Monday, February 28, 2011

I must have this card...























I absolutely love the blue frames.  This card would look great with my other McEnroe autograph and memorabilia. The base design is pretty awesome as well.  I need to get stuff on eBay ASAP to prep for buying a lot of A&G.

Sunday, February 27, 2011

My weekend

So, Thursday night, I hear the toilet flush and my wife start to scream.  I run upstairs to find the toilet overflowing, which is just so wonderful.  Apparently, the previous owner didn't seal the floor too well, because after cleaning that up, I came downstairs to find a huge puddle in front of the refrigerator and water dripping from the air vent in the ceiling. 

Certainly the weekend will get better, seeing as how we were heading to her Grandmother's house for her birthday.  Or not.  While on the interstate going roughly 70 mph, the driver's side rear tire on my truck blewout.  Luckily, we avoided anything major and were able to come to a stop.  Unfortunately, the blowout beat the hell out of my baby, so any tax refund we may see will be going into body work on the truck.  Check out the picture of the tire below...I'm feeling pretty lucky to be alive.  I'm perfectly capable of changing a tire, but things are a little different when I am four feet of the interstate and the other cars are blowing by at 70+, so I called AAA to come out and change the tire.  We finally made our way to her Grandmother's before too late, and that was great. 

When we got home, I decided to take a shower, and wouldn't you know it...no hot water.  After being unable to light the pilot, I decided to lookup the gas company phone number on the web.  I fire up the home computer and guess what...43928592 pop-ups and a nasty virus.  After an hour or two of fighting it, I had the computer clean.  I then found the phone number, but it was too late to call on a Saturday. 

So, that's where we stand right now.  Tomorrow will be filled with getting the hot water heater fixed and getting a body work estimate for the truck.  Needless to say, I haven't done a lot of carding.  Hopefully I'll get back in the game later this week, once things stop sucking.

Thursday, February 24, 2011

Bracket Round 1 Group 6

I just posted the fifth round a little while ago, so let's go ahead and throw out round 6 as well.

#10 2008 Stadium Club 2 Packs (Rhubarb Runner):
  Pack 1:
  23 Tom Glavine
  142 Greg Smith RC
  74 Rich Harden
  38 Hunter Pence
  51 Ichiro First Day Issue
  Pack 2:
  52 Vernon Wells
  88 Hideki Matsui
  14 Prince Fielder
  131 Sean Rodriguez RC
  150 Gregorio Petit RC First Day Issue
>>> The first pack yielded a great Ichiro, which was about as good as it got.  The photography on these cards is great though.  I mean, the second pack had a diving catch (with ball in flight), a bunt, a baserunner, a nice closeup of a Prince's batting stance, and a dude turning a DP.  That's just great variety right there.





























#23 1994 Stadium Club Draft Picks Pack (CalJr3000):
  Greg Morris, Ricky Stone, Wes Helms, Scott Shores, Roy Marsh, Roy Marsh, Roy Marsh, Ramon Castro, Jayson Peterson, Mike Thurman, Dustin Hermanson, Doug Million
>>> That's right, the last picked pack that fell to CalJr3000 is a complete dud, including three Roy Marsh's.  Roy never made it past A+ ball, so this pack isn't exactly going to pay the bills. 










#7 2010 Topps Magic Football (82 Redbirds):
  Dwayne Bowe,
  Beanie Wells,
  DJ Williams,
  Darrelle Revis,
  Jahvid Best RC,
  Malcolm Jenkins Mini
>>> These cards are sweet looking, but the Best RC saved an otherwise boring pack. 













Wild Card 2: 2010 Score Football 2 Packs (Fuji):
  Pack 1: Steve Breaston, Torry Holt, Marques Colston, Trent Cole, Andre Roberts Hot Rookies, Toby Gerhart RC, Daryl Washington RC Glossy
  Pack 2: Bernard Scott, Michael Jenkins, Matt Cassel, Derrick Ward, Jerricho Cotchery, Sean Canfield RC, Aaron Hernandez RC Glossy
>>> Does anyone get excited by Score Football these days? Sure the price is great, but the design is like something I made in Paintbrush on our old HP in 1990, when I was 6.  Best card? Hernandez Glossy, I guess.










I'm sorry for making you vote on these four packs.

Bracket Round 1 Group 5...and a new prize!

Ok, so we're halfway through the first round, and the matchups have been fairly interesting.  Since we're halfway, how about another addition to the prize pool.  The winner, in addition to the Best of Chrome Refractor set, Wild Card Packs, and the BallBusters Trivia game, will also receive this book:


















Don't worry, I don't really read much, so it isn't a hand-me-down; it's brand new.

Let's get to the group 5 matchup:

#2 2009 Goodwin Champions Pack (TJ):
  Gerry Lopez (Surfer),
  Joey Votto,
  Cal Ripken,
  Aaron Cook Mini
>>> A pretty run of the mill pack, but who doesn't love a Ripken.  I'm not a big fan of the camo Reds jerseys, but I get the idea. 

















Wild Card 7: 2008 Topps Allen and Ginter Pack (Mark the green card):
  Lance Berkman,
  Miguel Cabrera,
  Pat Neshek SP,
  Luis Gonzalez Mini Ad Back,
  Ken Griffey Jr. States Pennsylvania,
  Checklist,
  Pablo Picasso,
  Chone Figgins.
>>> A Griffey insert, an SP, and an ad back mini make for a nice pack.  I love the Picasso card.  You probably know about Picasso's art skills, but you should really check out some of his quotes.  My favorite: "When I was a child my mother said to me, 'If you become a soldier, you'll be a general. If you become a monk, you'll be the pope.' Instead I became a painter and wound up as Picasso."











#15 2009 Sage Hit 2 Packs (Cam):
  Pack 1: John Parker Wilson, Matthew Stafford, BJ Raji, Tyrell Fenroy Glossy, QB Standouts Stafford/Sanchez, Jamarko Simmons
  Pack 2: Jeremy Maclin, Brian Robiskie, Chris "Beanie" Wells, Johnny Knox Glossy, Gartrell Johnson, Aaron Brown
>>> A Stafford hot pack with a Dirty Sanchez is great, if you're in to that sort of thing.  I preferred pack 2 with Maclin and Beanie, not to mention the Knox Glossy, who had a decent year for the bears.  This card design absolutely sucks, though.  Blah.


 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
#18 1995 Topps Embossed 2 Packs (night owl):
  Pack 1:
  96 Steve Trachsel
  140 Darren Lewis
  25 Ray Lankford
  43 Kevin Appier
  104 Doug Drabek Cy Young
  81 Kevin Tapani Golden Idol Foil
  Pack 2:
  27 Bobby Jones
  26 Jose Rijo
  19 Paul Molitor
  101 David Justice ROY
  119 Eric Karros ROY
  19 Paul Molitor Golden Idol Foil
>>> These card just feel great to flip through, a great blast back to the '90s.  They're substantially solid and textured, but the Golden Idol parallels are a little strange.  I got a Drabek insert in the first pack...Doug, not Kyle.    The second pack was pretty awesome though, with a double dose of Molitor and a couple nice looking ROY cards.  Best card has to be the Molitor Golden Idols.






















This should be an interesting matchup.  A couple retro styled cards, some great '90s cards, and some ugly football cards should offer some insight into what you all like.

Voting is up on the sidebar.

Saturday, February 19, 2011

Catching up on trade posts: Nachos Grande

Yet another trade post that I should have gotetn up a long time ago.  This time, it's from Chris over at Nachos Grande.  I had come across a Barry Larkin he was interested in, and I had some of his set needs, so we struck up a deal.  He posted his side here.  He hooked me up with a number of cards from my want lists.  I find that I end up getting most of the inserts of the players I collect, but very few of the base cards; I guess most people assume I already have the more common stuff.  He sent some of the base cards I'd missed out on, namely the 2010 Topps and 2010 A&G Sizemore Rookies.






















No trade is complete without minis:
















I now have the base, mini, ad back mini, and Bazooka mini of the Sizemore.  Anyone have the black border?

Thanks again for the great cards!

Friday, February 18, 2011

Catching up on trade posts: Dimwit and Rhubarb

Sam of The Daily Dimwit, David of e rayhahn rayhahn, and I of...uh...here, recently worked out a little threeway trade.  This isn't the kind of threeway I would prefer to brag about on here, but I netted some great cards nonetheless.  Of course, I am way behind in posting this as Sam and David have both posted about it long ago.

I received a buttload of 2009 Allen and Ginter from both of them, and Sam also sent a ton of 2007 UD Masterpieces.  In addition, David sent me some great PC additions featuring Verlander and Cuddyer:











and Sam sent me these beauties:
















The Upton goes in my PC, while the Howard is up for trade.

Thanks, guys, for the great threeway (damn, that's very strange to hear myself say).

Contest Bracket Round 1 Group 4

On to group 4 in the first round:

#12 2005 Topps All-American Football Pack (AdamE):
  Billy Sims, RB, Oklahoma
  Joe Montana, QB, Notre Dame
  Ted Hendricks, LB, Miami
  Charlie Ward, QB, FSU
  Lawrence Taylor, LB, UNC
  Fred Biletnikoff, WR, FSU
>>> Well, I like college unis, so I was pretty happy with this pack.  I love the card design and the retro cardstock is great. Montana is probably the best card, but the LT looks pretty sweet, too.






















#21 1999 Fleer Ultra Pack (Mark Aubrey):
  36 Darin Erstad
  18 Shane Reynolds
  189 Mark Grudzielanek
  128 John Jaha
  77 Jay Buhner
  74 Todd Jones
  118 Billy Wagner
  89 Marty Cordova
  185 Tony Clark
  106 Brett Tomko Gold Medallion
>>> I'll let Jay handle the commentary on this pack:


















#5 1999 Bowman's Best 3 Packs (Jonathan @ RGB):
  Pack 1: Troy Glaus, Chipper Jones BP, Todd Walker, Paul O'neill, Nomar Garciaparra, Tony Torcato RC
  Pack 2: John Patterson, Brad Fullmer, Derek Jeter BP, Roger Clemens BP, Ken Griffey Jr. BP, Bobby Seay RC
  Pack 3: Javy Lopez, Jeff Bagwell, Randy Johnson, Carlos Pena RC, Ray Lankford Refractor #269/400, John Patterson Atomic Refractor #006/100
>>> Wow, where to start.  Pack one was a pretty good start with the Best Performers Chipper.  Pack two was awesome with Jeter, Clemens, and Griffey BPs back-to-back-to-back.  Pack 3 was the real deal though, with the Pena RC, a Refractor #/400 (1:15 packs), AND an Atomic Refractor #/100 (1:65 packs).  These packs were some of my favorites to open.  I think these could contend for the championship.












WildCard 4 2010 Topps Update Hobby Pack (FanOfReds): 
Alex Cora, Hanley Ramirez AS, Ryan Braun AS, Matt Holliday HR Derby, Phil Hughes & David Price AS, Matt Thornton AS, Ty Wigginton AS, Jeff Keppinger, Mark Fidrych CYMTO, Andrew McCutchen Attax Code Card
>>> Pretty run-of-the-mill Topps Update hobby pack. The best card is the Fidrych CYMTO, which probably doesn't bode well for this pack.













Voting is up on the sidebar.  Again, most cards are available for trade, with the exception of the WildCard pack, so drop me a line if you are interested in anything.

Wednesday, February 16, 2011

Contest Bracket Round 1 Group 3

Voting on the first two groups led to an upset of the top seed as 2009 Bowman Draft knocked off 2010 Bowman Platinum Value Pack.  The second group was not even close as 2008 Upper Deck X stormed to victory.  I've been out of town on business, celebrated my first wedding anniversary, and been sick as a dog this week, so I haven't had a chance to do much of anyhting card-related, lately. 

Let's get back to the contest.

#4 2010 Topps Chrome Value Pack (Derek):
  Pack 1: Brandon Phillips, Curtis Granderson, Torii Hunter, Francisco Liriano
  Pack 2: Carlos Gonzalez, Bobby Abreu, Shane Victorino, Chris Carpenter Xfractor
  Pack 3: Jon Lester, Manny Ramirez, JA Happ, James Shields Refractor
  Orange Refractors: David Wright, Jon Lester, Delmon Young
>>> Nothing spectacular as the xfractor and refractor are pretty mediocre.  I was ecstatic about the David Wright orange, though, which is easily the best card in the packs. 












WildCard 5: 2006 Fleer Tradition 2 Packs (BA Benny):
  Pack 1: Ichiro, Carlos Lee, Andy Pettitte, Hideki Matsui*, Coco Crisp, Livan Hernandez, John Van Benschoten RC, Chris Shelton, Mike Thompson RC*, Jason Bay Triple Crown Contenders
  Pack 2: Vladimir Guerrero, Jorge Cantu*, Lance Berkman*, Jeff Harris RC*, Jim Edmonds*, Alay Soler RC*, Miguel Tejada, Jim Thome*, Francisco Cordero*, Rich Harden Diamond Tribute
>>> All of the * cards are ones that I needed, and will not be included in the prize package.  If I remember, I'll replace them with comparable cards or cards of interest to the winner.  I love this set, so I enjoyed these packs.  The idea of Jason Bay being a Triple Crown Conteder is kinda funny though.  The inserts for this weren't exactly the best.









#13 1999 Bowman Series 2 Pack (WickedOrtega):
  Donny Leon, Carlos Lee, Dan Reichert, Kip Wells RC, Tim Hudson RC, Ryan Klesko, Aubrey Huff RC, Sammy Sosa, Todd Hundley, Mike Darr International
>>> Not bad to pull the Huff and Hudson RCs in one pack of '99 Bowman. 














#20 2008 Bowman Draft Pack (Greg Zakwin):
BDP1 Nick Adenhart
BDP4 Burke Badenhop
BDPP13 Ryan Perry
BDPP36 Isaac Galloway
BDP55 Jeff Samardzija RC Chrome
BDPP47 Johnny Giavotella Chrome
BDPP46 Dusty Coleman Gold
>>> I still think Samardzija should have stuck with football. 












Voting is up on the sidebar.

Thursday, February 10, 2011

Contest Bracket: Round 1 Group 2

Ok, so voting has been great on the first group with two packs neck and neck.  Here is group 2:

#9 2008 UD Football Heroes Pack (Charles @ Hoopography):
  Steve Vai Guitar Hero
  Fran Tarkenton
  Shawn Crable
  Ben Moffitt
  LenDale White
  LaDainian Tomlinson
>>> A very mediocre pack with nothing to really point out.  Best card: LT I guess.


















#24 2004-05 UD NBA All-Star Lineup (Steve D):
  Kurt Thomas
  Jason Richardson
  Quentin Richardson
  Andrei Kirilenko
  Gerald Wallace
  Stephon Marbury All-Star
>>> That's a rough pack when the best card is a Marbury. The cards aren't bad looking though.




#8 2008 Upper Deck X 2 Packs (Kev2380):
  Pack 1: Ichiro, Brandon Webb, Jonathan Papelbon, Conor Jackson Die Cut, Albert Pujols Xponential 3, Yankee Stadium Legacy 6661 Jorge Posada.
  Pack 2: Jason Bay, Kosuke Fukudome RC, Adam Dunn, Carl Crawford Die Cut, Hanley Ramirez Xponential 3, Yankee Stadium Legacy 3649 Joe Pepitone.
>>> Not bad, the two Xponentials were X3's of Pujols and Ramirez and there were two YSL's.  The die cuts are ok, but a Longoria would have been sweet.


WildCard 1: 2009 Topps Football Hobby Pack (Nathan):
  Tony Romo, Brent Celek, Chase Coffman RC, Brandon Tate RC, Ricky Williams, LaRon Landry, Earnest Graham, Jarrad Page, Chris Chambers, Tony Romo ToppsTown, Checklist
>>> A Romo hot pack doesn't really light my fire, but the base card is pretty cool loking. 

Voting is up on the sidebar.  This was a pretty weak set of packs.  I expect the UD X is the favorite, unless I get a stream of Romo maniacs.


Wednesday, February 9, 2011

Bama Cards

I'm down in Huntsville, AL for work, so naturally I sought out a card shop.  The only card shops where I live are comic book stores that minor in cards, so it was refreshing to go to a REAL card shop, Champs Cards.  If you're ever near Huntsville, go there.  The shop just recently produced a Plates and Patches Bradford NFL Logo Patch Auto 1/1 and earlier today, which is nothing compared to the Gehrig cut auto that was just pulled there.  The owner had a ton of boxes to sift through, which I did for about an hour since I had nowhere else to be.  The end result was a great stack of cards for my PC.
















2010 Topps Allen and Ginter Mini Ad Back BJ Upton
2009 Goodwin Champions Mini David Wright
2011 Topps Kimballs Champions Mini David Wright and Justin Upton
2011 Topps T60 David Wright
2010 Topps National Chicle Ryan Zimmerman
2006 SPx David Wright
2006 Ovation David Wright














2010 Topps Magic Eddie Royal
2010 Plates and Patches Eddie Royal Red #012/499














2008 Leaf Certified Materials New Generation Rookie Autograph Brandon Flowers #312/899
2004 Upper Deck Reflections Focus on the Future Jersey Lee Suggs
2010 Topps Peak Performance Jersey Eddie Royal

I also picked up a couple cards for my 2008 Upper Deck X trifecta set

I had to grab a couple packs, so I picked out a pack of 2011 Topps and 2010 UD World of Sports:

2011 Topps highlights: Topps Town Carlos Santana, Kimballs Mini Roy Oswalt, 60 YOT Justin Verlander 2005

2010 World of Sports: Jarvis Varnardo (Basketball), Bill Russell (Basketball), David Cooper (Baseball), Casper Wells (Baseball), Mat Hoffman (BMX), Nobunari Oda (Figure Skating)

So, I picked up some great cards for my PC, including a pack pulled Verlander.

Thanks Champs Cards!

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

Contest Bracket Round 1 is underway

Alright, I announced who had what Wild Card Packs, so let's get on with the first round.  I'll do this in groups of 4.  The bracket can be seen on the Contest Page. Here is the first group, voting will be on the sidebar, and will be open for three days.  Most cards are available for trade (some have already been traded and the WildCard packs are part of the prize).

May the best pack win.

#1: 2010 Bowman Platinum Value Pack (Andrew)
  Pack 1: Hunter Pence, Gordon Beckham, Jeremy Hellickson Prospect, Mike Leake RC
  Pack 2: Buster Posey RC, Robinson Cano, George Springer USA, Starlin Castro RC
  Pack 3: Vernon Wells, Roy Oswalt Gold Refractor #030/539, Brett Mooneyham USA, Joey Votto
  Purple Bonus Pack: Jose Iglesias, Mikie Mahtook, Jeremy Hellickson
>>> This is a decent showing by the top seed.  It has an advantage of being three packs and a bonus, but the bonus was unspectacular and the response to Bowman Platinum hasn't been too great.  The Posey, Leake and Castro RCs are nice, but the best card is easily the Roy Oswalt Gold Refractor. 
































#16: 2009 Bowman Draft Pack (A2 Wolverine)
BDP34 Drew Sutton RC
BDPP48 Robert Hefflinger
BDPP25 Brock Holt
BDPP72 Brian Moran Gold
BDPW14 Pedro Lazo WBC Chrome
BDP46 Trevor Crowe RC Chrome Refractor
BPA-JK Jason Knapp Autograph
>>> Well, this should make things interesting.  Standard 2009 Draft fare, the WBC chrome is a nice plus, as well as the Refractor.  The highlight however, is an auto.  This came from a 4 pack Target repack, so it's a nice surprise. 





























#17: 1998 Bowman Pack (The Diamond King)
  414 Juan LeBron
  390 Rafael Medina
  371 Scott Williamson
  314 Jesus Sanchez
  324 JD Smart
  328 Kevin Witt
  340 AJ Zapp
  287 Bob Abreu
  231 Kenny Lofton
  330 Cliff Politte International
>>> Well, this should definitely make this a close one.  I mean, this pack has LeBron and Jesus, the two gifts from God.  Oh wait, not that LeBron and Jesus.  Nevermind, this pack pretty much sucked, sorry Diamond King.  Best card: Politte International, I kinda like this parallel set.  It's much better than just a border color parallel.






























Wild Card #8 (Ryan "O" No): 2002 Bowman Football Pack
  Larry Ned RC
  Robert Royal RC
  Nick Griesen RC
  Ricky Williams RC
  Nick Griesen Silver #040/250
  Checklist
  Jabar Gaffney RC
  Andre Davis RC*
  TJ Duckett RC
  Daniel Graham RC
  Jon McGraw RC
>>>Well, some cool notable RCs in there: Gaffney, Davis, Duckett (sorry that's not that Ricky Williams).  These cards are part of the prize package.  The * means the Davis is going in my PC as he is a former Hokie.  If I remember, I'll replace it with a card for the winner's PC. A solid pack. The best card is easily the Griesen Silver.  Griesen is in the UFL, so it's not a huge hit, but something like 1:13 packs or so isn't bad. If you haven't seen the silvers from this set, find one.  They are textured and just plain look awesome.

















Well, get to voting.  Good luck to everyone!

BTW, I am in Huntsville AL right now, so if I haven't responded to a trade email, that's why.  I'll get back to you when I get a chance to look at some cards when I get home.

Thursday, February 3, 2011

Jefferson Burdick Custom Card

My wife is out of town this week, so I had some free time to work on something I've wanted to do for a while.  I wanted to try my hand at making a card.  I've designed customs and posted them on here before, but I've never actually made a card.  This one was quickly thrown together, but despite some of the obvious flaws, I'm pretty damn happy.  The problem now, is that I don't know what to do with it. 

Jefferson Burdick Letter Patch













Yes, cheesy, I know, but I had to give it a go.  The scans probably make it look better than it does in person, but I say it's not bad considering I didn't have a clue what I was doing.  I thought about adding it to the prize pool of the draft contest I'm currently having. My biased self thinks it's too awesome for that, though, and deserves better. I'd consider trading or selling (yeah right). What do you think I should do with it?

Contest Update: The Wildcard Packs Revealed!

Ok, so here are the wildcard packs in no particular order.  Again, these will be given to the winner as part of the prize package (less anything on my want list).

1999 Upper Deck MLS 3 Packs








2010 Score Football 2 Packs











2010 Topps Update Hobby Pack













2009 Topps Football Hobby Pack













2008 Topps Allen and Ginter Pack













2006 Fleer Tradition 2 Packs










1999-00 Finest Basketball Series 1 Pack













2002 Bowman Football Pack













So, lets randomize these into the WildCard spots:
















Here are the pairings for those that selected WildCards:

WC1 - Nathan - 2009 Topps Football Hobby Pack
WC2 - Fuji - 2010 Score Football 2 Packs
WC3 - Matt H. - 1999 Upper Deck MLS 3 Packs
WC4 - FanOfReds - 2010 Topps Update Hobby Pack
WC5 - BA Benny - 2006 Fleer Tradition 2 Packs
WC6 - Dipayan Banerjee - 1999-00 Finest Basketball Series 1 Pack
WC7 - Mark (the green card) - 2008 Topps Allen and Ginter Pack
WC8 - Ryan of "O" No!!! - 2002 Bowman Football Pack

Now that everything has been drafted, the first round should start soon.

In the mean time, here is an addition to the prize package that already includes all the wildcard packs and the 5 card refractor set from the Best of Chrome box:

















It's about the size of two decks of cards.  It looks like it was put out in 2006, so it shouldn't be too horribly out of date.