Damn. It's been a good minute since I last updated this here thread. Going to a card show tomorrow and got the hankerin' to show off some more of my slick '57s. Had to figure out how to use my scanner again!
I just had to resurrect this thread, because it's one of my favorite threads ever on here. Every now and then I search for it, and enjoy going looking through the scans. The first "vintage" cards I ever owned were '57 Topps, and they were beaters. An older cousin gave them to me in 1978 or 1979, and I loved them. I still do. Thanks for sharing your set, TPN777.
Off topic here but has anyone else checked out the TNP777 sigline Brett Butler PSA registry set link ? Now THAT'S a collector ! Gotta be a couple hundred PSA 10's. That must have taken a few years to track 'em all down.
@Brick said:
Well loved cards have a beauty all their own. Let's see some more.
Ralph, your wish is my command. It's really good to hear from you, btw - hope you and yours are well.
So here are cards 156-165 (#161 is the Pirates team card, which will be scanned and shown at the eventual end of this thread... which at this rate will be in 17 years or so... with the other team cards.
Card #165 is one of my favorite cards of all time, Ted Kluszewski.
Cards 166-175 (Red Sox team card will appear at the end)
As a small preamble, I had a sudden memory of my first AOL screen name. Remember when AOL was where all the cool kids hung out? Ha! Anyway, I chose "LAtopps57", not realizing at the time that the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn in 1957. Stupid me!
One of my favorite Duke poses
Did you know this guy's nickname was "Puddin' Head"?
@OddRodz said:
Off topic here but has anyone else checked out the TNP777 sigline Brett Butler PSA registry set link ? Now THAT'S a collector ! Gotta be a couple hundred PSA 10's. That must have taken a few years to track 'em all down.
Yeah, that's probably about right, although to be quite honest I have lost quite a bit of steam on this set in the past few years - mostly I've just been too busy to play with cards as much as I used to. These days it seems the only time I pick up new Butler cards is when @calaban7 surprises me with a random package in the mail, which he did just last week. I still need to scan and update my set, but there's another 10 (an upgrade) and a couple of 8's (which are also upgrades). Sonny, I already thanked you personally, but here's a public shout-out, too.
@Indy78 said:
I just had to resurrect this thread, because it's one of my favorite threads ever on here. Every now and then I search for it, and enjoy going looking through the scans. The first "vintage" cards I ever owned were '57 Topps, and they were beaters. An older cousin gave them to me in 1978 or 1979, and I loved them. I still do. Thanks for sharing your set, TPN777.
My favorite kind of beater/low grade card is one like the Klu or the Bessent (although, relatively speaking, these are still in nice shape and not really beaters), where there are irregular, curved creases all throughout the front of the card. It reminds me of my old cards, especially my Cubs and Bears cards, that had those types of creases and wrinkles because they rode along with me everywhere in my back pocket. Those are the best.
BTW, I've been very slowly building a low grade '57 set. This year, I purchased the Mantle in PSA 1. It has the creases like I described above, but amazingly, none of those creases go through Mantle in the photo. It spoke to me like there is all this mess going on around Mantle, but Mantle emerges unscathed from that mess and was the star he was in '57. I had to buy that card. But anyway, I'm wondering how you built yours. Did you buy low grade lots from eBay or card shows? In particular, I'm wondering about some of the really beat up HOFers like Berra and Mays. Where did you find those and did you get them cheap? The beaters on eBay still seem really expensive to me relative to the condition of the cards. I'm wondering if there is a better source.
Indy, I started building the '57 probably 17 or 18 years ago. Early on I did purchase several large lots that contained stars, so that helped quite a bit. Seems like there were a LOT more deals to be had back then. A great many more of them came from a collecting group I've been a member of for the last 20 years. The last cards were picked up at the last National in Anaheim - I think that was 2003? Not only are large card shows great for picking up particular cards, but with my fellow OBC members bird-dogging for me for the last few missing cards, the set was quickly done. Actually, as I recall, the last card, Don Zimmer, literally found its way into my hand as the show was closing.
These days I think you're right - beaters seem to be MUCH more expensive than they used to be, and I'll be it's way more difficult to pick up lots that have a decent amount of stars in them. I don't know if that's a result of more people collecting them, or if it's the dealers themselves that think more of the value of their cards than they ought to. I suspect it's the latter. There are still deals to be had, but you have to be diligent and sometimes be looking on eBay at the right time. I think if I was starting the set right now, I'd approach an eBay dealer that had a decent inventory and decent pricing and see if he'd be willing to work out a bulk transaction.
@TNP777 said:
Indy, I started building the '57 probably 17 or 18 years ago. Early on I did purchase several large lots that contained stars, so that helped quite a bit. Seems like there were a LOT more deals to be had back then. A great many more of them came from a collecting group I've been a member of for the last 20 years. The last cards were picked up at the last National in Anaheim - I think that was 2003? Not only are large card shows great for picking up particular cards, but with my fellow OBC members bird-dogging for me for the last few missing cards, the set was quickly done. Actually, as I recall, the last card, Don Zimmer, literally found its way into my hand as the show was closing.
These days I think you're right - beaters seem to be MUCH more expensive than they used to be, and I'll be it's way more difficult to pick up lots that have a decent amount of stars in them. I don't know if that's a result of more people collecting them, or if it's the dealers themselves that think more of the value of their cards than they ought to. I suspect it's the latter. There are still deals to be had, but you have to be diligent and sometimes be looking on eBay at the right time. I think if I was starting the set right now, I'd approach an eBay dealer that had a decent inventory and decent pricing and see if he'd be willing to work out a bulk transaction.
Thanks for the tips! You've given me a boost of confidence that I'm mostly on the right path.
That's a great view of the seating and fans behind Felix Mantilla. I've noticed those red railings in a number of the '57's. Does anyone know what stadium that is?
I love collector grade cards. I have Topps sets down to 1967. I can promise you that my sets will look like that when I get down to those years. The older my sets are, the lower the condition. There is MUCH more bang for the buck this way.
@Indy78 said:
That's a great view of the seating and fans behind Felix Mantilla. I've noticed those red railings in a number of the '57's. Does anyone know what stadium that is?
Nevermind on the identity of the stadium. I figured out that those cards of National League players with the red railings in the background were shots taken in the former Ebbet's Field in Brooklyn. Very cool.
This still one of my favorite threads of all time, and every now and then, I come back to it to view the card scans.
When I last posted in this thread in December 2016, I had 45 of 407 cards in the '57 set. Up until that point, I was sort of picking at the edges with it, buying "collector" grade HOF'ers and Cub players as the opportunities arose. After posting in this thread, I was inspired and decided to just go for it and complete the set in low to mid-grade, ungraded condition. I just finished it a couple of weeks ago. The last card was Ernie Johnson #333 of the tougher mid-series. I picked it up for a few bucks at the Chantilly, VA show in early July.
What was surprising to me was how abundant the lower mid-grade cards were at local and regional card shows in my area. I picked up many of the low and high series commons for a buck or less and the mid-series commons for 1-2 bucks. These are not at all beaters but rather in the VG to VG-EX range. I was quite surprised at how relatively inexpensive it was to build it in this low/,mid-grade, raw form. I also picked up around 100 or so of the cards in VG/VG-EX and EX/EX-MT ungraded condition through Greg Morris Auctions on eBay. I was shocked about many I won in the 1-2 buck range.
Thanks for the tips on building this set! It was a lot of fun.
Comments
Here are cards 147-155
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Momma don't take my Koda chrome away!
I think of the 57-64 years as the stadium years, with the 57, 64, 59 and 61 sets at the top of the design list.
I just had to resurrect this thread, because it's one of my favorite threads ever on here. Every now and then I search for it, and enjoy going looking through the scans. The first "vintage" cards I ever owned were '57 Topps, and they were beaters. An older cousin gave them to me in 1978 or 1979, and I loved them. I still do. Thanks for sharing your set, TPN777.
Off topic here but has anyone else checked out the TNP777 sigline Brett Butler PSA registry set link ? Now THAT'S a collector ! Gotta be a couple hundred PSA 10's. That must have taken a few years to track 'em all down.
Well loved cards have a beauty all their own. Let's see some more.
http://www.unisquare.com/store/brick/
Ralph
A classic set with some of the best poses ever. It almost looks better with well loved cards!
"Molon Labe"
Ralph, your wish is my command. It's really good to hear from you, btw - hope you and yours are well.
So here are cards 156-165 (#161 is the Pirates team card, which will be scanned and shown at the eventual end of this thread... which at this rate will be in 17 years or so... with the other team cards.
Card #165 is one of my favorite cards of all time, Ted Kluszewski.
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Cards 166-175 (Red Sox team card will appear at the end)
As a small preamble, I had a sudden memory of my first AOL screen name. Remember when AOL was where all the cool kids hung out? Ha! Anyway, I chose "LAtopps57", not realizing at the time that the Dodgers were still in Brooklyn in 1957. Stupid me!
One of my favorite Duke poses
Did you know this guy's nickname was "Puddin' Head"?
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Cards 176-185 (Cubs team card will appear at the end)
Unfortunately this isn't the "Bakep" error.
"Tito, get me some tissue" (80's-era Eddie Murphy fans will get it). Tito's kid turned out pretty good, too.
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Yeah, that's probably about right, although to be quite honest I have lost quite a bit of steam on this set in the past few years - mostly I've just been too busy to play with cards as much as I used to. These days it seems the only time I pick up new Butler cards is when @calaban7 surprises me with a random package in the mail, which he did just last week. I still need to scan and update my set, but there's another 10 (an upgrade) and a couple of 8's (which are also upgrades). Sonny, I already thanked you personally, but here's a public shout-out, too.
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
You're welcome, and thanks for the kind comments!
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
My favorite kind of beater/low grade card is one like the Klu or the Bessent (although, relatively speaking, these are still in nice shape and not really beaters), where there are irregular, curved creases all throughout the front of the card. It reminds me of my old cards, especially my Cubs and Bears cards, that had those types of creases and wrinkles because they rode along with me everywhere in my back pocket. Those are the best.
BTW, I've been very slowly building a low grade '57 set. This year, I purchased the Mantle in PSA 1. It has the creases like I described above, but amazingly, none of those creases go through Mantle in the photo. It spoke to me like there is all this mess going on around Mantle, but Mantle emerges unscathed from that mess and was the star he was in '57. I had to buy that card. But anyway, I'm wondering how you built yours. Did you buy low grade lots from eBay or card shows? In particular, I'm wondering about some of the really beat up HOFers like Berra and Mays. Where did you find those and did you get them cheap? The beaters on eBay still seem really expensive to me relative to the condition of the cards. I'm wondering if there is a better source.
Indy, I started building the '57 probably 17 or 18 years ago. Early on I did purchase several large lots that contained stars, so that helped quite a bit. Seems like there were a LOT more deals to be had back then. A great many more of them came from a collecting group I've been a member of for the last 20 years. The last cards were picked up at the last National in Anaheim - I think that was 2003? Not only are large card shows great for picking up particular cards, but with my fellow OBC members bird-dogging for me for the last few missing cards, the set was quickly done. Actually, as I recall, the last card, Don Zimmer, literally found its way into my hand as the show was closing.
These days I think you're right - beaters seem to be MUCH more expensive than they used to be, and I'll be it's way more difficult to pick up lots that have a decent amount of stars in them. I don't know if that's a result of more people collecting them, or if it's the dealers themselves that think more of the value of their cards than they ought to. I suspect it's the latter. There are still deals to be had, but you have to be diligent and sometimes be looking on eBay at the right time. I think if I was starting the set right now, I'd approach an eBay dealer that had a decent inventory and decent pricing and see if he'd be willing to work out a bulk transaction.
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Geordie's favorite song - You spin me right round........check
Geordie's favorite card - 1957 Ted Kluszewski.....check
Here's another round of beat-to-heck '57s: cards 186-194
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Cards 195-205 (couple of team cards in this range will follow at the end of the scanning)
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
Thanks for the tips! You've given me a boost of confidence that I'm mostly on the right path.
That's a great view of the seating and fans behind Felix Mantilla. I've noticed those red railings in a number of the '57's. Does anyone know what stadium that is?
Don't forget that my favorite nam812 alt is CDsNuts.
Dodgers collection scans | Brett Butler registry | 1978 Dodgers - straight 9s, homie
I love collector grade cards. I have Topps sets down to 1967. I can promise you that my sets will look like that when I get down to those years. The older my sets are, the lower the condition. There is MUCH more bang for the buck this way.
Shane
Nevermind on the identity of the stadium. I figured out that those cards of National League players with the red railings in the background were shots taken in the former Ebbet's Field in Brooklyn. Very cool.
This still one of my favorite threads of all time, and every now and then, I come back to it to view the card scans.
When I last posted in this thread in December 2016, I had 45 of 407 cards in the '57 set. Up until that point, I was sort of picking at the edges with it, buying "collector" grade HOF'ers and Cub players as the opportunities arose. After posting in this thread, I was inspired and decided to just go for it and complete the set in low to mid-grade, ungraded condition. I just finished it a couple of weeks ago. The last card was Ernie Johnson #333 of the tougher mid-series. I picked it up for a few bucks at the Chantilly, VA show in early July.
What was surprising to me was how abundant the lower mid-grade cards were at local and regional card shows in my area. I picked up many of the low and high series commons for a buck or less and the mid-series commons for 1-2 bucks. These are not at all beaters but rather in the VG to VG-EX range. I was quite surprised at how relatively inexpensive it was to build it in this low/,mid-grade, raw form. I also picked up around 100 or so of the cards in VG/VG-EX and EX/EX-MT ungraded condition through Greg Morris Auctions on eBay. I was shocked about many I won in the 1-2 buck range.
Thanks for the tips on building this set! It was a lot of fun.