Hobby Library

The 1992 Galovich Report On Unopened Material

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Tony Galovich wrote the following three-page article about “investing” in unopened card packs and boxes for the June 1992 issue of Alan Kaye’s Sports Cards News & Price Guides; it brought about a lot of conversation on Facebook, so I thought I’d share it here too.

You can see that he highlighted some interesting history:

  • A 1953 Topps five-cent baseball wax pack sale for $11k in the summer of 1991.
  • A 1954 Topps cello pack with Hank Aaron showing that sold for $25k in the fall of 1991.
  • A 1934 Goudey wax pack with Jimmie Foxx on the bottom that sold for $20k in 1992.
  • All the 1952 Topps baseball wax packs emerging; including a find of around 800 in Seattle in 1991. He said dealers were paying $5k each for them and that someone had just opened a complete box
  • The find of an entire case of 1953 Topps five-cent packs (Canadian variation) a few years earlier.
  • The sale of a 1951 Bowman one-cent wax pack for $1,500 “recently.”
  • The price appreciation of 1961 Topps rack packs going from $600 a few years earlier to $1,500 in 1992.
  • A 1967 Topps high-number case selling for >$70,000 and the find of 1961 and 1962 cases.
  • The sale of a 1952 Topps high number case eight years earlier for over $200k.
  • He shared market prices for the following football products: 1959 Topps vending box-$2,200, 1957 five-cent wax pack-$550, 1964 Philadelphia rack pack-$450, 1984 USFL set case-$30k, 1972 high number wax box-$3,600, 1960 Fleer wax pack-$250, and 1966 Topps wax pack-$325.
  • From a basketball side he said that 1957 Topps packs were selling for $1k+ and that he heard of a vending case sale in 1991. He also said 1961 Fleer packs were fetching $500+. Also, 1969 Topps boxes were worth >$5k, with packs being >$500. In 1986, Fleer basketball cases were worth $30k, with the rarer 1987 cases bringing $10k.
  • Galovich also talked about how scarce hockey unopened products already were in 1992. 

As I wrote in the intro, I shared the article on the Facebook “Vintage Wacks and Packs” group, and it prompted some interesting comments:

  • One collector asked if the 1952 case was the Mr. Mint case, but that one was for cards from a case. However, another collector mentioned that he knew who sold that case and who bought it and that it sold for $450k, not $200k. Also, that year, NrMt-Mt ’52 Mantles dropped to $675.
  • Another collector mentioned that he’d been collecting since 1970 and had never heard of the ’52 case but had remembered the ’67 case. He also saw first-hand, around 1983, an unopened high series case of 63s.
  • The person who sold the 1954 cello pack with Hank Aaron on top commented that a large horde of Topps high-number boxes was found and sold at the KC show in 1980 between 1962 and 1967 by a retired Topps sales guy.
  • One of the group admins made a note of “the reference to the 1975 cello with Brett on top and Yount on back, BOTH of which just happened to be faced out (a known trademark for a certain someone who was active during that time), illustrates just how long ago star pack were being fabricated.” I suppose I need to republish my old articles about 1975 Topps pack collation.

Happy collecting!

Check out The Unopened Archive for more!

The American Premium Guide To Baseball Cards

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I ran across this advertisement for what is now a Hobby Library essential, The American Premium Guide to Baseball Cards by Ron Erbe, in the October 1981 issue of The Trader Speaks.

As the advertisement says, the book is massive, at 752 softbound pages.

It’s full of interesting info. Here’s the Table of Contents.

As an example of the book’s awesomeness, here’s a photo of a 1956 Topps promotional sheet—the same one I shared from Baseball Cards magazine.

They also included a nice collage of T206 white border backs.

But every set has a nice, insightful introduction.

If you have a Hobby Library, I recommend picking up a copy of this book. Despite inflation, you can still get a copy shipped to you for the cover price of $14.95.

1945-46 Caramelo Deportivo Cuban League Set In Original Album

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High on The Hobby Library want list is a 1945-46 Caramelo Deportivo Cuban League original album, ideally with a complete set inside; this one, from Mastro in June 2006, came with a near set (98/100).

The scan pictured above is from Mastro’s June 2006 Classic Collector Auction, and the catalog didn’t include a description of the catalog. However, a few other auction houses have offered these albums.

But first, if you’re interested in learning more about the set, Pre-War Cards, and Cardhound Vintage have nice summaries. Now, Hake’s Auctions offered an album with a complete set of 100 cards in their March 2013 auction; it sold for $805. Here’s the item description, followed by a few of the photos they included online:

8.25×10.75″ album w/thin cardboard cover has 16 pages and contains complete set of 100 cards all mounted at appropriate spots. Issued by Caramelo Deportivo (Sporting Caramels) this set covers the 1945-46 Cuban Winter League season and features teams: Habana, Almendares, Marianao and Cienfuegos. These teams are represented by pennants on the cover art and color pennant cards inside. The other cards have bw photos. Cards are 1-7/8×2-5/8″. Page text includes info on the players, teams, etc. Inside back cover has season results filled in by original owner as intended. This set features many former and future stars of the Major Leagues as well as the Negro Leagues, in some cases providing the only cards issued contemporary with their playing careers. The top card in the set is Martin Dihigo. The other key cards are Ray Dandridge, Raymond Brown, Minnie Minoso and Napoleon Reyes (which was a short print incentive card and therefore scarce). Other stars include Armando Marsans, Lazaro Salazar, Manuel “Cocaina” Garcia, Adolfo Luque, Luis Tiant Sr., Dick Sisler. Cards have general wear/aging as mounted but images for the most part remain bold and distinct throughout. Visually some cards are just VG but most exceed this and are more in the Exc. visual realm, including most the keys. Cover is well worn and split along spine edge w/tape repairs. Trace of staple rust. Pages also worn/aged. Small 1×1/5″ piece missing from top edge of back cover and last page but not affecting any cards. Album itself only about Good. Please contact us if more detailed card condition information and/or photos are desired. From the Richard Merkin Collection and comes with Hake’s COA.

A few years earlier, in June 2009, Lelands sold this album with 91 cards pasted in for just under $400.

If you’ve got an album for sale, reach out; I’m a buyer. Happy collecting!

An Advertisement For TCMA’s 1978 Official Minor League Card Sets

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TCMA was ahead of its time, as evident in this advertisement from the June 1978 issue of The Trader Speaks, which offered a subscription to their 1978 Minor League card sets.

You also got to pick from your choice of a free 1975, 1976, or 1977 set when you signed up.

Based on TCDB’s archives, it looks like TCMA printed at least 27 minor league sets in 1978. A few of the bigger 1978 TCMA minor league cards were the Knoxville Knox Sox Harold Baines, Tidewater Tides Mike Scott, Greenwood Braves Brian Snitker, and the first card for hobby favorite Rusty Kuntz.

A Bobby Bonilla Advertisement For Ultra PRO Platinum Hologram Pages

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Bobby Bonilla was a spokesman for Ultra PRO in early 1992. Do you think they’re still paying him today, like the Mets?

If you weren’t tracking:

After being traded to the Los Angeles Dodgers part way through the 1998 season, he signed with the New York Mets for a second time in 1999. When the Mets wanted to release him at the end of the year, he negotiated a settlement whereby the Mets would pay him $1.19 million on July 1 every year from 2011 through 2035, a date that has become known in Mets fandom as “Bobby Bonilla Day”. He is also paid $500,000 by the Orioles every year from 2004 to 2028 due to them also having a deferred contract with him.

Wikipedia

PS, I scanned the Ultra PRO advertisement from the April 1992 issue of Trading Cards Magazine.