Official 1948-1955 Bowman Football Thread

PowderedH2O · December 23, 2011 11:01AM

I'll admit to being a bit ambitious. I love talking about vintage football cards. I love looking at vintage football cards. To me, the Bowman cards from 1948-1955 are the finest run of football cards ever made. We've had some decent threads about vintage cards. There was the now classic (and sadly defunct) Love The Vintage Football which was a fantastic thread that brought out a lot of great talk and photos. Unfortunately, it is in the very popular Sportscard and Memorabilia Forum, and it often got buried on page three within a few hours after posting. Also, two of the major contributors to the thread (perkdog and weinhold) aren't active in collecting vintage football anymore, so their postings stopped for the most part. A real loss for me and many other avid football collectors, I can assure you. There was also a dedicated thread for 1952 Bowman Football Official 1952 Bowman Football Thread, but again, perkdog and weinhold were two of the biggest contributors, and they sold off their sets. Recently, Big Daddy Bowman has tried to resurrect the vintage football thread Does anyone "LOVE THE VINTAGE FOOTBALL" anymore?, but it also gets buried on the main page very quickly.

So, I am dedicating this thread to those wonderful Bowman football cards from 1948-1955. There were other vintage cards made in those years, but these are cards that I love. I am hoping that there will be action similar to the great threads of the past, and that by putting them in the Set Registry area they will be easier to find and will inspire others to check out the wonderful Bowman football cards of the past. So, I will open with a repost. The last post on the Love The Vintage Football was my 1955 Doak Walker. I'll start this thread with the same.

Sam

alnavman · December 24, 2011 3:24AM

this thread doesn't become official until BigDaddyBowman checks in.....Hi Ryan!!!!

al.

PowderedH2O · December 24, 2011 4:31AM

Oh, if there's vintage football and Ryan is still breathing he will sniff it out and find it!!!

BigDaddyBowman · December 24, 2011 11:50PM

It's official! Talk about a great Christmas present! A thread dedicated to my beloved 48-55 Bowman football!

Hi Al....Merry Christmas....make sure you tell your boy to take it easy on the Redmen this year!

Here are my most recent Bowman pick-ups:

The 1953 Bowman... a very under appreciated set. Pretty scarce in anything above a 6. I try to gobble them up when I find nice ones. I think they're great..and they look killer in the black SGC slab. These might be headed for crossover soon. I have a PSA 7 Tittle and a PSA 6 Graham available for sale or trade now if anyone is interested. I have toyed with building this set, but I think I need to finish either the 48 and 51 sets before I officially take the plunge!

That is one KILLER 55 Walker! Thats another tough one to find in good condition...damn #1 cards!

PowderedH2O · December 25, 2011 12:25AM

That Tittle is one of the cards that always wants to suck me into the 53's. It is generally my least favorite of the Bowmans, but some of the cards are just beautiful!!! That's one of them. Tom O'Connell is another. And Charley Conerly. They just POP right off of the cardboard. I'm a big Tom Fears fan. I wish the Fears had that same feel to it. And I say 'least favorite'... well, in comparison to a lot of football issues, I love them.

alnavman · December 25, 2011 1:36AM

Hi Ryan, sorry but Valley Forge is taking no prisoners this year......4-1 so far....see you at the games in January.

al.

fiveniner · December 26, 2011 2:35AM

<< I'll admit to being a bit ambitious. I love talking about vintage football cards. I love looking at vintage football cards. To me, the Bowman cards from 1948-1955 are the finest run of football cards ever made. We've had some decent threads about vintage cards. There was the now classic (and sadly defunct) Love The Vintage Football which was a fantastic thread that brought out a lot of great talk and photos. Unfortunately, it is in the very popular Sportscard and Memorabilia Forum, and it often got buried on page three within a few hours after posting. Also, two of the major contributors to the thread (perkdog and weinhold) aren't active in collecting vintage football anymore, so their postings stopped for the most part. A real loss for me and many other avid football collectors, I can assure you. There was also a dedicated thread for 1952 Bowman Football Official 1952 Bowman Football Thread, but again, perkdog and weinhold were two of the biggest contributors, and they sold off their sets. Recently, Big Daddy Bowman has tried to resurrect the vintage football thread Does anyone "LOVE THE VINTAGE FOOTBALL" anymore?, but it also gets buried on the main page very quickly.

So, I am dedicating this thread to those wonderful Bowman football cards from 1948-1955. There were other vintage cards made in those years, but these are cards that I love. I am hoping that there will be action similar to the great threads of the past, and that by putting them in the Set Registry area they will be easier to find and will inspire others to check out the wonderful Bowman football cards of the past. So, I will open with a repost. The last post on the Love The Vintage Football was my 1955 Doak Walker. I'll start this thread with the same.

0Sam >>

I have my 51 bowman set picvtured on the registry.I LOVE IT!!!I am like you.I love those old bowmans amd older topps Football also. Just click onto my link.

PowderedH2O · December 26, 2011 5:10AM

Great looking cards Tony!!! I also looked at your 53 Bowman baseballs. They are great too. I came very close to making this a Bowman thread and not just for football, since I also enjoy the baseball cards. But, I just don't have any 48-52 baseball anymore. I enjoyed reading your threads on the 53's. Maybe you should duplicate this thread and make a 1948-55 Bowman Baseball thread. That way, you could talk about your 53's and others could chime in about the other sets.

The 51 Bowman football set is the most underrated set of all-time. It is gorgeous, packed full of stars and rookies, and relatively inexpensive. I love the 52's, but I have been very slow in buying them. But, I can get 51 PSA 7's consistently in the $25-35 range and occasionally less. I'll buy an 8 if the price is right, but I won't go crazy, since I am not one of the big spenders. I'm at 15% graded right now, and I have another 40% raw. I'm hoping to pick up another 20-30% in 2012 and then finish by 2014.

Publius · December 26, 2011 6:56AM

The Bowmans and Big Daddy Bowman go hand in hand. Ill admit, I have a hard time deciding which Bowman set is my favorite. I love the 50's, prefer the 52 smalls but the 53 Bowman is probably my favorite, and the hardest to find.

otwcards · December 26, 2011 12:59PM

This card is so . . . you!!!

Publius · December 26, 2011 1:16PM

Indeed Scotty, Curt S said the same thing!

BigDaddyBowman · December 27, 2011 1:08AM

Joe...Great items! Are all of those packs and boxes from your collection? What years are they from? Really cool! That is one awesome 50 Walker! I think you are the reincarnate of Stickel!

Publius · December 27, 2011 3:47AM

<< Joe...Great items! Are all of those packs and boxes from your collection? What years are they from? Really cool! That is one awesome 50 Walker! I think you are the reincarnate of Stickel! >>

Stickel could be my Dad, we have the exact same hairdo. Other people have joked around with me about that too! Who would be your Bowman doppleganger Ryan?

All of that is from my collection except the rusty wax pack wrapper, thats a 1950 bowman that sold on Ebay a year or so ago that I missed out on. I dig the 52 Bowman as you can tell, the wax packs, the 52 Large display box. I just need an uncut sheet to pop up somewhere to put a nice bow on it all.

The 1950 Bowman #1 Walker is a tough tough card to come by, I got mine 3-4 years ago from Rick at Mint State.

BigDaddyBowman · December 27, 2011 6:37AM

Joe, hmmm???? Who is my Bowman doppelganger?

Probably a cross between Art "Fatso" Donovan, "Pudge"Heffelfinger, "Fats" Henry, and"Chubs" Peabody!

Actually the 3 would be my 55 TAA doppelgangers!

cardbender · December 29, 2011 7:20AM

Sam, good idea for this separate Bowman thread.

Terrific cards guys. Pubs, you have a stunning collection.

Yeah, the '53's are pretty cool looking cards.

PowderedH2O · December 29, 2011 9:11AM

Oh, that McElhenny is SWEET!!! You know, from looking at that card, you can just kinda feel what type of runner he was. What a card!

TmbrWolf22 · December 29, 2011 9:18AM

wow...There is no decimal point on the flip in Big Daddy Bowman's 53 Tittle. Its a NM+75....lol. Nice cards guys.

cardbender · December 29, 2011 1:27PM

<< wow...There is no decimal point on the flip in Big Daddy Bowman's 53 Tittle. Its a NM+75....lol. Nice cards guys. >>

I think that has something to do with his scanner settings. Or it's a new grading scale being used by PSA... ?

Thanks for the nice comments Sam.

The 51's are really beautiful cards. Here are two of my favorites in SGC holders.

Not to be out done, here's a couple of PSA graded one's too.

alnavman · December 30, 2011 12:25AM

1st favorite: 48's
2nd: 51's

PowderedH2O · December 30, 2011 4:49AM

I'd rate the Bowmans like this (purely visual - nothing to do with player selection).
1951 - 1st
1952 - 2nd (small or large)
1955 - 3rd
1950 - 4th
1954 - 5th
1953 - 6th
1948 - 7th

Funny thing is... I actually like the 1948's. Being the least favorite in this bunch is like picking your least favorite between Cindy Crawford, Elle MacPherson, and Christie Brinkley in the 1980's. You really don't lose no matter what you decide.

perkdog · December 30, 2011 8:56AM

Awesome cards guys! Joe Pub outstanding pics of the wrappers/packs/box as well thanks for sharing, its great to see you guys still passionate about the Vintage Football, as always I enjoy seeing everyones items and it brings a tear to my eye that Im out of the game but it is what it is.

Happy New Year to all of you!

cardbender · December 30, 2011 1:23PM

Sam, I agree, there's not a bad year for Bowman's.

jay0791 · December 30, 2011 11:30PM

gentleman

Some amazing cards posted.
I just love the bowmans. Love FB cards in general but the 50-55 are brilliant.

Just started doing the sets so I do not have many. I have many rc's but they are my rc colection. If I do a set I keep them separate.
here are my only 2 1953's. I like them the least but appreciate the difficulty in obtaining nice condition cards. They are probably the scarcest by far.

PowderedH2O · December 31, 2011 3:08AM

Hey, those 8's are tough to come by in the 53's. That's a great start.

fiveniner · January 2, 2012 6:33AM

I would like the idea of an Old Bowman thread.It seems the Bowmans do not get the due respect as other cards.I tried unsuccesfully over a yr or two ago to start a 53 Bowman baseball thread but had only 20 or so hits on it.

JMDVM · January 2, 2012 11:55AM

Love the '48s because of the vintage B & W photography----no gimmicky color backgrounds, boxes, ovals, etc.

Publius · January 3, 2012 1:26AM

1948 Bowman collectors book. I went years without seeing one then two came up for sale last year. Love this, knowing how someone was opening wax packs and running home to insert the cards in the book.

Also, here is a link to a great podcast about the Bowman sets, mainly the 52 Large and Small. Its hosted by the owner of Gridiron Greats football magazine Bob Swick. If you dont subscribe to Gridiron Greats, you cant really call yourself a footballer.....

Just sayin'

http://www.blogtalkradio.com/leatherheads/2011/12/29/gridiron-greatsleatherheads-fantasy-football-show

fiveniner · January 4, 2012 1:50AM

Just upgraded some 51 Bowman Football.Will show when I get them.

PowderedH2O · January 4, 2012 4:16AM

Great looking display. Is that on the old wrappers for a mail in offer or something?

perkdog · January 4, 2012 7:29AM

Joe Pub, I listened to the radio show good to put a voice to that hulking pic I saw of you awhile back - Joe COULD start at middle Linebacker for any NFL team btw...just sayin'

As always great stuff!

cardbender · January 4, 2012 11:28AM

Joe, that's one great looking '48 Display piece. I've never seen one before.

One of my favorite looking '51 Bowman's.

Too bad it has the print line on the front.

PowderedH2O · January 4, 2012 11:50AM

I've got the same card with that same line. I'm ok with it. I guess because I've seen it so often.

BigDaddyBowman · January 4, 2012 12:16PM

Joe that 48B album is killer. It would look great as a companion piece to my hopefully soon to be completed 48b set.

otwcards · January 4, 2012 1:19PM

While I love the '48 Leaf, I really love the '50 and '53 Bowmans as well. One of my favorites is also one of the most overlooked and underrated players of the era (aside from Otto, who doesn't get the love he deserves) and is long overdue to get into the HOF (along with Al Wister):

PowderedH2O · January 4, 2012 10:08PM

I've read that Speedie had a lot of personality conflicts with Paul Brown, which is why he left the Browns and had a relatively short career. He definitely was one of the top 2-3 receivers in the AAFC and early 50's NFL. Aside from a short career, I am guessing that voters just don't appreciate how tough the competition actually was in the AAFC.

jay0791 · January 4, 2012 11:39PM

Perkdog
I believe Joe is 6'5 and granny surely won't be saying, "where's the beef?"
a super fella for sure. Hard to believe but his voice does sound a little like pee wee herman

1951 is my fav year of bowmans. here is the Waterfield w/o line.

Publius · January 5, 2012 4:03AM

<< Perkdog
I believe Joe is 6'5 and granny surely won't be saying, "where's the beef?"
a super fella for sure. Hard to believe but his voice does sound a little like pee wee herman

] >>

My growth wasnt stunted from years of dealing with pesticides Jay

BigDaddyBowman · January 5, 2012 7:27AM

A few of my recent pick-ups for the 51 and 53 sets. The Edwards is REALLY difficult and the Creekmur is pretty tough to find as well.

jay0791 · January 5, 2012 8:14AM

Love the cards. The Dudley looks like it could be a 9 if it were just a tad better centered.

Since les Richter made the HOF I had to start his player set.....try to do all the FB HOFERS.

Love this one and the stance.

and in my RC Collection

Still need the other bowman richters

GDM67 · January 5, 2012 8:39AM

<< I've read that Speedie had a lot of personality conflicts with Paul Brown >>

There is a large group of guys who could say the same thing.

Are any of you guys in on that Emlen Tunnell rookie Just Collect has up?

PowderedH2O · January 5, 2012 9:48AM

I wanted to start the Richter set, but I only have four of them, so I was one short. Question for you: Do you think that the 52 Richter will be in the basic set? He was drafted in 52. Twice! He served two years in the military before starting his career in 1954. So, will PSA consider the 52 to be a Pre-Rookie since his career didn't start until later?

Ryan, that Edwards is a thing of beauty. The colors just explode! Those are prime examples of why I think the 51's are the best cards ever made.

jay0791 · January 5, 2012 8:21PM

The 52 is already listed as his RC in the RC HOF set.
They will not drop it and choose another as it is listed as his RC in beckett.
Usually the basic set will have the LG and SM versions as well.

PowderedH2O · January 6, 2012 10:16AM

OK, so Ryan said something about wishing that the AAFC players were in the Leaf sets. I am not the most artistic person on the boards, so I can't even hope to create a Leaf card. But, I figured I would give a 1948 Bowman a shot. So, I decided to pick the player that was the greatest AAFC player that never had a real card. I chose Spec Sanders. I know my work isn't up to the standards of the big boys here, but it isn't too bad.

Sam

BigDaddyBowman · January 6, 2012 11:08AM

Sam...VERY COOL!

PowderedH2O · January 15, 2012 12:33AM

Just added another card to my 1951 set last night. Of course it has to be a 49er after the heartbreaking Saints loss...

perkdog · January 15, 2012 1:02AM

The 51 set is really a great looking collection of cards, not sure if anyone knows but the Bobby Layne card I believe is a pic of Bob Hornschenmeyer, #14 is on the jersey and we all know Layne wore #22.

jay0791 · January 15, 2012 1:05AM

That 7 presents like an 8. Very nice.
Thats why I like these boards....people smarter than me in cards keep the good stuf coming.
Is this card listed as an error?

perkdog · January 15, 2012 1:33AM

<< That 7 presents like an 8. Very nice.
Thats why I like these boards....people smarter than me in cards keep the good stuf coming.
Is this card listed as an error? >>

Its not listed anywhere as an error that I can remember, hoernschemeyer wore #90 in his '50 and '51 card but in '52 he wore the #14. More than likely it was just a random mistake by Bowman

fiveniner · January 15, 2012 2:22AM

Let me tell ya all something.THIS IS A GREAT THREAD!!!!!!

cardbender · January 15, 2012 11:32PM

Sam, I like your Spec Sanders card. Nice job on that.

I knew something was weird about the '51 Layne card. I never
thought it might be the wrong jersey before.

49'ers rule!! ......at least for another week.

PowderedH2O · January 16, 2012 12:36AM

The face looks like Bobby Layne, but it definitely is Hunchy's number. Kind of strange that the company would not see that. Bobby Layne in 1951 was a known NFL star quarterback. Heck, Hunchy was a known runner as well. Of course, on Hunchy's card, they have him down as #90 (for both 1950 and 1951). He wore #90 in the AAFC, but clearly was #14 in 1950. Thurman McGraw has the wrong number in 1951 too. I found the pic they used for his card. It is from his photo at Colorado State, which shows him as #48. They also did the same thing with Cloyce Box for his 1950 card. He clearly is in his college uniform with his college number, even though he had played for the Lions in 1949. Could someone have used an old Texas photo of Bobby Layne and just transposed the numbers? He wore #41 there.

Official 1948-1955 Bowman Football Thread

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