Saturday, March 30, 2013
Gypsy Queen Value Pack #2: Bonus pack
Gypsy Queen Value Pack 2: Pack 3
Welcome to Texas Mike Minor jersey bit.
Gypsy Queen Value Pack 2: Pack 2
Gypsy Queen Value Pack 2: Pack 1
Not in the first pack though. I got a Kevin Millwood No-Hitters insert and a base Jackie Robinson. I really want to see the new movie 42. The previews look good, but the music not so much.
Gypsy Queen Value Pack: The bonus pack
I'll be back with Value Pack #2 in a bit. I'm just starting a live draft blogger baseball league on Yahoo.
Gypsy Queen Value Pack: Pack 3
Gypsy Queen Value Pack: Pack 2
EDIT: So the Strawberry was an SP, this mini is not. Thanks hiflew.
Gypsy Queen Value Pack: Pack 1
Vintage is good
Plain and simple.
Vintage feels good. It smells good. It IS good.
So sending me vintage is a sure fire way to get on my good side.
The greatness that is GCRL is on my good side.
You, however, don't get to see why until the end.
This is definitely NOT vintage. It does have the coolest vintage logo around.
I've been getting an incredible amount of play at the plate cards lately. I will never be organized, but if I was, I'd have a play at the plate card tournament. Someday.
How's that for an EPIC Swatch. Numbered 20/50 too.
Can't you just smell that vintage? Can you feel it? I can. Of course, I'm holding it in my hand as I type. Well, you know what I mean.
What's better than a 1971 Senator? A pair of 1965 Senators, that's what.
Flat top anyone?
HOLY SMOKES!!! Do you see that!!!??? Vintage? Very, very vintage. Catcher? Oh yea. Did I say vintage? That's a 1951 Bowman Bob Swift. If I keep picking up Bowman cards like this, I may have to collect the whole set.
Jim, thank you so much for the great cards. Your package will be on the way Monday.
Vintage feels good. It smells good. It IS good.
So sending me vintage is a sure fire way to get on my good side.
The greatness that is GCRL is on my good side.
You, however, don't get to see why until the end.
This is definitely NOT vintage. It does have the coolest vintage logo around.
I've been getting an incredible amount of play at the plate cards lately. I will never be organized, but if I was, I'd have a play at the plate card tournament. Someday.
How's that for an EPIC Swatch. Numbered 20/50 too.
Can't you just smell that vintage? Can you feel it? I can. Of course, I'm holding it in my hand as I type. Well, you know what I mean.
What's better than a 1971 Senator? A pair of 1965 Senators, that's what.
Flat top anyone?
HOLY SMOKES!!! Do you see that!!!??? Vintage? Very, very vintage. Catcher? Oh yea. Did I say vintage? That's a 1951 Bowman Bob Swift. If I keep picking up Bowman cards like this, I may have to collect the whole set.
Jim, thank you so much for the great cards. Your package will be on the way Monday.
Friday, March 29, 2013
Basketball collectors, I need a little help
I'm trying to maximize my profits on these 1986 Fleer basketbal cards I picked up.
If any of you have experience with getting cards graded by PSA, would you be willing to look at some scans of these cards and tell me what you think about them. Obviously, it's just your opinion and I won't hold you to anything if I decide to get some of them graded, I just want to know if its' worth the time and expense.
Thanks in advance for any help.
If any of you have experience with getting cards graded by PSA, would you be willing to look at some scans of these cards and tell me what you think about them. Obviously, it's just your opinion and I won't hold you to anything if I decide to get some of them graded, I just want to know if its' worth the time and expense.
Thanks in advance for any help.
Garage Sale Find: Where I make my money back
Now we get to the part where I make my money back on the garage sale purchase. My cost was only $25 so I should make that back at least 8 times over. Based on Ebay sales, I think I can make somewhere around $100 or more on the lot of 1986 Fleer basketball cards from the little box.
I'm not really looking to trade yet, but if anyone wants to buy any of this stuff I'll give you first crack before I list stuff on Ebay. After the smoke settles and I've sold off what I can, I'll trade the rest if anyone is interested.
I'm not going to spend a lot of time describing this stuff. It's just a couple of the singles I pulled out plus some of the better binder pages. Let's get to it.
I found this 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan Sticker in one of the tubs in this screwdown holder. I should be able to turn that around. The scanner didn't like the thickness of the holder and the holder is all scratched up. I don't know the condition of the card because it's hard to tell with the condition of the holder.
These next two stickers were in top loaders. Akeem is swatting away Magic's shot. That's a great photo.
These stickers seem to sell pretty good. I may put some of them with the lot of cards to sell.
There are two dog hairs on this scan of Larry Bird. I've debated getting some of these graded because a decent grade sells pretty high, but it costs a fortune to get cards graded.
Jon over at Community Gum was kind enough to let me know that some of the basketball inserts are pretty valuable so it looks like I need to do a little research. I know that '86 Wilkins is a good one.
The Olajuwon page had another one of those stickers.
This is a great Celtics page. You know, if you're a Celtics fan.
That Karl Malone from '86 is another great find.
The '86 Ewing sells good, but doesn't bring as much as Malone.
Here we have another Larry Bird.
Lakers and Pistons.
I was disappointed not to find a 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie. That disappointment was tempered by the other great cards that turned up, including the 2nd Jordan Sticker.
That's about it for now. Someone talk me off the ledge. I just looked up the price for PSA Grading and I'm considering it. I don't think my wife would be too happy with that plan.
I'm not really looking to trade yet, but if anyone wants to buy any of this stuff I'll give you first crack before I list stuff on Ebay. After the smoke settles and I've sold off what I can, I'll trade the rest if anyone is interested.
I'm not going to spend a lot of time describing this stuff. It's just a couple of the singles I pulled out plus some of the better binder pages. Let's get to it.
I found this 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan Sticker in one of the tubs in this screwdown holder. I should be able to turn that around. The scanner didn't like the thickness of the holder and the holder is all scratched up. I don't know the condition of the card because it's hard to tell with the condition of the holder.
These next two stickers were in top loaders. Akeem is swatting away Magic's shot. That's a great photo.
These stickers seem to sell pretty good. I may put some of them with the lot of cards to sell.
There are two dog hairs on this scan of Larry Bird. I've debated getting some of these graded because a decent grade sells pretty high, but it costs a fortune to get cards graded.
Jon over at Community Gum was kind enough to let me know that some of the basketball inserts are pretty valuable so it looks like I need to do a little research. I know that '86 Wilkins is a good one.
The Olajuwon page had another one of those stickers.
This is a great Celtics page. You know, if you're a Celtics fan.
That Karl Malone from '86 is another great find.
The '86 Ewing sells good, but doesn't bring as much as Malone.
Here we have another Larry Bird.
Lakers and Pistons.
I was disappointed not to find a 1986 Fleer Michael Jordan rookie. That disappointment was tempered by the other great cards that turned up, including the 2nd Jordan Sticker.
That's about it for now. Someone talk me off the ledge. I just looked up the price for PSA Grading and I'm considering it. I don't think my wife would be too happy with that plan.
Thursday, March 28, 2013
Garage Sale Find: Saving the best for last
Ok, this won't be the final garage sale find post. I still have some basketball to show off.
Saving the best for last is about the card that most surprised me.
Some of you might remember this post about a great score I made on some 1951 Bowman catchers. I love those cards because they are so unique when compared to what is mass produced today. Well, I can add one to the Bowman collection.
This time it's a '52 Bowman. Complete with tape residue on the top and bottom. This Carl Furillo is in such good shape. No creases, decent corners and other than the residue, generally perfect in my book. The shocking thing is that I found it loose in one of the tubs from the garage sale. Just sitting there all glorious and waiting to be rediscovered.
I hear it more and more around the 'sphere. People want to spend more time and money adding vintage to their collections.
With cards like these out there, I can't say that I blame them.
I am them.
Saving the best for last is about the card that most surprised me.
Some of you might remember this post about a great score I made on some 1951 Bowman catchers. I love those cards because they are so unique when compared to what is mass produced today. Well, I can add one to the Bowman collection.
This time it's a '52 Bowman. Complete with tape residue on the top and bottom. This Carl Furillo is in such good shape. No creases, decent corners and other than the residue, generally perfect in my book. The shocking thing is that I found it loose in one of the tubs from the garage sale. Just sitting there all glorious and waiting to be rediscovered.
I hear it more and more around the 'sphere. People want to spend more time and money adding vintage to their collections.
With cards like these out there, I can't say that I blame them.
I am them.
Garage Sale Find: RIP Steve Carlton
Sorry I didn't post yesterday. As you know I work nights. I've been getting about 4 hours of sleep per day this week and I was just too tired to post. I had to walk around at work just to stay awake. Anyway, you don't need to hear about my problems. You came to see the goods.
I showed you the vintage I found that was so cruelly stored loose in the tubs. The dinged corner, the creases, the horror. Oh the humanity of it all. Well, here's proof that just because you find vintage cards in a binder doesn't mean they are going to be in mint condition.
At the back of one of the binders I found two vintage baseball cards. Just two. They were stars. Not just stars, Hall of Famers. Someone hadn't treated them like Hall of Famers. It was sad.
Someone killed Steve Carlton. Shot him right in the face. Twice in left arm. Once in the right arm, left shoulder and right leg. And the biggie, one shot right in the family jewels. One push pin hole in a card means it was displayed because it was a beloved player. Eight push pin holes in a card means that player pissed someone off. I'm very curious if the person who hated Carlton so much was the owner of this card prior to the person who put it in the binder. I mean, if you hate him so much, why put him in the binder at all?
The final vintage card I found in the binder was not hated, but looked to have been loved to death.
How about that? Ernie Banks, circa 1964. I saw this and immediately freed it from the binder just to feel the cardboard. That is a beautiful card. I can imagine some kid pulling that card in a pack and carrying it in his pocket all day. Whoever it was loved the corners right off this thing. I don't even care because I love it too. I may just carry it in my pocket for a day or two.
Only one vintage card to go. Stay tuned.
I showed you the vintage I found that was so cruelly stored loose in the tubs. The dinged corner, the creases, the horror. Oh the humanity of it all. Well, here's proof that just because you find vintage cards in a binder doesn't mean they are going to be in mint condition.
At the back of one of the binders I found two vintage baseball cards. Just two. They were stars. Not just stars, Hall of Famers. Someone hadn't treated them like Hall of Famers. It was sad.
Someone killed Steve Carlton. Shot him right in the face. Twice in left arm. Once in the right arm, left shoulder and right leg. And the biggie, one shot right in the family jewels. One push pin hole in a card means it was displayed because it was a beloved player. Eight push pin holes in a card means that player pissed someone off. I'm very curious if the person who hated Carlton so much was the owner of this card prior to the person who put it in the binder. I mean, if you hate him so much, why put him in the binder at all?
The final vintage card I found in the binder was not hated, but looked to have been loved to death.
How about that? Ernie Banks, circa 1964. I saw this and immediately freed it from the binder just to feel the cardboard. That is a beautiful card. I can imagine some kid pulling that card in a pack and carrying it in his pocket all day. Whoever it was loved the corners right off this thing. I don't even care because I love it too. I may just carry it in my pocket for a day or two.
Only one vintage card to go. Stay tuned.
Tuesday, March 26, 2013
Garage Sale Find: Vintage Edition or why you shouldn't store cards loose in a tub
When I bought the cards at the garage sale, the lady said there wasn't anything older than the 80's in the tubs. I didn't really care since I knew I could easily make my money back on the 1986 Fleer Basketball cards. I figured if I found any vintage cards or something for my collection it would be icing on the cake.
Oooh, I sure would like a piece of cake.
Sorry, I had to cut out sweets and I distracted myself.
As I started going through the first tub, I pulled out handful after handful of cards from the mid-80s through 1993. Baseball cards, basketball cards, football cards, hockey cards and way more Nascar cards than any one person should be allowed to own. A third of the way through the box I pulled this:
That's a pretty toasty 1960 Topps Jim Piersall. Creases and all, I love some vintage, especially if it's unexpected. I'd be lying if I said finding this didn't get my hopes up of finding something better.
Just a couple of handfuls later, I pulled up a trio of vintage cards. Keep in mind that my definition of vintage may be different than yours. I started collecting in 1981 so I always thought of anything from 1980 and earlier as "old".
Certainly not better than a 1960 Topps, but it's vintage. Even if it is a Yankee.
Another Yankee, circa 1974 this time. I was 4 years old then, so I didn't even hate the Yankees yet.
That's better. Not a Ranger, but not a Yankee either. I scanned all these cards without cropping to closely so you could see the dings and corners. As we go along you'll see more and more the reason not to store your cards loosely in a tub or box or bag or shoebox or...well, you get the point.
The bottom of the first tub wasn't too far off when I found the next piece of toasty vintage.
This rather "well-loved" 1958 Don Dillard has seen better days. His nose is peeling terribly and he appears to have been bent almost in half from top to bottom. Probably from the weight of all the cards in the tub.
The bottom of the tub was visible when I pulled my next vintage card. The thing is, it was the best vintage card I found so you have to wait until tomorrow to see it. It's getting a post all it's own. It's not end of the world great, but it's great to me.
I didn't expect anything more when I hit one more trio in the last stack of cards.
If you look closely, you can see a wicked crease running from Pete's waist down through the "P" in his name. He looks resigned to living out his life with that wrinkle, but I don't think it's bad for a card from 1960.
Say it ain't so Joe. This 1959 Topps Joe Cunningham is the worst of the bunch. At least when it comes to creases.
The last vintage card out of the tub was this 1958 Elston Howard. It looks like someone took a shot at Howard, just missing hitting him in the head. Apparently someone liked Howard enough to stick a pin in him and put him on display.
The second tub had zero vintage cards so I was a little disappointed. I did find two vintage cards in one of the binders. I'll show them tomorrow.
I think I need a spoonful of peanut butter to make me forget about that piece of cake.
Oooh, I sure would like a piece of cake.
Sorry, I had to cut out sweets and I distracted myself.
As I started going through the first tub, I pulled out handful after handful of cards from the mid-80s through 1993. Baseball cards, basketball cards, football cards, hockey cards and way more Nascar cards than any one person should be allowed to own. A third of the way through the box I pulled this:
That's a pretty toasty 1960 Topps Jim Piersall. Creases and all, I love some vintage, especially if it's unexpected. I'd be lying if I said finding this didn't get my hopes up of finding something better.
Just a couple of handfuls later, I pulled up a trio of vintage cards. Keep in mind that my definition of vintage may be different than yours. I started collecting in 1981 so I always thought of anything from 1980 and earlier as "old".
Certainly not better than a 1960 Topps, but it's vintage. Even if it is a Yankee.
Another Yankee, circa 1974 this time. I was 4 years old then, so I didn't even hate the Yankees yet.
That's better. Not a Ranger, but not a Yankee either. I scanned all these cards without cropping to closely so you could see the dings and corners. As we go along you'll see more and more the reason not to store your cards loosely in a tub or box or bag or shoebox or...well, you get the point.
The bottom of the first tub wasn't too far off when I found the next piece of toasty vintage.
This rather "well-loved" 1958 Don Dillard has seen better days. His nose is peeling terribly and he appears to have been bent almost in half from top to bottom. Probably from the weight of all the cards in the tub.
The bottom of the tub was visible when I pulled my next vintage card. The thing is, it was the best vintage card I found so you have to wait until tomorrow to see it. It's getting a post all it's own. It's not end of the world great, but it's great to me.
I didn't expect anything more when I hit one more trio in the last stack of cards.
If you look closely, you can see a wicked crease running from Pete's waist down through the "P" in his name. He looks resigned to living out his life with that wrinkle, but I don't think it's bad for a card from 1960.
Say it ain't so Joe. This 1959 Topps Joe Cunningham is the worst of the bunch. At least when it comes to creases.
The last vintage card out of the tub was this 1958 Elston Howard. It looks like someone took a shot at Howard, just missing hitting him in the head. Apparently someone liked Howard enough to stick a pin in him and put him on display.
The second tub had zero vintage cards so I was a little disappointed. I did find two vintage cards in one of the binders. I'll show them tomorrow.
I think I need a spoonful of peanut butter to make me forget about that piece of cake.
Garage Sale Find: Best of the 80's baseball
I tried to limit the number of cards I scanned for this post. I didn't pull out any cards from the 1986 Donruss Rookies set, 1986 Topps Update set or 1986 Fleer Update set. I didn't pull any cards out of the 1986 Fleer binder. I actually have four boxes of cards to go through, but unless something shocking turns up, I won't need to post anything from them.
These are a few of the better cards I found mixed in with the 1000s of 1986 and 1990 Topps cards.
This was a pretty valuable card back in the day. Is it a coincidence the scan is crooked like the grin? I think not. Still one of my favorite cards to get, even though I have about 25 of them.
Wait...how did this guy make the cut? Oh yea, his head actually fit on the card back then.
I was happy to find this 1986 Fleer Cal Ripken Jr. in the box. Sure, there is one in the set, but any early to mid 80's Ripken is fine with me.
I found quite a bit of 1985 Donruss in the boxes. Look how skinny Diamond Tony is here. Nice.
An even better Ripken.
A sweet Kirby Puckett card. He looks so young! I was shocked at the way he had to retire and the way his life turned at the end.
That's it for now. Stay tuned for a look at the vintage cards that turned up.
These are a few of the better cards I found mixed in with the 1000s of 1986 and 1990 Topps cards.
This was a pretty valuable card back in the day. Is it a coincidence the scan is crooked like the grin? I think not. Still one of my favorite cards to get, even though I have about 25 of them.
Wait...how did this guy make the cut? Oh yea, his head actually fit on the card back then.
I was happy to find this 1986 Fleer Cal Ripken Jr. in the box. Sure, there is one in the set, but any early to mid 80's Ripken is fine with me.
I found quite a bit of 1985 Donruss in the boxes. Look how skinny Diamond Tony is here. Nice.
An even better Ripken.
A sweet Kirby Puckett card. He looks so young! I was shocked at the way he had to retire and the way his life turned at the end.
That's it for now. Stay tuned for a look at the vintage cards that turned up.
Cool Contest...but it's not mine
If you didn't get in The Common Card Man's contest last season, you missed out. Don't miss out this year.
Check it out right here.
Check it out right here.
Monday, March 25, 2013
Garage Sale Find: The Baseball Binders
I haven't been through all the boxes yet, but I've sorted the loose cards into stacks based on sports. Baseball is by far the most well represented, with basketball, football, NASCAR and hockey following in order.
I was surprised by what I found in the loose cards and I'll get scans of those cards for Tuesday's post. The purchase included 4 binders. I teased the basketball one already and I'll get to that one another day too. For now, I'll show you what the three baseball binders were holding.
(I don't know why pics I take with my phone won't show up right. I edit them into the right positioin, but they still show up sideways. The funny thing is I don't take them that way. I don't know...)
I was surprised by what I found in the loose cards and I'll get scans of those cards for Tuesday's post. The purchase included 4 binders. I teased the basketball one already and I'll get to that one another day too. For now, I'll show you what the three baseball binders were holding.
(I don't know why pics I take with my phone won't show up right. I edit them into the right positioin, but they still show up sideways. The funny thing is I don't take them that way. I don't know...)
Binder #1...the binder itself is in good shape and look! It has baseball cards on it and everything! WEE!!
Inside binder #1 is a complete 1989 Topps set. Well, it's not worth much, but I didn't have one so it's a keeper.
Binder #2 is also in good shape and seeing as how it says "Baseball Cards" on it, I'll keep it.
Binder #2 has an almost complete set of 1986 Topps. It's missing about three cards, but I'm sure I can find them. There are at least 1000 other 1986 Topps cards in what I bought. Heck, I may end up with two sets.
Binder #3...well, it's not exactly a baseball card binder. I think it might have been intended to hold computer disks. Well, it didn't have computer disks in it.
Binder #3 has a couple of different things in it. First up is a complete 1986 Fleer Baseball set. You might notice, if you turn your monitor sideways, that card in the upper right corner is NOT a Fleer baseball card. In one of the tubs, I found an opened box of 1989 North Carolina Collegiate Cards. There wasn't a Michael Jordan in the whole box. There was one in this binder. Funny, but not worth anything really.
At the back of the binder was a complete 1986 Donruss The Rookies set. I don't think this is terribly valuable either which is a shame because there was another complete set still in the box.
One of these binders had a couple of "older" cards that were a surprise. I'll scan those today to show with the others for tomorrow.
My goal is to look through all the boxes today and scan anything of interest. I'd like to scan and get the basketball pages and the items in the 1986 Fleer Basketball box up for Wednesday. Stay tuned and see if you think I really got a good deal for my $25.