30 Day Baseball Card Challenge

Tuesday, September 4, 2012

Flea Market Finds #22: A Birthday Mag & A Few Other Snags

One Birthday + Two Flea Markets = A Three Day Holiday Weekend

When:  September 1st
Where:  De Anza Flea Market
What:  Some MagazinesMcFarlanes
How Much?:  $26

I kicked off my weekend and my birthday celebration by walking around my favorite local flea market.


Purchase #1:  2011 McFarlane NFL 3 Pack Packers Championship $15


I've wanted to buy this for a while now, but figured it would come down in price if I waited.  I was right.  Actually, they still sell in the $29 to $35 range on eBay.  But this was the last one  the guy had and the package was a little beat up.  So he offered it to me for $20 and I countered with $15.  He accepted.



I don't care about the condition of the package, because I popped them out later that afternoon and added them to my Packers display.


Purchase #2:  Life Magazine (September 1st, 1972) $1


I discovered this magazine last year, when I searched my birthdate on eBay and almost picked up a copy for $5 a few days ago.  I'm glad I didn't.  This couple was selling thousands and thousands of magazines & newspapers for a buck a piece.  Sitting in the Life magazine stack, third from the top was my birthday issue.


Purchase #3:  Ten Copies of The Sporting News $10



After I found my birthday issue of Life, I started looking through his stacks of  Sports Illustrated.  Unfortunately, there wasn't anything that stood out, so I started to leave.  Then the guy asked if I was interested in older copies of The Sporting News.

He had hundreds of issues that were sorted by decades.  I sifted through the 70's and 80's stacks and settled on these ten copies.  I tried to pick a variety of covers, but here are a few of my favorites:




I'm planning on featuring some of these issues in future posts, because I love looking back and analyzing the past.  Aside from that... maybe I'll frame a couple of these covers and hang them up in my garage.



When:  September 2nd
Where:  Santa Cruz Flea Market
What:  A Pair of Relics, two SLU's, & a 1987 Topps WWF Set
How Much?:  $42

Purchase #1:  A Pair of Memorabilia Cards  $7


I set up with my buddy Mike in Santa Cruz and a fellow vendor came up to me asking if I'd be interested in buying some cards.  Most of the cards were lower end memorabilia cards, but these two caught my eye.

Emmitt Smith is the NFL's all-time leading rusher and a first ballot HOFer.  I know it's only a  game used ball card, but I still wanted to add it to my collection.

The Edgerrin James card is an entirely different story.  It's not about the player... it's about the card.  It features a swatch of game used turf, which I though was unique.  Plus there's some sort of residue embedded in the turf.  Overall, I was attracted to the design and uniqueness of this card.


Purchase #2:  1988 Joe Montana SLU1991 Michael Jordan SLU $25



You're probably saying to yourself... damn Fuji, you way overpaid for these figures.  But you have to see the condition of these figures to appreciate them.  The Jordan is flawless and outside of a faded hanging tag, the Montana is really clean too.

The fact is... I just can't pass up mint condition SLU's of Hall of Famers.


Purchase #3:  1987 Topps WWF CardSticker Set $10


I'll keep this simple.  It's a cool set that I've wanted for awhile.  Was it a great price?  Probably not, but it's in pack fresh condition and it's complete.


Freebies:  2008 Marvel Masterpieces Sets (x4)2006 A's Stadium Giveaway Set


My buddy had a 3,200 count box of 2008 Marvel Masterpieces that he wanted sorted and turned into sets.  I was bored, so I helped him out.  When we were finished, we made 19 sets.  He gave me 4... actually he offered to give me more, but do I really need a bunch of 2008 Marvel Masterpieces sets laying around?

He also hooked me up with this 2006 A's team set that appears to be some sort of stadium giveaway.  One of these days, I'll bust it open.  For now, I'll keep it factory sealed.

Well... that's it.  Those are my September flea market purchases.  You know the routine...


What do you think were my best and worst purchases?


Thanks again to everyone who left me birthday messages.  It really made my day.

Have a great week.  Happy Tuesday and sayonara!

13 comments:

Unknown said...

I remember those Starting Lineup figures, and the Jordan and Montana... that was a pretty cool deal.

Furthermore, you can never go wrong when trying to build a collection of birthday editions of magazines.

Great purchase, and Happy Birthday.

night owl said...

It's probably not your best purchase, but I'm a sucker for certain Sporting News issues. If I could find some from right around 1977-82 -- baseball only -- I'd probably get a bunch. Certain issues evoke memories that only music and baseball cards can do for me.

Fuji said...

Thanks. I'll actively be looking for more magazine published on my birthday. The problem is... my birthday fell on a Friday. I'm not sure how many magazines are published on Fridays.

Fuji said...

Yeah... they're one of those things I wonder what I'll do with after I read them and blog about them. Most likely, I'll take them back out to the Flea Market and let someone enjoy them ;-)

FYI... the guy had a ton of baseball from the era you were looking for. I tried to find ones with Carlton, Gwynn, Henderson, and The Wizard of Oz... but he didn't have any. There were tons of Dave Parker, Steve Garvey, and Gary Carter.

Chuck's Used Cards said...

I remember cleaning out the P.E. teacher room and finding about 25 old SPORTING NEWS - Joe Montana with Notre Dame and Pete Rose (the one your got) among them. While the other stuff is interesting, I think that you saved on the postage and got to pick out the cream of some vintage sports covers.
Well done !

SpastikMooss said...

I'll say best are the Packer figures - a great deal and they look fantastic in your collection!

Worst I'll say the Sporting News issues. Just because I'm not a big collector of magazines (though I have read a lot of Sporting News issues in my time).

Anonymous said...

You got me thinking that a Life magazine from the week I was born would be a cool thing to get, so I guess that answers your question.

Chris P said...

I paid $50 for the same Jordan years ago in less the mint shape just to say I had a Jordan

Fuji said...

Thanks... I just figured at the very least, they'll be good blog material & toilet bowl reading.

Lol... worst case scenario... my friend can use it to line her guinea pig cage.

Fuji said...

Thanks... I'm loving my Packers shelf. On a side note... just had my FF Draft and was able to get Rodgers with the 4th pick!

Fuji said...

Best of luck on your hunt! The only thing now is... what the heck do I do with it? I might end up framing it and hanging it up on my wall. Otherwise, it'll just go into the stack of programs and old Becketts I have.

Fuji said...

Just realized that I bought the same exact figure back in May for $15. Since the price breakdown was $10 for the Jordan and $15 for the Montana... I guess the Jordan continues to fall in value.

On the flipside... how in the world is this happening? You've gotta figure $10 to $15 for any mint condition early 90's Michael Jordan SLU is a bargain. Right?

Chris P said...

I definitely think so, I'm still proud of my 88 Jordan rookie piece pickup for $15, it's in awesome shape.