There are a bunch of shows in the Chicagoland area this week and next week. Are they making a comeback in other places or is this just a spike for Christmas sales?
I plan to go to one today that is small, one tomorrow with autograph guests and another tomorrow that usually has plenty of vintage cards.
Here are the updates.
Saturday I attended a show at a card shop. It was held in the area of the shop normally devoted to gaming. There were about 10 tables / 5 dealers - just as advertised. I stayed about 15 minutes, enjoying conversation with a few dealers.
I found one card.
I normally don't spend much time looking at graded cards, but I will make an exception when a graded, Kellogg's card of Babe Ruth goes for the same price that it would without the holder - $10. I probably would have purchased a few more items from this seller but nothing was priced.
Sunday I was heading to two shows on a perfect path as I headed to visit my mother. The first one advertised two Super Bowl Bears (Keith Van Horn, Jay Hilgenberg) and basketball star Kenny Battle. It was also supposed to feature Chelcie Ross who has been in a variety of sports movies (Dan Devine from Rudy; pitcher Eddie Harris in Major League; a role in Hoosiers) but he canceled.
The show was at a venue that used to host toy/card shows in happier times. It had been a while, so I wasn't surprised that a few tables were empty. The disappointment for me was seeing more than half of the tables occupied by folks who only brought wax boxes and cards that were on store shelves in the last few months. I didn't stay long.
I didn't see any Kellogg's cards or anything else to purchase
I then headed further south to a regular show in Orland Park. This show tends to have a nice mix of old and new cards. I was surprised that Bobby Hull was already there signing before 10:00 a.m. I saw a nice mix of old and new cards, cheap card boxes and all sorts of other stuff. I saw a decent amount of Kellogg's cards from 1976 - 1981, but the 1976s had faded borders and the 1981s were not cheap enough to make me interested.
The 1976 Kellogg's cards have a wide, white border and many of them are faded. They look quite different than a nice one. What would it take for me to buy 1981s? I've got enough of them, so I'd ony buy sets at give-away prices. I'd probably pick up Nolan Ryan, Rickey Henderson and Mike Schmidt cards if they were cheap.
Overall, it was nice to get to three shows on a weekend. I hope I have the chance to keep doing that.
A few years ago, we never had any. Now, we have some local ones every couple of months but if you're willing to travel an hour or so, there is one almost every weekend.
ReplyDeleteThat's the first Kellogg's card I've seen slabbed, I have to admit, it looks pretty good in there and I'm not a fan of graded cards either.
I have a few dozen slabbed Kellogg's cards. Some came from set purchases where they graded a key card or two. I bought a 1975 Ken Brett PSA 10 because it was cheap and I wanted to see how a 10 compared. Since 1975s seem to lose their color frequently, this Brett looks so bright and new.
DeleteThese been a couple of shows in the area this year, which, unfortunately, I couldn't attend. Hoping to go to the show in January.
ReplyDeleteEven without buying anything today, it was nice to get to a show and talk to a few people.
DeleteI'm in the Hartford, CT area. The major shows around here restarted in August 2020 and I couldn't be happier. Both are ~40 tables and with the majority of great dealers returning. The vintage dealers have been mostly immune to spiking prices on vintage, but we also have the "I bought out Target" types. Not a fan of slabbed cards, but I love the Ruth image.
ReplyDeleteNice that the vintage prices have not changed much. The Kellogg's cards online are no longer available at pre-COVID prices.
ReplyDelete