My grandfather once told me wisdom is lessons learned from the mistakes you have made......

Here are the five traps you want to avoid in buying sport cards online.

1.  Never buy from anyone who keeps their feedback private and/or keeps their bidders list private.  99.999% of these dealers are crooks.

2.  "Since this card is ungraded eBay rules require me to sell it as a reprint" (THERE IS NO SUCH RULE)  If you believe that insert a swamp land joke here.  This is a ploy to get you to buy a reprint for more than the five cents it is worth.  It makes you feel you may be getting this great bargin.

3.  "I am selling this card for my friend or found it in my grandfathers attic".  You can put this in the same list as the woman who sold cards a while back saying she was selling her husbands collection to pay for his open heart operation.  What they are trying to tell you is "I am an idiot so take advantage of me".  There is only one idiot in these deals, guess who?  Here is a quick way to expose these guys trying to dump unwanted cards.  Look at their feedback where they were the buyer, and you will notice they have purchased baseball cards.  Now why would some poor jilted woman want to be buying cards online if she is trying to give away here ex's collection of mickey mantle cards???

4. This autograph was signed in person.  Let me tell you this I have a signed Dick Butkus football he gave me during a business lunch a few years ago.  It is not for sale and will never be for sale.  I could not profit from his kindness.  I also know several people who can create just about any signature you can name.

5.  345,000 unopen, unsearched packs from 1823 to present for less than one cent a card.  99.99999% of these packs are between 1990 and 1992.  For what ever reason these are the dead years for baseball cards.  Not a good era for super rookies, before the SP, autograph or game used inserts.  Go to your local dollar store and you can get them for a dollar a box, that is about 3 cents a pack.  This has even been expanded to some formed companies selling these lottery boxes where they advertise there is an unopened 1952 topps pack.  These are not a good value, since you will be handed packs with little or no value.  I have found over the years if you want a card, go buy it, don't buy packs and expect to find it, you never come out ahead searching by chance.