New Member Intro

[mechanicalman]

Greetings all. My name is Sam, and I've been a reader for a while. Some great gentlemen I met at the National convinced me it's time to join, and I'm really excited to be a part of the forum.

Like many, I became obsessed with cardboard as a kid during the "hey-day" of the overproduction era from '85-'89. Almost every free minute was spent cracking open wax packs, eating the gum (as bad as it was), assessing trades, and waiting patiently for my Beckett to arrive (where right-side up triangles next to Jose Canseco's '86 Fleer price was met with utter jubilation.) I honestly believed at the time that my '85 Topps Puckett rookies would someday pay for my college; we all know how that turned out. Ironically, because of all the voracious trading and organizing in and out of sleeves and pages, those cards probably wouldn't grade better than a 4 today.

After '89, things like college, girls, work, marriage, and general life precipitated a 20+ year hiatus from collecting. Things changed, though, in 2013 when, on a lark, I started searching ebay for some of the iconic cards I could only dream about as a kid. An impluse purchase of a '33 Lou Gehrig happened (later upgraded), and I've been hooked on vintage ever since. In fact, I would go so far as to say the hobby (though changed significantly) is bringing a ton of satisfaction and joy to my life, much like it did 25 years ago. Sure, I still have so much to learn yet, but it's been a wonderful diversion from the day to day.

As far as my interests are concerned, they are incredibly basic. I've fallen in love with '33 and '34 Goudey's and hope to complete the HOF runs. I also am bitten by the T206 bug and hope to collect the attainable HOF'ers in mid-grade. I'm building an e95 set, and I can't seem to shake the desire for Delongs and now, CJs. I have a craving for all things symmetrical, so I continue to challenge myself to only buy centered and bright offerings. It requires patience and sacrifice, but it makes the payoff more rewarding.

I'm attaching a pic of my "starting 9" - my favorite cards, as I've seen others do it. I love that people share cards on this site and that many appreciate seeing them. Frankly, I don't have many friends locally who understand my passion.

Sorry for the long intro. I look forward to discussing, debating, learning, and hearing and sharing hobby stories and successes with you all.

[Jacker_ Cracks]

Hi Sam. Welcome aboard. Nice cards BTW!

[ls7plus]

A very warm welcome aboard! And don't appologize for the dissertation--I personally like to know when we're attracting former new card collectors. It's my humble opinion that card collecting is a process like school--many of us start with new cards (elementary school), then work our way up to vintage (grad school), where the real, enduring value lies. The size of and energy at the recent National in Chicago brought joy to my heart.

Warmest wishes,

Larry

[gregr2]

Welcome aboard! Those are some nice cards, congratulations.

[CurtisFlood]

Welcome to the board Sam. From the looks of your top nine I would say you have figured things out for the best. Enjoy!

[brewing]

Welcome to the board Sam.

Beautiful cards. Thanks for adding to the card porn.

[trdcrdkid]

Very nice cards! Welcome!

[mrvster]

Great story!!! I am very similar to you! I am obsessed with T206......lmk if you need any help.............email me anytime...........

you will love it here.........

peace

Johnny

btw........AWESOME CARDS! that speaker really "pops" Wow

[Joshwesley]

I have the EXACT same story Sam.......
I got back into collecting 4 months ago while in the hospital with my wife and first born child.... Hooked on buying and learning about t-206's..
But acquiring a nice joe jackson has lately become my newest obsession... Not going real well...
Welcome aboard!!!

[CW]

As a one time fellow Michiganian, welcome aboard.

That is an amazing starting nine! The Cobb bat off looks gorgeous!

[Leon]

Welcome Sam. You are among friends here. Great starting 9 too!!

[Enfuego]

Welcome aboard Sam, and nice break of the ice with your scans.

[clydepepper]

Hello Sam! You're gonna love it here! Your fellow members will become an invaluable resource.

I love that DeLong Gehrig!

Here's one of my favorite pickups this year (one of the best cards and the best signature) :

GEHRINGER AUTO w DIAMOND STARS Card.jpg

[Rickyy]

Welcome Sam...wow that's a nice collection you have there!

Ricky Y

[iowadoc77]

Welcome! With a start like that I can't wait to see how your collection grows!

[mechanicalman]

Thanks for the warm welcome gentlemen. Brent, I love your avatar. Chuck, I love yours even more. I wish I knew how to do that. Raymond, thanks for posting that DS Gehringer with the autograph. Outstanding! As a Tiger's fan, I love to collect Gehringer, Greenberg, and Cobb, but I don't have any autos yet. Josh, congrats on the new addition and good luck with the CJ Jackson. Would be an incredible addition, and I hope you post it when you finally land it. Leon, once again, your auction catalog remains as a coffee table book in my office. Thanks for opening my eyes to cards beyond the basics.

[pokerplyr80]

Welcome! Like many here my story is similar, and 1989 was my first year collecting. I actually remember impatiently waiting for my monthly beckett to arrive, and in fact would often ride my bike to the local card shop just to look through theirs. It always seemed to arrive a day or two before mine.

I've been focusing more on 50s HOF rookies and Mantle cards, but have picked up a pre-war card here and there. You have some great cards, and I'm a big fan of that 33 Gehrig. I'd love to add one some day.

[ajjohnsonsoxfan]

Great intro which resonated with my re-introduction to the hobby as well. As a Red Sox fan that Speaker is one of my all time favorites! Your psa 5 is amazing. Are you starting on the 14 or 15 CJ's?

[BlueDevil89]

Sam --- Welcome to the board. Here's to many good times ahead in your collecting future!

[mechanicalman]

Originally Posted by ajjohnsonsoxfan

Great intro which resonated with my re-introduction to the hobby as well. As a Red Sox fan that Speaker is one of my all time favorites! Your psa 5 is amazing. Are you starting on the 14 or 15 CJ's?

Thanks, AJ, for the compliment. I love that card. It's probably the closest thing I have to a perfectly centered T206. The more I read about Speaker, the more I like him. He was actually a really good guy. He maybe didn't have the stats Cobb did, but he came with less baggage, too. I still feel like his cards are undervalued.

As far as CJs, I'll admit I just broke the ice with my first card with a '14 GC Alexander. To be honest, I would prefer to collect the more budget-friendly '15s, but I couldn't pass up this card. I've been admiring them for a while, but it's been hard to commit given the prices they are commanding. But damn are they pretty.

[mechanicalman]

Originally Posted by pokerplyr80

Welcome! Like many here my story is similar, and 1989 was my first year collecting. I actually remember impatiently waiting for my monthly beckett to arrive, and in fact would often ride my bike to the local card shop just to look through theirs. It always seemed to arrive a day or two before mine.

I've been focusing more on 50s HOF rookies and Mantle cards, but have picked up a pre-war card here and there. You have some great cards, and I'm a big fan of that 33 Gehrig. I'd love to add one some day.

"Riding to the local card shop..." used to be one of my favorite ways to pass time on a summer day. In fact, I took a job at one opening wax boxes and sorting the stars. I don't think I was actually compensated, which probably broke some child labor laws, but I wasn't complaining.

At some point I plan to shift focus to post war, and a 51 B Mantle will be first on the list. My only hesitation is that the price seems to be jumping daily. Thanks for the welcome!

[rjackson44]

Welcome pretty cards

[shernan30]

Nice starting 9 and welcome. To have a nice all around collection you will need to add an OJ, but be careful it's hard to stop once you get that first one.


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