[bman12]

So I just got off the phone with my friends wife she tells me she is selling her cards around 11 thousand of them 1952 up to the 1990s and a ball signed by babe ruth and 28 other players the ball was something her dad got in 1963 and a sheet of mantle cards that say dealer only which I have no idea what that is. Shes asking $600 for the whole lot she recently got laid off and needs the money. I don't normally buy older cards but my ? is should I buy them none of the cards are graded she said about 1000 of them are from the 60s..next ? how do you get a ball authenticated. Some are non sports she said some are superman cards and others like that. I tried telling her to try to sell the separately on ebay but she thinks its to time consuming. So should I buy them? She is right that's a lot to go thru..

[greekgoony]

If everything is legit, the ball alone is worth thousands. The cards will depend on condition

[gotopes]

Wow - that'll be quite a haul if it's all legit. Are you able to take a look at the collection before committing?

If it was me, I'd go ahead and buy it if the $ and time associated wouldn't put me out too much - it sounds like a huge project that might take months to really sort out.

As far as getting a ball authenticated, I've used PSA: http://www.psacard.com/services/autographauthentication

They weren't too expensive, were fast, and returned my ball in a case. You might want to do extra homework on that part, though, as if it's a true Babe Ruth plus others, they authentication service might ask you to insure it or put other fees on it.

[bman12]

Wow - that'll be quite a haul if it's all legit. Are you able to take a look at the collection before committing? yes I can look first

If it was me, I'd go ahead and buy it if the $ and time associated wouldn't put me out too much - it sounds like a huge project that might take months to really sort out. I got plenty of time I'm home on the weekends taking care of my mother someone has to watch her at all times she likes to try to wander. The money is not a problem. Just seams like a lot of cards I will go look at them on Friday and let you all know how it goes..

As far as getting a ball authenticated, I've used PSA: http://www.psacard.com/services/autographauthentication

They weren't too expensive, were fast, and returned my ball in a case. You might want to do extra homework on that part, though, as if it's a true Babe Ruth plus others, they authentication service might ask you to insure it or put other fees on it.

[djohn]

It all depends on condition and players, however regardless of that if the Ruth ball is legit then it's well worth it and then some. I would actually have a hard time offering only $600 if that ball is legit. If it's a friend's wife, and there are some really good cards or the ball is legit, then you might offer to buy some and consign the rest for you to resell for a percentage of the final sales price. You don't want to lose a friend if they find out that you gave $600, and the ball was worth several thousand on it's own.

[bman12]

It all depends on condition and players, however regardless of that if the Ruth ball is legit then it's well worth it and then some. I would actually have a hard time offering only $600 if that ball is legit. If it's a friend's wife, and there are some really good cards or the ball is legit, then you might offer to buy some and consign the rest for you to resell for a percentage of the final sales price. You don't want to lose a friend if they find out that you gave $600, and the ball was worth several thousand on it's own.

I did tell her if the ball is legit it should fetch a lot more then 600. So what I plan on doing is if it all works out I will have the ball authenticated then sell it and split the money from the sale with her. I really am interested to see this ball she says there is a total of 29 sigs on it I never seen a ball with that many I don't even think its possible. I plan on going over on Friday to see the collection in person. I will be happy to post picks when I get home I do value all the great advice I get from my fellow collectors.

[DrMitchJ]

You can have her consign the ball to a sports auction, let them authenticate it and you're friend and his wife will consider you the greatest superhero this side of Batman! Authentication of 29 signatures could run into some bucks. Better the consignment house taking the money from the sale vs. laying out hundreds.
You don't want to sell that on eBay. Too many opportunistic bargain hunters. Auctions usually draw a more fiscally enriched audience

[djohn]

You can have her consign the ball to a sports auction, let them authenticate it and you're friend and his wife will consider you the greatest superhero this side of Batman! Authentication of 29 signatures could run into some bucks. Better the consignment house taking the money from the sale vs. laying out hundreds.
You don't want to sell that on eBay. Too many opportunistic bargain hunters. Auctions usually draw a more fiscally enriched audience

I totally agree with you on this. A Babe Ruth autograph ball with 29 sigs will cost quite a bit to get authenticated, unless the other sigs are all scrubs then you could just get the Ruth authenticated. However more than likely it's a team ball or All-Star ball, which with the right sigs could fetch over $10k in a consignment house auction like Goldin Auctions. The bigger consignment house auction companies usually get a great price on authentication and different levels of authentication. Again, if the ball happened to also have Gehrig or some other big names they will promote it much better than eBay.

[soccerscrub]

ummm WOW! That sounds like it is an amazing deal. I hope it all works out and it would be awesome if you did sell some of the items to split it with her. If you were keeping the items, $600 is a good deal.

[diablo71]

I just saw this thread. Curious what the final verdict was. Did you get the collection?