Who Sent These? Who did!

 I use the Post Office's Informed Delivery feature to see what mail I have coming each day. I live in a rural area where mail theft can happen, so it is always good to know what to expect.  Truthfully, these days it is mostly insurance solicitations and credit card offers.  So, imagine my surprise and delight when I saw an envelope from Night Owl the other day.  

Greg and I have something of an unstated agreement.  Whenever I am at a show and down to the nits and lice in my pocket, I scan through the vintage discount boxes for cards on his want list. In response, I'll get an envelope from him with various cards that I would not otherwise seek out: modern cards of Yankee stars (like this Mo), modern cards featuring vintage players (like these), vintage cards (like these), and even help with my non-sports horse set (see here.)  Since, I generally eschew modern cards today, my online trading has mostly evaporated.  So, getting mail from NO is a major, and welcome, event.

So, what arrived?

Five cards towards my 1978 TCMA The 1960s set.  I really like this set, which harkens back to 1953 Bowman Color, with a simple design that really focuses on the player rather than extraneous design elements.

The cards was accompanied by a note saying that he was putting this set on the back burner because he has too many collecting interests.  That is a problem I also am suffering in my collecting, as evidenced by the fact that the last time I added a card towards completing this set was in December of 2015. Yikes.

But, these cards have rekindled my interest in finishing the set and, since the weather this weekend is ill-suited for the farm project I need to finish, I'm going to look for cheap lots on eBay to see if I can close this one out.

One final observation:  the backs of these cards are really something when you contrast them with the staid front.  Individually the backs are not untypical from any number of other oddball sets in that it includes the players name, team, position, handedness, height, weight, and birthday.   

But, taken together?  Hoo boy.  See for yourself:

They are all over the place. Different fonts. Different color ink.  Wonky spacing and centering.  I mean, really. Go home TCMA, you're drunk.

What I am listening to: Crawl Into the Promised Land by Rosanne Cash

Labor Day Card Show

Normally, when I do a brag post about a card show haul, I present the cards in reverse chronological orders.   Today, I am not going to do that, as it seems more appropriate, in order to build suspense (I know you aren't exactly sitting on pins and needles reading this post, but work with me here.)

I picked up a total of 7 cards for the 1960 set I am slowly working on.  These were actually the last cards I picked up at the show as I sought to spend what little cash I had left. These few cards moved me up to having 260 of the cards in the 572 card set.

I just noticed that top edge on the Joe Morgan rookie card. Hoo boy, that is ugly. The experts over at net54 seem to be in agreement that it is a factory defect.  I guess I know now why it was so cheap. I may need to upgrade that some day when I am more concerned with set value.  But, that isn't any time soon. I found a total of 38 cards for my 1965 set. There was a lot more, but not at a price I wanted to pay.  

So, now I am sitting at 468 cards; needing only 130 to complete the set.  Of those 130, 20 are actually upgrades of cards I already have but are in poor condition.  However, even this close to completion, it will probably be a few years before I finish.  The biggest cards I have left include Roberto Clemente, Mickey Mantle, Hank Aaron, Pete Rose, Willie Mays, and the Steve Carlton RC.

Also, since this post has been composed in several sessions, I would like to acknowledge the passing of Lou Brock on Sunday. I never got to see him play and only know him by reputation and baseball cards. But, like Ernie Banks, he always seemed to be smiling. As a person prone to melancholy, I have an affinity for people like Brock and Banks who radiate joy so easily.  Hopefully, the once teammates are playing together again. RIP Lou.

Speaking of which....

I found two of the remaining five cards I needed to complete my 1968 set. The final cards I need at the Hank Aaron All-Star (370), Lou Brock (520), and the Nolan Ryan RC (177). My guess is it will be a while before I finish this set. The first two cards are obtainable, but the prices on the Ryan have been outrageous and way more than I am willing to pay.  Even low grade versions, from reputable sellers, are going for $300 or more.  So, I am going to sit tight and hope the bubble bursts.

There it is.  The final card I needed to finish my 1970 set.  My blogging has been intermittent for a number of years now, so I can't determine exactly when I started working on 1970, but as near as I can tell, it was sometime in 2016. So, it took around 4 years to complete.  

This card is significant in a second way as it is also the final card I needed to complete the run of Topps sets from the 1970s.  I do need one card to finish the 1974 master set (599 - San Diego large print version,) but since I have two of the three versions of that card. I consider the set complete.  While I don't expect to ever seriously build 1952 or 1953 sets, I do plan to work on the remaining Topps sets. My progress on that goal is as follows:

So, what does the future hold?  Not sure. I'm sure I will still be dabbling a bit on eBay, but there is a big show coming up in November in Dallas that I am thinking of attending, if the COVID situation is under control. So, I will try to keep my powder dry and save up some funds if I do decide to go. Also, as the days get shorter and the lawn goes dormant, I am going to try to get back to some original content around here.

  

What I am listening to: God's Problem Child by Willie Nelson (and Tony Joe White, Leon Russell, and Jamey Johnson)

Clipping Coupons

So, for only the second time this year I went to a card show.  I masked up and drove up to the city.  Even though the two sellers I normally spend the most with weren't there, I did have a very productive outing. But this post is not about that.

This post is about eBay. Last weekend, I saw rumblings on Twitter about a $25 off coupon code that everyone was trying. It was apparently for folks who have been on eBay since the beginning. I haven't been on since the beginning, but I have been on for exactly 20 years (I joined September 1, 2000.) So, I tried the code to see if it worked and it did.  So, what did I get with my $25 off?

This signed 1960 Fleer Luke Appling is the 15th signed card I have from that set. The set itself is only 79 cards and, of those, only 40 of the subjects were still alive at the time the set was issued.  So, I am now sitting at a respectable 37.5% of the possible cards in an autographed form.  With a quarter C-note off, this card was mine for a bit over $25. I also knocked off my goal to have over half of the possible 1960-1963 Fleer cards in signed form by the end of the year. For the three sets, which total 299 cards, I have estimated that it is theoretically possible to have 201 signed cards. This puts me at 101.

Luke Appling played 20 seasons for the Chicago White Sox in the majors between 1930 and 1950, missing only 1944 for military service and never making the post season.  He was a good hitter, winning batting titles in 1936 and 1943. He retired with a .310/.399/.398 slash line. Obviously, he didn't have much power, with only 45 homeruns in his career. However, he was a legendary contact hitter, only striking out 528 times in 20 seasons.  In fact the back of this card says "Although not in the record books, he was one of the greatest foul ball hitters in modern times."  One fun anecdote I stole from his SABR biography goes as follows:

As one story goes, Appling once asked the tight-fisted business manager of the Sox for several balls to sign for friends. The business manager refused, citing the Depression and that each ball cost $2.75. Appling turned and walked out without a word. That afternoon in his first at bat he fouled off ten consecutive pitches into the stands. Turning to the club official in the owner’s box, he said, “That’s $27.50 and I’m just getting started.”

He had a long career as a minor league manager and major league coach right up until his death in January 1991. In an interesting coincidence, Appling appears on one of the cards I got at yesterday's show, a 1960  Detroit Tigers Coaches card. He was elected to the Hall of Fame in 1964. 

What I am listening to: What've I Done to Help by Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit

Miscellany - NonSports Edition

Two posts in the same week?  I am back, baby!  Okay, not really.  But I did manage to find a couple of cards I needed for my non-sports tobacco card collection.

This is the final card I needed to complete my 25 card 1889 Kinney N230 Famous English Running Horses set. It is diamond cut and a bit short side-to-side.  I don't know if it has been trimmed, but I am not trying to put together a high grade set, so it doesn't really matter. I am mainly looking for affordable eye appeal and this has it. Now I need to get serious about N229 (Famous American Running Horses) and N231 (Great American Trotters.) I have exactly 3 and 1 from these sets, respectively.  They seem much harder to come by. eBay searches turn up a lot of N230; considerably fewer of the other two. But, that is what the chase is for, no?

This my 10th card from the 1890 Allen & Ginter N18 Parasol Drill set.  It is a 50 card set, so I have a long way to go.

What I am listening to: The Saint of Lost Causes by Justin Townes Earle

Miscellany

Life continues to be busy and my hobby activity has been hit and miss.   Mostly miss, though I have picked up a couple random things.

This is a 1968 Sports Service Photo for my Paul Blair collection.  I have held off on adding photos to a card collection, but I have finally weakened.  I don't know a lot about Sports Service and some cursory research doesn't result in much.  It is something I need to look into.  I'll probably start over atNet54 and go from there.  This photo is actually 4 1/4 inches by 7 1/4 inches.  And, of course, I don't have any two pocket pages to put it in.

This is the final card I needed to complete my 1994 Ted Williams Card Company set.  It is the checklist card for the Dan Gardiner subset. Interestingly, I expected that this card just reused artwork from the player cards in the subset.   To be sure, some are very similar, but none are exact matches.  I find that level of attention to detail admirable and makes me wonder what could have happened if this card company continued to issue sets after 1994.  I'm not particularly fond of the card backs, but I really like the card front designs, which show the same level of attention that I reference relative to the checklist card above.

In fact, now that I think of it, it would be fun to a post on the set.  Of course, working on those few 1970 Topps card back sets I did was fun and I have managed to not follow-up with a new entry in that series in forever. Winter is coming soon and I'll have more time then.

Anyways, now that I have the 1994 set complete, I have updated my Want List sidebar to show what I need to complete the 1993 Ted Williams set.

What I am listening to: Rogers Park by Justin Townes Earle (I have posted this once before, but I just heard last night that JTE has passed away at the age of 38. If you get a chance, listen to his "Harlem River Blues" album. It is brilliant.)

Ask and Thou Shalt Receive

A couple posts ago, I showed off some framed bookplates that featured artwork from the Duke N101 set. I mentioned that I didn't have any cards from that set.  Shortly thereafter, a dozen or so cards from that set came up individually on eBay.  Most ended up selling right in that $15-$20 range. I low bid hoping to bottom feed my way into at least one. And I did get exactly one.

I've got to be honest, I cannot find any information about Villous horses.  There is a lot of naturalist engravings and prints from the Victorian era. But, nothing modern. I have no idea if this references a breed or if it is a proper name.  Going to have to ask my horse friends that are more knowledgeable than I am.

What I am Listening To: No Man's Land by Bob Seger

Fleer Autograph Project and More

I feel like things are getting back to normal.  Well, not really, but I am getting back to a less moribund level of hobby activity.  I am still not looking at going to any shows any time soon, so I am concentrating online.  This week saw a few things arrive,

This Frank Howard card was the card that was stuck in the Los Angeles distribution center for two weeks. It finally arrived and is the second to last card I need for my 1970 Topps set and for the complete run of Topps baseball sets from the 1970s.  The final card I need is Johnny Bench, which has been selling for prices way beyond what I was comfortable paying.  Granted, I was only looking at trusted sellers, who will command a premium.  I'm going to have to get a bit more serious about this one. I'd love to get that '70s run complete.

A new addition to my Paul Blair PC: 2004 Upper Deck Timeless Teams Auto Gold. As best as I can tell, there are 7 versions of this card (4 base and 3 autos at varying levels of scarcity/serialization) and I now have 3 of this card.  There is a second Paul Blair card in this set related to the 1970 team and I have 4 of those.  Since there are Platinum base and autos for each card that are 1/1, I don't expect I'll ever get all 7 versions of each card.  In fact, the serialized versions of these cards come up on eBay so rarely, I doubt I'll ever even get close to 6 out of 7.  Not a problem since that is what the chase is for, no?

Finally, I added two new cards to my signed 1960 through 1963 Fleer project. Since both Lloyd Waner and Marty Marion were prolific signers in their retirement, I was able to add these at a reasonable price.  To a certain extent, as it relates to 1960 and 1961, I am still bottom feeding. I think I am getting to the point that I am going to have to start opening the wallet a bit wider to add more.  Which will conflict with my set building. So, I expect this to slow down (not that it was ever fast to begin with.)  I do have a goal to get over halfway before the end of the year. Which raises the question as to where I stand.  Glad you asked. Here is my progress:

I have exactly one more card to add in the next 4 months to get to that goal.  I have not decided yet whether that will be another low cost addition or if I should splash out a bit more.  Stay tuned!

What I am listening to: Got the Time by Anthrax (a cover of the Joe Jackson original if you can
believe it):