"The Most I've Ever Spent on a Card" - A story in 12 parts. What's your story?

[Bliggity]

I was watching a card collecting channel on YouTube the other day. The guy was talking about a new pickup and mentioned that it was the most he’d ever spent on a card. We all have those moments where we put in that last bid, or pick up that amazing card on BST or at a show, where we’re spending more on a single card than we ever have before. It’s exciting, and can also make you very nervous because you may be stretching (or breaking) your budget, or worrying about whether it’s a smart long-term purchase. So that got me thinking - how many of those moments have I had? I keep pretty detailed records of my collection, so I spent some time going back through my purchases and found that I’ve had 12 of those moments in my card-collecting journey. I’m very happy to say that all 12 of these cards are still in my collection, and none of my “the most I’ve ever spent on a card” purchases have led to regret. So here is my list. These aren’t necessarily the most valuable cards in my collection, or even necessarily the ones I like the most, but are just the cards that represent every time I’ve said “it was the most I’ve ever spent on a card.” I’ve mostly left the prices out because they don’t particularly matter.

Here's my story. What's yours?


#1. 1961 Topps HR Leaders Mantle/Maris

It was July 1991. I was 10 years old. I would buy packs of Topps, Score, Fleer, and Donruss at the corner gas station with my weekly allowance (and maybe Upper Deck, if I could afford it). My idol was Don Mattingly, and I revered all of the legendary Yankees. There were a couple card shops in the area (Chapel Hill, NC), but the treasures they held were far out of my reach. Owning a Mantle card was unattainable. For my birthday, we went to a mini-golf place in Raleigh. One the way home, we stopped at a card store in Raleigh that I’d never been to. In the vintage case was this card. It had Mantle AND Maris! All the other Mantle cards I’d ever seen had hefty price tags of $50 or more, but this one was only $10! That was the equivalent of about 20 Topps packs. I had a little extra money from my birthday, and my parents agreed that I could spend it on the card. I handed over my $10 and got a treasure that I couldn’t wait to show off to all of my friends. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#2. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly RC

It was December 1993. My 1961 Topps Mantle/Maris was still the best card in my collection, but my dream card was the 1984 Donruss Mattingly RC. Some of my friends had the Topps RC or even Fleer, but everyone knew the Donruss RC was the card to have...unless you were one of those guys who was more into Canseco. I had some money from the holidays and went to the Baseball Card Attic in Chapel Hill to get some packs. There in the showcase they had my holy grail, the most beautiful card ever made. It took some convincing, but my parents relented, and I bought it. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#3. 1954 Bowman Mickey Mantle

It was September 2014. Like many others, I had collected into my early teens, and then got distracted by the “real world.” Now I was 33 years old, married with a young daughter. I hadn’t thought about cards in years. I still had a couple 5000-count boxes of junk wax from when I was a kid, and they were taking up space in the house, so I decided to just get rid of them. I looked for a local store in Raleigh and found one near my house (the short-lived Big D’s Cards). I took my boxes into the shop and told the owner he could have them for free. On my way out, I noticed he had an opened box of ‘83 Fleer on the counter and was selling packs for $5. I bought one and figured it would be fun to open a pack after 20 years. I went out to my car, opened the pack, and pulled a Ripken RC. Whoa! I went back in the shop and bought a toploader for the card. Then I started talking more to the owner, and he mentioned that he’d just bought a shoebox collection from someone with a bunch of early Bowman cards. He showed me the box full of ‘53 and ‘54 Bowmans, and said he’d sent a few of the better cards to PSA (whatever that meant). They had just come back, and one of them was a ‘54 Bowman Mantle. It was a beautiful card; I’d never seen one before. I ended up buying a ‘53 Bowman Hank Bauer from the box. I left the shop and went home, but kept thinking about pulling the Ripken RC and seeing the Mantle. The Mantle was a few hundred dollars and would be a completely frivolous purchase. I had gone to the shop to give away my old cards, and now I was going to buy one? But I couldn’t stop thinking about it. I went back to the shop and looked at it again. What a great card. Was I really going to do this? Would I tell my wife how much I had spent? Well screw it, I was an adult man and had a job, and I bought the Mantle. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#4. 1939 Play Ball Joe DiMaggio

It was February 2015. I was now six months into my new-again collecting hobby. I was mostly drawn to vintage and was starting to build a ‘53 Bowman set, but was also starting to discover prewar. I found Net54 and joined in December 2014, which was the month that I bought my first preward card. I discovered Old Cardboard and the Standard Catalog, and was learning as much as I could. I was on my computer working at my dining-room table one night and took a break to peruse eBay. I saw an auction ending soon for a 1939 Play Ball Joe DiMaggio from a seller called PWCC. I wasn’t that familiar with the card but I thought the card was hauntingly beautiful in its simplicity. I put in a bid a few minutes later as the auction was winding down as a complete impulse purchase. It was more than I’d spent on the ‘54 Bowman Mantle, but it wasn’t that much more, and hey, it was Joe DiMaggio, and it seemed to be in pretty nice condition. It ended up becoming my Net54 avatar, and still is. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#5. E106 American Caramel Christy Mathewson

It was June 2016, and my prewar collecting was in full swing. I loved building sets, and I was working on T205s and T209-1s. I also loved the E90/92-family sets, and was picking up as may different examples as I could. I didn’t have a Mathewson or an E106 yet, and then an E106 Mathewson popped up in an eBay auction. It was in an SGC 1.5 holder, but the eye appeal seemed better than that, and Christy looked so pretty in his lipstick. I knew it would be more pricy than the Play Ball DiMaggio, but I decided to make a run at it. We were on vacation the day it ended, and I excused myself from the rest of the family to go up to my room so I could put in a snipe as the auction closed. I put in my snipe and won it for a little bit under my bid. It was a beautiful card that checked off multiple boxes on my want-list, and I couldn’t wait to get home from vacation to open the box. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#6. E121 American Caramel Ty Cobb

It was April 2017. I was making progress on my colorful tobacco and candy sets, but wanted to start something completely different just for some variety. I decided on E121, which with its larger size and B&W real photos seemed to be a good foil for the colorful lithograph cards that made up most of my collection. I had also just finished reading Leerhsen’s “Ty Cobb: A Terrible Beauty,” and had Cobb on the brain. I saw an E121 Cobb come up on eBay, and it looked nicer than the SGC 2 slab it was in. I didn’t have any Cobb cards in my collection yet and this would be a strong pickup early in my E121 efforts, so I put in good bid and won it for a hair over what I’d paid for my E106 Mathewson. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#7. 1953 Bowman Mickey Mantle

It was March 2018. I had been slowly putting together a mid-grade ‘53 Bowman set ever since I had seen the shoebox collection in my local card store in September 2014. I wanted a set with great eye appeal and was becoming a stickler for centering and registration. I had passed on many dozens of Mantles and was still looking for the perfect copy. I knew I’d never own a ‘52 Topps, but with its action pose and blue sky, the ‘53 Bowman was the next best thing. Prices had been ticking up slowly and I was concerned that I was going to get priced out soon, when all of the sudden this copy showed up in a Goodwin auction in a SGC 50 holder. It was exactly what I was looking for, and looked like it could even bump up a half grade. I knew it would probably sell for a strong price, but if I didn’t get it then, who knows what I’d have to pay in the future? I put in a final bid that was a little more than I was really comfortable with, and I won it. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#8. D303-2 Mother’s Bread Eddie Plank

It was August 2018. I’d still been picking up E90/92-family candy cards here and there, and the one type I didn’t have yet a D303 Mother’s Bread card. In fact, I don’t think I had ever seen one for sale in the 2+ years that I’d been collecting the E90/92 family. This one came up on eBay and I was immediately blown away. How on earth was this a PSA 1? The front was beautiful with huge borders and great registration and color. There was some paper loss on back, but it barely touched the design. I wasn’t necessarily looking to spend up on a HOF’er for my D303-2 type, but I just couldn’t sit this one out. I gritted my teeth and put in a bid, not even really expecting to win it, but it went lower than I thought and it was mine. I usually crack out my slabbed cards and had cracked all of my E90/92-family cards to that point (even the E106 Mathewson), but I didn’t have the guts to remove this one from its slab. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#9. M101-2 Sporting News Joe Jackson

It was April 2020. I had started collecting the M101-2 set a couple years earlier (before it was cool) and was about halfway done. I had the Wagner and Mathewson, but was still missing the biggest three, Cobb, Cobb/Wagner, and Joe Jackson. Then Covid hit. We had been in lockdown for about five weeks. I hadn’t bought anything in a while and was hesitant to start now with all the uncertainty around, but card auctions had just started back up and it seemed like this was going to be the new normal for a while. Plus, like most, I had a little extra cash around since I hadn’t gone out to do anything in over a month. REA ran its first post-Covid auction and there was a Jackson in it. It was a beautiful copy; it had a small hole in the top edge but was otherwise perfect, which was about as good as you could expect with M101-2s. It was hard to price because PSA didn’t grade them so there was no VCP history, but I won it for one increment under my max. Within the next year, PSA started grading M101-2s, and I think the next Jackson to sell was in a PSA 1 holder and went for 16x what I’d paid for mine in the middle of the Covid bubble. Even though mine then seemed like a bargain, it was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#10. R310 Butterfinger Babe Ruth

It was May 2021. Covid lockdown restrictions were loosening and we were still flush with cash. With prices exploding, I had to stop progress on many of my prewar sets because I got priced out of being able to complete them. Nonetheless, I was pretty happy with the state of my collection, with a couple exceptions. I had no Ruth or Gehrig cards, and it looked like I might not ever be able to afford them, at least not traditional cards. But collecting M101-2 supplements got me looking into other types of supplements, and I found the 1934 Butterfingers, which had both Ruth and Gehrig in the set. Prices on those hadn’t really started going up that much, especially raw, and there weren’t many PSA slabbed examples yet. A really nice Ruth copy came up in Heritage, and I figured this was my chance to add a Ruth that, although expensive, would only cost a fraction of what a 1933 Goudey or 1920s Ruth cards would cost. I put in what I thought was a competitive bid based on recent raw sales and won it. Coincidentally, in the very next Heritage auction there was a Gehrig that I won also to complete the R310 pair. The Gehrig was pricy, but I had paid a little more for the Ruth. In fact, it was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#11. 1957 Topps Mickey Mantle

It was August 2022. Prices were high and my set collecting had mostly stalled out because I knew I’d never be able to afford to finish most of the sets I was collecting. Instead, I started gravitating to picking up high eye-appeal vintage singles. I didn’t have any particular plan, but would just wait until something caught my eye. I was at the Raleigh card show and one of the dealers I usually bought from had this in his display, along with some other sharp raw ‘57s. It was priced over VCP, with good reason. I bought a couple other ‘57s from him, but hemmed and hawed over the Mantle. I ended up leaving without it, but regretted it the rest of the weekend because it was just so damn nice and I’d probably never find another one that I liked as much. I texted the dealer on Monday and ended up going over to his house to buy the Mantle. It’s still probably the best mid-grade copy I’ve ever seen. It was the most I had ever spent on a baseball card.




#12. M101-2 Sporting News Ty Cobb

It was March 2024. I was so close to finishing the M101-2 set. I was lucky to have picked up the Joe Jackson before the price runup, but I was still missing the Cobb and Cobb/Wagner. PSA had only recently been grading M101-2s, and even though almost all slabbed M101-2s are graded A or 1, people had been paying big money for low-grade slabbed examples. Raw examples had also gone up, but there was a huge gap between raw A/1 and PSA A/1. This raw one came up from an estate-sale seller on eBay. They ran an auction at a big starting price, and it didn’t sell. Then they ran another auction with a slightly lower starting price, and again it didn’t sell. Repeat a few times. Eventually it got to a price where I thought it might start attracting bidders. I could get it if I really stretched, and I thought if I didn’t get this one, it was fairly likely that I would never get one. Condition was obviously rough with lots of pinholes at the corners, but it was all there and Cobb’s image was strong and unblemished. It cost a lot more than I had even spent on the ‘57 Mantle, but it would be a centerpiece to my collection and a huge step towards completing one of my favorite sets. As the eBay auction counted down, I bid the starting price with 3 seconds left, and won it as the only bidder. I waited in anticipation as the seller sent the card to the eBay authenticator. It passed of course, and then...it disappeared. eBay blamed FedEx. FedEx blamed eBay. Weeks went by and it was gone forever. I was heartbroken. Two months later, I get a notification that a package was delivered to my house. I wasn't expecting anything. What could it be? Could it be....do you think? Yes! I finally had my M101-2 Cobb. It is the most I have ever spent on a baseball card.



And that’s my story. Let’s hear yours!

[jingram058]

Great cards, and great stories, sir.

I couldn't help but notice that the monetary amounts spent weren't stated after the first few deals. Great stories, but perhaps would be more dramatic if the money spent was stated.

[Bliggity]

Originally Posted by jingram058

I couldn't help but notice that the monetary amounts spent weren't stated after the first few deals. Great stories, but perhaps would be more dramatic if the money spent was stated.

Hey James - thanks for making it all the way through, you might be the only one! I decided not to include prices because I didn't want to dissuade anyone from posting. I don't want it to feel like a competition and there might be folks who don't want to share what they paid for their cards. Also, it's more about seeing what has inspired us to expand our limits over time to get that card that we just have to have, whether it costs a hundred dollars or a million dollars. I'll leave it to others to decide whether they want to post prices; no pressure either way.

[ullmandds]

Nice cards...and good stories. I certainly have mine spanning the last 40 or so years.

I have early hobby memories of scoffing at $7 for a tom seaver rookie...and $25 for a hank aaron rookie...mind you I was like 8! $250 for a nrmt goudey ruth for $200 may as well have been a million bucks!

While in college I purchased a fro joy uncut sheet for maybe $85. At this time this was by far the most I ever paid for a card...it turned out to be fake!

In 1992 i won a few red hindy backed t206's at a live auction in silver spring, mn...for $100 ea.

Then in 1994 while interviewing at dental schools I came across a crandall red hindu in cleveland, oh for $250...a new record for me.

The most I ever paid for a card was the infamous t207. red cross lowdy from the antiques roadshow...it was somewhere around 20K.

The only card remaining in my collection is the fake fro joy sheet!!!!

[raulus]

Sadly, I haven’t been tracking it all that well. It also doesn’t help that I peaked pretty early, at least after coming back from my hiatus.

But a few stand out.

It was 1991, and I rode my bike down to the bank to withdraw $5 from my bank account to pick up the 52T Mantle of my childhood - the 89 UD Griffey.

When my parents found out, they freaked, and I was thoroughly reprimanded for my folly. I think it might still be buried in a box in my childhood bedroom, and if I’m lucky it might be worth slightly more than I paid for it then, assuming I didn’t maul it too badly.

Not long after returning to collecting, and deciding to focus on the Amazing Mr. Mays, I picked up a 52T Mays in PSA 7. Probably around 2016 or 2017. Since most databases will pick up sales of graded cards, it’s almost certainly a matter of public record that I paid $7,500 to pick it up.

Fast forward another year or two and the top Mays collector decided to liquidate his entire collection at auction with ML. I ended up picking up a lot of great stuff, but one piece stands out as the highest cost, a record which it continues to hold for me to this day. Since they rarely come up for sale, I went all in on the 61T Dice Game Mays. Given that ML auctions run all night, I went to bed not knowing if I had actually won or not. But the next morning, wonder of wonders, no one stepped up to top my high bid. Given that this sale is also easily found in public records, I can confirm that I paid $85k for it.

While I’ve certainly picked up plenty since then, including stuff that began to approach that amount, that was the summit for me, and I suspect it might stay that way. And if I’m being honest, 10 years ago I would never have guessed that I would pay so much for cardboard.

Some pics of the last 2, since the Griffey is not currently in my possession.

[brass_rat]

Great looking cards, Dan! Thanks for sharing the stories. I'm curious what your wife thinks 10 years later after you went to the card shop.

[Bliggity]

Originally Posted by ullmandds

The only card remaining in my collection is the fake fro joy sheet!!!!

Lol...isn't that how it goes sometimes. As a T207 guy, I would love for a Red Cross to be card #13 in my story, but I've probably topped out for a while.

Originally Posted by brass_rat

Great looking cards, Dan! Thanks for sharing the stories. I'm curious what your wife thinks 10 years later after you went to the card shop.

Kind of funny there. It definitely drew a lot of raised eyebrows for the first few years, but she tolerated it and we basically had a "don't ask, don't tell" policy on how much I spent on cards. During that time, I mostly kept my cards in a closed trunk. It was good for storage, but I ended up not really enjoying my collection because I never saw my cards. Then a couple years ago when I turned 40, I bought myself a really nice, big display cabinet. I spent an entire weekend installing lights, planning the display, and setting it up. When I was done, I asked my wife to come look at it. She came in, took one look, and said "ohhhh....now I understand!" Now she's the one who shows it off when we have company over. I think by seeing everything displayed, she saw it more as a mini-museum rather than as a baseball card collection. We still don't really talk about prices, but she knows that it's worth a lot more after Covid, so that helps.

This is how it looked at the time; it's gone through a couple revisions since then.

[jayshum]

Very nice display

[ALR-bishop]

Great cards and display Dan

[bk400]

This is a great post. During the halcyon days of early 1987, while basking in the glory of the New York Mets, I eagerly shoveled snow around the neighborhood to afford the following:

1) $8 for the 1985 Topps Dwight Gooden rookie card.
2) $8 for the 1984 Topps Darryl Strawberry rookie card.
3) $15 for a badly off-centered, 1979 Ozzie Smith rookie card.

I bought those cards at the Union Market in Union, NJ, which was an awesome place -- in the same way that the Cantina in Star Wars was an awesome place.

[ajjohnsonsoxfan]

Great post! And you did a hellofa job on that display. Looks really amazing.

[boysblue]

I made it all the way through. Loved it. Thanks for taking the time to post this!

[tiger8mush]

Originally Posted by Bliggity

This is how it looked at the time; it's gone through a couple revisions since then.

Beautiful display, and love those raw cards!
Thanks for sharing your story, good luck in your hunt for a Red Cross to be card #13

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Bliggity

Now she's the one who shows it off when we have company over. I think by seeing everything displayed, she saw it more as a mini-museum rather than as a baseball card collection.

While I like to keep my treasures on display, typically I don't show off my collections to house guests. First of all I'm reluctant to advertise the treasure trove in my house. Moreover unless a house guest also has the collecting gene, the conversations would tend to go something like this:

GUEST - So how much is all of this stuff worth?



BALTICFOX - What does it matter? It's not for sale. And it's never been about the money for me anyway.

GUEST - But what are you going to do with this stuff when you die?



BALTICFOX - Nothing. I'll be dead. I won't be doing much of anything then.

GUEST - I mean have you ever thought of selling your collections now to buy something you can enjoy?



BALTICFOX - That's actually why I have these items. I enjoy having them! They bring me satisfaction and delight.

Oh, and by the way, what would you propose that I do with the money I get for my collectibles? Spend it on beer, wine and pot like you do leaving nothing other than a few more dead brain cells?

[byrone]

Even though he’s not a Hall of Famer the 1984 Don Mattingly Donruss rookie card remains a classic.

[brass_rat]

Dan, great cabinet! I'm glad that your wife is on board and that you've reached an understanding.

Balticfox, your hypothetical conversation reminds me of this meme I once saw:

[bnorth]

Not the most valuable but the most I have paid for cards was a 1952 Topps Eddie Mathews and a T206 Red Cobb. The Mathews is one of the very few cards I regret getting rid of.

[4815162342]

Dan, those were great stories, and you have a very cool display. Thanks for sharing.

[Johnny T]

I have several stories like the original poster...first when I was around 10 years old (late 70's) I saved my paper boy money to buy a 1964 Topps Pete Rose for $19 (negotiated down from the list price of $20) from John Broggi who used to set up at the Route 1 Flea Market in NJ. When I showed my prize to my mother, she asked how much I spent and she was furious...grabbed me by the arm and took me back to Mr. Broggi's table and let him have it. He was very gracious and explained that I made a good buy and that the card would more than double in value in 6 months...I chimed in that "All I did was trade paper for cardboard, Mom!"

Fast forward probable 7 or so years later, John Broggi had a store in Highland Park and he had a 1934 Goudey Lou Gehrig (yellow) in his case. I asked how much and he said it wasn't for sale, that he was keeping it in his PC. I replied that everything is for sale for the right price and asked what that price was. He said $230 (the card was gorgeous)...I had $200 in my pocket...he wouldn't take it...ugh!!!! Wonder if John is still kicking these days? Anyone know???

As for the most I spent after 50 years of collecting...it was these two...

[HercDriver]

Originally Posted by Bliggity

Hey James - thanks for making it all the way through, you might be the only one! I decided not to include prices because I didn't want to dissuade anyone from posting. I don't want it to feel like a competition and there might be folks who don't want to share what they paid for their cards. Also, it's more about seeing what has inspired us to expand our limits over time to get that card that we just have to have, whether it costs a hundred dollars or a million dollars. I'll leave it to others do decide whether they want to post prices; no pressure either way.

I agree...the prices are irrelevant. It's the stories behind them and the chase that goes with it. Don't keep score...just enjoy the awesome cards! I loved that post...fantastic!

Cheers,
Geno

[Bliggity]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

While I like to keep my treasures on display, typically I don't show off my collections to house guests. First of all I'm reluctant to advertise the treasure trove in my house. Moreover unless a house guest also has the collecting gene, the conversations would tend to go something like this:

GUEST - So how much is all of this stuff worth?

I definitely get nervous also, but I'm pretty selective about who gets to see it. Usually just close friends. And you're right about the conversation quickly turning to, "how much do you pay for these?" But not always. I had a buddy over on NYE who could not care less about sports. I don't think he's thrown a ball in his life or watched a minute of sports on TV. But he was amazed by all the color lithograph cards; he remarked that they were little works of art and studied them for a while. He also saw a couple 1972 Topps cards and thought they were pretty "groovy," lol.

Lots of great cards and stories getting posted here. John, I love the '38 DiMaggio, it's high on my want-list.

[OhioLawyerF5]

It's an interesting exercise to think about. For me, I really didn't buy a lot of singles until my adult years. I was mostly opening packs and trading.

I think the first single I bought wasn't until 1991 when our local grocery store put in a display case of cards. Up until that point through the 80s I had only bought packs from the checkout line. It was a 1991 Leaf Dave Justice. It cost $4 and was the most I'd ever paid for a card, being the first. It is not worth near that today.

During my college years in 2000, I was buying a lot of boxes to open at a local shop. There was a 1993 SP Derek Jeter. That card had become quite iconic by then so I grabbed it. It was the most I'd paid at that point.

Fast forward to the years when I began to buy singles. The next on the list to break the threshold would be the 1963 Pete Rose.

That would be broken the next year when I made it my goal at the National to buy the best copy of the 1967 Tom Seaver I could find.

Lastly, as I built out my rare 90s Larkin PC, the card that took over the spot from the Seaver was the 1996 Select Certified Mirror Gold Barry Larkin. I had recently purchased a super rare set of the unreleased prototypes of the 1998 Donruss Crusades of Barry Larkin. That's 3 cards that if bought individually would have taken the top spot. They showed up for sale pretty randomly, and being the only set in existence, I had to pounce. So I was still reeling from that unexpected purchase when the former Pinnacle CEO decided to sell his entire set of 1996 Mirror Golds. I assumed whoever spent the 6-figures to buy the set would be doing so to break it up and sell it off. Sure enough, I was contacted with an option to buy the Larkin from that set. And I once again couldn't let that opportunity pass as that card is the peak of 90s player collecting.

[polakoff]

Growing up in the mid 90s and early 00s I was primarily a modern collector with one major exception: 1971 Topps. This set was my gateway drug into vintage. It started when I was around 10 years old, when I had only been collecting for a year, and my dad came home from his weekly flea market trip with a binder of 150 or so 1971 Topps cards with some duplicates. I fell in love and decided I'd put the set together.

One card in particular was captivating: #5, Thurman Munson. If I'm being honest I didn't really know who he was at age 10. But this card was so cool, as it was the only one (in the grouping that I had, which must not have had a Jim Fregosi or Roy White or...) that was horizontal, and it had this incredibly cool play at the plate photo. Plus, that giant rookie cup logo!

By my junior year of high school I had more or less fallen out of collecting, and when I left for college in June I left my cards behind. I was more interested in girls, music, girls, and girls. A few months into my first full semester (probably October or so) I saw a commercial on TV for a card store in town. I drove over there the next day, but they were closed. A couple weeks later I went by again. The store owner was so personable and started showing me all of the new products. He and I were talking about baseball and cards in general. Somehow I mentioned that my favorite card ever was the 1971 Topps Thurman Munson and he says "oh, you gotta see this!" He pulls out a card from 2005 Topps Rookie Cup -- an original buyback of that card with a Rookie Cup commemorative relic embedded, and a 1/1 stamp. It was so cool. He told me he wanted 100 bucks for it. I was a poor college student and passed. I did, however, buy a box of Rookie Cup which cost me about the same amount. Rookie Cup became my favorite product, the store owner and I became friends, and at some point he sold the card on ebay. I asked him to send me a picture of the card, just so I had that.

A few months later, after winter break, I brought my cards back up to college with me. A couple months after that I pulled out my 71 set and decided to continue trying to complete it. And I started thinking about that Rookie Cup card.

Several years later I started posting sporadically on forums looking for this card. I set up ebay alerts, made posts on Twitter, mentioned it to dealers I got to know. I stopped collecting modern over the years, and even stopped collecting newer vintage after finally completing my 71 set, and moved into pre-war. But I never forgot that card.

One day I'm checking out ebay and I see the card. It was graded now, but it was the one. It hadn't tripped my search alert -- despite having 6 different alerts set up, I hadn't counted on the seller writing "1 of 1" instead of "1/1." There's a reserve. I bid a stupid amount, am the high bidder, but the reserve isn't met. It's relisted, we go through the same charade only this time it sells for MORE, but the reserve still isn't met. I message the seller and tell her the story. I ask her price. She tells me a number so high that my heart sinks. My wife and I were saving for our adoption at the time, and even if we weren't, I couldn't live with myself if i paid that price for almost any card, let alone this one. I give her my phone number and tell her to let me know if she can ever come down on the price.

A couple weeks later I get a call from an unknown number and let it go to voicemail. It's the seller. I hurriedly call her back. She tells me she was a Munson supercollector and her husband used to buy her rare cards, but he passed a few years earlier and her kids don't want the cards so she's selling. She says she was doing research about this card and ran across my various posts about it, read my story, and wants me to have the card. She names a price closer to mine and I immediately accept.

To this day I'm embarrassed by what I paid for the card, especially considering it lives in a box in my closet. It's no longer the most I've ever spent on a card -- but it is my second most expensive card, and there's no great story to go along with my W514 Shoeless Joe so I'm submitting this one as my story.

[Vintagedeputy]

Admittedly, I’m a different type of collector. I can literally be cheap as hell. I also like to scout out good deals and I negotiate as much as possible. As far as the most I’ve spent on a single card, these two come to mind:

I bought this 1967 Topps Mantle raw about 3? years ago in an online live auction for $100. I honestly think that’s the most I had spent on a single card at that point. Sent it to SGC a few months later and it graded a 4.

Maybe a year or so ago, I bought this raw N154 of Benjamin Harrison because it was such a wacky and rarely seen card. I paid $140 for it. SGC later graded it a 1.

[JackR]

My wonderful wife let me spring for this for my 70th Birthday…

[Casey2296]

Originally Posted by JackR

My wonderful wife let me spring for this for my 70th Birthday…

Fantastic Jack, and happy birthday!

[rats60]

#1. 1967 Topps Brooks Robinson & Maury Wills

The first cards that I paid more than retail or less (buying collections) was when I ordered the complete 7th series of 1967 Topps from Card Collectors Company in 1973. Robinson and Wills were 25 cents each, the others were 10 cents each, including Seaver & Carew RCs.

#2. 1955 Topps Roberto Clemente

After completing my 1967 Topps, I bought the Roberto Clemente cards that I needed. The 1955 Topps cost me $1.

#3. 1966 Topps Gaylord Perry

Through the 70s I worked on finishing my 1958-1973 Topps sets. Most cards were under a dollar. The Perry cost me $5.

#4. 1961 Topps Mickey Mantle AS

This card eluded me in the 70s. When I started collecting again in 1984, I paid $80 for one to complete my run of Topps sets from 1958-1984.

#5. 1952 Topps Eddie Mathews

Having completed 1958 to current, I decided to finish a Topps set run back to 1951. I paid $500 for the Mathews.

#6. 1952 Topps Mickey Mantle

At the 1985 National, I completed my 1952 Topps set. I paid $2000 for Mantle.



#7. T206 Magie PSA 1

30 years after Mantle, I bought card #521 for my t206 set, a PSA 1 Magie for $5000.



#8. T206 Eddie Plank SGC 40

A few months later, I bought card #522 from Heritage Auctions for $54,970.

[jingram058]

When I graduated from USAF/USN weather forecasting school (MOAF C-1 School, yes, the Air Force and Navy go to the same weather schools) at Chanute AFB, Illinois in 1988, I re-enlisted in the Navy for a $20k bonus. They gave me $16k in cash; the other $4k went to the IRS. I bought a 1988 Ford Mustang LX hatchback with 5.0 litre V8 and 5 speed manual transmission at Rantoul Ford with cash for the $13,525 sticker price. I still have that window sticker as a souvenir. Same as a GT, but without GT trim. Lots of police used this same car for catching speeders on the expressways.

At Chanute AFB, they had a small shopping mall built in to the front of the base PX. They held card shows there on base on a regular basis. I used to go to them and salivate over all the neat cards and memorabilia.

Well, with the change from the Mustang burning a hole in my pocket, at one of the Chanute AFB card shows conveniently taking place the weekend after I graduated, I bought a 1934-39 official AL baseball autographed by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Ty Cobb, from NationalPastime with a letter of authentication from Harvey Brandwein. Paid $500 for the ball, and I still have it. I also bought a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #144 and Lou Gehrig #160, both cards for $500, also authenticated by Harvey Brandwein. I still have both of them, but I foolishly sold a 1934 Goudey Lou Gehrig #61 and some other cards a few years later when I got into a monetary jam but that is another story. The $1,000 I paid for the ball and 2 cards remains the most I ever paid to this day.

[HercDriver]

Originally Posted by jingram058

When I graduated from USAF/USN weather forecasting school (MOAF C-1 School, yes, the Air Force and Navy go to the same weather schools) at Chanute AFB, Illinois in 1988, I re-enlisted in the Navy for a $20k bonus. They gave me $16k in cash; the other $4k went to the IRS. I bought a 1988 Ford Mustang LX hatchback with 5.0 litre V8 and 5 speed manual transmission at Rantoul Ford with cash for the $13,525 sticker price. I still have that window sticker as a souvenir. Same as a GT, but without GT trim. Lots of police used this same car for catching speeders on the expressways.

At Chanute AFB, they had a small shopping mall built in to the front of the base PX. They held card shows there on base on a regular basis. I used to go to them and salivate over all the neat cards and memorabilia.

Well, with the change from the Mustang burning a hole in my pocket, at one of the Chanute AFB card shows conveniently taking place the weekend after I graduated, I bought a 1934-39 official AL baseball autographed by Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig and Ty Cobb, from NationalPastime with a letter of authentication from Harvey Brandwein. Paid $500 for the ball, and I still have it. I also bought a 1933 Goudey Babe Ruth #144 and Lou Gehrig #160, both cards for $500, also authenticated by Harvey Brandwein. I still have both of them, but I foolishly sold a 1934 Goudey Lou Gehrig #61 and some other cards a few years later when I got into a monetary jam but that is another story. The $1,000 I paid for the ball and 2 cards remains the most I ever paid to this day.

Ha...I forgot about those Chanute shows! I was a student at U of Illinois, down the road a few miles, and in ROTC. We could go up to Chanute with my military ID and get cheap booze for our parties at the Class Six. A few times, one of my roommates and I stopped at that show and would pick up a few boxes to rip open, when nobody was looking. We definitely didn't want to get busted by any of our girlfriends dropping by the house and catch us playing with baseball cards. I graduated in 1990, by which time, Chanute AFB was gone, or at least on it's way out. I remember wondering what was going to happen to us ROTC officers-to-be, after the wall came down and the Soviet Union collapsed, and we started closing all our bases. No more bad guys...we won! I was in pilot training when Schwarzkopf stormed into Iraq, and then spent a twenty year career on a war-time status. Mostly in Kuwait and Iraq, with a halftime show in Croatia for a bit. Your Chanute AFB reference brought all that flooding back...thanks!

Cheers,
Geno

[jingram058]

Originally Posted by HercDriver

Ha...I forgot about those Chanute shows! I was a student at U of Illinois, down the road a few miles, and in ROTC. We could go up to Chanute with my military ID and get cheap booze for our parties at the Class Six. A few times, one of my roommates and I stopped at that show and would pick up a few boxes to rip open, when nobody was looking. We definitely didn't want to get busted by any of our girlfriends dropping by the house and catch us playing with baseball cards. I graduated in 1990, by which time, Chanute AFB was gone, or at least on it's way out. I remember wondering what was going to happen to us ROTC officers-to-be, after the wall came down and the Soviet Union collapsed, and we started closing all our bases. No more bad guys...we won! I was in pilot training when Schwarzkopf stormed into Iraq, and then spent a twenty year career on a war-time status. Mostly in Kuwait and Iraq, with a halftime show in Croatia for a bit. Your Chanute AFB reference brought all that flooding back...thanks!

Cheers,
Geno

Wow, Geno, I used to go to a bar on the U of I campus, called Kam's. It was a great place to meet college girls! I forgot about the ROTC Unit there. Even though I was an AG (Aerographer's Mate), I was asked to be the Bos'un at an ROTC ceremony when several fellows were being commissioned. I actually have a silver dollar, and a real dollar bill given to me in one of my photo albums, when I piped a new Ensign aboard. The Navy has a tradition of the Ensign's first salute, and I was the first to salute Ensign Alan Oshirak! Those were great days and great times at Chanute and Champaign!

[Stampsfan]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

While I like to keep my treasures on display, typically I don't show off my collections to house guests. First of all I'm reluctant to advertise the treasure trove in my house. Moreover unless a house guest also has the collecting gene, the conversations would tend to go something like this:

GUEST - So how much is all of this stuff worth?



BALTICFOX - What does it matter? It's not for sale. And it's never been about the money for me anyway.

GUEST - But what are you going to do with this stuff when you die?



BALTICFOX - Nothing. I'll be dead. I won't be doing much of anything then.

GUEST - I mean have you ever thought of selling your collections now to buy something you can enjoy?



BALTICFOX - That's actually why I have these items. I enjoy having them! They bring me satisfaction and delight.

Oh, and by the way, what would you propose that I do with the money I get for my collectibles? Spend it on beer, wine and pot like you do leaving nothing other than a few more dead brain cells?

Are you somehow listening to conversations I have at my place? Seriously, I read this and laughed as it's so familiar.
Typically a conversation with friends who are indeed sports fans, but not collectors. Sigh, it seems it's always around the value, not the rarity or appearance.

[Exhibitman]

The one that sticks in my throat is the time I decided to max bid in a hot auction and ended up setting a record price for a boxing card. Not the sort of record I want to set ever again. Happened just before the Great Recession and the card fell off the end of the price charts never to recover. I grew more and more disgusted with the card over time until I decided to just get rid of it. One of the other collectors I'd been slugging it out with and I sat down at a National and traded mistakes from that auction; he'd topped all on several lots and we decided to trade mistakes since neither of us could sell the cards except at extreme losses. Whenever I think of that card I throw up a little in my mouth.

At least I learned my lesson and mostly sold into the COVID run-up. I only bought a few minor cards for too much (under a grand, total). Oh and one expensive blue chip card that for resale, but that one has real potential, so I don't class it as a mistake. Yet.

A happier question is the most I ever paid for a card and was happy that I did. The one that readily comes to mind is this:



1972 STP is basically the T206 of NASCAR (in importance), and Petty is its Wagner, so having a signed Petty makes me smile every time I look at it.

Oddly, I also think of this one:



I had one for a long time, reluctantly sold it to a persistent buyer who was willing to overpay for it, almost immediately regretted it, and finally replaced it. I cannot explain why, I just think the card is cool.

[fkm_bky]

Wonderful stories all! Love reading about the journeys we've all been on (often times since childhood).

As a kid, my hero was Dale Murphy and my dad allowed me to spend $27 on his rookie card at a show in Minneapolis at the state fair grounds. I can still remember it like it was yesterday. I most certainly still have the card.

Fast forward to July 2023. The only hole I had in my T206 HOF Portrait run was of course the Green Cobby (Wags & Plank are reprints for me). It was on the BST where I finally and somewhat reluctantly pulled the trigger on one in the condition I could "afford". I spent $4,400.00 and don't regret it a bit.

I still haven't landed on my next venture...but I think it will include finding a playing days card for Ruth and Gehrig.

Happy Collecting!

Bill

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by Stampsfan

Are you somehow listening to conversations I have at my place? Seriously, I read this and laughed as it's so familiar.
Typically a conversation with friends who are indeed sports fans, but not collectors. Sigh, it seems it's always around the value, not the rarity or appearance.

Have you ever listened to a radio talk show on sports card collecting? ALL the call-ins are about "I have a ____. How much is it worth?" Not a single call is about "I'm trying to find some x cards issued in 19_ _ but I'm having no success. Does anyone have any?" I even phoned in once about thirty years ago to complain about the nature of the other call-ins.

[Leon]

I just waded through it, Dan. Those memories are so awesome. Some of us might have some simliar, but to be able to put them in written form, the way you did; that is awesome. Thanks for sharing!
.

[62corvette]

Well written!
I have discovered there are advantages to old age. Experiences I have had over the years:
1100 T205 and T206’s, bought for $20 from the original owner who got them as a young kid in NYC.

150 1966 Topps rack packs, bought in 1973 for$10 at a surplus store.

90 E98, 101, 102, 95, and E 90-3 for $40 from an “antique peddler” who stopped at our back door in our town of 275 people

I filled the trunk and backseat of my 1975 Malibu as full as I could get them with boxes of 1975 Hostess products from the day-old Hostess store for $12.

And many more good memories, thanks to this hobby I have drifted in and out of since 1955.

[Balticfox]

Originally Posted by 62corvette

150 1966 Topps rack packs, bought in 1973 for $10 at a surplus store.

Did the rack packs consist of three cello packs each of which contained twelve cards? Did cello packs also include gum? (The only Baseball card packs sold in my neck of the woods through the mid-1960's were five cent O-Pee-Chee wax packs containing four cards and a four section sheet of bubble gum.)

[Balticfox]

Way back in 1997 or so I spent $2000 for the Carol Vadnais and Howie Young short prints to complete my 1968-69 Shirriff Hockey Coin set.

[DeanH3]

Great write up. Thanks for sharing your stories.

Circa 1998-99 I finally embraced grading. I was focusing on Mays, Mantle, Aaron, Clemente and I only wanted PSA 8’s. Then in 2000 my buddy and I went to a Tri-Star show in San Francisco. Didn’t have any specific card I was chasing. Then I ran across Ric Changie (hopefully I’m spelling that correct) and there it was in all its glory sitting in his display case. A 1933 Goudey Gehrig PSA 8. I had to have it. The problem, $10k. My understanding and supportive wife would laugh, then kill me. lol. I ended up trading all my post war PSA 8’s and $2k for that glorious Gehrig. That was my gateway card to Pre-war. However, I soon realized that I could not continue to go after PSA8’s. Too expensive. So I sold the Gehrig and went down the mid-grade route.

[62corvette]

Originally Posted by Balticfox

Did the rack packs consist of three cello packs each of which contained twelve cards? Did cello packs also include gum? (The only Baseball card packs sold in my neck of the woods through the mid-1960's were five cent O-Pee-Chee wax packs containing four cards and a four section sheet of bubble gum.)

No gum. Three sections of 12 cards each.

[NHbaseballcards]

Originally Posted by JackR

My wonderful wife let me spring for this for my 70th Birthday…

Amazing card!

[DHogan]

When I first started collecting, I made a deal with my wife. That if I wanted to spend over $200.00 or more on a card, I would check with her to see if we had enough money available. She always said yes. Because she knew that collecting cards made me happy. I checked with her even if I wanted to spend over $50.00 on cards. Bless her soul. She was the best.

[bk400]

Originally Posted by DHogan

When I first started collecting, I made a deal with my wife. That if I wanted to spend over $200.00 or more on a card, I would check with her to see if we had enough money available. She always said yes. Because she knew that collecting cards made me happy. I checked with her even if I wanted to spend over $50.00 on cards. Bless her soul. She was the best.

Classy post.