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Mystery 1991 Card

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diwhite

Member
Oct 14, 2012
76
0
I picked this up on ebay for my player collection, but I have no idea what set it is from. The seller didn't know either. The only hint I have is that I already had one in my collection and I guess wherever I got it from called it "1991 Statz". Also, it looks like at least one of the cards was cut, so maybe it's from a sheet?

Does anyone know about this set? Thanks!


GruberMystery.jpegGruberMystery2.jpeg
 

mchenrycards

Featured Contributor, Vintage Corner, Senior Membe
Looks like a Broder to me. Broders were originally made by one guy who specialized in unlicensed cards. They generally sold for 50 cents or a buck and have no real value as they are unlicensed. The term Broders now has a general connotation as any unlicensed card from this time frame and doesn't need to be made by Mr. Broder himself. Most if not all of these cards that fit this category of Broders have little or no value.
 

RStadlerASU22

Active member
Jan 2, 2013
8,881
11
Looks like a Broder to me. Broders were originally made by one guy who specialized in unlicensed cards. They generally sold for 50 cents or a buck and have no real value as they are unlicensed. The term Broders now has a general connotation as any unlicensed card from this time frame and doesn't need to be made by Mr. Broder himself. Most if not all of these cards that fit this category of Broders have little or no value.

Although yes I agree it's probably an unlicensed item, I do know his Gruber collection is as bout as detailed and complete as it can be. Meaning I don't think this was your typical "Broder" card you see out there that can be found at any time. [MENTION=2659]tpeichel[/MENTION] or [MENTION=4035]DaClyde[/MENTION] have any feedback ?

Ryan
 

mrmopar

Member
Jan 19, 2010
6,188
4,099
Not sure what "typical" Broder means, but I would agree that it appears to be a border type unlicensed issue. Some may be tougher to find because of distribution, player selection and general popularity. I probably have 50-75 Frank Thomas cards of various types and designs that I consider most to be Broders, although they were made by and/or distributed by various parties.

As for little to no value, they are worth what someone will pay and many player and oddball collectors value even the most unvaluable cards. You can see this from the rise of sales of Helmars, ACEO and other self made custom and art cards. Some people don't care who made it if it pictures their player. These are now the borders of today.
 

onionring9

Active member
Administrator
Aug 7, 2008
3,490
12
Geeze I have never seen that before either. Where/when did you get that? Also, what kind of paper stock is it?
 

diwhite

Member
Oct 14, 2012
76
0
Geeze I have never seen that before either. Where/when did you get that? Also, what kind of paper stock is it?

I picked it up on ebay recently: http://www.ebay.com/itm/Kelly-Grube...D&orig_cvip=true&rt=nc&_trksid=p2047675.l2557

As for the card stock, it's a little bit thin but it feels about right for a baseball card. At first I thought it was maybe cut out of a magazine page or a poster, but I think the guess that it's a homemade unlicensed card is probably right. It's definitely cut by hand, the top is about 1mm shorter than the bottom, so it's not exactly rectangular. I have another copy of the card (I don't remember where it came from, maybe ebay too) and it is cut to be smaller than this one.
 

Austin

Well-known member
Aug 7, 2008
5,706
41
Dallas, Texas
wherever I got it from called it "1991 Statz".
There were unlicensed sets in '90 and '91 called Statz made by an unknown "manufacturer." There were cards of the biggest stars from all four major sports.

The cards show up on Ebay every once in awhile, like this Nolan Ryan from 1990:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1990-Statz-Purple-Nolan-Ryan-MINT-RARE-Oddball-Rangers-HOF-/251400772768

I don't know if yours is actually a Statz card, since the 1990 version had the name STATZ printed on huge letters on the back. I've never seen a Statz card look like yours.

They were just another unlicensed issue among the hundreds that appeared on dealer tables during the height of the hobby boom, so yours may have just been made by a collector in his basement.
 
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