In the past nine months, I've gone to four decent sports memorabilia shows with each having at least 100 tables. Yesterday was one of those shows. It was held at the Serramonte Mall in Daly City and it was easily the best mall show I've ever been to, because of the size and variety.
Although there were a lot of dealers carrying sports cards, I'd describe it as a collectibles show instead of a card show, because there were people selling everything from silverware to beanie babies.
Personally, my favorite part was checking out the inventories of all of the toy dealers. I was able to finally grab several key McFarlane figures I've been wanting for a while now. So let's get onto the card show haul:
Purchase #1: 2004 McFarlane (Series 8) Ahman Green $2
I found this figure at the third table I visited. The guy had six or seven figures for $2/each and this was one of them. Two dollars for a Green Bay Packers McFarlane? This one was a no-brainer.
Purchase #2: Star Trek Trading Card Lot $15
One deck of The Wrath of Khan playing cards. Three sets. Nine wax packs. Thirteen promo cards. A few insert cards, some partial sets, and a ton of base cards. Did I over pay for this lot? Probably. Buyers remorse? No way. I purchased this box for one card. A card I've wanted for almost 20 years.
In the early 90's, holograms were the craze and I was right in the middle of it. Upper Deck's MLB, NFL, NBA, & NHL holograms... had 'em. Impel's Marvel Universe & DC Cosmic holograms... got 'em. Denny's Grand Slam holograms... what 90's baseball card collector didn't have some of these? Comic Ball, Front Row, Arena, Kayo, Wheels, Pro Set, Lime Rock, and Ultimate all produced holograms. Heck... I even had Fievel Goes West holograms. And now I finally have the 1992 Impel Star Trek TGN U.S.S. Enterprise Gold Hologram #05H. Now if I could only get my hands on one of those Pro Set Lombardi Trophy holograms ;-)
Purchase #3: Rambo: First Blood Part II Card & Sticker Set $5
The guy who sold me the Star Trek cards had a box full of non-sports sets. He wanted $5/set and as soon as I saw it, I knew I had to have it. Okay, so the sequel wasn't as good as the 1982 classic. But unfortunately, they never made a card/sticker set for the first film.
Purchase #4: 1984 Topps Michael Jackson Series 2 Sticker Set $5
I was so excited about the Rambo set, that I paid immediately without checking to see if I wanted anything else. After I paid for the set, I continued to check out the $5 set box. This time I went through the whole box before handing the guy more money.
After some research, I have discovered that this is the 2nd series sticker set... but it's not a big deal, because I just picked up the 1st series set on eBay for $8.40.
These are going to make nice additions to my non-sports collection.
Purchase #5: 2008 McFarlane (Series 19) Donald Driver $5
After I picked up the Green, I started hunting down other Packers figures. There were a bunch to choose from, but I decided to focus on the clearance sections. That's when I came across a dealer who was selling a bunch of different figures for $5/piece. There was no way I could pass up a figure of the Packers all-time reception leader at this price. The package was a little beat up, but I freed him from his packaging, so it didn't matter.
Purchase #6: 2010 McFarlane ( 2-Pack) Aaron Rodgers & Greg Jennings $15
I've been actively trying to purchase this for a few months now. However, shipping prices for these are pretty expensive... usually $6 to $10. Plus the 2-pack itself sells for between $15 to $20. So, this was another no-brainer for me. My Packers shelf is almost complete... just need the Clay Matthews Jr. and Charles Woodson pieces.
Purchase #7: 1985 Topps Rack Packs (x8) $20
I built this set a few years ago, so I don't need the singles... but I figured for the price of a blaster at Target, I'd take a shot on these. Hopefully I can pull a Puckett, McGwire, or Gooden rookie card. The vendor recently pulled the Clemens, so I probably won't find him in these packs. I'll keep you posted.
Purchase #8: 1992 Game Day Wax Box $5
Another cheap thrills purchase. There's nothing of value in this product and the oddball size makes it a pain in the butt to store... but it's $5 and should provide 30 minutes or so of entertainment.
Purchase #9: 2010/11 Panini Eric Gordon Autograph $3
Finally I picked up a sports card single. I sifted through tons of boxes before, but didn't see anything I really wanted. So I grabbed this autograph. Had he wanted 10 cents more, I would have passed.
Purchase #10: Sticker autographs of a Seahawk, a Diamondback, & a Ray $6
Similar to the previous purchase... I found a guy who with two boxes filled with autographs and memorabilia cards... all marked 5 for $10. I spent 20 minutes looking and found these three. He asked if I could pick out two more, but I couldn't use anything. Now that I think about it... do I really need a Chris Young or James Shields autograph? At least Trufant will go into my Seattle Seahawks PC.
Purchase #11: Cheap Singles: 61 cards $6
This guy was at the Santa Clara show, so I decided to dig through his stuff again to see if I could find some treasures. My haul this time around was not as good... but at ten cents a piece, it's hard to sit there and complain.
Well that sums up my purchases. I didn't find any insane deals, but I bought pretty much everything I wanted and ended up spending less than $90. So I'd definitely call this show a success. I considered going back today, because my buddy was set up... but after a long week, I decided to stay home, rest, and watch the Packers/Bears game. Go Packers!
It's time to rate my purchases... let's keep it simple. In your opinion...
What was my best purchase and my worst purchase?
Remember... I'm a big boy... so hit me with your best shot... and fire away!
Here... I'll start things off:
Best: 2010 McFarlane 2-Pack of Jennings & Rodgers
Worst: Star Trek Lot
It was hard to choose my favorite purchase, because it was close between the Ahman Green McFarlane for $2 and the two-pack. But ultimately, I went with the two-pack because it was so high on my wantlist.
Although I don't have any regrets with my purchases, I'll admit I probably could have found better deals on the four autographed cards. And there's no doubt in my mind that I overpaid on the Star Trek lot. I ended up choosing the Star Trek lot, because I essentially paid $15 for a hologram card. I'll also keep the promo cards, the unopened wax packs, The Wrath of Khan playing cards, and possibly one of the sets. But everything else will be given away to students.
By the way if anyone out there is building Star Trek sets, let me know... because I have a ton of singles from a variety of sets.
Well... it's time for me to turn in for the evening. Have a great week everyone. Sayonara!
There has been a good number of card shows this summer, that's for sure. Three this month alone, though next month may be slow. You'd think someone would schedule a card show right after the World Series to hopefully draw in some end-of-season pennant fever clients (plus there's always football).
ReplyDeleteI bought one of those $2 McFarlanes. Definitely the best purchase, since I rarely see them less than $5, and usually they're $10+ at shows.
Worst purchase: Not the Star Trek sets. Non-sport sets regularly go for $5 each, so you got your money's worth if you like them (besides the hologram of course). I'd have to go with the dime-box pickups, because it seems like you didn't get anything great out of the stack. I had better luck with Max, though, pulling out about $5 yesterday after building a huge stack last week.
The Serramonte show is the best mall show in the area in terms of number of dealers, and it seems to be getting bigger every time.
I would have bought the Star Trek lot for the same reason that you did, so I can't agree that it's your worst purchase. I'd actually say that it was your best pickup because of the hologram (and the fact that I have absolutely no interest in most everything else that you picked up.)
ReplyDeleteThe only other items that would have found their way into my collection were the baseball autographs.
I'm Jealous yet again! Those are some great pick ups, if you spot any Magic just tell me....
ReplyDeleteNice haul! I like the Eric Gordon card - he's a hell of a player and only getting better...you know, unless they don't have a season.
ReplyDeleteRyan G - Which $2 McFarlane did you grab? Let me guess... the Emmitt Smith?
ReplyDeleteYeah... the $.10 cards were definitely picked through, but I was able to fill up some of the pages in my 90's insert binder.
Paul - Yeah, that hologram is sweet and went straight into my non-sports pc.
Mini Groover - Actually this show had at least one... maybe 2 or 3 dealers with Magic cards. Unfortunately, I've never played the game, so I have no idea what's good.
The Lost Collector - I'm a Gordon fan too. The kid can score at will when he's in the zone.
Best purchase - Star Trek box. Cool.
ReplyDeleteWorst purchase - Pedophilia in sticker form. Not cool.
I wish I could attend shows like this... I've never been to one. Good haul overall.
Oh definitely the '85 rack packs were the most interesting thing to me.
ReplyDeleteI love how Topps was still calling them "sports picture cards" in 1985.
Captain - LOL... you just had to go there. Okay, now that Pandora's box has been opened.
ReplyDeleteA. I do not condone "pedophilia".
B. I separate MJ into two categories, the man and the artist.
C. When I think of MJ as a person in the spotlight, I'll be the first to say he's a little strange.
D. But as an artist, I can't ignore the fact that MJ has produced some classic songs. His music will stand the test of time. Rock With You and Man In The Mirror are two of my top 100 songs.
Fuji: Mark Prior! Only the best pitcher of 2003 Cubs! I wonder if he's ever going to stop injuring himself.
ReplyDeleteMichael Jackson, the artist, was amazing. His music spans generations and is still great 20 or 30 years later. Michael Jackson, the person, is a sad story of mental issues and an overwhelming desire to please everybody. People got so tied up in allegations and hearsay that they forgot who he was and what he meant, and were quick to cast him aside as a freak rather than to understand why he was that way. Funny, as soon as he died, all of that was forgotten and we reverted back to 1989.
night owl - I think I'll be busting them open tonight. I'll post a recap if there are any decent pulls.
ReplyDeleteI noticed on a 1994 Topps rack pack, they still call them picture cards... not sure when they stopped though.
ryan - i remember seeing the prior. i remember he had that amazing season and everyone chased his cards.
you're 100% right... before he passed away, my students would make fun of me for having him on my playlist... but these days a lot of my students love MJ.
As in Orlando Magic, but the best pull you got was the $2 Green Bay Figure. I would have got that in a heartbeat!
ReplyDeletemini groover - lol... sorry my mistake. i'll keep my eyes peeled for any $2 orlando magic figures
ReplyDelete