May pickups

[autograf]

Nothing huge but after seeing that 1960 Topps Banks with the printing in the border, I picked up the only one I saw out of all the 1960 Banks on ebay at the time. Don't know how scarce it really is but it'll fit in with my 1960 set as a small oddity......

[ALR-bishop]

Tom-that is a nice one and show further how a little or a lot of the writing can appear based on the cut. I would think PSA , SCD and Becketts ought to recognize this one at some point. It is scarce but not rare.

[the 'stache]

It's May 7th, let's get this topic going, gang.

I got these at the very end of April, but didn't get them scanned until tonight. These two are part of the Robin Yount master set I'm working on.

[JollyElm]

Paid through my butt for it, but now I got a second 1967 Topps Spiezio error card in my clutches. This is one of the toughest cards to get in any shape, so I am stoked to have it!! Looks like I'll be breaking out the panty hose to clear away all of that gum and wax residue to give Ed a bit of a makeover.

67spiezio.jpg

[ALR-bishop]

Was fortunate to get one before it had much hobby recognition. Since it is now on both the SCD and Registry master set lists it has become a "have to have" card in a popular set. Folks have been asking big premiums for it

[Exhibitman]

For my Koufax collection:





For my print freaks collection:

[pawpawdiv9]

I had some Ebay bucks, and bought a 2014 baseball pack for my brother.
It had a red refractor (of some dude i dont know) and a game-used patch/jerey of Joey Votto and a rookie card of a pitcher(Brewers)
I dont know much at all on these new players or who they are...thats why i dont care much for this new stuff.

[the 'stache]

Chris, if you have any questions, I'm happy to help. That's my forte, strangely enough. I subscribe to Baseball America, and do a lot of scouting.

[39special]

Originally Posted by Exhibitman

For my Koufax collection:





For my print freaks collection:

Great stuff Adam!!

[kailes2872]

A couple of upgrades for my sets -

[Harliduck]

In between set building (taking a "break", lol), I am building an SGC 34 Goudey set and trying to finish my Harmon Killebrew SGC player set. I am ALSO working on getting every Killebrew Topps base card autographed (because I need a reason to have ANOTHER complete base Killebrew set, haha).

Anyhow...here are two I picked up today -









By all accounts...I now have at least 8 of each base Killebrew cards collected in 9 different ways. A BVG set will be next...maybe I'm a little obsessed...lol.

[MattyC]

Super stoked on this one-- spent six years building a mini set in all 10s and 9s so I know these cards pretty well. This is the best Ryan #500 I've ever laid eyes on, and I've seen every 9 thus far. The colors and overall image of this card have been a favorite since I was a kid.

[MattyC]

Yes, you can upgrade an 8 to a 2.5...

Was looking at 7s and 8s, and then along comes a 2.5 with centering and a front that smokes all of them. Nothing centered was out there. Just a barren wasteland of OC cards. I mean, finding this card centered is a rugged mission.

Somewhere out there, someone must've come across the ebay listing and was like, "That much for a 2.5?! That's insanely overpaying!" Meanwhile, to me, it was an absolute deal. I happily threw the VCP grid all out of whack to get this freak into the collection. Minor staining on back is what drops it.

Thank you, technical grading guidelines!

This card is one of my all-time favorites; I remember being a boy, and something about the composition of the photo just struck me.

This is Exhibit A in why I will always rather pay a fat premium for a great-looking, lower-graded card, than pay VCP average for an average-looking higher graded card.

[pawpawdiv9]

Matty, that looks just as good as the GAI 8 (1st graded) currently at goodwin for 1.4k+ http://goodwinandco.com/1953-Bowman-...-LOT27650.aspx

[darkhorse9]

I can now, finally say I have a complete 1954 Topps set and not have to add "except for...."

[nolemmings]

Nicely done! Iconic card with excellent centering. Attaboy!!

[darkhorse9]

That Aaron card will be freed from it's plastic imprisonment in 3....2...1...

[MattyC]

Originally Posted by darkhorse9

I can now, finally say I have a complete 1954 Topps set and not have to add "except for...."

Massive props, my friend. That is my kind of card. One of the best centered Aarons I've actually seen! Those three white borders are of equal thickness with no tapering all the way around. Very, very well done. That's the kind of card I set insane snipes for relative to average because of eye appeal. Just awesome.

[Harliduck]

Originally Posted by darkhorse9

That Aaron card will be freed from it's plastic imprisonment in 3....2...1...

YES! I have a nice little collection of tags...


AWESOME CARD! Congrats...

[ALR-bishop]

Very nice Mantle, Matt . The 53 set is the only Bowman set I put together, mainly for the Musial.

Congrats on the Aaron and finishing the set Dark. And for freeing Mr Aaron from his plastic prison

[pawpawdiv9]

Congrats as well on the 54 Hank Aaron...It must took you a ton of searching to find a centered one...i remember when i found mine...they are tough to find. Mine was a PSA 4.5 and your looks just as comparable to it...so if your looking at 'bumping' up, i think its very well possible can be done. Could be a 4, corner wear is what holds it back, especially top/right.
If you need to look at mine, here is a link to it:
http://i1240.photobucket.com/albums/...psc3da1df2.jpg

[MikeGarcia]

....my crappy old scanner doesn't do justice to slabbed cards ; I should buy a decent new one but I spend all my money on '50's Yankees baseball cards....If anyone knows of a BGS-graded Ford from this set that is available , I'd appreciate hearing from you. Thanks , MikeGarcia

[ALR-bishop]

Great cards, Mike...even if they are Yankees

[brian1961]

Hey Matty,

Thanks for posting scans of your marvelous acquisitions. That Nolan Ryan is perfect, with its centering just the way you want it---distinctly sweet dead-centered! Without a doubt, that beauty is one of, if not, THE best card they produced in '75. The pose cropped to perfection, Nolan's intent look, the mountain in the background, the gorgeous dual colors framing it, and of course the time period---Nolan had pitched 2 no-hitters in 73, another in 74, and would pitch his fourth late in the spring of 75. Most baseball fans rated Nolan right at the top, in spite of his W-L record, 'cause his team was so weak offensively. Awesome card.

I for one would like to know by what basis would PSA smear that great-looking Mantle with a 2.5? What does it have--50 back creases or something? The picture registry is dead-on. Since I cannot look back without destroying what I've written, I do not recall any unsightly print defects. I would say to the grader the theme song line from the old Chatter the Chimp show:

"CHATTER, WHAT'S THE MATTER WICH YOU?!!?"

---Brian Powell

[David W]

These have all come in recently. The Spanish language Converse pamphlet is the only one I have ever seen. It is also signed by Brock and Orlando Cepeda. The 76 Twinkie card seems to be tough for some reason, it was the only Hostess card I did not have. The Brock auto looks good, and I assume the Cepeda is good, but do not know.

[brian1961]

Originally Posted by David W

The 76 Twinkie card seems to be tough for some reason, it was the only Hostess card I did not have.

David--Just a memory and conjecture from one who collected the Hostess at the time. As you propably already know, the Twinkie card was the package stiffener for Hostess's twin snack package. The 2 Twinkies were of course placed directly on the stiffener/card, and the oil from the snacks absorbed into the stiffener. Thus, virtually all of them have oil stains, and corner dings and/or creases. The single cards without oil stains would have been the very select few that escaped being packaged with a pair of Hostess snacks. The general public had absolutely no access to those.

As a result, they were not popular with us collectors. Besides, the cost for the twin-snack purchase put the cost for the one card distinctly higher.

Therefore, buying the Hostess box with the three cards on the back was cheaper per card and most of all, you could carefully cut out a MINT card.

If Brock was short-printed for some reason, that I cannot attest to, having no knowledge one way or the other.

Congrats upon adding two more Brocks. ---Brian Powell

[bnorth]

Picked up my first print offset Mantle.

[David W]

Originally Posted by brian1961

David--Just a memory and conjecture from one who collected the Hostess at the time. As you propably already know, the Twinkie card was the package stiffener for Hostess's twin snack package. The 2 Twinkies were of course placed directly on the stiffener/card, and the oil from the snacks absorbed into the stiffener. Thus, virtually all of them have oil stains, and corner dings and/or creases. The single cards without oil stains would have been the very select few that escaped being packaged with a pair of Hostess snacks. The general public had absolutely no access to those.

As a result, they were not popular with us collectors. Besides, the cost for the twin-snack purchase put the cost for the one card distinctly higher.

Therefore, buying the Hostess box with the three cards on the back was cheaper per card and most of all, you could carefully cut out a MINT card.

If Brock was short-printed for some reason, that I cannot attest to, having no knowledge one way or the other.

Congrats upon adding two more Brocks. ---Brian Powell

I have multiples of the other single serving Twinkies, but never see the 76 single servings for some reason.

[bobc88]

Nice '64 Topps Stand-Up. Only 76 more needed to complete the set!

64 T D Farrell 051214.jpg

[ALR-bishop]

Good start Bob. Are you going to pursue the set. ?

[MattyC]

Originally Posted by brian1961

Dear Matty,

Thanks for posting scans of your marvelous acquisitions. That Nolan Ryan is perfect, with its centering just the way you want it---succinctly sweet dead-centered! Without a doubt, that beauty is one of, if not, THE best card they produced in '75. The pose cropped to perfection, Nolan's intent look, the mountain in the background, the gorgeous dual colors framing it, and of course the time period---wasn't 75 the year after he had pitched 2 no-hitters for the second consecutive year? Every baseball fan in the USA knew who Nolan was by then, and he was right at the top. Awesome card.

I for one would like to know by what basis would PSA smear that great-looking Mantle with a 2.5? What does it have--50 back creases or something? The picture registry is dead-on. Since I cannot look back without destroying what I've written, I do not recall any unsightly print defects. I would say to the grader the theme song line from the old Chatter the Chimp show:

"CHATTER, WHAT'S THE MATTER WICH YOU?!!?"

---Brian Powell

Thx, Brian.

Here's a scan of the "grotesque" back of that Mantle which warrants the 2.5 grade, below. Also added a proper scan of the front as it arrived yesterday. Having owned a few of these now, this is the best front I've seen by far-- centering, focus, no PD on his face.

The issue is paper/ink fading on the left side text (by the card #, and the words "MANTLE" and "SEASON"), and some staining by bottom border.

[bobc88]

Originally Posted by ALR-bishop

Good start Bob. Are you going to pursue the set. ?

Very slowly...

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by MattyC

Also added a proper scan of the front as it arrived yesterday.

The "proper scan" is the exact same picture as the first.

[MattyC]

Bill, when I updated the scan on my collector focus page, because it uses the same link it also updated the first scan.

[the 'stache]

Ok, I gotcha, Matt. I thought I was seeing things.

[jb67]

Picked up a trio of JB's to add to my collection. First time posting to the monthly pickup thread. Thanks to everyone that posts. I enjoy reading this thread. No doubt this thread helps feed the addiction.

[KingFisk]

Originally Posted by jb67

Picked up a trio of JB's to add to my collection. First time posting to the monthly pickup thread. Thanks to everyone that posts. I enjoy reading this thread. No doubt this thread helps feed the addiction.

Sweet Benches!

[the 'stache]

Really nice Benches, JB! Welcome to the forum!

Matt, I'm with you on the '53 Bowman Mantle. One of my favorite cards ever made. That's on my short list of cards to get before the end of summer.

And that's a classic example of where the technical grade may be right, but the eye appeal just blows that grade out of the water. And with that eye appeal, if you ever sold it, it would command a premium well beyond your average card for that grade.

If you ask me, even after seeing the minor paper flaws on the back, I think it's undergraded.

And that Ryan is just nuts. I love the color.

Mike, great '57 Yankees. You have a good eye for clean cards. The centering on that Mantle is excellent.

Mark, congratulations on the '54 Aaron.

What is it with you guys, it's like you're going down my want list this month and just knocking them off one after the other.

John, very nice Killebrews. I wish today's players had a signature even remotely that nice. Ken Griffey Jr was the last one to have something that stylized. Too many of them are scribbles like this:



And that's a good example of his signature.

[darkhorse9]

The companion for my 1955 Topps Clemente has arrived.

I am now just three cards away from a complete low-grade set (T. Williams, J. Robinson, Y. Berra) Anyone out there have any of these three?

[MattyC]

That Sandy has a freakishly clean yellow BG! Great pickup.

And those Benches are incredibly well-centered; the 69 is especially beastly to find without rugged tilt.

[jb67]

MattyC thanks for the noticing the centering. I recently decided to upgrade and have sold most of my other Bench cards that were a lower grade. Still need to replace the rookie card along with several in the 70's.

darkhorse9 love the Koufax rookie. Congrats on closing in on the set. How long have you been working on it?

[the 'stache]

Originally Posted by jb67

MattyC thanks for the noticing the centering. I recently decided to upgrade and have sold most of my other Bench cards that were a lower grade. Still need to replace the rookie card along with several in the 70's.

darkhorse9 love the Koufax rookie. Congrats on closing in on the set. How long have you been working on it?

Matt notices the centering in everything.

[MattyC]

It's a blessing and a curse!

[jb67]

Wow! Nice collection MattyC. You do have the centering down. BTW who coined the phrase "buy the card not the case"? I learned that lesson the hard way when I got back into collecting recently.

[kailes2872]

Great day at the Robert Morris today. I was able to upgrade a few cards with Uncle Dick and others. But, more importantly, I was able to find a nice deal on a solid EXMT-NRMT '61 set with nice Mantles and crisp Hi #'s (especially the All Star cards). My set run is now void of holes from '57-85. Now the real work begins - rebuilding the card bankroll between now and the National.

[ALR-bishop]

Very nice, Kevin

[mintacular]

Nice Kevin, I'll be at the show tomorrow. Hope you save me some nice 57s.

[darkhorse9]

Originally Posted by jb67

darkhorse9 love the Koufax rookie. Congrats on closing in on the set. How long have you been working on it?

The sick part is I have only been working on that set for about a month.

I never planned to start on it since I had a 1955 Bowman set, but my local card store got in a ton of 1995 Topps mid-low grade commons and minor stars and offered them to me at $1.50 each. I grabbed all I could and ended up just ten cards short of the set.

I've documented my amazing luck in getting the Clemente rookie, so I went from there.

The most thrilling (to me) part is that once I get those three missing 1955 cards I will actually have every complete Topps set from 1954-2014

[KingFisk]

Originally Posted by kailes2872

Great day at the Robert Morris today. I was able to upgrade a few cards with Uncle Dick and others. But, more importantly, I was able to find a nice deal on a solid EXMT-NRMT '61 set with nice Mantles and crisp Hi #'s (especially the All Star cards). My set run is now void of holes from '57-85. Now the real work begins - rebuilding the card bankroll between now and the National.

Awesome, Kevin! Looks like some real beauts in there.

[KingFisk]

The Palmer rookie is still one of my all time favorite cards - that confident look of a premiere pitcher about to take the world by storm - right on the precipice of a dominating career, Cy Young awards and World Series rings. It just captures that moment right before so perfectly.

And why this Drysdale is a 5 is beyond me. Maybe the color is a little muted, the borders a couple of touches off center but otherwise I could look at this card all day long!