Top 10 cards of your 'hayday' of collecting?

[matfanofold]

My 'hayday' of collecting was the mid to late 80's. This was when collecting meant the most to me, and what I remember best as the 'hobby'. Having said that, the top 10 cards that wisk me back to that time are as follows...

10. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly RC
Just looking at this card today reminds me of a time where collecting was fun, and when Donnie baseball was king!

9. 1985 Topps Eric Davis RC
I remember them being the pack hit, better than Clemens or Gooden at one point!

8. 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco RC
Every time I see this card, it reminds me of scouring through packed shows and shops on every corner.

7. 1988 Fleer Greg Jeffries RC
Possibly my first hoard of any card/player.

6. 1989 Score Barry Sanders RC
Always wanted one, never got one..

5. 1986 Topps Jerry Rice RC
Just something about this card that reminds me of my youth.

4. 1972 Topps Pete Rose
Although this card predates my hayday, it was a card that was traded and passed around me and my friends throughout the 80's.

3. 1983 Topps Ryan Sandberg RC
Back then, this was out of my reach but it still takes me back.

2. 1981 Topps Rickey Henderson
Something about this card that always had a special place in my collection(s).

1. 1985 Topps Dwight Gooden RC
Every time I see or think of this card, it takes me back to a time when I would be watching the Mets games with my parents, and I would break out my Mets cards and fashon them in front of me according to who was playing.


When I think back to my hayday of collecting, these are the cards that I think of first. These are the ones that will bring me back in time with a single glance. These are the cards that tell a story of my life....

I know this post is somewhat vague, but I was bored so....

 

[cmixer]

anything '89 Donruss.
Our local grocery store must have had 50+ boxes on an endcap.
My friends and I bought a handful of packs every weekend for a year & traded.

I kept trading my Griffey's for Sandy Alomar's ::facepalm::

 

[connerusmc86]

92 Topps...me and my dad chasing the gold set that were one per pack and the all-star inserts..holy cow..literally dozens of 5000 ct. boxes of 92 topps base are still laying around..great memories though

 

[subject to change]

In no particular order:

-1991 Topps Dwight Smith It was the top card in the first pack I ever opened. The photo had Smith making a leaping catch in front of the ivy at Wrigley. I was too young to know anything about Wrigley, the ivy, or probably even where Chicago was, but I absolutely loved the photo. Still have the card in a screwdown.
-1991-92 ProSet Platinum Tom Barrasso I wasn't much of a hockey fan, but always took an interest in goalies because they looked so much different than the other players. It was also the first time I had seen a glossy card.
-1987 Topps Sammy Khalifa As a kid, I used to spend hours sorting and resorting my cards, putting the players in order from best to worst (which usually meant stars in front, and then whoever had recently made a great play that made sports center behind) I loved the woodgrain border, and picture of Khalifa making a leaping grab. Plus to a 6 or 7 year old kid, 1987 and the old Pirates logo seemed "vintage."
-1995 Stadium Club Kordell Stewart This was THE card to have for a kid living in Pittsburgh in the mid 90's.
-1995 Topps Matrx Jeff Fassero My dad would occasionally come home with rack packs of 95 Topps for me. To me, this was like Christmas. This was the first insert I remember pulling.
-2000 Topps No particular card, but the set is my favorite. As I had grown older, I lost all interest in the hobby. For whatever reason my mother gave me a few packs of Topps for easter. I loved the design, and the numerous inserts. I've been hooked ever since.
-1999 Upper Deck Encore Dan Marino Being a huge Pitt fan, I thought Marino was the greatest thing since sliced bread. It was my first player collection.
-2001 Topps Golden Anniversary Mike Schmidt Jersey card My first big pull, back when pulling a jersey car was a big deal.
-1981 Fleer Ozzie Smith Bright colors. "Vintage" card. Big fro. It was a kid's dream card.
1995-96 Hoops Glen Rice I envied his jumper for years.

 

[AmishDave]

Great subject !

10. '90 Leaf David Justice / Frank Thomas / John Olerud / Greg Vaughn - when it was released that this was a super premium set, seeing cards "book" for $10+ was nearly obsurd. I finally picked up the Thomas in '08.

9. '90 Upper Deck Kevin Maas. This was another huge RC pull. I remember pulling it and being absolutely stoked beyond comprehention.

8. ANY '92 Fleer Rookie Sensations. I had stacks apon stacks apon stacks of base '92 Fleer because the older guys breaking jumbo boxes of the product didn't care for anything but the Rookie Sensation cards. I still would love to put this set together, just because it was such a huge deal back then and I don't believe I'll ever forget that.

7. '90 Score Bat Breaker Bo Jackson. On a trip to the southern part of the US to visit relatives, I was able to convince my dad to buy this set for me for the whopping price of $20 I hadn't done much with cards over that summer but opening the set and seeing that card was just awesome. I'll have to pick one of those up again too ...

tie 6. '90 Score Frank Thomas / '90 Topps NNOF Thomas. I use to be a HUGE White Sox mark. Love Karkovice, love Pasqua, love Cora and especially love the Hurt. This was a cornerstone card just because it was my first Hurt RC. It had a printing blemish on the card though . A big neon green circle. Luckily I was able to get Score's address, send it to them and they sent a non-blemished replacement. I know if I searched, I could find the letter they sent.

As for the NNOF, I dreamt about that card and one other (my #1) for years. I still have dreams of one day owning a real NNOF Thomas.

5. '92 Topps Brien Taylor. Nuff said.

4. '93 anything Nigel Wilson / David Nied. These guys were the next big things that never did much of anything (outside a stellar cup of coffee by Nied with the Braves).

3. '91 Upper Deck Michael Jordan SP. Another card that many wanted, but few seemed to have. Disappoints me now that at shows like the Nationals, you can get this card for $1

2. '89 Fleer Billy Ripken. I knew of two versions. The white out one and the F... face one. I still have never actually seen the F... face one, in person. I know Donovan (FFMartinCollector) has them, but I've never held the card.

1. '86 Donruss Rated Rookie Jose Canseco. This card booked at $120 at one point and time. It was my holy grail of cards, because it was just so valueable and you never really saw any of them around here (northern MN / northern WI) at the card shows or the LCS'. Finally picked one up at Nats last year for $1.50. Needless to say, I had a Cheshire cat grin the rest of the day.

 

[RITM]

This is definitely a trip down memory lane. There's no particular rhyme or reason with this one but here are some of the cards that I remember wanting in my collection. As a young kid I was even able to own a few of these. Here are the cards I can remember in no particular order with emphasis on any that I can remember the story:

*1983 Ryne Sandberg anything. I wanted a Ryno rookie so bad and was able to land the Donruss in 1990. I watched every Cub game I could find to see if Sandberg would hit another HR. I had a very low allowance so to get more cards I had to save (which took forever) or make a profit. It ook so long to get the RC I didn't make as much as I could've.

*1991 Elite/1992 Ripken Elite autograph. There were so many rumors about the '91 Elite from the cards being lined with 24k gold to being able to use a metal detector to find one. It was the first "big hit" I remember and dreamed of pulling one. I didn't pull an Elite until like '96 or so but it was still a thrill. As for the '92 Ripken someone got the card in the town I lived in and was a national hero for the day. For Christmas I considered busting a case of '92 Donruss to try to pull a Ripken. Then again I remember even the Diamond Kings from that set were selling crazy when the set came out. Of course this was long before the internet where a dealer could hold a card hostage and get what is now viewed ridiculous money.

*1989 Upper Deck error cards. I remember bying a Sheffield with the upside down SS.

*1990 Donruss error cards.

*1992 Topps Stadium Club Basketball first day issue and BEAM TEAM cards.

*1990 Score Ryne Sandberg error card. Me and friends in the neighborhood built the set together and threw our cards in to build a set. One of the guys in the neighborhood "claimed" the Sandberg was his and that set off a war.

*Score Bo Jackson Baseball/Football. Of all of the cards you had to own as a kid in my era this may have been the card. My mom bought one for me as a gift. It was not only awesome owning "the card" it was a turning point in that someone in my family was willing to actually spend money on my addiction.

*1986 Donruss Jose Canseco. I remember the day this card hit $150 in Beckett and couldn't believe it, especially since I had a friend who owned the card. This was one of those cards you could win by rolling all 6 on 4 or 5 dice with a $1 fee of course.

*1982 Topps Ripken RC. This card never got a ton of hype while I was growing up but of course I am going to list a card of Cal. When the "Trade Upper Deck" for the Shaq rookie card got huge my mom bought me a box of the cards in hopes of pulling the redemption. After leaving I remembered my youth minister (who owned a local shop) had a pair of Ripken rookie cards in his display. I asked my mom for permission to trade the box for the Ripken RC. I remember him pulling teh two copies out and let me pick the one I wanted. We went out to dinner that day and I told my mom and dad how Cal was going to own the "streak" one of these days. Of course they had no clue what I was talking about. I still own that card and will never consider trading it. In fact it was in my pocket the night I was given media credential at a fundraiser Cal was speaking at. The cool thing was that I had the opportunity to meet him that night as well.

 

[ajw]

In no particular order, here are some of the cards that give me fond memories. I'm going to edit this and add some images. I think this post might even convince me to go out and reacquire these cards, as they really do bring back the memories.

1. 1987 Fleer Will Clark - the card that set me on my journey collecting Will Clark cards. I haven't stopped, and am actually picking up speed.
2. 1983 Topps Ryne Sandberg - I remember going to Mike's Cards (in Grafton, WI) to buy this card in the summer of 1984. It was one of the last cards I needed to complete my 1983 set, and it was really exciting (and nerve racking) to pay what it cost for just one single card. I'm guessing it was three or four dollars, but that's a lot for a nine year old kid. I put it in the button pocket on my jean jacket and rode my bike home in the rain. Somehow it managed to survive.
3. 1985 Topps Eric Davis - one of the first rookie cards I recall blowing up out of nowhere. I remember digging through huge monster boxes of commons picking out the Davis cards a dealer had failed to pull.
4. 1984 Fleer Update - this set was beyond huge. I remember this set leading the "Baseball Cards Are Investments" stories in newspapers and on TV. I also remember asking my parents to buy me a couple of sets for Christmas that year when they came out. They decided that one was enough.
5. 1985 Topps Roger Clemens - Clemens went 14-0 in his first 15 starts in 1986, and this card went crazy. I remember Mike (the same guy that sold me the Sandberg) telling me it was going up fifty cents every time he won.
6. 1983 Topps Cal Ripken - Cal was probably my first ever favorite player, and I couldn't afford to buy a bunch of his rookie card, so I picked up as many as his second year as I could. I still have a crappy red binder with my Ripkens and Eddie Murrays. I also liked the 1983 OPC, as I thought it was so cool how the card was just like the Topps, only in French and on lighter stock.
7. 1976 Fred Lynn - To me, 1976 is the last year of vintage Topps, and I always wanted a Fred Lynn card. For some reason, I thought it was just so cool that he won the Rookie of the Year *and* MVP that year.
8. 1986 Topps Don Mattingly - From about 1985-1989 everyone was a Mattingly fan. I love the image on this card, as it perfectly captures the finish to Mattingly's classic swing. I also remember being really disappointed with the boring picture Topps used the next year. How could they screw up the card of the most popular player in the set?
9. 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco - This card was just huge. I remember buying a wax box in the spring of 1986 and pulling SIX Cansecos. Just incredible. I was 11 at the time, and I was so excited that I wrote a letter to SCD to share my experience. They actually ran my letter, though I don't have a copy of it any longer. I should ask them if they have any back copies.
10. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly - While this card didn't excite me as it did most others, it is undeniably one of the handful of most significant cards from the 1980s. I do remember building this set from wax packs before they started to dry up. It's still a gorgeous set with great design and photography. Interestingly, the Mattingly is one of the less interesting looking cards in the set, and it loses points for picturing him without a mustache. In my mind, the Mike Schmidt and Robin Yount cards are the best cards in the set, as they were superstars at the top of their game with great photos in a classic set.

 

[Philip J. Fry]

1989 Upper Deck Ken Griffey Jr. RC. Inaugural set with an iconic rookie.
1990 Topps Frank Thomas NNOF RC.
1991 Donruss Elite Series. Only 10,000 cards produced? Count me in. Never pulled one.
1992 Bowman Mike Piazza/Manny Ramirez/Carlos Delgado/Mariano Rivera. No explanation needed here.
1992 Topps Brien Taylor/Topps Gold Brien Taylor. Living an hour away from his hometown only fueled my passion for wanting those 2.
1993 Stadium Club First Day Production. Me and my buddy spent a lot of money that summer on packs, only to never get one.
1993 Finest Refractors. Well, they're still big to this day.
1994 Upper Deck (baseball) Michael Jordan RC. I still remember the rage about them to this day.
1995 Bowman's Best/Refractor Andruw Jones. Still a pretty big hit.
1997 Finest Embossed Die-Cut Gold Refractors.

 

[JoshHamilton]

89 UD Griffey
90 Leaf Thomas
91 Fleer Soaring Stars Griffey
92 Fleer Team Leaders Jordan
89 Hoops David Robinson
90 Fleer Rookie Sensations David Robinson
89 Score Barry Sanders
90 Pro Set Lombardi Hologram
90 UD French Fedorov
90 Score Lindros

 

[Crash Davis]

My 'hayday' of collecting was the mid to late 80's. This was when collecting meant the most to me, and what I remember best as the 'hobby'. Having said that, the top 10 cards that wisk me back to that time are as follows...

10. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly RC
Just looking at this card today reminds me of a time where collecting was fun, and when Donnie baseball was king!

9. 1985 Topps Eric Davis RC
I remember them being the pack hit, better than Clemens or Gooden at one point!

8. 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco RC
Every time I see this card, it reminds me of scouring through packed shows and shops on every corner.

7. 1988 Fleer Greg Jeffries RC
Possibly my first hoard of any card/player.

6. 1989 Score Barry Sanders RC
Always wanted one, never got one..

5. 1986 Topps Jerry Rice RC
Just something about this card that reminds me of my youth.

4. 1972 Topps Pete Rose
Although this card predates my hayday, it was a card that was traded and passed around me and my friends throughout the 80's.

3. 1983 Topps Ryan Sandberg RC
Back then, this was out of my reach but it still takes me back.

2. 1981 Topps Rickey Henderson
Something about this card that always had a special place in my collection(s).

1. 1985 Topps Dwight Gooden RC
Every time I see or think of this card, it takes me back to a time when I would be watching the Mets games with my parents, and I would break out my Mets cards and fashon them in front of me according to who was playing.


When I think back to my hayday of collecting, these are the cards that I think of first. These are the ones that will bring me back in time with a single glance. These are the cards that tell a story of my life....

I know this post is somewhat vague, but I was bored so....

What a great topic!

My top 10, in no particular order:

10. 1984 Topps Don Mattingly - I distinctly remember reveling over my first copy, which happenend to have rounded corners and peanut butter stains on the back

9. 1985 Donruss Eric Davis - once booked $50 and the black borders were (and still are) amazing!

8. 1990 Leaf Frank Thomas - pack after pack @ $1 each to try and pull one of these and never did

7. 1988 Topps Al Leiter (Error) - Did my first card show as a 13-year old in 1988 and I had a few jumbo packs with this card on the top. Man, they flew fast

6. 1977 Topps Dale Murphy - my next door neighbor and I had a complete collection of Dale Murphys and Duran Duran tapes lol

5. 1986 Topps mini league leaders - I must have opened 100s of packs of those. Wish I had bought Microsoft stock instead

4. 1986 Donruss Jose Canseco - Guy down the street was a buyer @ $3 each upon release. That was music to my ears. LOL

3. 1997 Upper Deck Game Jersey Ken Griffey - changed the game, although I wasn't a kid then

2. 1983 Topps Sandberg, Boggs, Gwynn - triumvirate of key rookie cards that defined a generation of baseball

1. 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson - once booked @ $125, but sold for $150-175

 

[Big Mac McGwire]

10. Bo Jackson 1987 Classic green - I remember in the early 90's, this card was so hot, it wasnt even funny. Hard to find, i remember having one, pretty beat up, but it was a big deal back then.
9. 1990 Leaf Mark McGwire - remember riding my bike to the local store bustin packs of 90 leaf. I bought the card from the owner for 1.50. Just a gorgeous picture. Always a favorite.
8. 1990 Leaf Frank Thomas- remember picking it up at a card show in 92 for 40$. My dad said he would buy me either the 86' Canseco or the Thomas. I picked Thomas.
7. 87 Donruss McGwire. I was goin to Yankee Stadium in 1990. The first time i met mcgwire would take place later in the day. The hotel we were staying at had a card show goin on downstairs. My mom took me to it cause my dad was still working. I remember her buying me the 87 Donruss Rated Rookie. The picture still makes me feel like im 7 years old. My friend who was with me got the mcgwire card signed at yankee stadium. Some years last i got the card from him.
6. Jerry Rice, Dan Marino rookie cards. I was big into football. It was really the first sport i actually had attained the big rookie cards. I remember goin to the card store and my dad buyin me marinos rookie and Rice's rookie. This was probably back in 93 or 94.
5. 1973 Mike Schmidt Rookie. When i first starting really learning about the history, my dad uses to tell me about Schmidt. When i saw what his rookie card looked like, i was drawn to it. I never had seen him play, but i knew about stats, The local shop had one in a case for a while but i never bought it. I got several years down the road. The 3 player rookie card was always a neat looking card.
4.1989 ken griffey and 1989 McGwire UD's. being 6 years old, i remember goin to Toys R us and opening packs of cards with my dad. I remember the specific smell of the wrappers of the 89 upper deck. The Mcgwire card's picture is just classic. I remeber getting a Jr in the box and my dad buying another one at a card show. He got the McGwire from a guy he worked with. It was a big deal to get base cards back then. But for a 6 year old, i remember it. It was a big deal to me to have the 89 Mcgwire.
3. Shaquille O neal Cards from 92-93. & the 87-88 Jordan. When i was 10 i remember goin to a batting cage that had a small card store inside. I saw the Jordan Card and fell in love with it. But 150 back then was wayy too much. I ended up getting it down the road, but it was one of the first cards i really had a desire to get. I went out and snatched all the Shaq Rookies i could. I remember goin to visit my aunt who lived in florida and visiting the arena where they played. Shaq was the hottest thing in sports that year. And i tried to pick up every card of his. I always had wanted the Hoops Magic's All rookie team card. I finally got one off ebay about 8 years after it was released. The shaq cards, that time i really remember.
2. 1981 Joe Montana. This was one of the first "Big" cards i ever got. My dad bought me one at a card shop in florida when we were on Vacation for 50$. I thought i was king of the world. As a 4th grader , having Joe Montanas rookie card was a big big deal.
1. 1985 Topps / 2002 APOH 500 Auto Mark McGwire
Getting the 85 topps in the early 1990, i won't forget. My dad used to know a guy who ran card shows up in north jersey. and one day he came home with a 85 topps. The picture, will always me think of my early times getting into this hobby. When you get your favorite players rookie card, it will always be a big deal. The 2002 APOH represents my return to the hobby full time. I stopped collecting aggressively for a couple years. From 98-2001 , the insane amount of mcgwire inserts and paralells drove me off the wall. Not to mention i was fed up that my favorite player was the only big time guy to not have any autographed cards. I remember picking up Terrell Davis cards, and Time Duncan cards, but baseball wasnt fun to collect for me. I still bought packs here and there, but i didnt really go after specific cards. For years i was able to get mac cards in common boxes, now he had 15 cards in each set and they all went for premuim prices. In 2002, with the news he had signed his card deal, i knew i had come back full time. I started pickin up the Autographed cards in early 2004 and i havnt looked back. That represents my rebirth into collecting. 2 spectrums, the early years, and now the later years.

 

[tonsofcommons]

1993 Studio Mike Piazza- Piazza was one of my favorite players and it was always one of my favorites.

1986 Fleer Kirby Puckett- Back before I was too young to really know what baseball cards were, I evidently had this card, as I found, mangled, in a junk drawer when I was older (8 or 9). I just remember it fondly

1994 Sportflics- This was the time when I really started to get back in to collecting. My friends and I would open a bunch of these packs

1993-94 Fleer Ultra Inside/Outside Latrell Sprewell- My first Baskeball card which started my Latrell Sprewell craze

1993 Pinnacle Tribute Nolan Ryan- When I was in JR High, we could walk to the bus barn. On the way there, I would stop and get packs of Pinnacle cards and open them on the way home. I was lucky enough to pull the Nolan Ryan tribute card, which i think at the time booked at $10

1993 Fleer Team Leaders- These things exploded in the mid 90s, and the drug store in a nearby town had a set of each league for $25 each. I tried to talk my mom in to getting them, telling her they were worth WAY more than $25, but she didn't budge :^)

1994 & 1995 Fleer Provision- You can get the whole dang set for $1 each now, but back then, I really liked the fact that if you put the 9 cards in a page, they were like a big painting. My two favorite were the Tony Gwynn from the 94 set (friend had it hanging in a page of cards on his wall and I saw it. He gave it to me) and the Ozzie Smith from that same set.

94-95 Skybox Basketball- Another set that my friends and I busted a bunch of. Really liked the Revolution inserts and the Rookie insert set

1999 Topps (especially Sosa/McGwire HR set)- First "Business" venture. My friends and I would go to walmart and put the blasters on layaway and then list them on ebay. When they sold, we would go pick them up and ship them. We always talked about opening a shop and we would get the whole sosa/McGwire set and frame them to hang on the wall.

2002-03 Topps Chrome Black Refractor Latrell Sprewell 3/50- My girlfriend (now wife) picked the pack from walmart and inside was the Black Refractor of Latrell Sprewell (my long time PC). I seriously jumped up and down when I saw that.

Thanks for the walk down memory lane.

 

[Big Mac McGwire]

Great Great Topic Idea. I'am enjoying reading everyones trip down memory lane.

 

[brouthercard]

1. 1986-7 Fleer Michael Jordan - pack pulled!
2. 1979-80 Topps Wayne Gretzky
3. 1984 Topps Dan Marino
4. 1980 Topps Rickey Henderson
5. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly
6. 1961 Topps Roberto Clemente
7. 1963 Topps Roberto Clemente
8. 1961 Topps Billy Williams
9. 1988 Score traded glossy Mark Grace
10. 1986-7 Fleer Karl Malone

 

[Mr.Whipple]

Here are my Pulls from back in the day and other stories about trading

10. 1989 or 90 Action Packed Dave Meggit 24 kt gold card. Pulled it at a show and a dealer offered me 1200 for it on the spot. Wasnt solid gold but gold leafed, This guy was a huge Giants fan and everyone thought all the gold cards were 1 of 1's. Didnt sell it that day for some reason, My dad brought it to work and sold it to a friend for a lil more.

9. 1982 Fleer John Littlefield revere negative.. Bought one in a .10 box at a show, I was about 10 at the time. Still have it in my pc.. I remember staring at it every day like 10 times a day. Thinking how cool it was.

8. 1986 "The Rookies" set. Remembering my aunt giving me a set for my bday and another aunt for christmas. Still have them and never opened them up. I think they sold for 40 bucks back in the day and that was a lot of money.

7. 1984 Donruss Don Mattingly rookie. It booked for 95 bucks and that was like a fortune to me and I remember saving up for months to buy one. When I did haha turns out it was a fake and next show guy gave me a real one. He found out after buying them from someone. But my dad was a dealer and he called and let us know. Still have it to this day also.

6. 1984 Fleer Update set. Guy next door gave me it in 1986 for watching his dog while he was in florida for vacation. I still remember him giving it to me like it was yesterday. Never opened it either but I have been tempted to. When it sky rocketed in bv, Remember bringing it to a show and almost selling it. just couldnt bring myself to it.

5. 1989 UD high number Jerome Walton rookies. Just from trading with friends and buying packs, Had 15 of them total. Went to a show at the ShowBoat in AC it was a Yankee Legends show and dealers were paying 15 bucks a piece for them. I sold them all and bought some packs and 10 Griffey rookies for 25 bucks. Upper Deck was at the show buying error and black & white variations off people.

4. 89 UD Dale Murphy reverse negative. I pulled one and didnt even know till a friend showed me. It is still in a dual holder with the correct version. Probably wont ever get rid of.. Guys at the local shop hounded me for it all the time.

3. Lady next doors huband's suitcase of 1960's cards. It had about 2300 cards in it and was mainly baseball and football. And contained my best card to that date and for a long time after a Nolan ryan rookie. Still have it to this day. She sold me the suitcase for 20 bucks after she threw her husband out. Still have about 150 of the cards from it. Only had two Mantles one from 65 and 68 in it but was loaded with Aaron, Mays and Clemente.

2. 1982 Topps Trade set. My 1st cards and set. My dad gave it to me for my 8th bday and wanted to open it so bad. He told me to keep it closed and it would stay more valuable that way. Still remains unopened and in my PC.

1. It's not cards really but two baseball's and 2 lithographs. For my 14th bday my parents brought me to the National in AC. It was the 500 HR show and I didnt have enough saved up for any autos. Bought some singles and a donruss opening day set. My father than hands me a bunch of tickets, 2 balls and 2 lithos. Says, Happy birthday along with my mom. Still can recall every word spoke to every single one of them to this day. Still feels like it was 10 minutes ago. Ted Williams said, You must of been a good kid this year. Told him it was my bday also. He shook my hand and wished me a happy bday along with Mathews, Mays and Aaron. My mom told me that she has only ever seen me happier at the birth of my children. Since my fathers passing, Usually when I tell the story. My eyes tend to tear up over it, Just for how baseball made a bond between my dad and I. The balls are as white as they day i got them and the lithos have no wrinkles or creases. Hope my children cherish them for the same reasons I do.

 

[tunahead]

I'll try to come up with 10... in no particular order

1. 1988 Score Rookie/Trade Roberto Alomar - bought the set when it first came out for around $5. Traded it near it's peak
2. 1989-90 Hoops David Robinson - bought only 1 pack of this set at a flea market and pulled the Robinson, the 1st series one where he's in a suit holding his Spurs jersey.
3. 1990-91 Sergei Fedorov OPC Premier - bought 1 pack of this set for $7.50 at the Mall of America. Pulled the Fedorov and Roy, promptly sold the Fedorov for $60
4. 1994? Hoops Larry Bird/Magic Johnson Autograph redemption - bought a box of 94 Hoops at a local Shopko for $18, pulled this redemption. Traded it for $400 worth of Ripken cards
5. 1991-1992 Upper Deck Larry Johnson - I remember buying a jumbo pack of these and getting 3 Larry Johnson's in it, this was when they are selling for about $10 a piece... as a kid, this was a gold mine!
6. 1984 Topps Don Mattingly - before I collected Ripken I used to collect anything Don Mattingly. I remember my parents had bought me this card around 1987-1988 for a birthday or something

Those are the only big cards I remember getting as a kid.

 

[ajw]

1. It's not cards really but two baseball's and 2 lithographs. For my 14th bday my parents brought me to the National in AC. It was the 500 HR show and I didnt have enough saved up for any autos. Bought some singles and a donruss opening day set. My father than hands me a bunch of tickets, 2 balls and 2 lithos. Says, Happy birthday along with my mom. Still can recall every word spoke to every single one of them to this day. Still feels like it was 10 minutes ago. Ted Williams said, You must of been a good kid this year. Told him it was my bday also. He shook my hand and wished me a happy bday along with Mathews, Mays and Aaron. My mom told me that she has only ever seen me happier at the birth of my children. Since my fathers passing, Usually when I tell the story. My eyes tend to tear up over it, Just for how baseball made a bond between my dad and I. The balls are as white as they day i got them and the lithos have no wrinkles or creases. Hope my children cherish them for the same reasons I do.

That's a *fantastic* story. Thanks so much for sharing it. I remember that AC show so well. As a kid stuck in Wisconsin, I could only read the articles and dream about being able to go in person. I wanted that signed litho soooo bad. I've wanted it ever since, as well. Until the summer of 2008, that is.

 

[luker2324]

1) 1989 Ken Griffey Jr. - I remember my dad and I driving to every Seven Eleven in the Salt Lake Valley to buy every pack of 89 Upper Deck we could find.

2) 1989 Fleer Bill Ripken FF Error - This card wwas wanted by everyone including myself. I have recently found myself starting to get back into my error collection based around this set and the Randy Johnson Error.

3) 1986 Fleer Basketball - I was able to open a box of this as a kid and still have the set from the break minus the Jordan (sold them off).

4) 1990 Donruss - The error craze caught on with me and I remember box after box looking for the Ryan errors and the rev neg Gonzalez.

5) 1991 Leaf Gold Todd Van Poppel - This card went nuts at shows and i was never able to pull one.

6) 1991 Donruss Sandberg Auto - I opened a case expecting to pull one and never did. Years later i purchased one for the PC.

7) 1990 Score Bo Jackson Baseball/Football - great base card that sold for way to much.

8) 1989 Upper Deck Update Jerome Walton/Dwight Smith - The 1989 Cubs made these 2 cards famous and as a Cub fan highly sought after. I think they may have been my first stint at prospecting. Both went south in 1990.

9) 1984 Donruss Mattingly - Still a great card that i have never owned but always wanted a copy of.

10) Last but not least - 1992 Classic 4 Sport - The LP's in this set were wild for a while and i must have busted 20-30 boxed back in 92 and not much to show for.

 

[ajw]

Bump. Let's see some more lists...

 

[ajbraves25]

No real order. I'll try to come up with 10

1991 Stadium Club Frank Thomas. I got it for Christmas one year and my parents wrapped it up in about 10 boxes. I had to unwrap and unwrap. I was SOOO excited to get it.

1988 Topps Complete Set in a binder. My dad bought it for me for Christmas. My first complete set.

2000 Fleer Greats of the Game Mickey Mantle Yankees Clippings. I wasn't a young kid anymore, but I bought 4 packs at the LCS and hit the Mantle. My first ever GU card and it just so happened to be Mantle's first GU card. I was stoked.

1997 Bowman Chrome Complete set. My dad and I went together and bought the set off a guy at the LCS. We didn't make anything off of it, but at the time that was THE set to have. It was fun looking at it and talking about it with him.

1997-98 Flair Showcase Michael Jordan Row 0 Legacy. I pulled that out of 3 packs and I was jumping up and down. I couldn't believe I pulled it. I was 18 and I was that excited.. LOL

1986 Topps Bo Diaz. Kid down the street gave it to me. He was older than me so I thought it was really worth some money.

I remember riding my bike to Casey's General Store to buy packs of 1992 Stadium Club football. I was trying to build the set. I never did finish it, but once a week I got to go up there and get a pack.

I remember trading my Manny Ramirez 1992 Topps Gold rc to a shop for 2 packs of 1992-93 Finest Basketball Fat packs. I pulled the Shaq Finest Attractions. I was in 7th or 8th grade. Holy crap was my older friend mad when I pulled that. He spent close to $100 on the jumbos and didnt get one. I remember that Shaq being one of the hottest cards at the time and it was just an insert.

I traded the Transformer Skylinx to my best friend for a 1985-86 Star Michael Jordan USA rc. We were both happy.

My first box of cards I ever bought on my own was 1992 Donruss. Ohhhh I wanted an Elite SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO bad.. Never pulled one, but it was my first box break.

~AJ