It Came from the Quarter Box

At the card show last weekend, I spent a lot of time sifting through quarter boxes — more so than I usually do. What unknown treasures might they hold???

Truth be told, I would never, ever beat the 2 Topps C55 Marc-Andre Fleury Rookies I found for 10 cents each a few years ago. Or so I thought.

Dun,  dun, dunnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnnn!

When the three days were over, I picked up almost an embarrasing amount of decent cards – all for a quarter each!

Here are the best cards I found in the darkest depths of the quarter box: Continue reading “It Came from the Quarter Box”

1957-58 Topps “Mr. Goalie” Rookie Card

1957-58 Topps #20 - Glenn HallI took one gigantic leap forward in building my 1957-58 Topps set on Friday, when I picked up a rookie card of Hall of Fame goaltender Glenn Hall.

If anyone earned the right to be called “Mr. Goalie” it is him. Among other things, Hall played in 502 consecutive games, won the Calder Trophy, the Conn Smythe Trophy, the Stanley Cup 3 times, the Vezina Trophy 3 times and invented the butterfly style. See Wikipedia for the full list of accomplishments, which were nothing short of remarkable.

And rookie cards of remarkable players tend to be expensive–especially when from an older set. A near mint-copy of this card has a high book value of $400.

For me, buying vintage cards is always a delicate balance of lowering my standards far enough that the card is “in my range,” but not so low that I will regret the purchase later.

This card is far from perfect, but it is not horrible. The corners all have some “rounding” to them, and there’s a “dimple” above Hall’s outstretched arm.

1957-58 Topps #20 - Glenn Hall (back)The centering is not perfect, but that just adds to the “character,” right? And there is a tiny bit of paper loss towards the bottom (I did not notice that until I scanned the card).

I ended up paying $85 for this Glenn Hall rookie card. If this is the only copy of this card that I ever own, I’ll still be happy with it.

Set completion as of 7-2-2012
20 out of 66 cards = 31.8%

 

Sports Spectacular? It was OK

I went to a 3-day card show this weekend called The Sports Spectacular.

It was less-than-spectacular.

Normally, the shows in Rosemont (near Chicago) are great in March and November. But I guess this one was too close to The National. Many of my favorite dealers were absent this time. So, I found far less cool stuff for my collection than I did in March.

I guess that is OK. If you find too much stuff that you want, then you spend all your money, right? Still, I did pretty good. Here’s a quick rundown of some of the stuff I bought:

I hope to have scans up of some of my cool new cards later in the week.

Hockey card news for this week

Here are some quick news and notes in the world of hockey cards.

“The Lost Cards” series starts tomorrow on Puck Junk

On Monday, June 25, I will start a 5-part series on Puck Junk called The Lost Cards.

Each day this week, I will profile a “mythical” hockey card–that is, a card that was supposed to be released, but was not for reasons many times left unexplained.

Like a cryptozoologist drawn to the Loch Ness Monster, I hope to shed some light on some famous and some obscure hockey cards that never saw the light of day.

The first part of The Lost Cards will go live soon after midnight tonight.


The end of the Want List magazine

The current issue of The Want List will be its last printed edition. Published since 2009, THW is going to an online-only format for news and stories, but will continue to publish a print edition of its annual Vintage Hockey Collectors Almanac.

Personally, I am bummed out to see another hobby magazine meet its end–especially one that was solely dedicated to hockey. A great read, I always looked forward to the next issue. This fall, let’s all make The Want List part of our weekly reading. You can visit their website at TheWantList.ca


War Room appearances (as in two!) this week

For those of you have started reading this blog in the past year, I am sometimes on an XM Radio Show called “The War Room,” in a collectibles segment called “Got ‘Em! Need ‘Em!” I was usually on the show once a week, but due to scheduling conflicts I’ve only been on 4 times this season. This week, I will be on The War Room twice (not sure of the days yet). The show is on XM Radio channel 92 / Sirrus channel 207 at 10 am CST.


Card show near Chicago this coming weekend

The “Sports Spectacularcollectibles convention will be held in Rosemont on June 29 to July 1. The show will be held at the Donald E. Stephens Convention center, and have over 100 dealers, as well as autograph guests.

For those who take mass transit in Chicago, the show is a 2-block walk from the CTA Blue Line Rosemont train stop. It is also near several expressways, for those who live within reasonable driving distance to Chicago. Admission is $10 per day.

Show Hours
Friday, June 29: 4:30pm to 9:00pm
Saturday, June 30: 9:30am to 5:00pm
Sunday, July 1: 10:00am to 4:00pm

Visit the show website for more details.

I will be there probably all 3 days–definitely Saturday, and either Friday, Sunday or both. If you plan on going to this show, let me know and we can meet up and trade cards. Fellow blogger Justin G. and Puck Junk reader Nick B. will be there too.


Want List and Trade List updated

Not to be confused with the magazine, I’ve updated my Want List. I am now looking for base cards from 2011-12 Enforcers, and still trying very hard to get all of the 2011-12 OPC Retro Parallels.

I’ve also “restored” more of my Singles, RCs and Inserts trade list, which now goes back to 2008-09. I hope to keep adding to it a little bit more each week with new (and old) stuff.


Some old reviews restored

When I moved Puck Junk from my custom-built website to solely using WordPress, not all of my content made the transition. I’ve been slowly restoring old reviews to this site as time allows. I’ve recently added these articles to the archives:

They might be from a while ago – but as the saying goes, if you haven’t seen them yet then they’re new to you.


And be sure to check back tomorrow for the first installment of The Lost Cards.

1963-64 Parkhurst #55 – Gordie Howe

1963-64 Parkhurst #55 - Gordie HoweLongtime readers of this blog — and of my quest to complete a 1963-64 Parkhurst Hockey set — might have thought I already had this card. And they’d be right. The very first ’63-64 Parkie I bought, way back in 2008, was a Gordie Howe card in poor condition.

I told myself that I would upgrade the Howe after I got all of the other cards. But then I recently came across this card you see here. It has a few minor flaws — the most noticeable being the small bends on the lower corners. The card actually looks better in person — scanning something at two times its actual size makes everything look worse.

1963-64 Parkhurst #55 - Gordie Howe (back)That “wrinkle” along the top is more noticeable in the scan than in real life. And honestly, I did not notice that tiny crease by the Stanley Cup until I scanned this.

Small flaws aside, this is nicer than many of the other cards in my set build.

So, this card really does not move me “one step closer” to finishing this set, but I still feel that it is an accomplishment because it is an upgrade of the most expensive single.

Parkhurst Percent Counter: still at 59%

Upper Deck finally gets an O-Pee-Chee design right

I know these have been around for around a month now, but I recently saw images of the new 2012-13 O-Pee-Chee hockey set.

It took Upper Deck seven tries, but they finally made an O-Pee-Chee design that I actually like. 

OK, that’s not entirely true. I loved the 2009-10 design. But my biggest complaint has always been the gi-normous O-Pee-Chee logo that has dominated the design every year since 2006-07–when Upper Deck started making OPC-brand cards. Upper Deck always felt the need to hit us over the head with an OPC logo that was unnecessarily large.

But not this year. Instead, more important details–like the player’s name and team–take precedence over the brand logo. The design isn’t too shabby either–it looks modern enough, but feels kind of old school.

The inserts really have me excited about this set, though.

The Retro Parallel cards will be seeded 1-per pack, and have a 1950s vibe to them. I am currently building the 2011-12 OPC Retro Parallel set (want list here), and might actually go after these too.

STICKERS?!?! How freaking cool is this? As an American, I fondly remember getting a sticker in almost every Topps card set I bought back in the day, be it Hockey or a movie set like Star Wars. You’ll get one sticker in every 3 packs of the upcoming OPC set.This sticker’s design feels like a 1970s baseball card–simple, but colorful. Frankly, I’d rather get a sticker than a retro rainbow black die cut parallel.

And don’t worry–there will be 8 rainbow parallels per box, too. And harder-to-find black rainbow parallels. This is Upper Deck we’re talking about.

You’ll also get 2 pop-ups per box. While I’m not exactly a fan of the idea, I do like the fact that we are getting some variety in this year’s OPC product. Plus, I’m kind of tired of inserts like Trophy Winners and Team Checklists.

One idea I really like are these manufactured Team Logo Patch cards.

I guess these are going to feature different incarnations of team logos, or a team’s supporting logo, like the Red Wings’ cartoon octopus. Unfortunately, these will be hard to get–1 in every 96 packs–so I won’t hold my breath. I like the idea of collecting team logos, past and present. That would have made a cool insert set itself, even without patches. Oh well.

The 2012-13 O-Pee-Chee set will be released August 14. I’m definitely going to collect it. Now my only debate is, do I buy a complete set (like I did this year) or do I buy some boxes. One way is more effective, but the other way is more fun–and expensive.

Is anyone else planning on collecting the 2012-13 O-Pee-Chee set/

Being patient (and stubborn) pays off

1974-75 OPC WHA #30 - Gerry CheeversThis past week has kept me away from updating my illustrious blog. I’m getting over a back injury I sustained a few weeks ago, have been fighting a cough/cold/sore throat AND I started a new teaching schedule for summer that puts me back on mornings again.

But enough of my whining. Yesterday, I added another one of my Holy Grails to my hockey card collection: The 1974-75 O-Pee-Chee World Hockey Association set.

Now I know this set is not that hard to find. The problem is, I don’t want to pay a lot for it. In fact, I don’t want to pay a lot for a lot of things. Wait long enough, and I always find what I want at a price I want to pay for it. I’ve managed to nab a complete 1985-86 Topps Hockey set for $50 and a complete 1980-81 O-Pee-Chee set for $180.I could list many other examples, but I don’t want to sound like Scrooge McDuck.

Maybe it’s patience, but it is also stubbornness. I could have had the 1974-75 OPC WHA set for $200 at a show last year. Somehow I got it stuck in my mind that I would find this set for under $100. Usually when I  look for a set, I get it in my fool head that I can find it for less than “low book value.”

I’ve been outbid on this particular WHA set numerous times. I always bow out when the price hits $100.

1974-75 OPC WHA #50 - Bobby HullThen late last week, I won this set in EXMT condition – missing 1 common – for $59.50, shipped. The common I needed cost me $4, shipped. So, for $63.50. I’ve had a set I’ve wanted since 1989.

This set has a lot of great cards: Bobby Hull, Frank Mahovolich, the Howe Family. But it was this card that first drew me to the set:

1974-75 OPC WHA #29 - Al HamiltonI first saw this card of Al Hamilton on the cover of a book about sports cards from the 1970s. My local library had this book, but it has since been discarded. I haven’t seen this book since I was a kid, but it was called something like Sports Cards or Collecting Sports Cards. It was written in the late 1970s–before the collecting boom– and had pictures of various sports cards on the cover, including this one.

Something about this card–really, the set–struck me as cool. It just felt, well…classy for a hockey card set. It uses a horizontal layout instead of the traditional vertical layout. It uses a portrait photo, doesn’t try to cram in 5 different logos and has a facsimile autograph.

I am psyched to have this set. I’d do a back flip if I knew how to do one (and if it wouldn’t re-injure my back). Twenty-three years, and I can finally put this one on the shelf.

Now, I have to find another set to obsess over.

Speaking of the World Hockey Association, you may remember my review of the 2010 WHA Hall of Fame set. Well, the price has been reduced from $20 to $9.95. Visit here to buy a set and help support an independent volunteer organization dedicated to preserving the history of this league.

3 more 1963-64 Parkhurst cards

I’ve been stretching out my 1963-64 Parkhurst acquisitions long enough. Time to get to something else.It also seems a bit pointless since this guy posted the entire set. So without further ado, here are cards 57, 58 and 59 in my Parkhurst set build.

1963-64 Parkhurst #64 - Dick Duff#64 – Dick Duff – This one is in awesome shape for its age.

1963-64 Parkhurst #64 - Dick Duff (back)Even the back looks great.

1963-64 Parkhurst #67 - Kent Douglas#67 – Kent Douglas – Probably one of the few “commons’ I still needed.

1963-64 Parkhurst #67 - Kent Douglas (back)The back has a “mark” above the card number, but I think I paid only $9 for it.

1963-64 Parkhurst #88 - Bernie Geoffrion#88 – Bernard (Boom Boom) Geoffrion. Last week, I posted the other Geoffrion card from the set. This card is in awesome condition – nice corners, great centering, no creases.

1963-64 Parkhurst #88 - Bernie Geoffrion (back)Fifty-nine cards down, 40 cards to go.

Parkhurst Percent Counter: 59%

1963-64 Parkhurst #63 – Red Kelly

1963-64 Parkhurst #63 - Red KellyHall of Fame center Leonard “Red” Kelly is my 55th card in the 1963-64 Parkhurst hockey set. I still got a few more of these to show off over the next few days. Plus, there is a show in Chicago coming up at the end of the month–hopefully I will be able to nab a couple of these and keep my set build going.

1963-64 Parkhurst #63 - Red Kelly (back)The back of this card is just as nice as the front–just a bit off-center and the usual discoloring.

Parkhurst Percent Counter: 55%