1963-64 Parkhurst #65 – Johnny Bower

 I have been woefully behind in updating this blog lately, but as the school semester winds down I am finally getting a bit more free time. When I went to that card show last month, I bought quite a few 1963-64 Parkhurst hockey cards–and I finally have time to scan them. Here is card number 65, Johnny Bower. This is the 49th card in my set.

Both sides of the card are clean, but it is just a bit off-center. But I’ll take off-centering over creasing any day.

Parkhurst Percent Counter: 49% Complete

2010-11 Artifacts Box Break #5

Not too long ago, I bought two more boxes of 2010-11 Artifacts.

Yes, I know that it is 2012, and that there is a 2011-12 Artifacts set. But I still really like last year’s set. I am missing numerous base cards, think the jersey cards in Artifacts are all right–and I plan on building the entire set (short prints, redemptions and all).

So, let’s take a look at this “retro” box of cards I bought: Continue reading “2010-11 Artifacts Box Break #5”

59% of a 1972-73 OPC set

Yesterday, I wrote about my intention to build the 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Hockey set.

So, after declining that dealer’s offer for a set, sans-stars, I began my hunt for singles. Many were between 50 cents and $2. I also found 16 different W.H.A. cards for roughly $3 to $5 each (some were more, for obvious reasons).

I found 138 cards, giving me a total of 203 cards, which is 59% of the 340-card set.

Here are my favorite 10 cards from my set so far:

#137 – Tony Esposito (Chicago Blackhawks): Most dealers want $20 for this card. I found this one for $5.

#190- 2nd Series Check List: Yes, it is marked. But it was also only $5. This will do me good until I find a suitable replacement for not too much money.

#59 Guy Lafleur (Montreal Canadiens): A light crease (left of Guy’s head) resulted in a cost of only $10.

#129 – Bobby Orr (Boston Bruins): Probably the most expensive card in the set. But don’t worry–I paid less than low book for it 🙂

#58 – Bobby Orr on the Offensive (NHL Action): The other pricey Orr card.

#92 – Jacques Plante (Toronto Maple Leafs): His last card as an NHLer. Plante would retire for a year and then play one season in the W.H.A.

#340 – Gerry Cheevers (Cleveland Crusaders): The other pricey W.H.A. card in this set. I think this card may be either trimmed or a mis-cut, as it is 1/8″ of an inch shorter than my other cards in this set. But I could not pass it up for $10.

#76 – Phil Esposito Standing in the “Slot” (NHL Action): Brother vs. brother for the profit of another!

#253 – The Stanley Cup Trophy: Or “Le Coupe de Stanley” as it is known in Quebec.

Card #336 – Bobby Hull (Winnipeg Jets):  I love this card. Yes, you heard me. I LOVE this card, and I am not afraid to admit it. It is the most expensive W.H.A. card in the set, and it features a Chicago legend sporting an airbrushed jersey for a “rebel” team. So freakin’ cool.

1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Set: Build or Buy?

Have you ever been on the fence as to whether you should buy a complete set or build it yourself? For sets from the 1980s and 1990s, it’s a no-brainer–buying a complete set will save you time and money.

But with older cards, it is not that simple. Complete sets of older cards are harder to find–and when you do find them, the dealer usually wants a premium because of the effort he has (supposedly) saved you.

Over the past few years, I’ve been causally picking away at the 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee Hockey set, accumulating 65 of the 340 cards. Most cost me $1, some a few more, but overall I did not invest much time or money.

In other words, I could still go either way. Or so I thought.

At the card show on March 16-18, an interesting opportunity presented itself. A dealer had a near-complete set of 1972-73 O-Pee-Chee cards–all near-mint or better. Really a top-notch set.

The drawback? All the big guns were missing. The dealer had acquired a collection, but the original owner put all the best cards in screw-down holders, and they were not included in the collection when the dealer bought it.

So, it was a near-complete set lacking Bobby Orr (both cards), Ken Dryden (both cards), Bobby Clarke, Guy Lafleur, Jacques Plante and all the other guys in the $40-and-up price range. (He did have the Bobby Hull WHA card, though).

Keep in mind that the Beckett value for this set is between $900 to $1,500.

What did you think the dealer wanted?

I probably would not find a set this close to complete or in this perfect of condition ever again.

But so what? All the best cards (except Hull) were missing. I’d still have to hunt down some cards–and they were the expensive ones.

The dealer wanted $1,000 for the near-complete set. Even if I talked him down to $800, I’d be paying a lot of money for a set that would still require lots of money to complete.

At that point, I decided that I would try and build this set myself.

1957-58 Topps #11 – Vic Stasiuk

This card of Boston Bruins winger Vic Stasiuk is the 16th addition to my 1957-58 Topps Hockey set build. The centering is less-than-stellar, and it has a light crease on the front.

There’s no crease on the back, but the centering here is even less than less-than-stellar. Even less.

The upside is that this card cost me $2.25. Less than three bucks to fill a hole in a 55-year old set is fine by me.

Set completion as of 3-27-2012
16 out of 66 cards = 24.2%

Bargain Box Bonanza

I try to avoid the bargain boxes at card shows. You might spend an hour looking through five monster boxes, and only find one card you want.

But this past weekend, I went to a 3-day card show. Going all 3 days–instead of just 1 like I normally do–gave me the luxury of time. So I hit all the dime, quarter–and even dollar–boxes at this show. And I found some pretty good cards.

 2005-06 MVP Dion Phaneuf rookie card = 25 cents

Two (2) 2005-06 MVP Brent Seabrook rookie cards = 10 cents each

1984-85 Topps Pat Lafontaine rookie card = $1.00
Yes, it’s nowhere near the value of his OPC RC, but I couldn’t pass this up for a buck.

Two (2) 1990-91 Upper Deck Jeremy Roenick rookie cards = 10 cents each
It actually makes me sad to find this card for a dime. I remember when this was one of the top draws at a card show in Chicago, circa 1990.

1990-91 OPC Premier Jeremy Roenick rookie card = $1.00
OK, so maybe I’m still hoarding Roenick RCs after all these years.

2010-11 Black Diamond Dana Tyrell rookie card (Triple Diamond) = 25 cents
Some guy had several Double and Triple Diamonds in his quarter boxes.

 2010-11 Black Diamond T.J. Brodie rookie card (Triple Diamond) = 25 cents

2010-11 Black Diamond Alex Plante rookie card (Triple Diamond) = 25 cents

2010-11 Black Diamond Carey Price (Double Diamond) = 25 cents

Two (2) 2010-11 Black Diamond Mark Messier (Triple Diamond) = 25 cents each

2005-06 Parkhurst Ryan Suter rookie card = 10 cents

2001-02 Upper Deck Vintage Martin Erat rookie card = 10 cents
Another dime, another Predator RC.

Two (2) 1991 Stadium Club Members Only Patrick Roy = 10 cents each

1969-70 O-Pee-Chee Lou Nanne rookie card = $1.00
I need so many cards from this set, so a non–common for a buck is a find.

1974-75 John Davidson rookie card = 25 cents
An RC of JD. I hope to get this signed one day.

1991-92 Arena Draft Picks Fat Balloon…er, I mean Pat Falloon = 10 cents

Nine (9) different 1997-98 Upper Deck 3-Star Selects = Ray Bouqrque (pictured) was 25 cents; the rest were 10 cents each.

1997-98 Score Check-It Bryan Berard = 10 cents
This completes my “Check-It” Insert Set. Score!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

46 assorted 1980s Topps Logo Stickers = 10 cents each
Why did I buy all these logo stickers? I’m not sure. I think I still find them cool after all these years.

Ten (10) 1989-90 Topps Wayne Gretzky cards = 10 cents each
Ten cards of The Great One for one dollar. How could I say no?

Not a bad bunch of cards for $12.65. These were the highlights of the “cheap thrills.” Stay tuned to see more of the high-end cards I purchased.