Topps Test Stores?

[obcbobd]

Originally Posted by steve B

Supposedly the 74 deckles were in white hen pantry stores at least in Arlington Mass which was just across a rail line from their headquarters.

That was 3 years before I moved there and was told o me by the local shop.

Supposedly it was part of Topps slowing testing, since whatever was there got bought the day it was released, making the test sort of useless.

I grew up in Arlington Mass and was 12 in 1974. Had a lot of friends who collected. Never saw a 74 Deckle. There was a White Hen on Summer St by the rail road tracks, but I don't think White Hens headquarters was anywhere near there

[Fred]

Anyone know where 1975 minis were sold?

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Originally Posted by Fred

Anyone know where 1975 minis were sold?

I seem to recall they were issued in more than one region. Was one of them the Detroit area, or am I just confusing this because Frank Nagy ended up with so many of them?

[Rich Klein]

Of course I did not know this at the time, but down the street from my house in Saddle Brook was a "stationery" store named Hobans and I know I bought 68 Plaques and a 69 Topps Team Poster there.

I could not find any photos but

On Saddle River Road, there were Mund’s at 269; and Hoban’s, now Riccardo’s Pizzeria.

[BRoberts]

Originally Posted by Fred

Anyone know where 1975 minis were sold?

I can tell you that the Quik Stop on Route 62 (Navarre Road), across the street from Richville Elementary School in northeast Ohio, sold 1975 minis. I bought a lot of packs there as a 12 year old.

[BillyCoxDodgers3B]

Originally Posted by BRoberts

I can tell you that the Quik Stop on Route 62 (Navarre Road), across the street from Richville Elementary School in northeast Ohio, sold 1975 minis. I bought a lot of packs there as a 12 year old.

That would make sense if what I said about Michigan proves correct.

[paul]

My next door neighbor spent the summer of 1975 in San Jose, California, and he brought back a bunch of 75 Topps Minis with him. I still have many of them in my collection.

[Fred]

A friend of mine spent a bit of time in Sacramento in the summer of 1975 and brought back a lot of minis when he came home.

[jingram058]

What was Topps looking for or testing with the 75 minis? Could a full set be put together?

[Rickyy]

Originally Posted by Fred

Anyone know where 1975 minis were sold?

I bought an unopened box of 1975 Minis when it came out at a 7-11 store here in N California. I thought Topps reduced the sizes of the cards. I later bought regular 75 packs at the same place and I was a totally confused kid..lol.

Ricky Y

[blackandgold]

I know that the 1967 Pirates stickers and the 1969 Team posters were sold at the little mom & pop store in the central PA town I grew up in.

[toppcat]

One test store at least has been confirmed by Mark Newgarden at 231 Prospect Park West in Brooklyn. I posted about some test areas awhile back:

https://www.thetoppsarchives.com/202...me-dealer.html

and find Rich Klein's Fort Lee, NJ comment very interesting as that town is literally at the other end of the George Washington Bridge from New York, I'm sure many of you have, like me, been stuck in traffic there over the years!

[Rich Klein]

Originally Posted by toppcat

One test store at least has been confirmed by Mark Newgarden at 231 Prospect Park West in Brooklyn. I posted about some test areas awhile back:

https://www.thetoppsarchives.com/202...me-dealer.html

and find Rich Klein's Fort Lee, NJ comment very interesting as that town is literally at the other end of the George Washington Bridge from New York, I'm sure many of you have, like me, been stuck in traffic there over the years!

Dave:

I also mentioned Hoban's on Saddle River Rd in Saddle Brook as a Topps Test Store. That one I remember the name of

I got 68 Plaques there and a 1968 Topps Tim McCarver Poster there.

Rich

[toppcat]

Originally Posted by Rich Klein

Dave:

I also mentioned Hoban's on Saddle River Rd in Saddle Brook as a Topps Test Store. That one I remember the name of

I got 68 Plaques there and a 1968 Topps Tim McCarver Poster there.

Rich

Even more interesting. Len Brown, who was responsible for tracking test sales, moved to New Jersey around then. And there is some evidence that the test stores also sold the more obscure issues such as the posters. I wonder if there's a connection with Len?

[doug.goodman]

Originally Posted by Rickyy

I bought an unopened box of 1975 Minis when it came out at a 7-11 store here in N California. I thought Topps reduced the sizes of the cards. I later bought regular 75 packs at the same place and I was a totally confused kid..lol.

Ricky Y

In Cloverdale, 82 miles north of the Golden Gate Bridge, Mr. Gambetta's sporting goods store only had the 1975 Mini cards.

I didn't realize that regular sized cards existed until years later when my travels started allowing me to hit card stores across the country, and I was looking for individual cards to finish my sets.

Michigan seemed to be the other place with minis.

[Stampsfan]

Does anyone have knowledge of distribution for the 1966-67 Topps USA Test hockey set, "Printed in USA"?

Rumor always was a California release, the year prior to the six team expansion with two California teams.

I've never read anything definitive on where they were distributed. Back in the "olden" days, the word was there were less than 100 sets, but there is no way that is true.

[Leon]

I can't add much but there's some great info in this thread. Thanks for sharing, guys!
.

[steve B]

Originally Posted by obcbobd

I grew up in Arlington Mass and was 12 in 1974. Had a lot of friends who collected. Never saw a 74 Deckle. There was a White Hen on Summer St by the rail road tracks, but I don't think White Hens headquarters was anywhere near there

When I moved in in late 77 White Hen had corporate offices just across the tracks in the little office building behind the store. Same parking lot as where Shattucks hardware is now.

They were pretty much my local convenience store as the really close one had grumpy owners.
Halls were the ones who said there had been 74 deckles there. Of course it's possible they were "inaccurate" or had been the ones that bought them all.

I met a candy salesman around 1981 who claimed to have boxes of test cards at home including greatest moments. Gave him my number, but never heard so I can't say if he was full of it or not.

[steve B]

My one pack of 75 minis as a kid came from my local store in Dalton Ma. The owner had NY "connections" * so they probably originated there.

* in every sense of the word. I missed that day but the FBI busted him for football cards. Something that concerned and confused me for a few years.

[obcbobd]

Originally Posted by steve B

When I moved in in late 77 White Hen had corporate offices just across the tracks in the little office building behind the store. Same parking lot as where Shattucks hardware is now.

They were pretty much my local convenience store as the really close one had grumpy owners.
Halls were the ones who said there had been 74 deckles there. Of course it's possible they were "inaccurate" or had been the ones that bought them all.

I met a candy salesman around 1981 who claimed to have boxes of test cards at home including greatest moments. Gave him my number, but never heard so I can't say if he was full of it or not.

Yes, I remember that store. Didn't know about the corporate offices, but there were offices there. Halls should know. It would kill be that there were Deckles a mile from where I lived. I usually got my cards at Balich 5&10

[steve B]

Originally Posted by obcbobd

Yes, I remember that store. Didn't know about the corporate offices, but there were offices there. Halls should know. It would kill be that there were Deckles a mile from where I lived. I usually got my cards at Balich 5&10

I suspect we ran into each other at some point.
Paul Balich was one of my High School friends.

I was there from late 77 until I think 83