Any One Collect Pins?

[MK]

Hey Andy,
Thanks for posting the photo group again. Very impressive collection. I do not have the energy to put together a checklist for these pins, but maybe somebody will. I'm sure as soon as it is "complete", another Pin would surface.

[ooo-ribay]

Wow! 59 cents originally. I paid $244 for my large Mays

I, also, was not aware of the different poses or the color examples. Not surprising that there are so many Killebrew pins, since the company was MN based....just like the large number of Twins player pennants.

In Andy's group (which I had somehow missed on previous visits to your site), it looks like the majority of players are a All-Star caliber.....but there are certainly some exceptions! Hate to admit, I'm not familiar with Bill Melton or Jim Hickman. Odd, also that they decided to do a Ruth and Gehrig.

As for scarcity, I had never seen the original packaging (thanks, DWR!), but that makes me think these must have been sold in dime stores and not at the ballparks. They really must not have sold that many because, whereas Mays PM-10s are a dime a dozen (figuratively speaking), these 1969 pins of Mays hardly ever turn up on eBay. Besides Mays and McCovey, Marichal is the only other Giant I know of.

I may start working on a checklist. Or not.

[hcv123]

Is anyone aware of any Clemente variations - a small pin, color photo, etc?

[dwr11]

Originally Posted by hcv123

Is anyone aware of any Clemente variations - a small pin, color photo, etc?

I have never seen a small or colored photo Clemente pin. You would think that since these were made in Minnesota the Twins players would be very easy but they actually are quite difficult to locate. Here are pictures of a few that aren't in the group photo. I have either had or seen both the Carew and Oliva in both sizes. I can't find a picture right now but I have had a few Mickey Mantle's from this series (all the same photo). They are not impossible to find.

[MK]

One has to assume that these pins were not a big seller for MLB. Even the big name stars are difficult to find, but the lesser-known players are almost impossible to find. Several years ago, a Ken Holzman sold on eBay for $118. I have never seen one since.

[ooo-ribay]

I'll start a checklist from Mike's, Andy's and Paul M's pictures and any other source I can find. I may even add an eBay search....not to buy but just to see what's out there.

[dwr11]

Originally Posted by ooo-ribay

I'll start a checklist from Mike's, Andy's and Paul M's pictures and any other source I can find. I may even add an eBay search....not to buy but just to see what's out there.

Here are a few more pictures. These are not mine but I have seen these before.

Also, I know of the following:
Richie Allen
John Ellis
Cleon Jones
Jerry Kenney
Brooks Robinson
Frank Robinson
Ron Swoboda
Al Kaline
Jerry Koosman B&W
Joe Pepitone

[yankeesjetsfan]

I would love to start collecting Yankees pins from the 70's and 80's. Is there anything I need to know before starting? Is there anyway to be able to tell the fakes from real pins?

Thanks!

Mike

[ooo-ribay]

Hey Mike - I don't think you need to worry too much about fake 70s and 80s stuff. The PM-10 player pins (as shown above and probably more of Yankees than any other team) are faked quite often because some real deal examples are worth a lot of money. The book on the previous page, where I show my Mays, has 9 pages of Yankee pins. If you PM me your email address, I would be happy to send you pictures.

[ooo-ribay]

FWIW - I just did an ebay search for "yankees pinbacks." The search yielded 500+ matches with some good 70s-80s stuff. Do your homework....prices are all over the place. I noticed one $4 pin that someone wanted $432 for!

[Fballguy]

Timely thread...I have a bunch of football pins from the 60's that I can barely give away. Nothing too rare or exceptional, but it got me do some research on Ebay to see what is out there and what things are selling for.

One discovery...I was shocked and disappointed to see how many reprint pins are being produced these days. How can you tell a reprint from the real deal? Aside from the seller telling you. I'm not a pin collector...I just buy things to have for a while then sell them when something else piques my interest...but if I was, I'd be very disappointed about this.

I know this isn't limited to pins...I was looking for a Gale Sayers rookie card over the weekend and the number of reprints I saw being offered for sale made me lose interest in the idea completely.

More of a rant than a question or productive contribution to the thread...Sorry.

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by Fballguy

Timely thread...I have a bunch of football pins from the 60's that I can barely give away. Nothing too rare or exceptional, but it got me do some research on Ebay to see what is out there and what things are selling for.

One discovery...I was shocked and disappointed to see how many reprint pins are being produced these days. How can you tell a reprint from the real deal?

More of a rant than a question or productive contribution to the thread...Sorry.

I'd consider this a productive contribution

Can you give an example of a faked pin(s)? I don't think forgery pins are a huge problem in baseball. There IS one guy on ebay (pinzplus) who sells reproductions but he is up front about it. Now, if one of his repros then gets pawned off as authentic to someone else, that's another story...

[Fballguy]

Originally Posted by ooo-ribay

I'd consider this a productive contribution

Can you give an example of a faked pin(s)? I don't think forgery pins are a huge problem in baseball. There IS one guy on ebay (pinzplus) who sells reproductions but he is up front about it. Now, if one of his repros then gets pawned off as authentic to someone else, that's another story...

That's exactly what I was thinking...They all do seem to come from that one seller. He does state they are reprints...well to be honest he puts an innocuous "RP" in the subject line as opposed to the more offensive "Reprint" or "Repro". Then in the description he clarifies for those that may have overlooked the "RP" initially.

Example: Willie MAYS 1952 PM 10 RP *PIN* w/ Attach 1-3/4" N.Y. Giants Baseball Polo Var#1



What happens to all these reprints he's littering the market with? Is every buyer going to acknowledge they are reproductions when they go to sell? A seasoned pin collector may be able to immediately tell the difference between an original and reproduction...but a less seasoned pro may not be able to. And I doubt this guy has cornered the market on repro pins. Are there others out there who don't declare even an "RP"?

[Fballguy]

Also...Notice the frayed edges of the ribbon in that example. Honest attempt to create a vintage looking reproduction? Or an enticement to the next owner to flip as original?

Rob

[ooo-ribay]

Originally Posted by Fballguy

That's exactly what I was thinking...They all do seem to come from that one seller. He does state they are reprints...well to be honest he puts an innocuous "RP" in the subject line as opposed to the more offensive "Reprint" or "Repro". Then in the description he clarifies for those that may have overlooked the "RP" initially.

Example: Willie MAYS 1952 PM 10 RP *PIN* w/ Attach 1-3/4" N.Y. Giants Baseball Polo Var#1



What happens to all these reprints he's littering the market with? Is every buyer going to acknowledge they are reproductions when they go to sell? A seasoned pin collector may be able to immediately tell the difference between an original and reproduction...but a less seasoned pro may not be able to. And I doubt this guy has cornered the market on repro pins. Are there others out there who don't declare even an "RP"?

I happen to have that repro and the real deal. Even if the repro were artificially aged, it still wouldn't be "right" due to the size of the image and lettering. I don't know pinzplus's motivation for making these. I don't believe it's nefarious. I think he's just a guy with a button maker, trying to make a few bucks. The majority of his pins are "fantasy" items, using an image from, for example, an old Mays ad for Chesterfield cigarettes.