Thanks guys. As a kid Mantles were always the centerpiece(s) in local shops' displays and I spent many days dreaming of getting my hands on one, any one! I lucked into my first 3, trading/buying them for peanuts from friends who weren't too attached to Dad's hand me downs. I never would've considered a run when I started, but it definitely aided the cause when eBay came along and most of those $250 card shop "near mint" '68 Micks became $70 "EX+" Micks.
Matt- your collection is amazing. It would be fun to see our runs side by side.. two completely different styles, though I presume equally loved at home.
Dustin- I'm in the same boat with regards to centering.. with an added plus being- OC's aren't nearly as rough on the wallet. BTW, love the avatar. Somewhere buried away, I have a Cubs spring training program from Hohocam Stadium with a rookie Ty Griffin's auto... and probably have 3 binder pages of that Olympic card too.