Shops worth visiting

[bbcard1]

I usually end up in Williamsburg twice a year or more (thanks, Busch Gardens) and will make it a point to stop.

[E93]

Beverly Hills Baseball Card shop in L.A. (technically Beverly Hills) is great. They have modern and vintage. Matt, the co-owner and founder has been running the shop for 20+ years and is a knowledgeable and nice guy.
JimB

[Hot Springs Bathers]

Shucks, I was in Williamsburg for six days two weeks ago! We do go annually and my daughter is considering graduate work at William & Mary so I will visit the shop next trip. But now that I think about it, if she works on her masters at W&M can I afford to buy cards?????

[judsonhamlin]

Prices aren't the best, but Monmouth Coin in Red Bank, NJ has a small case of pre-war including E and T cards. They have a huge selection of 50's cards as well.

[Robextend]

Originally Posted by judsonhamlin

Prices aren't the best, but Monmouth Coin in Red Bank, NJ has a small case of pre-war including E and T cards. They have a huge selection of 50's cards as well.

That isn't terribly far from me, are the prices reasonable?

[judsonhamlin]

Monmouth Coin - If you're in the area, I'd stop by - the prices are generally a little high, but I have gotten an E98 and a couple of T201's there that were fairly priced. It's on Monmouth Street right downtown.

[yomass]

I'll second the recommendation for Beverly Hills Card Shop on Robertson Blvd. in Los Angeles. Matt Federgreen has been the proprietor for close to 30 years and his partner Zack are knowledgeable, honest and friendly. Their web site is great for 50s and 60s set builders too.

[Matthew H]

Originally Posted by E93

Beverly Hills Baseball Card shop in L.A. (technically Beverly Hills) is great. They have modern and vintage. Matt, the co-owner and founder has been running the shop for 20+ years and is a knowledgeable and nice guy.
JimB

That place is a little over a mile from where I live, I love that place.

Another good one is Burbank Sports cards, Have you been there? They have a good selection of pre-war with "fair" prices. They are also very organized. They used to be the largest retail store, I don't know if they still are. It is definitely the largest Ive been in. If you tell them you want to look at 1964 topps, for example, they will hand you a 5000 count box full of cards in penny sleeves most nrmt.

I think they have been there since the 80's, not sure of the exact year though.

[Steve D]

The most organized store I've been to is easily Burbank Sportscards. You walk in there with a wantlist, and they'll be able to tell you what they have or don't have in minutes!

Now the most fun store I've been to is Bill's Sports Collectibles in Denver CO. Unfortunately, I haven't been there in around 15 years, but back in the mid-1990s, they had just a wide variety of cards and memorabilia.....Sports Illustrateds, Media Guides for all four pro sports, game programs, jerseys, autographed memorabilia, game used hockey sticks.....the list goes on and on! They of course, had cards from all eras. They were a bit cluttered, but it was just incredible to walk in there and see all the stuff they had!

Steve

[sox1903wschamp]

Originally Posted by Steve D

Now the most fun store I've been to is Bill's Sports Collectibles in Denver CO. Unfortunately, I haven't been there in around 15 years, but back in the mid-1990s, they had just a wide variety of cards and memorabilia.....Sports Illustrateds, Media Guides for all four pro sports, game programs, jerseys, autographed memorabilia, game used hockey sticks.....the list goes on and on! They of course, had cards from all eras. They were a bit cluttered, but it was just incredible to walk in there and see all the stuff they had!

Steve

I second Bill's in Denver. I lived in Denver for 10 years from 93 to 03 and visited probably 2-3 times per year. Have not been back since moving but they were going strong in 03. They had alot of 50's and up cards but boy did they have a ton of programs, magazines and guides. You had to drag me out of there as they had old hobby publications from the 70's stashed that you had to look for. Great way to spend a few hours in the afternoon.

[Section103]

Bill's is still going strong with every bit of the variety of merchandise and the same amount of clutter (watch where you step). They seem to have it all. A few blocks south, is my favorite local place - Mike's Sports Cards. No where near the size and variety, but Mike has fair prices, is usually willing to make trades / deals and loves to just sit and talk cards without anyone buying anything.

[Wite3]

Rob at Burbank has moved his shop. It is still in Burbank but is now housed in a warehouse, literally. His first storefront was a small shop that he started in his father's coin store. It grew from there into a very nice retail space that was super organized. Once his internet sales started to outpace his brick and mortar store, he decided to move to a warehouse. It has a very small store front, the size of a small hall with several sorting rooms and a few display cases. The most impressive thing I saw was the actual back part where he has 15 foot high shelves that go on forever...imagine the final scene in Raiders of the Lost Ark when they put the ark in the warehouse and pull back to the large area...now imagine that with boxes of cards, unopened material, safes (yes, safes), etc. It is really impressive. You can walk in and ask for a card and he has nearly everything in the computer. Sort of sterile and not the way I like my card stores.

Matt at Beverly Hills on the other hand has had the same store front for years. Over the years I have been lucky enough to rummage in the back and find some great stuff. He has a great hobby knowledge and is very nice and his store has that old time baseball card shop feel.

Another Los Angeles store that has a decent mix is Valley Baseball Cards. The original owner, Max, was the one to introduce me to vintage Topps when I was just a kid by giving away a free card "from before the year you were born" with every purchase you made (I had about 1/4 of the 1970 topps set when all was said and done!). The new owner has kept the same feel and they have a decent mix of new, old, oddball, and always a few vintage prewar cards. Max just recently passed away...very sad.

There were a few other shops in the greater Los Angeles area that were good but they are long gone now including Baseball Cards, Etc., TriplePlay Sportscards, Simi Valley Sportscards, Granada Hills BB card shop, Canyon Country Sportscards. Oh well...

Joshua