a pin anyone?

[Leon]

Having just received this in the mail today I was thinking we haven't seen a pin thread in a while.

[GrayGhost]

Wow, Super pin.

[baseballart]

Nice penny! (ok, I must admit that Matty is kinda cool too)

[Rob D.]

I'm thinking that press pins qualify for this thread. Although the popularity of these collectibles has fallen off since their heyday a decade or so ago, I still like them.

The one on the left is the pin that the Indians issued for the 1954 World Series. The next two are really tough prototypes that came from the estate of a former Balfour executive.

[Rob D.]

One more that I've always liked:

[perezfan]

Here are a few that I've always thought were pretty cool (in different ways, of course). Pins really serve to paint a visual picture of what each era of baseball was like....

1912 Redland Field- Cincinnati

1913 Athletics Composite

1929 Cubs Team

Press Pins (1929 A's, 1939/40 Reds, 1938 Yankees, 1948 Braves, 1956 Dodgers, 1948 Indians)

1939/40s Reds

[perezfan]

A few more that are kinda cool....

1930s Cracker Jack Pins

1940s Jackie Robinson... much historical significance with this variation, as you were either rooting "for him" or "against him".

1960s Flasher Pins... with nifty double images, depending on your viewing angle. These ones go surprisingly cheap, although the Angels variation is quite tough.

[batsballsbases]

One of my favorite threads! I will start with this one more to come.

[docpatlv]

Leon,

Don't tell me you're starting on pinbacks now!!! I did put in some bids on that Matty pin, sorry if I bumped it up a bit for you.

Rob, Mark, and Al

Nice pins all, would like to see more if you have them

Here are some of my favorite pinbacks and a scorer.




and a VERY TOUGH post-war pin...also my favorites



MikePugeda

[perezfan]

Mike:

Awesome collection! I love the Connie Mack Pin, and am trying to do a Philadelphia A's thing right now... So email me or drop me a PM if you would be interested in a trade involving one of the Jackie Robinson Pins (or something else...) I've got some other nice ones that I just didn't have time to post.

Take care,
Mark

[docpatlv]

Mark,

Hi, could you e-mail me some pics of other pinbacks you have whenever you get a chance? My e-mail address is: docp@ptd.net

I would primarily be interested in pre-war pinbacks, but may be interested in one of the Robinson pins.

Mike

[batsballsbases]

Mike very nice items! Great to see there are more like me out there
Here are a few more.

[docpatlv]

MORE AL....pretty please!!!!!

Very nice & tough pinbacks.

MikePugeda

[docpatlv]

One more round...



And a semi-tough Joe Louis



Mike

[batsballsbases]

Mike Thankyou! We could be here for a long time I will post as many as leon will let me A few of my Day pins And a rare White Sox Garter pin Now if only I can get my friend Dan to learn how to use his computer we would have a treat!!

[batsballsbases]

mickey roger and a few jackies

[dwr11]

Wow, this is my favorite thread! That Skowron, Berra, Mantle & Maris pin is awesome! Did you just pick that one up off of ebay? That one along with the Mantle just sold a couple weeks ago.

I am in need of any Minnesota Twins players from the 1969 series (similar to the Roberto Clemente with stars). Any help would be greatly appreciated!

[batsballsbases]

DRW11 no both these pins have been in my collection for a long time. I did see them on ebay and I do know who won them.

[dwr11]

batsballsbases,

Great collection! Those 60 in '61 pins of Mantle and Maris are awesome as well! Thanks for showing.

Dan

[batsballsbases]

My favorites are the pm10 STADIUM PINS 1 3/4 AND 2 1/8 INCH SIZE
Here are 2 sets of the rare variation of Mantle + Williams. oops hit the button to fast!!

[batsballsbases]

here they are

[docpatlv]

Al,

You might give Paul Muchinsky a run for his money. You have some truly great and rare pinbacks, I can only imagine what the rest of the collection looks like.

Mike

[batsballsbases]

Mike thankyou. I do have a very large collection but a very funny story about The Good Dr Paul !!! Paul and I have emailed back and forth alot and I would love it if Paul would post up some pics of his collection all of our jaws would be dropping But it turns out Paul lived and grew up in the same town in Ct. as I did. Paul moved but Im still here. We are about 10 years apart in age, Im younger (51) We didnt know each other growing up but he still knows the town and its buildings and we talk alot about them. Pauls collection is one of the best in volume. (mind boggling) I had one of the largest collections of Cameo Pepsins but sold it off a few years ago for personal reasons. Its been fun to see who ended up with them as I have seen some of the board members with them. My Buck Ewing was on the June pickup thread. You guys all have some very nice pinbacks. And I love to see some pics Too!! Dont let me be the only one posting. Andy lets see some of yours.

[Leon]

I don't see me getting into pins too heavily. That could be a whole collecting focus itself. I have a few and always wanted a PM1 Ornate. This Matty I picked up had really good clarity and is fairly dark for the issue. You guys won't have to bid against me too often though...I mainly stick to pre-war cards but know there are some addicted pin collectors out here. Glad I could start a thread ya'll enjoy. best regards and happy collecting.

[rhettyeakley]

I'll get in on the pin-fest as well. Player pinbacks (pre-1930) are one of my true loves in the hobby.

[rhettyeakley]

A few other random favorites of mine...

[batsballsbases]

Rhett nice to see the Cameo Pepsins! One of my first loves. Here are my last 2.

[batsballsbases]

Leon,
Thanks for starting this and just to let you know that is a very nice Matty ornate frame A great pickup

[springpin]

Al,

Thanks so much for not revealing the shameful family secret I told you from my youth. Some Italians can hold a grudge for 50 years.

I never saw the 2nd variety of the Williams pin before. Thanks for sharing. If I could learn how to post images, I would be happy to do so.

An interesting story about the Mays MVP pin that someone posted. Mays was in his final year with the SF Giants (1972). The Giants issued the 1965 MVP pin of Mays during the 1972 season as a souvenir of his magnificent career. The photograph of Mays was current at the time, but in 1965 he did not have sideburns. I learned this story only a few years ago from a former front office employee of the Giants.

Paul

[batsballsbases]

Hi Paul,
Nice to hear from you! No problem about that little problem you had during your youth By the way I had dinner with Joe the other night and I believe the memory has faded so its safe to come back to the town
Paul if I get a chance I also have a pin that I think would change the book " being the oldest" 2 1/8 stadium pin. I will try and post it after dinner> I wanted you to take a look at it! Al

[batsballsbases]

Hi Paul,
This is what I was talking about. Meet Frank McCormick 2 1/8 -2 1/4 inch in size. Your Alvin Dark pin as you stated he played for the boston braves 48/49 (might be a fantasy piece) would be the oldest pin in that size. Frank played for Cincinnati from 1934 to 1945. I dont know if you can see it but there is a nice union logo stamping on the back of this one. Dead center. Which would make me believe that its not fantasy and of the period. Would love your thoughts on it. Thankyou also about the Ted Williams Variation pin just a very hard item to find as you know. Al

[khkco4bls]

guys, a jackie robinson pin display, with a extremely rare jackie pin. also a couple of other pins attached. can anyone tell me anything about the dimaggio pin. thanks

[HiNeighbor]

My same old, same old, dusty pins...


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[IMG][/IMG]

[batsballsbases]

Hello,
On the 3 pins that were posted the 2 pins the Babe Ruth And The Joe D. Pins are what are know as PM10 1 3/4 inch size . They both are seen often and look to have some rusting to them. Prices would be reflective of condition so for the ruth 20-40 and the joe d. 25-45. If they were vey clean Ruth 100-170 Joe D 90-150. The Jackie pin is a nice little pin done for the brooklyn Newspaper the eagle. A harder pin to find.

[Rob D.]

One of my favorite series of pins. All are 1.75-inch examples.

[Rob D.]

Some more:

[perezfan]

Rob: Those are very cool.... Escpecially the Avila!

Mike: I sent an email to the address you provided.... thanx!

[springpin]

Since I did the book I have come across this style of pin. I have 2-3 of them, as I recall, but not of this player. They are all slightly larger in diameter than the traditional large PM10 pins. Like many pins, they raise more questions than they answer. Here are some of them:
1. The most distinguishing characteristic of these pins is they feature an "action shot" of the player. I can't recall other pins like that.
2. The name of the player is not in block letters, but in script (presumably the player's autograph). Unusual, but not unique, as a series of early color pins from the late '60s or early '70s (about 3.25" in diameter) had the same feature.
3. None of the players were the stars of the era, or even their own team.

These pins are not reproductions. Who would make these pins, why were they made, and how would they be acquired? Possibly as a premium along with some purchase, but premiums typically have small diameters. Sold as souvenirs at stadiums? Quite possibly, but why have more of these pins not surfaced before? How did these players get selected for production? Wouldn't Mel Ott or Carl Hubbell have greater sales appeal? Does anyone recognize the image of this player from a baseball card?

There are basically two ways to trace the evolution of a pin: 1) production to distribution (sales); or 2) vice versa. Both halves of the puzzle have to "fit" each other. I generally prefer the second way, i.e., first trying to understand why this pin would have been made, and the likely context for its distribution. Alternatively, you could start with the production end (e.g., the union bug), and then try to fathom the who, why, when, and where, given you are holding the "what".

I have no concrete reason to conclude these pins are fantasies. But the answers to the questions raised would go a very long way toward understanding the origin of these pins. Furthermore, who is to say that a union worker on his lunch break in 1938 who used the manufacturing process in the factory to produce a few pins of his favorite players has contributed something of less appeal than commissioned pins sold by vendors at a ballpark?

[springpin]

Rob,

I have always been intrigued why there were two designs for these pins; a star vs. Chief Wahoo at the 4 o'clock and 8 o'clock positions. You have two players (Avila and Hegan) in both designs. Do you believe these two designs represent two different years of production? If not across-year production, any idea as to the basis of the two designs within the same year? Another wonderful pin mystery!

Paul

[batsballsbases]

Paul,
Just curious do any of the pins you have that look like this ,scripted have a union logo on the back?

[Rob D.]

Hi Paul,

Nice to see you posting again.

The questions you bring up about this series are similar to ones that I've kicked around countless times with Indians collectors at shows here in Ohio. I do think we're looking at series from two different years, but if we accept that as a fact, it just leads to more questions.

Why issue new poses of Avila and Hegan, popular players to be sure but not on the same level as Boudreau? One theory I have that kind of holds water is that the "star" series was issued first, because the pose of Avila isn't just a head shot but rather one from his waist up, which is different from all of the other poses in both series. So that might explain why a new pose -- one of the more typical head shot -- was used in the second year for the "Wahoo" series. Unfortunately, that doesn't explain why a new pose of Hegan was used, because both are head shots.

The other thing that has bugged me is why examples like Boudreau, Mitchell and Rosen border on being common, but the Wynn and the one pose of Hegan are really, really tough. The reason it bugs me is that somewhere I have an ad from a team-issued publication (and, of course, I can't put my hands on it right now) that shows these very pins being offered for sale. So that always has led me to believe they simply could be purchased, as opposed to being part of a seasonlong giveaway or promotion. Unfortunately, the ad pictures only a generic drawing of a pin -- exact enough to positively conclude that its for this series but generic enough that you can't make out a star or Wahoo to determine the year of issue. Argh!

Another reason I think the "Wahoo" series came second is because that pose of Avila is used in the 1.25-inch series pictured below, which based on the players I've seen, likely was issued third. It would make little sense to go back and use an earlier pose of Avila for this third series -- but I suppose that can't be ruled out entirely, can it?

Like you say, lots of unanswered questions and fun, little mysteries.

[smokelessjoe]

"Boost the City League" pin. And though not a pin, I thought I would post this Ty Cobb pocket mirror...

[ksfarmboy]

My favorites.

[andypcl]

Hi Al,

I just saw the last line of one of your posts. Great pins as usual. I was going to put together one pic of a fifty or so buttons but I just don't have the energy right now. Eventually, I'm going to do that so that I can do a framed picture to hang up in my newly decorated garage.

I've got a pretty nice collection of buttons at this point but thought I'd post a few that, while not Baseball, are pretty cool ones that don't turn up too often. Here's one that I really like from the 32' L.A. Olympics. It has fantastic orange color that doesn't show as well in the photo but I found it about 5 years ago in a antique store in a little town near Hearst Castle. An added benefit to a short vacation.

The Knute Rockne kinda speaks for itself - a coaches conference in 1939 that honored him for his 50 years in football. I'll follow up with a few more a little later.

[slidekellyslide]

Great pins everyone....mine are too boring to post so I won't, but I'd like to add that if I didn't focus on Nebraska related item I think baseball pinbacks would be what I would collect.

edited to add that I'd love to see that old Husker pinback of yours Andy.

[andypcl]

Hi Dan,

Here it is. Maybe you could refresh my memory about who the fellow on the right is. Also, thanks again for the Omaha Booster button you sent my way a while back. It cleaned up pretty nice. I added a few more for you.

[slidekellyslide]

Thanks Andy! That's William N. Johnson who played 'End' on the offensive line. Thanks for showing those other pins...I see the Stadium builder pin every once in a while at the local antique stores and such, but I've never seen the football with the "N" pin before.

[andypcl]

thanks Dan, I'll copy that pic and keep it for reference.

[batsballsbases]

Hi Andy,
Thanks for posting up some nice pins. I always like the unusual ones you always seem to come across. I like that stagg pin. I will post up some more but am adding this one I picked up not long ago.

[batsballsbases]

I thought I would also take a chance and post my Wards Sporties. Im still in need of Jimmie Foxx,and Jimmy Wilson to finish it! Any help would sure be appreciated