Important Annoucement from Jim Stinson Sports

[JimStinson]

After 35 plus years as a full time independent autograph dealer , More than half my life ....I've concluded for multiple reasons its time to at least semi retire or retire completely. To those that receive my e-mail updates my last will be sent tomorrow. I will no longer be in the business of buying and selling autographs or memorabilia (No I'm not going into the authentication business...smile), But it occurred to me one day that when there are more authenticators than dealers its a good time to bow out gracefully as its impossible to throw a 100 MPH fastball forever. And for the record leave when I WANT to and not when I HAVE to. BUT most importantly since I became an autograph dealer in 1982 I have made a lot of friends and I will miss them. Too many great people to mention and for this reason I'll not mention them by name as I don't want to miss one and there are so many I don't want to offend anyone by their accidental exclusion ....But they know who they are. Should anyone need to contact me in the short term my e-mail remains the same
jim@stinsonsports.com
So I will say with mixed emotions and a heavy heart , Good bye !
Like Yogi Berra said "Its hard to make predictions ....especially about the future" I will for the short term allow my e-bay and e-mail to run their course.
I want to thank everyone on this board for all the kind words that have been said about me but fact is I was only doing the best I could , I will continue to do the best I can in whatever endeavor only in a different format. Will leave with a quote from Hemingway and wish you all continued success in all of your hobby pursuits

“We can’t ever go back to old things or try and get the “old kick” out of something or find things the way we remembered them. We have them as we remember them and they are fine and wonderful and we have to go on and have other things because the old things are nowhere except in our minds now.” ......E.H.

Sincerely Jim Stinson Sports

[earlywynnfan]

NNNNNNNNNNNOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!! !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Best wishes to as classy a guy as I've ever "met" in the business. IMHO, with the loss of you and Wayne Stivers, much of the class of our hobby is gone.

Regards,
Ken

[ATP]

Best wishes to you Jim, and thank you for the times you have helped me and were willing to share your knowledge, and for all the great autographs you have offered over the years.
Jeff Potter

[Leon]

Good luck in all of your future endeavors, Jim. Thanks for your support and contributions to the board too. Take care and hope to still see ya' round. LL

[Jay Wolt]

Jim all the best
Sad that the hobby is losing a quality seller w/ integrity

[Den*nis O*Brien]

.......This is a sad day for the hobby but a momentus day for Jim. Thank you for the Papa Hemingway quote as it does ease the blow out here. I thank Jim for all of the in depth and insightful conversations over the years. And of course the
grand items that fit into my collection. Jim....about a year ago I asked you if you were mentoring some "Young Blood" to pick up the reins someday....you said "No".......so be it. You left your mark on the hobby and will always be referred to in hushed tones of respect. I'm still in possession of your printed catalogs...good stuff. I still have my Raymond "Slim" Caldwell GPC and when my heirs dispose of my treasures ...they will be told to "Pedigree" the stuff you sent me. We still have Richard Simon as a trusted & knowledgeable source. But still sad to see you move on and I wish you the best in retirement!! Do you have any good trout fishing opportunities in Utah???? Hey....my 2cents...drift a worm and take your limit home to feed the family. We will miss you
Sincerely, Dennis

[Klrdds]

Jim,
After we talked 2 weeks ago and you told me of your decision it was very hard not to tell my fiends on this board of your decision but I kept your secret !!!
I have been a customer of yours as a buyer for 30 + years and as a consignor for the past 2 years and you always were honest and fair and straight forward and PROFESSIONAL ...something lacking badly in our hobby today.
I will miss our talks about the good old days of the hobby and our travels in search of that elusive player and of the supposedly non-existent autograph of a player and the people and characters from long ago in this hobby , that we both knew and know and those unknown ; and the stories of the finds and the losses and near misses for our collections, as well as, the stories of the players themselves. Remember our Joe Jackson and Babe Ruth deal in Los Angeles in January of 2016 ...that is the stuff of legend !!!
You need to write a book about this aspect (autograph collecting ) of our hobby from the time you started until now. It would be a must read for anyone interested in it. You have more knowledge and stories than anyone I know.
My Friend I will miss you , and I know the hobby will for sure miss you and be lesser of a hobby without your wisdom ,humor , honesty , and knowledge .
Stay in touch
Good luck
Vaya con Dios !!!

[Wrightfan85]

Never bought from you Jim but good luck with the retirement. You deserve it.

[ibuysportsephemera]

Good luck Jim. It has been a pleasure doing business with you. All the best in your future endeavors.

Jeff

[mr2686]

I'm sorry Jim but you are required to give us 10 years notice...please get back to work. LOL
Seriously, I will miss your stories about autographs. I've purchased autos from Jim on questionnaires, from famous collections, etc. and he always had some great stories as background about them and where they came from. Heck, I even purchased (from another dealer) a very hard to find Jim Lindsey of the 34 Cardinals, and Jim let me know that it was originally sold by him and what the history was behind it.
The hobby just took a major hit in my opinion.

[johnmh71]

I am very sad to read that. You were the dealer that got me started in collecting 3 x 5 autographs and helped me build a nice collection. You were always great to deal with and a great source of knowledge. You will be missed. I wish you luck in your future endeavors.

[Big Six]

Well, that just sucks. Good luck to you Jim...but really hope you change your mind...your shoes can't just be filled by someone else. As mentioned above, I hope you'll at least continue to share your experiences, stories, etc. and stay involved that way...replacing your expertise is impossible...


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[Scott Garner]

AAARRRGGHH...
Jim, I can say with absolute honesty that you will be greatly missed in the hobby.
I've always eagerly awaited your e-mail lists.

I mirror what others have already said, but it's been a genuine pleasure, for sure. Thanks for all of the help you have provided in helping me nearly complete my no-hit pitcher autograph collection
All the best to you, my friend.

Best regards,
Scott

[gashouse34]

I'm also saddened to hear this but am happy for you Jim. Our hobby won't be the same without you. Best of luck to you and hope you will post occasionally from time to time.

[RichardSimon]

After Jim told me this, a few weeks ago, I found that keeping his secret was very difficult for me but I did manage to do it.
I am very saddened by Jim's decision but he is doing what is right for him and I want to say to him that you will be missed in this business.
We have been friends for many, many years and I know we will still be friends. But the hobby has taken a blow.
I have had the pleasure of spending some nights with Jim over a few beers and nobody in the world could make me laugh the way he has. In addition to being a great credit to the hobby he is the funniest guy I know. I can remember nights where he actually made tears run down my face, he was so damned funny.
Good luck my friend!

[Republicaninmass]

Sad news in my own kind of selfish way, but I can understand your decision. Again it signals another change in the hobby, and let's hope someone can pick up the reigns. It would truly be a sad day when there were no more independent thoughts available when it comes to autographs. Even "James seonce" though the name masks it as his personal opinion, is now really a company, not just Jimmy.

[egri]

Good luck in your future endeavors Jim. I've plugged a lot of holes in my project through your auctions (and been outbid on a few others as well). Enjoy your retirement.

[rjackson44]

good luck mr stinson

[D. Bergin]

Sorry to hear this. As a boxing guy who bought a ton of boxing stuff from Jim over the years, and who sold a ton of boxing stuff that came from Jim over the years, I want to thank him for making the autograph aspect of the boxing hobby much easier to navigate then it otherwise might have been.

His 90's personal signings with boxers of all stripes and all over the world are still spoken of in hushed tones within the hobby.

From making Carlos Monzon and Teofilo Stevenson signatures obtainable for the average collector, to traveling all the way to Thailand to get obscure but long-time Flyweight Champion Sot Chitalada to sign a suitcase full of stuff.

Still, sadly not many collectors really care about Sot Chitalada, but that didn't stop Jim from going to the other side of the world and track down an up till then nearly unobtainable signature, so the few boxing collectors who did care about filling a Champions hole in their collection, could do so fairly cheaply.

LOL, I imagine that's why Jim eventually got out of the boxing racket, as there wasn't a ton of upside, but he is still appreciated for the time he put in for us.

[Forever Young]

Congrats Jim, enjoy retirement!

[btcarfagno]

I am gald to hear that you got out on your own terms. In the grand scheme of things that is pretty important.

Thank you for the help you have given to me when I asked questions. Thank you also for your dedication to the hobby that I have grown to enjoy so much.

Best of luck.

Tom C

[GrayGhost]

Best of luck sir . You were a help to many people, both in opining on autographs and selling some wonderful authentic pieces. DON"T LEAVE THE BOARD tho, we may need to sick Coach's corner on ya

[Leon]

Jim (hi Jim) said it wasn't necessary to move this to the front page as this is primarily a card forum and members won't know of him. I say phooey. Jim has been a big help to numerous autograph collectors in our field, including me, not only in supporting the board with an ad but also on several occasions when I reached out to him. Once again, all the best to Jim (even though I understand business things are still being wound down)...LL

[JeremyW]

"You need to write a book about this aspect (autograph collecting ) of our hobby from the time you started until now. It would be a must read for anyone interested in it. You have more knowledge and stories than anyone I know."

I've only had a few dealings with Jim & I was lucky enough to hear some of his stories over the phone & would have loved to listen to more of them all night long. Enjoy Jim, you deserve it.

[steve B]

Mixed feelings,

Best wishes on your retirement!

And as I always feel when someone with knowledge and experience retires from a hobby, a bit of sadness. I don't do much with autographs, so I was never a customer. But I did have a few to sell and miscommunicated the list of what I had. So a couple that would have been interesting really weren't. Jim was very patient and gracious about the entire thing. That's something that's not always common in businesses related to hobbies.

I'd encourage writing a book, as others have said. I have a few books written by dealers in other hobbbies about their time in the business and they're really interesting.

You'll certainly be missed, but I truly hope you enjoy whatever you decide to do next.

Steve B

[jgmp123]

Jim,

I will greatly miss receiving those wonderful emails. You are easily one of the most trusted sellers I have ever dealt with and you are such an asset to this hobby, that I believe we are all indebted to you for your overwhelming support and knowledge.

Enjoy retirement and I hope to work with you again some day!
- James Graham (Jgmp123@Yahoo.com)

[Tom Hufford]

Say it ain't so, Jim!

But, I've known you about 40 years, and you like to stay busy - so, while you say "retirement," ......... I doubt it will last!

Talk to you later,

Tom

[Mark70Z]

Will miss your email updates on all the great signed items. While I only collect Brooksie items and I haven't picked up an autograph from you I have enjoyed the view of the awesome items you come across. Hope you enjoy your semi and/or full time retirement. Thanks for your contribution to the great hobby over the many years.

[prewarsports]

I have bought items from Jim, and sold items to Jim for over 15 years and everything has been amazing. One of the guys that really got me into autographs and someone that I considered a friend as well as a fellow collector.

All the best Jim, you will be missed.

Rhys

[Topnotchsy]

I'll echo those who have mentioned writing a book. I know I'd be in line for a copy.

[thetruthisoutthere]

Originally Posted by Topnotchsy

I'll echo those who have mentioned writing a book. I know I'd be in line for a copy.

I'm with you on that one.

[Jobu]

We only emailed about a few items, but I came away from our conversations very impressed. I wish you a happy retirement!

[Northviewcats]

Best wishes for a happy retirement.

[whyconform]

Jim,

What can I say. When it's time it's time. What a pleasure to have dealt with you over the years. I have purchased at least 20 times from you in the last 5 years, and having had a few extended email exchanges (and seeing some posts on here), really hope you can put together a book with all of your stories. Many would be happy to read. It would be a shame for all of your insight on autographs, forgeries, and odd ball things to simply fade away. I beg you to consider it!

Hope to still see you on here simply as one of us, and hope you have a personal collection to still enjoy!

Bill in NJ

[Maddog]

Damn it Jim, hasn't this hobby suffered enough already

I swear, and I think we discussed this at one time, my collection must be at least 35% Stinson.

Now what the heck are we to do

Jim in all seriousness, I wish you all the best in whatever you do next. It has been a real pleasure knowing and dealing with you. I learned quite a bit from you over the years and will miss the opportunity to learn more. If you do decide to come back, I don't think ANY of us will object

Rich, you need to ramp it up my man. You're the last trustworthy dealer left.

[Hankphenom]

Happy retirement, Jim!

[markf31]

I made a handful of purchases from you over the years, and always looked forward to your email lists. You were especially easy to deal with when I sold my autograph collection about a year ago. Once you had received the collection only two emails was all it took to come to an agreement on price and I had a check in-hand 2 days later. Always a pleasure to work with.