Collectibles Q&A

NASCAR memoribilia collectors often have questions about the items they've accumulated. Here are our responses to some of your most recent inquiries:

Q: Franklin Mint produced five Dale Earnhardt tankards. I have all five of them with all the authenticity certification and original shipping boxes. I paid $37.50 apiece and was wondering what they might be worth today. -- Dave C.

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A: These are great pieces. Unfortunately, the abundance of Earnhardt product in the market has held the appreciation down somewhat. Still, Franklin Mint collectibles are among the best. I'd place the current value at $50-60 each, with plenty of room for appreciation in the future.

Q: I have an envelope I bought at the Post Office back in 1997. It commemorates the 48th running of the Mountain Dew Southern 500 at Darlington on August 31, 1997. In addition to verbiage regarding the race, it has the track's return address and a picture of cars going around the track. There is a checkered flag on the left side, where each of the inscriptions are (right side and left side.) The one on the right side is inside of a circle. Could you tell me if maybe they are worth anything or will be in the future? -- Shannon

A: In years to come, this will be an awesome collectible. Of course, Darlington no longer hosts a Labor Day weekend race, so the envelope is already beginning to build some significance. Right now, I'd place the collectible value at $6-8. But one day, this envelope might well be worth a fair amount of money. Nothing extraordinary, but a fair amount for what it is.

Q: I have a very rare promotional item from Sun Drop. It is the display cooler given to stores. They put ice in it and sell the drinks from it. It is about four feet tall and is in excellent condition. This is the Sun Drop Dale Earnhardt container from around 1980. This is the only one Sun Drop made with just Dale on it, and it was only distributed to stores for promotional purposes. I obtained this from a store that was going out of business. They where going to discard it. No one can tell me its value, and I don't know where to begin to look. Many even say that such an item never existed because the more common one featured Dale plus more drivers. Can you possibly estimate the value? -- Bonnie Powell

A: I can confirm that this cooler does exist. In fact, a friend of mine owns one. He paid $45 for his three years ago. At the time, we estimated it was probably worth $100-125 in terms of collectibility. I think the current value would still be close to that, perhaps $100-150.

Q: I have a platinum series 1:16th scale pit wagon bank. On the box it says Racing Collectables by Action. It has a sticker that says Dale Earnhardt 1 of 3,000. Can you please tell me about how much it is worth. -- Carol

A: These "war wagon" banks were a novel idea, and were actually ahead of their time. Action first began producing them in 1994, and most were released during the mid-to-late 1990s. Judging by the production numbers, I'd say your bank is of 1995 vintage. It's worth $100-125.

Q: I was given a Goody's 500 picture of Bristol in 1998 with Jeff Gordon leading. Behind is Mark Martin, Dale Jarrett Jeff Burton and Dale Earnhardt. It is signed by Garry Hill and numbered by him. It is number 13 of 50. I contacted Garry Hill Automotive Fine Art and they said to contact you because this was never offered to the public--only to Goody's Headache Powder, which is where I got it from. I was wondering what it is worth. -- R. Gill

A: Great collectible here. Garry Hill is one of the top NASCAR artists. It's a bit hard to appraise art, especially a special edition piece that was done in such a small quantity that it will likely never cultivate an active secondary market. Any value I could assign would be purely arbitrary. However, based on Garry's reputation, his autograph and serial number, and the fact that there were only 50 pieces (and they weren't readily available to the public), I'd place the value in the $250-350 range.

Q: I have a 1:64 scale Ertl car of Tim Richmond in mint package.It has the picture of TG Sheppard and Tim Richmond on front. It was made in 1986 and was made in Korea. What is its value? I also have a Racing Champion of Dale Earnhardt 1989 NASCAR Properties mint in package. The car has rubber tires and no small decals behind the front tires is this car worth very much ? I had a collector offer me $100 for both cars, but I did not do it. Did I make a mistake or not? -- Frank

A: The 1986 Richmond promo car is worth around $20-25. The Earnhardt NASCAR Properties car actually came out in 1991, not '89. In mint condition, it probably holds a value of $125-150.

Q: I am trying to locate a value on my Dale Earnhardt 1994 Racing Champions 1:64 scale Brickyard 400 Premier car. I also have a 1:64 scale Brickyard 400 car. Could you help? -- Pastor Marovich

A: The Earnhardt Premier car is worth $40-50. The regular Racing Champions Brickyard 400 car in the blister pack is worth about $5.

Q: I have Goodyear racing tire that I purchased in 1994 at the RCR Racing museum. This tire is autographed by Dale Earnhardt in silver Sharpie. I had Goodyear run the tire numbers, and they told me it was either a '94 Daytona or Talladega tire. Since I got it in May of '94 during Winston All Star Week I know that this is a Daytona tire. I have this tire mounted on a Bassett racing rim that I also purchased from the RCR parts dept after the '96 season. The rim is stamped with RCR & has the No. 3 decal still on it. I am wondering what these are worth please. -- Bob Greenwell

A: This piece has all the ingredients of a great collectible. It's Earnhardt. It's Daytona. And it has that all-important autograph. I usually don't put much value on tires because it is so hard to authenticate them. But you've covered your bases well in terms of verifying authenticity. Personally, I'd place the collectible value at $200-250.

Q: I have a photo of Dale Earnhardt when he won a race at Cumberland City Speedway in Fayetteville, N.C., in 1978. It was a qualifying race the World Service Life Invitational 300 at Charlotte. He is standing with his car, trophy, plaque and checkered flag. He's wearing a Goodyear hat. I was wondering where to get this appraised or how much it is worth. It's an 8x10 picture. I also have a Dale Earnhardt Commemorative Motorsports Plate Series made by Hunter Manufacturing, Licensed by Sports Image Inc. It reads 6-time Winston Cup Champion has a picture of Dale with his Goodwrench racing hat on and numerous pictures of his cars from 1980-1993. It's trimmed in gold. I'd like to know how much this is worth. -- Wes

A: I'm thinking the car Earnhardt drove at Cumberland was the No. 8 Chevy Nova prepared by my old friend Gary Hargett. The photo is likely worth $10-12 at the present time. I'd place the collectible value of the plate at $45-55.

Q: I have the entire 200-card Traks trading card set for the 1992 season. How much would this set be worth? -- Scott Lavick

A: A nice early NASCAR card set, but it doesn't hold a lot of monetary value. It's worth around $20.