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My Quest To Build A Graded 1983 Topps Baseball Set

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  • grote15grote15 Posts: 29,693 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Awesome! Congrats!



    Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
  • ldfergldferg Posts: 6,742 ✭✭✭

    Nicely done! Congratulations.



    Thanks,

    David (LD_Ferg)



    1985 Topps Football (starting in psa 8) - #9 - started 05/21/06
  • tmgrnzx9rtmgrnzx9r Posts: 546 ✭✭✭

    Congrats Brett!

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Thanks everybody. Here's the results from the original CC renewal in April 2016. The PSA 9 Gwynn is the one that bumped. I'm kicking myself for not noting the source at the time. I'm pretty sure I posted raw scans back then but that was before the whole photobucket thing.

    I'll be sure to scan the new PSA 10 when I get it back.

    1 1 25517347 NEAR MINT-MINT 8 1983 Topps 83 Ryne Sandberg Card

    2 1 25517348 NEAR MINT-MINT 8 1983 Topps 482 Tony Gwynn Card

    3 1 25517349 NEAR MINT-MINT 8 1983 Topps 482 Tony Gwynn Card

    4 1 25517350 MINT 9 1983 Topps 482 Tony Gwynn Card

    5 1 25517351 NEAR MINT-MINT+ 8.5 1983 Topps 498 Wade Boggs Card

    6 1 25517352 MINT 9 1983 Topps 498 Wade Boggs Card

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • Stone193Stone193 Posts: 24,407 ✭✭✭✭✭

    4 1 25517350 GEM MINT 10 1983 Topps 482 Tony Gwynn Card

    Wow Brett - this is just incredible! Congratulations buddy.

    Mike
  • divecchiadivecchia Posts: 6,633 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Nice score, with a great percentage of PSA 10's.

    Way to go!!!

    Donato

    Hobbyist & Collector (not an investor).
    Donato's Complete US Type Set ---- Donato's Dansco 7070 Modified Type Set ---- Donato's Basic U.S. Coin Design Set

    Successful transactions: Shrub68 (Jim), MWallace (Mike)
  • ahopkinsahopkins Posts: 1,100 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Niiiiiiiice!

    Andy

  • calaban7calaban7 Posts: 3,003 ✭✭✭

    Way to go Brett .

    " In a time of universal deceit , telling the truth is a revolutionary act " --- George Orwell
  • grote15grote15 Posts: 29,693 ✭✭✭✭✭

    You are the master of 1983 Topps! Congrats!



    Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
  • ahopkinsahopkins Posts: 1,100 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Brett, what's the % of completion at this point?

    Andy

    Andy

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Thanks to all for the encouraging words.

    @ahopkins said:
    Brett, what's the % of completion at this point?

    Andy

    Andy, I'm at 597/792. Just over 75%. That includes 275 PSA 10's and 322 PSA 9's.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • ahopkinsahopkins Posts: 1,100 ✭✭✭✭✭

    @mrpeanut39 said:

    Andy, I'm at 597/792. Just over 75%. That includes 275 PSA 10's and 322 PSA 9's.

    That's remarkable, Brett. Good luck with the rest of it. I'm pulling for you.

    Andy

    Andy

  • ldfergldferg Posts: 6,742 ✭✭✭

    Great grades and that Gwynn looks good in a 10 holder.



    Thanks,

    David (LD_Ferg)



    1985 Topps Football (starting in psa 8) - #9 - started 05/21/06
  • GreenSneakersGreenSneakers Posts: 908 ✭✭✭✭

    This is my favorite thread about my favorite set. Can you let us know your current completion percentage and what cards are really haunting you at this point?

  • Arsenal83Arsenal83 Posts: 1,176 ✭✭✭

    When you get cards like that Gwynn back in a 10 that you maybe thought was generous, does it make you go back through your reject pile second guessing yourself?

    When I decided to finish my 1968 set with Mint raw commons instead of graded ones, I was so picky that I set aside about half the cards I already had because I nitpicked every flaw. I decided to send in a group 20 of them to test out my standards and 12 came back 9's, 2 8.5's, and 6 8's. At that point, I realized I was more picky than PSA.

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    @GreenSneakers said:
    This is my favorite thread about my favorite set. Can you let us know your current completion percentage and what cards are really haunting you at this point?

    I'm at 75.38%. 597/792. With 275 10's and 322 9's.

    Hard to say what cards haunt me. Of all of the noted low pops in the set, I think I've pulled at least one card that I deemed submittable. I definitely haven't always got PSA 10's in return, but at least I know solid copy's are out there.

    A couple commons I can think of: Mike Marshall - In addition to centering issues, this card seems to be plagued with printing issues. The card always looks washed out. Colors don't pop. Dan Schatzeder - Again, with all lower pops, centering is the main issue, but the dark background on this card makes any fish eyes or printing blemishes really stand out.

    Two Hall of Famers: Phil Niekro - Very bad centering. Must be a corner card on the sheet. Rickey Henderson All Star - Centering plus fuzzy, washed out picture quality.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    @Arsenal83 said:
    When you get cards like that Gwynn back in a 10 that you maybe thought was generous, does it make you go back through your reject pile second guessing yourself?

    When I decided to finish my 1968 set with Mint raw commons instead of graded ones, I was so picky that I set aside about half the cards I already had because I nitpicked every flaw. I decided to send in a group 20 of them to test out my standards and 12 came back 9's, 2 8.5's, and 6 8's. At that point, I realized I was more picky than PSA.

    This definitely happens. Whenever I post my poppage, I try to identify the source that I pulled it from. I've identified some as source unknown. These are cards I've pulled out of a Monster Box when I'm filing that year's mess of cards that didn't make the grade.

    It works the other way to. I've had cards ready to be subbed and before I put them in the box to PSA, I've pulled them back at the last minute and put them in the reject pile.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • GreenSneakersGreenSneakers Posts: 908 ✭✭✭✭

    I love this thread. Thanks for continuing to update. I collected the hell out of this set as an 11 year old. Not the first year I collected cards, but the first year I was semi-conscious about keeping them in decent shape. Your pics bring back to a very happy time.

  • SdubSdub Posts: 736 ✭✭✭

    I know how deligent you are in grading this cards before you send them in; which gives me pause about doing this myself when I see you have some "8's". I'd probably get back "7's" on cards that look perfect to me.

    Collecting PSA 9's from 1970-1977. Raw 9's from 72-77. Raw 10's from '78-'83.
    Collecting Unopened from '72-'83; mostly BBCE certified boxes/cases/racks.
    Prefer to buy in bulk.
  • jordangretzkyfanjordangretzkyfan Posts: 2,451 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Congrats on another great sub. I love seeing those gorgeous 10s!

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Thanks all for the kind words. Things have really slowed down for me with the lack of specials and the bulk cost at $8. Someone floated the idea in another thread about a special with all cards from the same set. Obviously, I'd totally be on board for something like this. Not sure what the benefit for PSA would be. They seem to be doing fine as is.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • TiborTibor Posts: 3,554 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Really enjoying this thread!! This set along with 84 and 85
    Donruss were my favorites from the eighties. I hope it won't
    be another 5 months for your next post. Good luck!!

  • grote15grote15 Posts: 29,693 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Good luck, Brett!



    Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
  • TiborTibor Posts: 3,554 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Best way to end the year, I was hoping you would post about your progress.
    Best wishes and good luck!!

  • softparadesoftparade Posts: 9,276 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited December 31, 2018 6:56AM

    Is the set you are building on the registry? This reminds me of how I built my 1978 set. Tons of ripping and submitting. That was in the early 2000’s. I wouldn’t attempt it today as pricing on unopened is just in the stratosphere. I’m so happy I did it when I did. Very cool thread!

    ISO 1978 Topps Baseball in NM-MT High Grade Raw 3, 100, 103, 302, 347, 376, 416, 466, 481, 487, 509, 534, 540, 554, 579, 580, 622, 642, 673, 724__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ISO 1978 O-Pee-Chee in NM-MT High Grade Raw12, 21, 29, 38, 49, 65, 69, 73, 74, 81, 95, 100, 104, 110, 115, 122, 132, 133, 135, 140, 142, 151, 153, 155, 160, 161, 167, 168, 172, 179, 181, 196, 200, 204, 210, 224, 231, 240

  • jordangretzkyfanjordangretzkyfan Posts: 2,451 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Good luck Brett! Hope there are lots of 10s hiding in there...

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    I started off the year by busting a lot of 20 cello packs. They were purchased back in March for about $127 after taking advantage of an eBay 20% discount.

    It looks like somebody may have opened the first 4 packs in a box, saw the centering was off and tried to cut their losses by offering up the remaining 20 packs. I did pull a Gwynn and Boggs, but unfortunately the centering was pretty indicative of what I saw throughout the packs.

    I feel lucky that I was able to pull 9 candidates for the grading pile, including a Rivers which is pretty tough.

    Next up: one of the vending boxes.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    This week I busted one of the vending boxes. This box was purchased in June for about $104. Again, after taking advantage of a 20% eBay discount. Overall, a very strong box. Usually you can shuffle pretty quickly through the cards and dismiss most cards right away, But with this box I had to do a lot of 2nd and 3rd takes. I ended up pulling 43 cards for the grading pile. Including a nice Gwynn. Also tough Armas Record Breaker, Bobby Castillo and Bobby Grich.

    When I get a nice box like this, my exuberance probably gets the best of me and maybe I get too generous, but for now I will keep all of these for the grading pile.

    This week: The lot of 10 rack packs.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • grote15grote15 Posts: 29,693 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Super sharp Gwynn from the vending box!



    Collecting 1970s Topps baseball wax, rack and cello packs, as well as PCGS graded Half Cents, Large Cents, Two Cent pieces and Three Cent Silver pieces.
  • Stone193Stone193 Posts: 24,407 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited January 20, 2019 9:36PM

    Ya rarely see a Gwynn that nicely centered.

    Really - best of luck on the sub.

    Sorry I don't remember your first name.

    Mike
  • TiborTibor Posts: 3,554 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Keeping my fingers crossed!!

  • brad31brad31 Posts: 2,781 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Glad to see you making some progress. Have really enjoyed watching your journey. Congrats on the recent Gwynn pull.

  • jordangretzkyfanjordangretzkyfan Posts: 2,451 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Wow...great box and a dead on looking Gwynn. Thanks for sharing the rips!

  • ahopkinsahopkins Posts: 1,100 ✭✭✭✭✭

    Congrats! Another of my favorite threads to follow.

    Andy

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Thanks guys. The Gwynn is really nice, but... if you look next to his left knee there's a black spot. This is from an imperfection in the cardboard that has been printed over and leaves what I call a pimple. Those of you who rip a lot of stuff or grade cards from this era know what I'm talking about. In my experience, the best a card like this can get is a PSA 8. Unfortunately if I see it the grader will too. So not sure if it'll stay in the grading pile at this point.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • calaban7calaban7 Posts: 3,003 ✭✭✭

    Brett , I'm glad to see you are still going strong . I hope the grading gods are with you .

    " In a time of universal deceit , telling the truth is a revolutionary act " --- George Orwell
  • ahopkinsahopkins Posts: 1,100 ✭✭✭✭✭

    It could just be the scan, but is that upper left corner on the Gwynn not as sharp as the other three? That card is beautiful if not for that "pimple." I love seeing you chase this set in a 10. It's truly awesome.

    Andy

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    @ahopkins said:
    It could just be the scan, but is that upper left corner on the Gwynn not as sharp as the other three? That card is beautiful if not for that "pimple." I love seeing you chase this set in a 10. It's truly awesome.

    Yeah it's just the pic. I used to scan most of the stuff, but it's easier to just take a quick picture.

    I think I'm like 7th or 9th on the registry. The guys ahead of me have mind blowing sets. Just picture less than 10 cards to have an all PSA 10 set.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • TheThrill22TheThrill22 Posts: 976 ✭✭✭

    Great stuff, thanks for picking back up on the project.

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Last week I opened a lot of 10 rack packs purchased back in July for about $106 after utilizing $20 odd dollars of eBay Bucks. It's easy to see why so many prefer rack packs as opposed to any other type of unopened. The cards just come out so clean. No gum. No wax. No vending curl. Even if the cards are OC, it just feels like the cards are quality.

    I pulled 2 OC Sandberg's and an OC Boggs.

    I also pulled this beautiful Ripken. No hidden pimples this time. If this isn't a PSA 10, I'd be upset.

    In addition to the Ripken, I also pulled these 22 cards for the grading pile.


    The Milbourne, Leonard, Pryor and Crawford are all pretty tough. 23 gradable cards from 10 rack packs. I'm very happy with that.

    I think I'll try another vending box next.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • MantleFan23MantleFan23 Posts: 697 ✭✭✭✭

    Awesome stuff, Brett!! The Ripken looks great! We're on business day 63 of our submission now, but 85 is the new 65, so maybe we have another month?! Looking forward to seeing your results when they finally do pop.

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Jeremy, it'll be a nice surprise when they pop. I'll have to take a look at my spreadsheet to remember what I sent in. Hopefully, the grader will be as kind to me as on the last two subs.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • Stone193Stone193 Posts: 24,407 ✭✭✭✭✭

    The Ripken is sweet Brett.

    I might have to disagree on the Ryno on the left - I think it's within tolerance to get a grade sans the qualifier - I have a 9 with centering very similar.

    Best of luck.

    Mike
  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    Busted another vending box this week. An eBay purchase from December, I paid about $157. This was the only BBCE certified material I got this year, so the price was a little steeper.

    The box was more in line with a normal vending box, not like the great box I opened earlier this year. Overall cards were sharp, just centering was a little off. I did pull one each of the Big 3 plus Ripken. Not gradable due to centering issues.

    Also pulled 14 for the grading pile which is actually above average for a vending box.

    The Michigan wax box is up next.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • GDM67GDM67 Posts: 2,525 ✭✭✭✭

    Good luck with the Terry Harper. That's rather low pop in PSA 10.

  • mrpeanut39mrpeanut39 Posts: 841 ✭✭✭

    @GDM67 said:
    Good luck with the Terry Harper. That's rather low pop in PSA 10.

    You're the Braves guy. Do you have the Horner or Niekro in PSA 10? They both must be corner of the sheet. Centering is just atrocious on both of them.

    "I think the guy must be practicing voodoo or something. Check out his eyes. Rico's crazier than a peach orchard sow." -- Whitey Herzog, Spring Training 1973
  • countdouglascountdouglas Posts: 2,435 ✭✭✭✭✭
    edited February 9, 2019 6:18PM

    @mrpeanut39 said:

    @GDM67 said:
    Good luck with the Terry Harper. That's rather low pop in PSA 10.

    You're the Braves guy. Do you have the Horner or Niekro in PSA 10? They both must be corner of the sheet. Centering is just atrocious on both of them.

    Phil Niekro is indeed the upper left corner card on the sheet. Bob Horner is on the top row of his sheet, 3rd card from the left.

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