Basic questions / advice for National

[Rob D.]

As Samuel Chase once said: Cash is king.

[Jim VB]

Originally Posted by Rob D.

As Samuel Chase once said: Cash is king.

Nice new avatar! Salmon?

[Peter_Spaeth]

King salmon.

[barrysloate]

"It's Salman, you idiot, not salmon!"

[Bill Stone]

Steve --as you can see it is sometimes hard for this group to focus. Good Luck.

Sal Bass

[Griffins]

Thanks Barry, we've been lacking in the Seinfeld references lately!


Steve, cash is key. Comfortable shoes help, as every booth you'll want to see are on concrete. If you're short on time bring snacks, the food is typically crap. Bring a small notepad, and note the booth number of anything you would remotely consider in coming back to- or chances are you'll never find it. Pick up business cards, if available, and note anything in the booth you are interested in on the back. You'll probably wish you'd picked something up you missed, and it might still be available weeks later.
Saturday is usually nuts, so get there as early as possible. Sunday is getaway day and dealers will be packing up early if they are even still there, so get there early as well and move quickly.
Wear your backpack or whatever you're carrying, or put it between your feet if you stop. I've known 3 people that have had theirs disappear at the show, and that just sucks.
Lastly, have a clear idea of what you're looking for (and your wantlist) but be prepared to find something you weren't looking for- that is the best part of the show.

[Peter_Spaeth]

Carbo-load the night before.

[calvindog]

The National starts at 3:30 on Weds; is it busy on the floor then or does it take a while longer before all the dealers have their cards out?

[Rob D.]

Originally Posted by barrysloate

"It's Salman, you idiot, not salmon!"

Statute, not statue.

Oh, I really think you're wrong.

(Steve, your question was fine. Just bad timing. Looks like tonight Net54 has a substitute teacher in the classroom, and some of the usual suspects -- myself included -- are taking advantage. Just an FYI, there have been a ton of threads on the best ways to enjoy the National. It might be productive to do a search.)

http://www.net54baseball.com/search.php

[Rob D.]

Originally Posted by Jim VB

Nice new avatar! Salmon?

It wasn't easy getting rid of the pissant. But it's saved on my desktop.

[brass_rat]

Thanks, guys...Rob, no worries, please continue to play while the teacher is away...I mainly wanted to know about the payment methods...figured that cash was it, but wanted to make sure.

Btw, someone mentioned shoes. In all seriousness, everybody should check out MBT shoes. I used to have foot problems while training for marathons (which subsequently gave me back problems...)... After feeling broken and only in my 20's, I turned to MBTs. They are ugly shoes, but are the only way to roll when you're on your feet all day.

Now, back to paper airplanes and spit balls.

[Jim VB]

Steve,

I'll attempt to be serious for a second, but it's really not my strong suit. Cash is the way to get the best deals. Most dealers will figure out a way to do credit cards, but they hate it, for a variety of reasons. One, there's the fee to the bank for credit card usage. Two, there's that nasty paper trail which causes them to collect, and pay, local sales taxes. Three, there's still that nasty paper trail that forces them to declare the sale as "revenue."

I've heard rumors that some dealers are willing to go to great lengths to minimize the "revenue" they receive. Cash isn't always "revenue." Often, it's just "walking around money."

Anyway, they're just rumors.

[John V]

Here is another general question:
As far as pre-war cards and memorabilia, what percentage of tables/dealers would you say are not eBayers? Will we be pleased to see new material that has not been listed as BIN on eBay for months and months?

[tbob]

Originally Posted by John V

Here is another general question:
As far as pre-war cards and memorabilia, what percentage of tables/dealers would you say are not eBayers? Will we be pleased to see new material that has not been listed as BIN on eBay for months and months?

John- that's a good question. At past Nationals I noticed lots of dealers with cards which had never found their way to ebay or the BST, but in the past few years, that number seems to be shrinking as 707, Shoebox Cards, MW cards and others have started listing entire pre-war inventories on ebay with BINs. I'd say the two exceptions are: 1) the cards that "wander" in to the National and are purchased by sellers to "flip," most of which have never seen the light of ebay or auction and 2) there are still some dealers who have cards for sale and have never used the internet to try and sell them, although as I said earlier, that number is decreasing.
tbob

[brass_rat]

Originally Posted by Jim VB

Steve,

I'll attempt to be serious for a second, but it's really not my strong suit.

So I've noticed.

Good point on the paper trail...I'm sure most dealers would like to report zero income every year... Haha

[calvindog]

The IRS actually pays informants to snitch on tax cheats. It never ceases to amaze me how arrogant some card dealers and other part-time sellers are; it would take a phone call from one aggrieved customer to the IRS to have the dealer painfully investigated by the IRS for their easily-discovered fraud.