Observations from the Card Show Front Lines - UPDATED!!!

[Gorditadogg]

Enjoyable reading, Darren, thanks for your man-on-the-street perspective. We are lucky in Chicago, I think. We've made peace with the mods. I keep my eye out for the backpackers, though, I do gotta stake out my space at the tables.

Sent from my SM-S906U using Tapatalk

[steve B]

The most recent show I went to I used my phone for the first time.

Not to look up prices, but to access my checklist/sreadheeets I have in the "cloud"

It worked pretty well, slow loading, and occasional problems leter because the synching didn't work like I thought it did and apparently many of my checklistspreadsheets are old enough they're in an older format and have to be converted.

[gonefishin]

JollyElm - great thread. If you stop collecting cards you should go into Stand Up - I'll attend! Thanks for the read.

[GRock]

I go to 10-12 shows a year and the amount of people bringing a suitcase full of their stuff has went up tenfold in the last two years.

Most ungraded sharp looking vintage have flaws that have kept them from a NM or better slab, and the few that are really good are already priced as if they were graded.

Personally, I prefer to buy centered cards that look like a 7 or 8 but are 4's due to a print dot or a small surface wrinkle.

Not saying you can't get lucky and find some NM-MT raw older stuff, but you are going to pay a fair price.

I have some blazers in slabs I really like, but I like the 4's that look like 8's just as much.

On a side note, Burrow mania has hit my house as my son collects Football (I am 95% baseball) . He has caused me to buy a lot of shiny #9 rookies and I just started into old football now as well.

First order of business a Bowman Paul Brown

Happy hunting!

[parkplace33]

Great read. Some thoughts:

"Sure, my friend, you can show me a great pillow on your phone...or you can actually lay down on an extremely comfy one right here, right now."

– Great response. I have the card, buy it now.

"I'm going to take a bath on this, but I'll let it go for $450." As I said thank you and started to walk away, he called out, "Wait, what were you looking to spend?" Holding up my phone (on the exact same site he was undoubtedly just looking at), I replied, "Well the last eBay sales were about $200 to $222, so I'm out. Thanks anyway."
His final words to me? "Oh, thanks. I'll keep that in mind." No, he won't.

- Truer words were never spoken. Also, the bath comment, that is a sympathy ploy.

It used to be really only sixes or sevens and above (again, not scientific, just anecdotal) made an appearance.

- Totally agree with this. These cards are now straight to the auction house.

[UKCardGuy]

Great Post. I've not been to a card show since 1983 but I might have a chance of getting to the national this year. Threads like this are great reading. Thanks.

[Kutcher55]

Really Fun read. One thing I have noticed at shows in the past year are guys who take themselves too seriously. Self styled “experts” who think they are exceptional because they have a few dozen Benjamins in their pocket and know a few things about vintage. They usually have big mouths and make sure the people around them know they are big time. Ran into one at a show today and wanted smash him in the face.