1961 Topps #427 Dick Ellsworth (Cubs)

1955 / 1959 / 1960 Armour Hot Dog Coins
Checklist & Values

As a kid I loved shopping with mom hoping to find my next favorite food - the one with baseball cards !!! In 1955,1959 & 1960, kids could enjoy hot dogs with their cards thanks to Armour's coins in 1955, 1959 & 1960.

The 1-1/2 inch plastic coins, almost the same each year, came in many colors with several rare and perhaps even 1-of-1, making a "master" set almost impossible. Add in the variations and you can imagine the task.

See sportscollectorsdaily for great 1955,1959 & 1960 Armour baseball coins article.

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1955/1959/1960 Armour Baseball Coins
Checklist & Values

1969 Topps Team Posters
Checklist & Values

The 1969 Topps Team Posters set was made up of 24 large 11 1/4" x 19 3/4" colorful posters, 1 for each team. The posters, the largest printed item by Topps to date, were very colorful picturing 9 or 10 players with their facsimile autographs. The Posters were sold one per pack at .10 cents each. Because they were folded many times and usually placed on walls with tape or pins, high grade posters are very scarce.

1969 Topps Baseball Team Posters checklist, values and prices.

1991 Topps Desert Shield cards
Checklist & Values

The 792 card 1991 Topps Desert Shield Baseball card set was issued by Topps for the soldiers serving in the Gulf War. The Desert Shield set is a variation of Topps regular 1991 baseball card with each card having a special gold-foiled 'Desert Shield' stamp added to the front. Many of the cards, scooped up by military personnel stateside, never made it overseas. The equivalent of approx 6,500 sets of cards were made. Cards are still sought after and fairly scarce with complete sets nearly impossible to find. Be aware of counterfeits. Fakes can easily be determined by comparing the gold foil logo with a real Desert Shield card.

The Chipper Jones rookie is the key card in the set along with the usual super stars like Nolan Ryan, Ken Griffey Jr., Cal Ripken ...

1991 Topps Topps Desert Shield checklist, values and prices.

Baseball card collecting terms (part D-F)

Die-Cut A special card that differs from a basic card by "Die-Cutting", cutting away portions of the card to create a special design. Most are serially numbered & limited.

Error Card Baseball card history is filled with error cards, many of them very interesting. Hank Aaron is on 2 of my favorite error cards. Aaron's 1956 Topps card action photo shows Aaron sliding home but it is actually Willie Mays not Aaron. Topps again goofed on Aaron's 1957 "reversed negative" card showing Aaron batting left-handed.

"Error Cards" are usually found early in print runs and often corrected. When this correction happens a VARIATION is created. Some variations are extremely interesting and very expensive while others are totally boring and you wonder why they were even made.

Extended Set Also frequently called Update Set or Traded Set.
They are sets issued after the original release to update the regular set with new and traded players.

Facsimile Autograph is an autograph printed on a card to show what the player's actual signature looks like. They are not "real" autographs.

Factory Set are complete sets usually in special boxes produced by the manufacturer. "Hand-Collated Sets" are sets collectors have put together card by card from packs.

1961 Topps #427 Dick Ellsworth (Cubs)

1955 / 1959 / 1960 Armour Hot Dog Coins Checklist & Values

1969 Topps Team Posters Checklist & Values

1991 Topps Desert Shield cards Checklist & Values

1955 / 1959 / 1960 Armour Hot Dog Coins
Checklist & Values

1969 Topps Team Posters
Checklist & Values

1991 Topps Desert Shield cards
Checklist & Values