nobody could find them anywhere else. My parents thought I was crazy that I wanted to pay $16 for a pack of cards, but I earned the money somehow, so they got me the pack. Whenever my parents went to Green Bay they usually got home way past my bedtime. I would not be sleeping this night. I waited up until they came through the door. Finally, at about 10:30 I heard them come through the door. My dad handed me a small brown paper bag and inside was the pack of ’86 Donruss. I will never forget it. I was standing in the kitchen as I opened up the pack. I don’t even remember how many cards were in the pack, but I think there were 660 cards in the set. My odds were horrible.  I opened the pack very slowly. My first few cards were commons, but when I came up on the fifth card my heart skipped a beat. Staring at me was Mr. Canseco, with his mustache and the words “Rated Rookie” right in my face. That card can be picked up nowadays for only a few bucks, but that story is priceless.
6/6/2007 5:52:09 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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Tuesday, June 05, 2007
SportsFest – Only Three Days Away
Posted by Chris
 The last card show I attended was the 2006 National in Anaheim. I think I was there for only one day, so I really didn’t get my fill. I am a memorabilia junkie. Going to card shows is one of my favorite parts of this job. Where else can you see all those great cards and pieces of memorabilia under the same roof? All the big-time dealers will be in attendance at this year’s SportsFest. I have been to almost every SportsFest since its origin and I am excited to check out its new location in Schaumburg, Illinois. *********************
Now something really off-topic… I finally am going to join the 21st Century and buy an LCD flat-screen TV. For those of you who don’t know, Krause Publications is in a very small town in Wisconsin and there isn’t a whole lot to do during the weekdays. That said, I spend more time than I should watching television. May as well do it in style. In the next few weeks I will be making the purchase. If anyone has any flat-screen TV advice, please let me know. One of my friends told me that LCD is much better than Plasma. Does anyone have any thoughts on this? I can’t wait to watch NFL football on a nice tv!
6/5/2007 5:27:53 PM (Eastern Daylight Time, UTC-04:00)
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