Helmar cards

[jingram058]

This might provide some clarification:

"Since 2005, Helmar Brewing Co., headquartered in the Detroit, Michigan area, has been owned by Charles Mandel. Helmar is an old brand name from the early 1900s. Mandel purchased the rights to the name, and for the past 18 years has included limited-production cards as premiums with purchases of micro-brew beer, potato chips, and snack items. A staff of 7 produces the cards, including Mandel himself, and 5 artists. The cards are produced using vintage printing, ink and art techniques. They are sought after by modern collectors due to their high-quality, and command high resale value.

Banty Red Tobacco & Ale Co., operating out of Grayslake, Illinois, is under the ownership of Phil Apostle, a former collector turned manufacturer. Apostle sold a fortune in baseball cards and memorabilia in order to fulfill his dream of producing his own cards. After selling his own collection, he acquired an extensive collection of photographic negatives of ballplayers from the "golden era" of baseball. These cards are made by hand in very limited numbers, most only 1 or 2 cards each. With photographic imagery not found on any other cards, and in high quality, they sell immediately upon issue, often in the hundreds of dollars."

There is no intent to deceive, at least as far a card production is concerned, even though they may be labeled as t206 or whatever; that just refers to the size of the cards for reference and comparison purposes to genuine vintage cards. Anyone with any knowledge of vintage cards will know that these are cards have never before been issued before. The ageing, rounded corners, and scuff marks are all in the spirit of making them look and feel old. But they are what they are. They fill a niche in the hobby; a way to get some old-looking cards without necessarily going to the poor house. I don't believe I have ever seen a graded example of even one of these cards. That's not what they are about, either. They are not for everyone. But if you are into old-time baseball, they can be quite interesting.