Result of the great hand-cutting experiment

jrdolan

Awhile back I asked board members how to properly hand-cut some 1971 KedKards from a panel taken from a Keds shoebox. I received many helpful tips here, as well as from Richard Verdugo at PSA. I ended up using a lever-type paper/cardboard trimmer, as I thought that would provide a straighter cut than my own hand using a ruler and x-acto. Here is the result, for anybody interested.

The Bench has a surface crease, which means that Lee Spies' PSA 4 will probably remain the highest-graded example -- but no longer the only one! The others I hope will pull some decent grades and then I will see if there's any interest. Willis Reed, HOFer renowned for the 1970 NBA Finals. Bubba Smith, ranked high on the top 100 NFL players of all time and a HOFer at both NCAA and Pro levels. Stan Smith, enshrined in the International Tennis HOF. Not a bad panel to leave intact, with four HOFers in their respective sports, but I really wanted Johnny for my Master set, crease or not. As I said, there's only one other graded specimen! I'll have to see if there's any graded Reeds or Smiths. Maybe one of these will be the first.

Caroncollector

Looks awesome from the scan!

Southsider

Do you have a list of other players that appeared on these panels?

jrdolan

<< <i>Do you have a list of other players that appeared on these panels? >>


I'm sorry, I don't. There must be such a list, but I haven't been able to track it down.

theBobs

nicely done

bobsbbcards

<< <i>Do you have a list of other players that appeared on these panels? >>


PANEL 1
Dave Bing, Clark Graebner (tennis), Jim Maloney, Bubba Smith

PANEL 2
Johnny Bench, Willis Reed, Bubba Smith, Stan Smith

PANEL 3
Willis Reed, Johnny Bench

Old Ked's Shoes Box with Johnny Bench and Willis Reed

speeder

hi john,
heres a checklist; (2 15/16 x 2 3/4) like the ones in johns scan;

dave bing/ clark graebner/ bubba smith/ jim maloney, on shoe top box

willis reed/ stan smith/ bubba smith/ johnny bench, on shoe top box

(5 1/4 x 3 1/2) willis reed / johnny bench, on shoe top box

here`s both bench cards, small (graded) + large.

jrdolan

That's a small selection of players. I guess Keds didn't have much cash dedicated to athlete promotions.

Wouldn't you know the one card on my panel with a crease would be Bench. Though a vintage NBA collector might say "So what? As long as Willis is OK."

uniship

Card doctor

jrdolan

<< <i>Card doctor >>


Well, you can't achieve a hand-cut card just by focusing your mental powers on the thing. You have to, ya know, actually cut it. Else it stays on the shoebox or cereal box and goes to the dump, and that's no fun for anybody.

Cubfan

JR- Im assuming that the crease was there before you cut the card?

I was thinking of using one of those similar machines for some Hostess cards I have, but thought the weight might crease or damage the card in some way (not exactly sure how though).

Was it fairly easy to do that with that cutter?

jrdolan

The lever-type cutter was easy to use, but not easy to see precisely where the cut will end up. I practiced a few times on some commons to get the hang of it. Err on the side of cutting too far from the dotted line and work your way in. Hold the card firmly down when making the final chop, you don't want it to wander as the blade slices through. If the blade is sharp it won't do any other damage. If it's dull it might leave slightly upturned edges. The crease was already in mine. Good luck with your Hostesses.

milbroco

Very nice. I used the same method paper cutter for a 1976 Hank Aaron Hostess card and received a PSA 9!
Good Luck,
Bob

jrdolan

Now you're making me have wild dreams, milbroco. Just waiting to see what the August grading special will be.