PHILLY SHOW this weekend....Mar 13-15th

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Posted By: Ted Zanidakis

Hope to see some of you at the Show at the Valley Forge (PA) Convention Center.

It's an easy trip on the Pennsylvania Turnpike to the Valley Forge exit.

Here is the URL for the Show info......http://www.phillyshow.org


I will have a wide variety of vintage cards from 1888 to 1967. At least 400 - T206's....graded and ungraded.
Many Stars, Southern Leaguers, and commons....and my usual "junk box" filled with 100+ T206's.

Or, just drop by to Talk Baseball.


Jim Rivera will be sharing the booth with me. Jim specializes in the tougher T206 backs.

Look for us at Booth #815......we'll be looking forward to seeing you.


Pennsylvania Ted

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Posted By: Joe D.

Ted.... I'll see you on Sunday.

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Posted By: judson hamlin

I'll be there Friday night - and happy that it isn't Reading.

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Posted By: Anonymous

I would like to go and originally planned on Saturday, but the Penguins are playing at home at 3:00 p.m. The turnaround would be too tight. I might make it Sunday.

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Posted By: Dustan Hedlin

While I have always loved living in the midwest, there are hardly ever any good vintage cards at most shows around here. Luckily I am an hour from Chicago, so I can get to the National when it comes here, or to the Sun Times and Sportsfest shows, but most things there are pretty overpriced and it's tough to deal at the shows since I don't really buy doubles.

Just the thought of digging through a "junk box" of T206's, even though I'm trying for all graded in my set, sounds like a blast. Especially being able to do it while talking baseball.

I need a vacation.

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Posted By: Scott Dango

will SGC be there?

would also love to meet THE TED Z....

man probably has more baseball knowledge in his pinkie than most do in their body...

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Posted By: Brian

SGC will be set up at the Philly show all weekend accepting submissions for on-site grading and take-home cards to be mailed upon completion. We'll be at booths 303 and 304 in the front of the room to the right of the entrance. As always, we love meeting forum members and collectors, so please feel free to stop by and say hello.

If you have any questions, my e-mail and phone number are below.

Hope to see many of you this weekend!

Brian Dwyer
SGC
1-800-742-9212 x114
bdwyer@sgccard.com

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Posted By: Jimmy Muscarella

I'll be there on Saturday. I look forward to meeting some new people, and hopefully picking up some new items (my fingers are crossed that I find some Exhibits).

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Posted By: Phil Garry

I'll be there on Friday night.

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Posted By: Frank Wakefield

Wish I was going to be there... I keep hearing great things about this show every year.

Frank W.

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Posted By: James Gallo

Anyone want to plan a time and place for a Net54 meetup? I will be there all day Saturday.

James G

Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.

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Posted By: Mike Peich

Hi James, and all,

I will be at the Valley Forge Show on Saturday, along with my good buddy Tim Newcomb, and I propose we meet at 12:30 wherever they have a food court. If it would be easier we could meet at Ted Z's table, so let me know what works for everyone. It will be good, as always, to connect with local members of the Net 54 Board. And, I REALLY hope Wonkaticket will be there!

Cheers, Mike

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Posted By: AndyH

I'll be there all day Saturday as well and plan on saying hello to Ted. I have lurked here for the past 5 - 6 years and post occasionally, so it would be cool to meet a few other board members as well.

Ted,

Please bring any more T206's you may have with any sort of back stamp on them. Thanks a lot.

Thanks,

Andy

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Posted By: Kenneth A. Cohen

I'll be set up at Booth #92, so please stop by and say hi. I'll have a few showcases of mostly pre-war stuff while my partner Jill does mostly 50s-60s-70s cards. Hope to renew acquaintance with those I've met at the National and make some new ones.

Ken

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Posted By: Scott Levy

I will be there with my dad (Hank) on Friday night. I probably will bring a few T206 cards along with me .... so look for the very tall guy (I'm 6' 7") walking around and say hi.

Regards,
Scott

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Posted By: judson hamlin

Scott - See you there; missed you at the last NYC dinner.

Judson

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Posted By: Ted Zanidakis

It's a nice weekend here in Pennsylvania....hope to see you at the Show....take the PA Pike to the Valley Forge exit.
Turn right at the very 1st exit after the toll plaza....the Convention Center is about 1 to 2 miles up the road on your
right.

Check-out Jim Rivera and I at Booth #815

Have a great weekend,

T-Rex TED

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Posted By: Alan

Ted - Where are we having dinner tonight ?
(Unfortunately, I won't be able to make the show)

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Posted By: bruce Dorskind

Whilst the Valley Forge convention center was a vast improvement over Reading,
and words apart from the old, dirty Willow Grove location,we thought that this
year's Philly show was disappointing at best.

It was great to see a few legendary collectors and long-time dealers. Attendance, although
strong did not appear to serve as a catalyst for a great many important transactions.

We spoke to 15 different long-time and well respected dealers. They indicated that their
business was off 20-40%; that buying high grade rare material was next to impossible and
that, with the exception of really special pieces, sales were off/

We walked and studied the offerings at more than 50 tables.

There were a number of wonderful "to be auctioned" items at several tables including
Legacy and Huggins and Scott.

As far as we were able to discern, there was only one table that had any truly extraordinary
cards for sale- that was Legacy. Gracing Greg's table were a large Gypsy Queen of Ward,
a Yum Yum of Keefe and a Lone Jack of Comiskey.

Very few e-cards in what we considerable acceptable grades were to be found. The few high grade Goudeys were
the same players one sees all the time and there were very, very few extraordinary advertising pieces or
ultra rare books.

Again, it was nice to see old friends; learn what the Hobby was thinking about the demise of
the largest auction house and garner a real time understanding of the current state of the rare
card market.

Looks like we are in for an extremely tough year. Our other observation was that most of the dealers
with whom we spoke believe that the recent upheaval in the market will enable Robert Edward Auctions
to become the truly dominate force in the high end baseball memorabilia and rare card market.


Bruce Dorskind
America's Toughest Want List

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Posted By: CN

This is always my favorite show and will be driving down from Long Island in the morning with 2 friends. Bruce I have always respected and liked you(even though you are a Yankees Fan) but enough with the gloom and doom lately this hobby is all about fun. CN

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Posted By: judson hamlin

I was at the show last night and I find myself agreeing with some of what Bruce said,, albeit from a different collecting perspective. The facility and location are, for starters, much nicer than Reading. And, it is always good to catch up with Ted Z, Kevin Savage, Mike Wheat, Bill Z and other good guy dealers. Legendary's stack o'Drums was amazing, as much for the T205s as the '06s
But...
As far as mid-grade and lower "collector" grade material, the prices were significantly higher than should be expected in this economy. I looked at one dealer's cards - he had a stack of raw T205s in, at best, GVG condtion. They were priced at 60-75 each. Now, even if there is room on that price, I can't imagine him coming down to the 20-25 that would have been more appropriate. I had a similar experience at other dealers' tables. Those cards will come back home with those dealers on Sunday and go to the next show, and the next, and the next.
The remainder of the vintage stock at the show was fairly ordinary in terms of selection and quality. I did pick up some E120's and '35 Goudeys.
I will say that collectors of 50's - 60's cards had better options for bargains than usual.
I'm sure September will find me there again, though.

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Posted By: Pennsylvania Ted

The highlight of the show was indeed at Legendary's booth. A 41-card array of T206 DRUM's and an additional group
of 8 - T205 DRUM's. All from an original find in St Louis.

I will cross-check these with our current list of confirmed T206 DRUM's to see if this find has produced any new ones.


Needless to say, most impressive part of this find are the 8 - T205's....which include a Mordecai Brown.



Hey Bruce....how did you miss noting this collection of "cardboard gems" at the Show ?


T-Rex TED

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Posted By: Richard

Ted - do you know if Mordecai Brown is one of the more common T205 Drums? I seem to recall seeing at least 1 or 2 others. Maybe all T205 Drums were not printed in the same amounts?

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Posted By: Phil Garry

My experience at the show on Friday night mirrors Bruce's comments. Great location and accomodations but disappointing as far as vintage baseball material compared to past Reading/Fort Washington shows. Definitely seemed like fewer dealers, especially top quality vintage material.

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Posted By: Alan

Was it pretty much the same dealers that had tables at the Reading location ? Any prominent dealers drop out ?

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Posted By: Ted Zanidakis

Two major veteran dealers that I noticed that were not at the show are Irv Lerner and Terry Knouse (TIK & TIK).

My two-day perspective regarding this show....simply stated, I'm disappointed.

Perhaps, today may be better.


TED Z

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Posted By: Bill

I know that Alan Rosen/Mr. Mint is retiring at the end of next year, but I didn't see him there either. Levi Blum of 707 Sportscard wearing a top hat was a bit odd too. I got there at about 11 yesterday and it took close to 30 minutes to find a parking spot (there was a Gun Show on property as well) and another 30 minutes to stand in line waiting to get in...

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Posted By: Mike Peich

Hello All,

I spent Friday and Saturday at the Valley Forge Show and had a wonderful time. While I can't speak from a dealer perspective (as Ted Z. has), I was not disappointed. I agree in part with Bruce's assessment that ultra-rare was not much in evidence, although I was impressed by a Federal League pennant for the Baltimore Terrapins, a fairly rare item.

Judson is correct, too, regarding prices. That being said, if asked most dealers were willing to negotiate slightly (although one was not interested in any conversation regarding price). I was able to add a few Old Judges, upgrade some T222s, and add a few Contentnias (both series).

The space is a major improvement over Ft. Washington and Reading, and getting there is simple. Parking is available, but one has to walk--that was always the case at Ft. Washington, too. Overall I felt the location was great.

I did miss seeing Terry Knouse, and a few other dealers weren't there (Roger Neufelt and Irv Lerner), but I rarely bought anything from Roger, and wasn't interested in what Irv sold.

The camaraderie was great and I had wonderful conversations with a number of folks including Kevin Cummings, Rob Giuffreda, Ken Cohen, Ron and Sheila Barrett, Dave Schrader and his wife, Ted Z, Paul Stark, John Goodman, the crew at Chuck Bluie's table--the list goes on and on. And, of course, the human baseball card encyclopedia, Tim Newcomb, was my house guest for the week-end.

I had a great two days, appreciate what Dave Hunt and crew have done, and look forward to the next show.

Cheers,
Mike

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Posted By: Jimmy Muscarella

Well, I'll add one more view about the show this weekend. I spent just about the whole day on Saturday there. Even with arriving early, the line to get in was long, but it wasn't too crowded walking around. From a collector with a modest budget, I thought the selection was very good (good amount of pre-war material, and a large amount of 1950's era cards also). I was able to pickup a few items, but do share the view about prices. Overall, they were high (which is to be expected) but even with negotiating would still be a bit more than it should be. It was great getting a chance to see some nice items, but I think the auction houses could have used a little less space 'displaying' their next auctions.

I was able to get some good pics of Frank Robinson, Mays, and McCovey...but would not pay the prices they were asking for autos.

I met a handful of people, including Ted Z...but didn't introduce myself to many others...you'll know it was me because I was the guy asking every person there if they had any 1921 Exhibits.

Overall, taking the show for what it was (a chance to look and talk cards with others in the hobby)...it was a very nice day.

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Posted By: DJ

I made the seven hour trek for Friday and Saturday and must say that I was most surprised at the popularity of Gun Shows. And could anyone else figure out the sleep number system on their Radisson mattresses?

I actually enjoyed myself and I think people use these kinds of shows in different ways. I accomplished all my goals. I picked up a few nice pre-war cards for my collection, caught up with old friends and customers and saw some really nice items that will be available for bidding in the future, mostly unique and rare signatures. I did overhear at Bagger's table: "I got that from Leon Luckey!".

Most of the nice stuff could be purchased in upcoming auctions. That's just the collecting world we live in, it seems. I did not see any e107's, a handful of n172 HOF'ers and no cards that really made me go: Wow!

I did see a lot of dealers with nothing much to do. The reason? Their prices were too high. When you have card marked a "6" and you want 60% over SMR and you have to tell me that you think it's undervalued in the SMR and I picked one up for 20% under SMR with a BIN, there's a reason why you have nothing to do back there. Saw a lot of that.

I think the number one sentence most uttered at the show was: "Do you get cellphone service" and the reply was "nobody does."

In one final note, it's really sad what has become of the "greed" of the legends. There they were, Willie Mays, Frank Robinson and Willie McCovey and because their prices were so unrealistic, they just sat there without lines.

They called Willie Mays tickets up to eighty and that was it. What do you want when the prices begin at $269 for the surly ball player who evidently gave out a horrid version of his signature at the show and MAB had to make several warnings over the loud speaker to the show guests to NOT take pictures of him. I watched Frank Robinson sit there and eat a sandwich.

On Mr. Mint's retirement. In January, the VBC Forum should honor him with his own "Greatest Hits" thread so let's get some baby photos (little, round headed baby with super orange head and tiny briefcase) and let's get Wonka ready in advance!

DJ

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Posted By: David Atkatz

ultra-rare was not much in evidence"

Isn't that what "ultra-rare" means?

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Posted By: Marty Kohler

I would like to thank everyone (so far) who took the time to post their feelings about the show. It is really appreciated by this collector and I`m sure many, many more who couldn`t get to the show for whatever reason. I would agree that you can have a great time in a room full of like minded people and the contacts made can certainly led to future buys or trades. I also wondered if anyone took some pictures there and could post them? Thanks once again, Marty

GO YARD

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Posted By: Alan

I appreciate everyone's review/analysis of the show. Outside of the National, this is my favorite show to go to. I usually go on the Friday nights, but couldn't make it this time.

When the show moved from Ft. Washington to Reading a few years ago, I felt the show lost some of its luster. Now that it is now in a new location/facility closer to Philly, I'm just curious if it's just a continuation of the Reading version or does it have the luster of the old Ft. Wash show (in a new building) ?

Thanks.

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Posted By: Mike Mccullough

(((ultra-rare was not much in evidence"

Isn't that what "ultra-rare" means?)))


What the Bruces meant is that they were looking for the "almost close to Ultra Rare",, which of course is readily available at most shows.

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Posted By: judson hamlin

Alan - For the moment, it seems to be more of a continuation of the Reading shows than anything better. That being said, the show needs to be given a chance. With new management and a new location, it may need two or three more shows to get its own identity. If it hasn't improved by, say, the Fall 2010 show, we should be watching out for vultures perched outside the Convention Center.

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Posted By: dan mckee

I too, like Ted, was very disappointed in the show. I am debating doing it again. It will make my wife happy to cut down to just the National. I thought the facility was horrible. Restrooms were nasty and layout was odd and worst of all, was loading in and out. A loading dock where just 10 vehicles at a time can be on. I loved reading but realized the location was horrible. This new location seems like it is much better but after that, it goes down hill in my opinion. I am sure the economy doesn't help and it was a first time for the new show promoters who seemed to have done their best and were always available and active. The higlight of the show for me was meeting Frank Robinson who is my all time favorite player. Dan Mckee.

www.danmckee.com/pictures/types001.jpg>

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Posted By: bigfish

I wish I could have been there for all the fun. Chuck Blue called me to keep me posted each day. I heard octomom was sitting behind Chuck Blue's table doing a private signing. Is this true?

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Posted By: Dan P.

I got to the show on Saturday and made some minor deals, left 3 cards with SGC and saw my old friend Ted Z and met Jim Rivera and Aan McKee.

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Posted By: leon

Had I known octomom was signing I would have made the trip...DOH!!!

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Posted By: John

"I heard octomom was sitting behind Chuck Blue's table doing a private signing. Is this true?"

Well at least we know who the father is now...

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Posted By: James Gallo

Well guys I was there all day saturday and had an ok time.

I managed to find a few Attell cards I needed, and a couple of Cracker Jack upgrades, but I agree the prices were a bit high and the dealers not super willing to work with you.

I think a lot of people got messed up beause of the gun show. Parking was a pain, but everyone was waiting on line for the gun show. If you walked up to the top door you could have skipped that huge line. I waited for maybe 5 minutes to get in.

Crowd seemed out but not great. I think being in the basement was not the best place and the layout was very odd as it wasn't square rows like normal.

There were several dealers missing, but the show did sell out it's dealer space and it was full. Didn't seem to be as much new stuff which may be a result of the large price increase for dealer tables.

All in all aside from the auctions I didn's see much that wowed me. I think for the first time I came with good trade bait and some cash and didn't need either.

Dropped some stuff off at the graders and had my ususally great chats with the SGC crew.

All in all a nice day. I do wish the show would go back to 3 times a year though as waiting 6 months can be painful at times.

James G

Looking for 1915 Cracker Jacks and 1909-11 American Caramel E90-1.