Collection Reflection

[abothebear]

First Pack of Cards: 1984 Fleer baseball. My dad would bring them home from the Marathon station. I’d write my friends names on the back intending to give them out when I saw them next.
First Set Completed by Hand: 1934 Gold Medal Foods WS set.
First T206: Large Ass Herzog
First Card To Pay >$100 For: haven’t paid over a hundred. Highest I’ve spent is $85 on a Cochran’s noteboook cover and also on a Churchman Ruth (that one ended up being a good buy). I spent $127 on a lot of 30s R cards that included a Foxx, Dean, Cochrane, Cronin, and more.
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: can’t imagine being in a position to pay >$1000 for a card. But I’d like to find out.
Most Memorable Trade: in 88 or 89 I received stack of 86, 87, and 88 Fleer basketball including 86 Jordan sticker and Bird stickers, 87 Ewing, 86 Wilkins, 86 Bird, for a bag of popcorn.

[bbcard1]

First Pack of Cards: 1970 Topps
First Set Completed by Hand: 1973 Topps
First T206: Snodgrass batting (for $1 from the old Card Collector's Company)
First Card To Pay >$100 For: low grade 1933 G Babe Ruth (still have it)
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: I think T206 Ohara...overpaid.
Most Memorable Trade: received: 1974 Jack Billingham for 1963 Pete Rose rookie...but I've made more bad trades than good, I think.

[yanks87]

First Pack of Cards: 1987 Topps
First Set Completed by Hand: 1988 Topps, still have doubles if anyone is looking for some......
First T206: Home Run Baker
First Card To Pay >$100 For: 1985 McGwire Rookie, whoops
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1948 Leaf Jackie Robinson
Most Memorable Trade: Traded an expired parking pass for the student lot at Penn State for a 1960 Carl Yastrzemski (later graded a 6)
**Worst Trade** - T206 Mordecai Brown (I had 2) for a Sammy Sosa rookie card. it was 1998, everyone was doing it....right?!

[bnorth]

It is amazing how many remember all this. These are going to be best guesses for me.

First Pack of Cards: 1986 Topps
First Set Completed by Hand: 1986 Topps and I still have it in the binder I put them in WAY back in the day. For vintage the only set I ever done was the 55 Bowman.
First T206: Some common that I bought from the BST section
First Card To Pay >$100 For: No idea what exact card but it was a Wade Boggs card in the mid/late 90s when they started doing the 1/1 cards.
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1952 Eddie Mathews
Most Memorable Trade: This one was fairly recently. One of my favorite guys in the hobby and very long time collecting friend is getting older and decided to sell everything. We have made countless trades over the years and he had a card I had been trying to trade him out of for many many years. I received a very rare 1989 Fleer Bill Ripken variation graded Gem 10. I sent him a couple cards I knew he could sell for way more and we were both very happy.

[thatkidfromjerrymaguire]

Fun thread! I've enjoyed reading through everyone's responses. Here's mine:

First Pack of Cards: 1986 Topps

First Set Completed by Hand: None yet. I ALMOST completed 1987 Topps, 1988 Donruss, 1989 Fleer etc. back in the day just by buying countless wax packs, but never got around to picking up the last batch of commons I needed. However, I am only two cards away from 1952 Bowman now...so that one will be my first.

First T206: Germany Schaefer (only man to steal 1st base)

First Card To Pay >$100 For: 2001 Babe Ruth bat relic card (I know these are controversial around here, but I LOVE the early HOF relic cards)

First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1952 Bowman Mantle

Most Memorable Trade: received: 1982 Topps Cal Ripken Rookie; Sent: 1987 Kraft Mac and Cheese box with Wally Joyner card on it. I got the better end of that deal, and at the time the Ripken Rookie was a pretty big card. However, since this was in 1987 pre-ebay, it was a lot harder to track down specific odd ball issues, and my trade partner was a HUGE Wally Joyner fan. So we were both happy about that trade.

[smellthegum]

First Pack of Cards: 1971 Topps
First Set Completed by Hand: 1976 Topps
First T206: Arellanes w/Piedmont back
First Card To Pay >$100 For: Don't remember
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1941 Play Ball Ted Williams
Most Memorable Trade: Traded a nm Maris rookie for a nm 54-55T Gordie Howe and 6 Ted Williams autographed baseballs, about 1989. I kept one ball but, unfortunately, the Howe is long gone. Wish I still had it.

[ASF123]

First Pack of Cards: 1986 Topps

First Set Completed by Hand: 1986 Topps. I got hooked quickly! And then 1987 Topps, and then 1988 Topps, and 1988 Fleer, and 1988 Donruss, and 1988 Score, and 1989 Topps, and 1989 Fleer, and 1989 Donruss, and 1989 Score...you get the picture .

First T206: I've bought several since I started up again about a year ago. Maybe Bresnahan was the first?

First Card To Pay >$100 For: I don't think I ever paid that much for a card as a kid, so it would be either an E90 Bender or T201 Collins/Baker, both late last year.

First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1954 Topps Aaron, this past Feb.

Most Memorable Trade: Ha. When I was about 10 years old, there was a kid who I had to be "friends" with because our moms were friends. He also kind of collected baseball cards, and he had a Topps Mattingly rookie that was a big deal in 1987. He was also a bit gullible.

I had an old "Tom Seaver Price Guide" book from 1984 that had the Mattingly listed at like $1. Using the argument that "who would know more about the ability of hitters, and thus their card values, than Tom Seaver,"* I convinced the other kid to trade me the Mattingly and some other cards for a stack of 1987 Topps, mostly commons, that he needed for his set. If memory serves, later that afternoon he told his mom and she unilaterally rescinded the trade.

Now, I am not proud of this story today, but it does make for a memorable trade.

*And yes, I did (eventually) end up becoming a lawyer. Could have seen that one coming, I guess . But of course I would never do anything like that now as an adult.

[skil55voy]

First Pack of Cards: 1962 Topps Baseball John Demerit, Ray Washburn, Don Schwall, Carroll Hardy, Al Schroll. (Still have them)

First Set to Complete by Hand: 1965 Topps Baseball

First T206: Addie Joss

First Card to Pay 100.00 dollars for: 1963 Post Cereal Carl Yazstremski

First Card to Pay 1000.00 dollars for: None

[Eric72]

Originally Posted by abothebear

...First T206: Large Ass Herzog...

THE Large Ass Herzog? The unofficial board mascot?

[Nunzio11]

First Pack of Cards: 1980 Topps
First Set Completed by Hand: Have a couple in process...68 Topps is closest. Down to a Ryan rookie to complete my first set
First T206: Tom Downey Cincy
First Card To Pay >$100 For: T205 Matty
First Card To Pay >$1000 For: 1952 Bowman Mantle
Most Memorable Trade: nothing memorable yet