What to expect at a modern card show????

duner

This weekend i was contemplating attending the tri star show in san francisco..... i haven't been to a show in probably 15 years and it seemed like a fun idea. my question is for my fellow hard core ebayers, are there any good niches to look for at shows....any angles that rival or beat ebay? or are they just novelty events entailing lots of window shopping?

Basilone

I would go to look for odd-ball things that may be condition sensitive that you might not be confortable buying online. In regards to single modern cards.....its hard to beat eBay.

Also...you might just want to rip a box or two for the fun of it. Box prices can be pretty good at shows if the competition is good (and no shipping fees or sales tax)

John

NickM

Shows are also a good place to buy autographs and memorabilia (especially anything heavy).

Nick

scottsusor

What to expect ... Dealers, table after table of "newer stuff," and lots of "investors" of all types and ages.

What not to expect ... Collectors, at least not a lot of them, and very little "older stuff" in high-grade condition.

I wonder who will be the first to attempt to put on a major show for COLLECTORS. Then again, maybe it would suffer from lack of interest.

Scott

NickM

scott - you might have enjoyed the most recent Hollywood Park show - it had Rich Gove, Maraya, Andy Madec, Marty's PSA Graded Cards, Goodwin & Co., William Toppi (I think), Wayne Varner, and several other high-end vintage dealers - and the vintage dealers were right up front. Even the autograph guests were vintage.

Nick

joker73

Hmm, the Tri-Star SF shows in the past have had their fair share of high-grade vintage material available for sale. Most of the vintage dealers (mostly PSA and GAI at the last show) set up near each other, so you can easily go browsing from table to table without ever really hitting any "modern" dealers. They do a pretty good job about creating a "vintage area" actually - prices might be a bit high on really nice stuff, but I've always managed to find a good deal or two in the past. The Cow Palace setup is a little more scattered than the SF convention center setup, but if last year's Cow Palace show is any indication, the first tables you'll see as you walk in are pretty much all vintage. If you're into pre-war stuff, be sure to check out Kevin from Stevens Creek Sportscards - he's a great guy, and his display is sorta like a museum ...

Robert

scottsusor

Just for background, I haven't been "around" to all the various "major" shows in the past few years, so I'm speaking only from my experience with the Tri-Star Houston show the past few years. As I mentioned before, there were only 5 guys that had a large selection of raw vintage at the Houston show in January, and of those only 3 had a significant number of commons. Plus, overall, the number of dealers was down again from previous Tri-Star Houston shows. They had the usual large assortment of tables with "new stuff" and plaenty of autographers if that's what you're into. But they had precious little raw vintage presence (and collectors of it) here.

It does sound like I'd have enjoyed that Hollywood Park show.

Scott

marty

Duner
If you you come to the show at the lovely Cop Palace, please stop by and say hello. If I bring all of the correct stuff, I will have a large blue and yellow buying banner up on the middle isles about four pods in the door. If I do not bring all of the right stuff, it will be in front of my table. Rich Gove, Maraya, Bill Goodwin and Wayne Varner should be there, they normally are. If I have the right person in mind, Stevens Creek Sportscards is a local dealer with great stuff. Paul Starks and Scottsdale Baseball Cards will be there. If you like vintage non-sports, Bob Marcy has one of the largest selections in the country, and he will be there.

murcerfan

If you're lucky they'll bring in some porn stars to do autographs.

I'm still waiting for some Hollywood Park photos...Marty??

marty

Dave
Sorry, no photos here. I do not like altered cards and I do not like altered bodies, so they were more of an oddity at this type of show. They were not directly across from me, but they were visable from my table. Saturday was the worst for the models. Chris, the guy that runs the autographs said that what showed up was not what was agreed upon when they were signed up. He called and had the flesh greatly reduced for Sunday. I also heard that at other shows, such as car shows, the women would make about $2,000 each day and at this show they made about $200. I guess there were fees for photo ops and autographs. The ones on Saturday would never drown for sure.