When: Saturday, August 7th
Where: De Anza Flea Market
What: Comics & Sports Figures
How Much?: $10.50
Purchase #1: Disney Comics (from the 50's) $2.50
I guess this is my new PC. A few weeks ago, I picked up a Mickey Mouse comic book. And now I've added five more to the collection. One of them has a cool back cover that I'll share in a future post.
Purchase #2: 1982 Topps Traded Cal Ripken Jr. Porcelain Reprints $2
I'll probably never actually own the real thing, so I decided to pick up a pair of porcelain reprints for a buck a piece.
Purchase #3: 1988 Wade Boggs SLU & a 2003 Ichiro McFarlane $6
Three dollars for a 1988 SLU of one of the greatest hitters of the 80's? Yeah... this was definitely a no-brainer and probably my favorite purchase.
The vendor had a bunch of figures... including several McFarlane Sports Picks. It's not the best looking Ichiro figure, but for $3... I'm not complaining.
That wraps up my Saturday flea market adventures. So far, so good. But things won't stay that way.
Where: Capitol Flea Market
What: A Basket of Cards/Pogs & Coins
How Much?: $30
Purchase #1: Mystery Basket $5
Have you ever bought something that's probably a good deal, but in the end it was still a waste of money?
That's the best way to describe this basket. Five dollars for over 1000 Pogs (including 100 sets of Bikini Open Pogs), hundreds of Courtside promo cards and inserts, uncut sheets, around 500 random sports cards, and an autograph for my Cal PC... isn't a terrible price.
But do I really need any of this crap? Unfortunately... that's not the purchase that left me feeling like I had been taken by a shady insurance salesman.
Purchase #2: Vintage Shell Coins $25
1968 Shell President Coins
1969 Shell States of the Union Coins
Towards the end of my Capitol run... I came across a guy with these cool looking coin sets. He went into great detail about how they were part of some promotion and I ate it up like a fat kid eating ice cream on a hot, summer's day. He told me that these have continuously gone up in value over the years and they now sell for close to $50/set.
Long story short... I bought them without doing any research and discovered that I paid way too much. At the time, he made me feel like I was getting the deal of the century. But in reality I paid about twice the going rate on eBay.
I have nobody to blame, but myself... which makes me feel that much worse. Oh well... that's the last time I take some stranger's word at the flea market. I guess that's how all of those people felt after buying cards off of Don West during the Shop at Home years.
Happy Wednesday and sayonara!
That Ichiro SLU is sweet!
ReplyDeleteHey, considering how well you've done at these flea markets I wouldn't worry about a bad buy or two. I know I had a bunch of those Shell coins at one time from when I was a kid (and gas was probably like 30 cents a gallon). I don't think I still do but it's possible.
ReplyDeleteAny idea on how they (the coins) were distributed? My sets came in an envelope that made me think they were a mail-in redemption or something.
DeleteIt's a loooong time ago but I think you got them each time you bought gas. Maybe there was a way to "send away" for a complete set or even buy a set at the stations. Wish I had a memory like Marilu Henner instead of one like a goldfish.
DeleteThanks. Appreciate any information I can get, since I'm not exactly sure I can trust the guy who sold them to me.
DeleteEnough positives to let the negative roll off your back. Never actually seen one of those porcelain reprints. Sounds nifty.
ReplyDeleteThe Ichiro is excellent and I love shot old Shell coins.
ReplyDeleteToday the best are the Disney books. No need to say more. Donal Duck to rule the world! ;)
ReplyDeleteGreat article and a reason i visit flea markets. Visit http://www.swapmadness.com to find all your local flea markets.
ReplyDeleteThanks... I'll actually be checking a local flea market on this site that I didn't even know about.
DeleteAwesome stuff, but I think I beat you with the greatest flea market steal of all time. I grabbed a 65 Topps Clemente for half a buck.
ReplyDeleteYeah. That definitely beats any of these purchases.
DeleteBuy a smart cell phone ,so you can look up anything on e-bay at any time.I do it all the time ,would have shown the guy the cheaper prices,and told him he was full of it haha.
ReplyDeleteLol... had my iPhone with eBay installed... and I still didn't check. The guy just seem so sincere and knowledgable. I F'd up!
DeleteNice Boggs and Ichiro pickup. That's the SLU I have of Wade, so I had to smile to see him still in the package. Bummer about the shell coins, but It does appear you've gotten more deals than duds at the market.
ReplyDeleteLove Pogs!!
ReplyDeleteLol... I'm actually figuring out a way to utilize them in my classroom. The backs are blank, so the kids might be able to use them as game pieces for the board games they design. Or I can write their names on them, pull them from a bin, and call on them in class.
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