February Card Show Recap pt 1 of 2

My somewhat local card show made its month appearance at the Holiday Inn, and as usual, I took the opportunity to beat the majority of the crowd and meet my favorite dealer there hours before the show's actual opening.  Is it insane, yes, but truth be told, I would be up and about an hour later anyways at the behest of my cats whom would want to be fed their breakfast, so I just got an earlier jump on this President's day.

Yes, that is the correct time in the car, and I was not the first one there.  That is the price you pay for the executive peak at what new stock he has brought to the show.  I arrived around 4:30 AM and immediately looked over some of his Newer $3 boxes as well as his "Ask for Price" box.  The deal I got from him on that stuff was worth the early arrival.  I will show those a bit later.  However, for a change, I want to show some stuff from his cheaper boxes.  As I mentioned before, this gentleman has loads of boxes marked at certain price points. $3, $2, $1, $0.75, $0.50, 3/$1, $0.20, $0.10, $0.07, and $0.05.  I often end up walking out with damn near a monster box of cards each time.   I have posted a few cards from these boxes, but the wealth of cardboard goodness is amazing, and it is easy to lose track of how much you accumulate.  The shear amount of inserts and other fun cards makes it worth it.  I like to grab stuff as potential trade bait and gift packages.  Especially the inserts,; I figure someone is working on the set, so why not grab them in case it can go to fill someone's need.  So here is some of the random goodness that ranged from $0.5 and up to $0.10-$0.20 cents.

A small stack of Fleer's New Horizons and Rookie Sensation inserts.  I recall most of the interest in these guys, and now looking at how many busts there were among the ones that had solid careers just reinforces my dislike for rookie prospecting.  The Fleer 3000 Club cards are new to me, and I love them!! I will definitely be seeking out the remaining ones for this set.  The Ultra World Premiere must be one of the most condition sensitive card with those sharp die cut edges.  These are the second batch I picked up, got a bunch from the previous show.       

                                                   

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                1999 SP Home Run Chronicle inserts -Not bad little cards for $0.05-$0.07 each.  The Topps Upper Class set looks like something Upper Deck would pump out.  Sportflics Cyclone Squad subset.  Then a bunch of various Fleer inserts from the 90s.  Topps Total inserts                                                                                                                                                          

                                                                                                                                                                          I love promo cards.  They range from common throw in to incredibly scarce.  They are also highly welcome items for player and team collectors.  Here is a range of cards I found at the show.

     Another condition sensitive insert set, the Bart Simpson inspired Lords of the Diamond. Once upon a time, the Team Pinnacles were hot cards and commanded big money.  Overproduction of the product flooded the market and they are far cries from what they used to be.  Select Team Nucleus were cards that were not too easy to pull.  Select packs sold for around $3 a pop which was a premium back in the 90s. Grabbed the psychedelic Rookie Surge cards along with the other dufex style Pinnacle cards.  I am not a huge fan of shiny cards and chrome cards, but I do like the dufex look.  Another odd insert set, must have been a time when companies were going crazy with die cut cards.  RBI Kings was always hit or miss with Ultra, this particular year was one of the better ones.

       Classic auto /numbered cards as well as a signed Charles Johnson card.  I always like Johnson, always thought he would end up with a bigger career than he had.  A few more promo cards (Pre-Production I-Rod, Promo for Stone Cold Steve Austin and 3 SPectrum promos.  Some die cuts found in the cheap boxes, and Topps Gold Futures inserts.

                                                                                                                                                                      I always pull random cards of premier players when mining these boxes.  Since I did not bother getting them when they came out, and after a long hiatus, this presented an opportunity to catch up as well.  THis is a small capsule of what I grabbed of Greg Maddux, The Big Hurt, and Piazza.   Others that I have pulled lots of range from Griffey, Chipper, Juan-Gone, Larkin, Bagwell, Biggio, Ozzie, Bonds, Pedro, etc.    If anyone is ever interested in any of them, just check my Zistle account for an inventory of what I have acquired.   That is just a very small taste of the couple thousand I walked away with from the "cheap seats" I couldn't do better on eBay in acquiring the loads of cards at the prices I paid.  Next show is only a week away, and my guy has new stock from a store he bought out, so I am chomping at the bit to see what he has added.  Stay tuned for part 2 featuring the cards that were not in the bargain boxes!!