Junk Wax Is Like Wine

Certain junk wax is like wine... it gets better with age.

It's Flashback Friday and I'm headed back to the 80's.  1986 to be exact.

Twenty-seven years ago, I couldn't stand the 1986 Topps baseball card design.  Why the disdain?  I think it had to do with the lack of the team logos and the overall abundance of Topps compared to Donruss and Fleer.

Donruss was always my favorite.  Fleer next.  And finishing dead last was Topps.

Then a few years ago, things began to change.  I started to appreciate the base card's design.  What once was considered boring, was now considered intriguing.  I like how the team's name and colors stand out across the solid black bar on top of the card.  The player's name is easy to see as the black lettering contrasts against the thin white border at the bottom.  Topps also did a fine job with the player's position by inserting it into a perfect sized color coordinated circle in the bottom left hand corner of the card.

The more I see these cards, the more I like them.  And for a while now, I've had this yearning to bust a box in search of a 50¢ Vince Coleman rookie.  Remember when he was worth something?

I guess I should be grateful that this stuff is practically worthless, because a few weeks ago, I purchased a wax box for $10 at the Serramonte Mall Card and Collectibles Show.  There will be those who say I overpaid.  Heck, the most valuable card is the 2nd year Roger Clemens card that books for $4, but can purchased for 60¢ on COMC.

But who cares?  I look at it differently.  Ten dollars gave me 45 minutes of entertainment and helped fill my vintage card binder.  Although 1986 isn't exactly vintage, it happens to be the cutoff year for me, because 1987 was the first year I started buying cards in bulk.  Before that, it was just a few packs here and there.  But that's a discussion for another day.

Okay, I've dragged on long enough.  Let's check out the goodies I pulled.  Here are a few of my personal favorites:

All five of these cards have two things in common.  First, Topps used well cropped action shots that show off the athlete's strengths (okay... so maybe Ozzie should be snagging a line drive or performing his famous back flip, but you have to admit that's a sweet shot of him).  Plus, I love how the team name and color on top complement the player's uniform (and the fans in the stands) in the photo.  They look like they should be hanging up in a museum somewhere.

But if I had to choose one card that's in a league of his own, it would be card #250:

I really want to just stop and stare at this card.  But unfortunately, I have other cards to show you guys.

I also pulled both base cards of the All-Time Hit King:

And three of the better rookies in this set:

Cha-ching!  Winnah... winnah... chicken dinnah.  These three cards remind me of the flag.  Good old... Red, White, and Blue.

And how about dem managers from that era?

Sort of makes me appreciate my childhood during the 80's just a little bit more.  And speaking of the 80's... remember when card companies utilized the bottom of boxes?  Here's what was sitting at the bottom of my box:

I guess the only downside to this box was the fact that I didn't find the Dwight Gooden box bottom or pull any base cards of my favorite players:  Tony Gwynn, Kirby Puckett (the card above is from my binder), Steve Carlton, or Rickey Henderson (although do I really need another card of him pictured in pinstripes?).

So what do you think...

Are you a fan of any of the 1986 baseball card designs?  Which is your favorite?  Least favorite?

I still like the Donruss set design the most.  But I'm starting to favor Topps over Fleer.  Who knows, maybe in twenty-seven more years Sportflics will be my favorite.

Happy Friday and sayonara!

Me @ Card Show = Empty Wallet

On Saturday, I headed down to the Great Mall (in Milpitas) to help out my buddy and do a little window shopping.  After my huge flea market purchase in January, I've been pretty good about sticking to my cardboard budget.

In fact, a few weeks ago I walked out of the Serramonte Mall Show with a backpack containing only $22 worth of purchases.  I was very proud of myself, because there were a lot of cool items I wanted.

Anyways... getting back to this weekend's show, I went there with only one thing on my mind:  cheap wax boxes.  I was hoping to find a $10 to $25 box of baseball cards from the 80's or 90's.  Unfortunately, things didn't go as planned.  I didn't find any boxes.  Instead, I added a huge stack of cards to my collection.  And in terms of my cardboard budget, it comes down to simple math.  Even cheap cards start adding up.

1st Purchase:  Five Cards & Two Sets $5

When you can pick up a mid 90's refractor of the greatest wide receiver of all-time and rookie cards of the best tight end of all-time for less than a buck, you know cardboard values aren't what they used to be.

2nd Purchase: Fifteen Inserts, Rookies, & Parallels $5

Here's proof that I'm addicted to cheap rookie and vintage cards.  I must own twenty copies of that 90/91 Score Martin Brodeur, but I continue to pick them up.  2002 Finest Ed Reed rookie?  Yeah, I have probably ten of those.  Four copies of the 1978 Topps Thurman Munson.  Two copies of the 1976 Topps Nolan Ryan.  Starting to see a pattern?

3rd Purchase:  Four Cards $30

In terms of value, this was probably my worst purchase.  However, it was probably my favorite.  All four cards are huge PC Additions... especially the one on top.  It deserves its own post, so stay tuned.

4th Purchase:  Three Rookie Cards $15

Three rookie cards.  Three instant PC Additions.  I'm especially excited to add the Sean Taylor rookie parallel, because it's only numbered to 100.

5th Purchase:  Twenty Inserts & Rookies $20

There were plenty of duplicates in this purchase and I started to get tired of scanning everything... so here are six of my favorites.  Can you really go wrong with dollar bin rookie cards that include Lou Whitaker, Jack Morris, Lance Parrish, and Tim Raines?  They might not be good enough to be in Cooperstown, but they're good enough to be in my collection.

 6th Purchase:  Ten Inserts & Rookies $2

At this point of the card show, I was tired and ready to go out and grab dinner.  But earlier, I had seen some guys digging through this 5 cards/$1 bin and the Lawrence Taylor hologram caught my attention.  I eventually saw an opening at their table and jumped in.

I found some cool inserts and rookie cards that I could justify spending 20¢ on.  But one card made the experience completely worth while.  Sitting in a penny sleeve was this 1982 Topps rookie card of HOFer, Lawrence Taylor:

It's off centered with a few soft corners, but it's worth the 20 pennies I paid.

Honestly... it could have been worse.  I was tempted to buy a Russell Wilson autograph for my Seahawks PC, but held back.  But from this point out... I need to start showing some self control pretty soon.  Otherwise, I'll have to avoid card shows altogether.

Do you have a cardboard budget?  Do you have any advice on sticking to one?

Happy Wednesday and sayonara!

Damn... Can I Draft? Or Can I Draft?

Our blogworld is filled with generous collectors and Wes over at Jaybarkerfan's Junk is definitely one of those guys.  Over the years, he's sent me and my students hundreds of cards.  HUNDREDS!

On top of his gifts, he's constantly hooking up his readers with these amazing (and blog famous) Trade Bait Drafts.  If you're not familiar with these, I encourage you to head over to his blog and check them out.  You won't regret it.

In a nutshell, he puts together a huge list of cards (the draft pool) and sells spots in the draft.  Once all of the spots are sold, he randomizes the draft order and asks that everyone rank their preferences.  After that, he works his magic, packages your cards, and ships them out to you.

His December Trade Bait Draft was $8.  Yeah... only eight bucks.  Here's a look at the ten cards I drafted... starting with my last pick and working towards my first.

10th Pick (26th card on my list)

1975 Topps #535

Gene Tenace won the 1972 World Series MVP Award when he helped the Oakland A's beat the Cincinnati Reds by batting .348, hitting four home runs, and driving in nine runs.  Plus he's on a 1975 Topps card with the nice 'stache.  Not bad for being the last card I drafted... right?

9th Pick (25th card on my list)

1977 Topps #211

Team cards from the 70's are awesome.  And now that the San Francisco Giants have won their 2nd World Series in three seasons, this card is going to make one of my students a very happy camper.

8th Pick (23rd card on my list)

2006 Fleer Fresh Faces #VD

Here's another card for my students.  Vernon had a great game this past Sunday.  He too will make a nice prize for one of my students.

7th Pick (21st card on my list)

1984 Donruss #30A

This card was one of my prized possessions grow up and over the years I misplaced it.  Welcome home Ron.

6th Pick (20th card on my list)

87/88 Fleer #76

I have no idea why this card is so high on my draft list, but he was a solid player and I needed another 87/88 card for my nine pocket page in my vintage binder.

5th Pick (19th card on my list)

2001 Upper Deck "Evolution ASG Bronze" #UD51

Iconic picture of one of my favorite players from his rookie year.  Can't believe this card was still available in the 5th round.

4th Pick (18th card on my list)

2012 Gypsy Queen "Framed Gold" #252

I love this card!  It looks awesome next to the base card in my Tony Gwynn binder.  I just need the variant and the framed blue version to wrap things up.

3rd Pick (10th card on my list)

1988 Score Rookie/Traded #80T

Back in the day, I begged my mom to buy me this set.  She didn't.  I already have the Alomar.  Now I have the Grace.  Two cards down, one hundred eight to go.

2nd Pick (4th card on my list)

2008 Topps & Ginter Relics #PK

A&G Relic + 400 Home Run Club Member = I'll grab this with my second pick anytime.

1st Pick (2nd card on my list)

2003 Sweet Spot Swatches #NG1

The Steve Rogers autograph was my top choice, but I can't complain too much.  I'm stoked to add this Nomar jersey card to my collection.

Thanks again Wes for allowing me to join your December Trade Bait Draft.  I'm totally happy with the results.

Happy Monday and sayonara!