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View Full Version : Tracking down "the one that got away" (e107 Bender "pink splotch" variation)


shammus
07-22-2014, 10:53 PM
A while back we had a thread about the "one that got away". Referring to a baseball card, of course. Actually, we may have had a couple of these over the past decade.

Anyways, I had been chasing a particular low-grade e107 Bender since late 2003 and it's been at the VERY top (as in #1 card) on my wantlist for over a decade. For those of you that have known me for a long time, you might remember me lamenting over this one a time or two.

The Bender was originally on Ebay when I saw it and it sold for $260 in late 2003. For some reason or another, I passed on it and thusly, the card became "The One that Got Away" for me and I've been trying to track it down ever since. Not entirely sure why I passed on it, but back in 2003, I think I was still fairly new to the hobby and probably didn't want to overextend myself by spending too much. $260 was low enough of a price that had me kicking myself afterwards, though.

I've even posted on the board about it a few times such as this thread here from a very long time ago -
http://www.net54baseball.com/showthread.php?t=65886&highlight=e107+bender+ebay. Nothing had ever turned up. Apparently the card traveled from private collector to private collector over the course of the past decade and I never had much of a clue about it's whereabouts until about a week ago when a hobby friend of mine revealed that he had it.

Fortunately, I had a few cards my friend needed and was able to swing a trade for the Bender that made us both happy (thanks again, by the way!!). So this chapter in my collecting career ends on a positive note even if it did take a while (and significantly more coin) to track this one down. And today I'm thankful for getting to snag an e107 HOFer (which actually was on my current wantlist), chase down the "one that got away" and exorcise a card-collecting demon of mine all in the same transaction. He'll end up in a safe-deposit box at the bank, but I'll make sure to keep him around a day or two to enjoy first :)


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Matvoo
07-22-2014, 11:12 PM
Very cool story and card

Louieman
07-22-2014, 11:25 PM
Great story! Amazing that you tracked it down. Any idea of how that pink splotch happened?

terjung
07-22-2014, 11:34 PM
From one who used to own that card a few years ago, congrats!

Luke
07-23-2014, 01:07 AM
Awesome, enjoy it!

Leon
07-23-2014, 05:08 AM
nice....love it when the story ends with a good ending...congrats.

Jason
07-23-2014, 05:14 AM
Thats cool Brian im glad to see the card come to you after the long search. Moments like that are what makes the hobby something special.

h2oya311
07-23-2014, 06:11 AM
Incredibly - I was the one that bought it on eBay in '03. It cost $267 to be exact (w/ shipping). I also bought a McGinnity e107 from the same seller for $209. I sold the pink blotch Bender to Brian Terjung a few years ago (2011) when I thought I was getting out of the hobby and needed money. I sold it on the Net54 BST no less!! One year later, I regretted my decision to sell, but I wasn't too disappointed in the price. The McGinnity has also found a new home. Those are the two BEST purchases I have ever made in terms of price appreciation!

Glad to see its new whereabouts! I knew that Terjung had upgraded his Bender along the way, so I was curious as to where "my" pink blotch Bender had landed. Happy to see it is still amongst Net54 friends!

If you ever need to sell, you now know where to find me!

clydepepper
07-23-2014, 06:27 AM
I donated a 1928 Harrington Ice Cream - Babe Ruth to the Hall of Fame prior to attending Induction Weekend in 1999.

While I do not regret donating it, I have yet to find a suitable replacement of that exact card...though my '33 Goudey and '48 Leaf BRs help me cope.

Vintagecatcher
07-23-2014, 06:39 AM
Congrats Brian!

Patrick

shammus
07-23-2014, 11:40 AM
Thanks guys, I appreciate the kind words!

Derek, thanks for mentioning that you had the card all those years! That pretty much solves for me what happened to the card for that entire period leading up to now. At one point a couple years back, I did figure out that Brian had acquired the card at some point, but by the time I wrote him, he had already sold the card to the individual that traded it to me.

Kind of neat that I can now track where the card has been ever since 707 Sportscards had first sold it on Ebay in 2003. It's interesting that in 11 years, there's been only 4 people who have owned it since it was first sold.

And I agree, it would be hard to find a bigger return on your investment than those two cards!

Michael Peich
07-23-2014, 12:43 PM
Congrats, Brian. Great story.

Cheers,
Mike

h2oya311
07-23-2014, 02:32 PM
Very cool indeed! Sorry I had kept it hidden all those years. I was a Net54 stalker (or is it lurker) back in those days...I only got re-engaged and active on the forum starting in 2011. That's why Mr. Bender was hiding from you!

DHogan
07-23-2014, 03:17 PM
Very cool story. It's nice to see that finally came to you like that.

atx840
07-23-2014, 04:02 PM
Great story, thanks for sharing.:D