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1977-79 Sportscaster BOXING card #21-07 Archie MoorePrice = $ 3.95NM/MINT to EX/MINT
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 Using a system of grading codes based on those established by price guides such as Beckett, Tuff Stuff, Sports Collector’s Digest, collectors can determine the approximate condition of items offered by interpreting the following grades. Grading is very subjective and there can also be grades in between the levels below. MINT (MT) - while we rarely use this grade, occasionally it can be found for items that we appraise as appearing nearly perfect to the naked eye. With respect to cards, it would be defined as one with 50/50 centering all around, razor-sharp corners, a photo that is well-registered and completely focused, and no visible imperfections on card front or back. NEAR MINT-MINT (NRMT/MT) - is qualified by at least 60/40 centering, only the slightest hint of corner wear upon close inspection, and may have a barely visible print spot, lack of intense color, or a slight focus imperfection. NEAR MINT (NRMT) - card displays at least 70/30 centering, may have a visible slight touch of corner wear all around, and/or a few slightly visible print spots, a lack of intense color, or a slight focus imperfection. EXCELLENT-MINT (EX/MINT) - centering equivalent to NRMT (70/30), but 2 or 3 corners display an obvious "fuzzy" quality. Essentially, a card that would have been deemed NRMT if not for the corner wear being more apparent. May have a barely visible print spot, a lack of intense color, or a slight focus imperfection. EXCELLENT (EX) - all four corners show visible signs of wear, but are not rounded. Centering at least 80/20. May have a visible print spot, a lack of intense color, or a slight focus imperfection. VERY GOOD (VG) - Corners are rounded and the card may have creases or wrinkles. FAIR TO GOOD - in this grade, card has rounded corners and other major defects such as scuffing, pinholes, loss of gloss, multiple creases. In general, a markedly worn card and often used as a "filler" until a better one comes along.
Modern Sports Cards (T2)The drop in production from World War I was compounded by the Black Sox scandal and cards were not produced in significant quantities for over a decade. In the 1930s, baseball cards finally began to reappear with candy products. Beginning in 1933, Goudey, a chewing gum company, began producing cards. Gum became the product associated with baseball cards. Goudey produced larger sets of cards than usual and a boon to collector's they numbered them ! For the next several years, Goudey released new sets of cards to coincide with the baseball season. Again a World War (II) curtailed baseball card production. Bowman Gum Company resurrected baseball cards in 1948 soon to be followed by another bubblegum company, Topps. The two competed not only for consumers but also for rights to baseball players with each trying to sign players to exclusive contracts. In 1956 Topps bought out Bowman and enjoyed a relative monopoly for decades. While Topps was dominant nationally, various regionally-produced sets, usually on or in packages of foods. Post Cereal and Jello printed baseball cards on the backs of their boxes from 1961 to 1963 in both U.S. and Canada. In 1962 Post also produced a football card set featuring players from the two countries in each respective country. Fleer and Donruss ended Topps baseball card monopoly in 1981. Topps sued both but the courts ruled that Topps' exclusive rights only applied to sports cards sold with gum. Score in 1988 and Upper Deck in 1989 joined the market. In 1989 Topps reintroduced tje Bowman brand. The baseball card hobby quickly became saturated with cards. The baseball player's strike in 1994 started a rapid decline in interest. Baseball card companies, trying to remain profitable, started introducing improvements in card quality and also measures to prevent counterfeiting. They released many different brands of cards as well as rare and unique cards. Now baseball cards have come full circle and in 2006 there are only two companies marketing and selling baseball cards: Topps and Upper Deck. Fleer went bankrupt and Donruss lost their license. Upper Deck did buy Fleer and began issuing Fleer brand again.
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1956 Topps Baseball CardsI have a particular fondness for the 1956 Topps issue. When I first started collecting back in 1964, my friends and I would wander nearby neighborhoods in a search for "old cards". Back then, the oldest cards we ever found in dealing with other kids were 1957 Topps.Eventually I saw my first 1956 Topps card - I was hooked. It was a larger card, on a thicker, fluffier card stock making it look much, much older than the 1 year younger 1957. We even thought it looked "ancient" !!! We changed neighborhoods leaving my childhood friends behind. Before I left, I gave away all my cards except for a small cigar box full and stopped collecting in 1966. I had a great 3 year run but it sure wish I would have been collecting in 1966 and 1967 with those tough high numbers !!! Can you imagine if they would have made my cigar box instead of those 1964 Topps Felix Mantillia ! The regular 1956 Topps baseball card set, is my favorite ! Topps again went with a slightly larger (3-3/4" by 2 5/8") horizontal card design, similar to their 1955 Topps cards. Several of the portraits are even the same used on 1955 Topps cards and even back to 1954 Topps. 1956 Topps was the first issue to feature Team Cards and include checklists. In addition Topps also included cards of the 2 league presidents, William Harridge and Warren Giles. Now that Bowman was gone, Topps could make cards again of greats like Mickey Mantle and Ted Williams, both who were missing from prior years. Once you get past the Mickey Mantle, this is a fun and relatively simple set to complete as there are no high numbers or extremely expensive rookie cards with Hall-of-Famer Luis Aparicio being the top rookie. The set does contain over 200 variations making things even more interesting for master set collectors. Most are the gray and white card back variations. There are also several cards that have color line variations on the card front. Most notably is the Ted Williams card which has either no line over his name or a thin green, red, blue, or yellow line between the white border for a total of five variations. Whitey Ford and Early Wynn are two other cards which have no line or a thin red or yellow line. In addition, many team cards had 3 different variations with the team name either on the Left, Centered or Right. The only errors in the set are a handful of uncorrected errors the most famous of which is card #31 of Hank Aaron which actually pictures Willie Mays sliding into home. Card #135 Mickey Mantle is also an interesting card. The card pictures Mantle leaping into the stands and making a fantastic catch. An awesome play to put on this great card - right ? Only problem is that on the real play, Mantle missed the ball. If you do some research you can find the exact photograph that the card was painted from. The artist did a great job and in his version, Mantle makes the catch ! And as always for vintage Topps sets, take a quick look at Don Mossi and his famous ears ! Collectors of 1956 Topps should also take a look at their side issue '1956 Topps Pins'. In addition to their 1956 Topps baseball card set, Topps released their 1956 Topps Pins set using the same portrait photos as the cards. In the end, collectors of the day preferred cards to pins and Topps cut back the 1956 Topps Pin set from a planned 90 pins to just 60.
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1963 Topps StickersAnother of the interesting Topps Issues of the 1960's !Topps inserted these Stick-Ons (stickers) in several of series of their 1963 Topps baseball cards. Interestingly, the Stick-On inserts were not mentioned or advertised on wax pack wrappers in 1963. The complete 1963 Topps Stick-Ons set is packed with HALL-OF-FAMERS and contains 46 stickers measuring 1-1/4" x 2-3/4". The Stick-Ons come in 2 distinct variations. They can be found either with blank-backs or the scarcer variation with instructions printed on the back. The Stick-Ons have with an approx. 3/16" "white" band running left to right across the mug shot. This band appears to be lighter than the printing above and below it. Theory is that it is an aging effect caused by the backing strip. TOP STARS: Mickey Mantle, Willie Mays, Roberto Clemente, Hank Aaron, Sandy Koufax, Stan Musial, Al Kaline, Carl Yastrzemski, Ernie Banks and tons MORE !!! |
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