Hitting 1000

 Earlier this week I received yet another trade package from the Trading Card Database. 

It was the 55th trade I've received in 2026 and I hit the 1000 new cards threshold! 

This was the 1000th card to come out of the trade packages this year, from 2022-23 Donruss. 

I really enjoy trading because it turns my duplicates into cards I need. Win-win. This trade was with someone I actually know outside of the Database but he is also on there of course, all 55 were made on the Database. 

In addition to the now 1096 cards I've added via these trades I also added 8 diecast cars, 2 actual NASCAR decals (the kind that appear on the car themselves) and a couple of miscellaneous NASCAR things. 

Honestly, I would say putting the time into getting your tradelist and wantlist posted may be even more important than getting your collection documented. Now that it's set up so you can add all three of those options just by checking a box, it's easier than ever. 

Every year I make a list on there showing my trades. Who they are with, how many cards I get, my yearly total of new cards, and whatever else needs to be said. (If I completed a set or added a new set to my collection, mostly). My largest return on a trade this year was 121 cards (so far). I have completed more than 10 sets and inserts via trade this year alone. The smallest trade I made saw only one card return. I have one more trade I'm waiting for to arrive and hopefully will make a couple more before the year ends. 

According to the stats provided by the Database, this is the second year I've hit 1000 cards in trade, although the records pre-mid 2015 are not included as the current trade manager wasn't set up yet by then. I don't know if any of the years would have hit 1000 but I don't think so. 

I'm close to breaking my Database trade record. I was pretty active on Trader Retreat back in the day, but there are no surviving stats from that website. My gut feeling is that I probably didn't exceed 59 trades in a single year but I might have, I've been trading online since 2001 or 2002. No way to know anymore unfortunately. 

If anyone reading this wants to trade with me I'm very easy to work with. I'll take pretty much anything offered and it doesn't have to be on my wantlist, as I only put sets I'm close to on that. It doesn't even have to be a topic I normally collect. See something on my tradelist you want but only have baseball, football, soccer, etc available? Propose the trade and I'll accept it, if nothing else it might get a me a new name for my monthly updates. 

October 2026 New People

 October was an unusual month for cards. I didn't get any until the 14th, but then my birthday came around on the 18th and the new cards piled up quickly. I ended up getting 391 cards during the month, with the majority of them being birthday presents. But this year it wasn't just my family! I completed a trade with SaintOrm on my birthday, and he included a whole lot of bonus birthday cards, including the first 50 cards of the Pieces of the Past Asia set, which provided an amazing 48 new people to my collection! Part of our trade also included a batch of the Historic Autographs 1918 : End of the Great War set, which included more new people. 
Adding them to the cards I got for my birthday, and I ended up with exactly 100 new people, which has to be the biggest ratio of new people vs. new cards ever since I got my first NASCAR set all the way back in 1993. 

I did not plan it that way, but I ended up scanning exactly 300 cards during the month, which got me 12 new people scanned. The 4 PWHL players were all new to my collection from my birthday, and I actually got them scanned on the very last day of the month, Halloween. Deborah Sampson is a woman who disguised herself as a man to fight in the American Revolution, the card I pulled of her is a 1/1. It's my only card of her so it by default becomes her card of identification in my collection. 
Mozart is probably the biggest name here, although Jane Austen is a pretty big name too. 7 of the 12 new scans were women, which may also be the first time that women have outnumbered men in a monthly upload (with more than one page worth of cards scanned at least- maybe not if I only did an SI for kids page only in some month)

Most of the cards I scanned during the month were NASCAR cards but not a single one was of a new person. 

The new people added required more work to research this month since I know many of the Asian countries do last name first. I looked up all 48 people not presently in my collection on Wikipedia to be sure, and then went down several rabbit holes reading about them. I love history but my knowledge of Asian history is a bit weak. (understatement) For instance I learned researching that every Dalai Lama adopts Gyatso as their last name. That will make it easy to find them in my alphabetical listing! I read about some very interesting people, some that left me a bit confused, but that just means I have more learning to do. 
I will start scanning some of them shortly, and it's not out of the realm of possibility that I will scan all of them during November, after all, there's only 47 people to scan. I can do that in a day if my health cooperates and I don't spend that time working on models, which it usually gets too cold to do by the end of November. It's already curtailed somewhat but hasn't stopped me yet. 

Last year I was not very interested in cards most of the summer and then once November arrived it was like a switch flipped and I only wanted to do cards. I'm still splitting time between hobbies but I can feel that it's switching back to cards, and I'm beginning to develop the theory that I get burned out on models so I switch back to cards, then I get burned out doing cards right when model season starts, but it will take a couple more years before I am ready to say for sure that's 100% what it is. 

I gave away cards for Halloween

 Ever since Covid, we have averaged about 25-40 kids for Halloween. This year we had 64 bags of snacks and figured it would be enough. It was not! While my brother was giving out the food, I decided to grab one of my duplicate boxes and pull out some cards. I had a stack of hockey, NASCAR and basketball. 

It turned out to be a big success! 15 kids chose cards, with the vast majority choosing basketball cards. 2 took hockey, 1 took NASCAR, 1 took a mix and all the rest took NBA. One kid asked for soccer and since I didn't have them took Doritos instead, LOL. 

The older kids tended to favor the cards over the snack, but some little kids took them too, including one who was just learning to talk, maybe 2 at the oldest. Cute. One of the older boys was reading the backs as he walked away. 

The cards went to an almost even mix of both boys and girls which was cool to see. (When I was their age none of the girls I knew were interested in cards). I made the offer to every kid who came up letting them choose between cards or snacks. 

I had a lot of fun. It was the most fun I've ever had giving out Halloween stuff in fact, and I plan to do it again in the future. Next year I will be prepared with some team bags filled beforehand. I was scrambling to get these ready this year after Halloween was already well underway. I didn't count but I gave each kid a stack. Probably 150 cards were given away tonight. 

I hope some of them stick with it, and maybe take up the hobby full time. It has brought me an immense amount of enjoyment and I hope it does for them as well. 

I realize typing this that it will be a fun memory for me, too. Halloween has never been a big thing to me and I honestly don't have a whole lot of memories tied to it. Sure, I have some, but this one will now be right up there. And if it kickstarts a hobby for even one of these kids, that is far better than just being a duplicate sitting in a box for me! 

Saw this cute decoration on a ride the other night.

And this cool Rangers helmet wearing pumpkin too! 

September 2026 New People

 September was a very light month for card stuff. VERY light. I did very little scanning, and I got even less new cards. 

I scanned 9 new people, including the first 5 2026-27 NBA rookies, thanks to the Topps Now draft releases. They did a lot of them...almost the entire first round. But I couldn't afford them all, so I got my two favorite teams, the #1 draft pick and Cameron Boozer, son of Carlos Boozer, who I expect will win Rookie of the Year. I needed to fill a page of brown back cards for a scan and did 4 1980s baseball cards, three of them were the first card scanned. (Franklin Stubbs was the only one I had previously scanned)

I visited a new card shop to me in Wilton, NY during the month and got the McNeeley card there. I didn't buy any Bowman because it's mostly just chrome crap. But I spent the $3 to own the first card from the set I ever held in my hands. I have McNeeley's base Topps card and the Topps Holiday card but haven't scanned either yet. 

I only scanned 187 new cards in the month, which is a pretty low number to me. I just haven't been feeling it, spending much more time with my modeling hobby. Last year I wasn't really doing card stuff until November when it seems like a switch flipped on November 1st and I wanted to spend all my time with cards. We'll see what this year brings. 

Getting new cards was very low. I only added 49 new cards during the month, which is my lowest total in a while. 

The entirety of the new people in my collection came from the bimonthly SI for Kids magazine which I still subscribe to to get the cards included. While I don't follow soccer and actively dislike it I know Mbappe is a pretty big name. Never heard of the rest, but I have now, right? 

August 2026 New People

 I accomplished a bit more scanning in August than I did in July...sort of. I actually scanned most of these cards during July, but didn't get them cropped and labeled until August. 

10 new people were scanned, including George Pullman who I mentioned in the last post. All three hockey players and Cleetus were scanned but not cropped in July. 

I got 175 cards scanned (Cropped and labeled) during the month.

New People are a higher number although some of the people appear in both places. I picked up the 2024 Sport Kings Volume 5 during the month which gave me a lot of unusual sports for my collection. In fact, I believe the first cards in my collection at all for competitive wood chopping and dog jumping. 

Late in the month, too late to get scanned, my mom gave me the complete set of the 1997 Three Stooges card set so 5 of the 6 Stooges appear in my collection for the first time, only Moe had been in my collection previously. Although I now have the complete 72 card set, their personal numbers are low. For my collection stats, a person has to have the card all to themselves for it to count, and most of the cards in the set have at least two Stooges per card. Most have three, of course. Not a complaint, just an explanation. I recently got into watching them for an hour and a half every night as they are on MeTV+. Turns out they have a lot of cards, including cards issued during their careers, so that's definitely something new to chase. 

I got 373 new cards during the month, which is a lot. I got all three sets of Parkside Smithsonian cards, which is 150 cards in and of themselves. Fun sets, hopefully will get a post up about them once I get them scanned. Interestingly, I didn't get a single NHL card during the month. Think that is the first month this year, but I would have to look it up to be sure. With the season starting this month, I'm sure I'll get the need for new hockey cards shortly. 

Train-ing

 I'm well known as a car guy, and cars get most of attention. But don't get me wrong, I love everything that can move itself under it's own power. Ships, airplanes...and trains. So, when I saw a facebook ad for a card set of historic trains for America's 250th anniversary, you better believe I clicked on it and brought it home. 

It's made by Walthers, which is a model train company, which may explain why I saw the ad. Modeling is only a part of my life, but most of my online interaction on Facebook is modelers. It's a 25 card set that came in a standard looking pack, which is kind of unusual for a promo-type set. Since it's such a small set, why not, I'll post all 25 fronts. 

This is the train that was met at the Golden Spike. 

Most of the set is horizontal but some are vertical. 

Three people got cards in the set.

George Pullman of Pullman train car fame is making his debut in my collection, you'll see this card again in my monthly New People update.

This is pretty cool. This is where I live...the local Amtrak station would be in walking distance if my body worked. I can hear the trains out my window if it's quiet enough. 

Here's a back sample...

The backs have a lot of info crammed onto each of them. The stars in the border are subtle but nice. 

The cards came out of the pack flat but they have since curved like 1980s Topps cards, although in this case they curve in the opposite direction, with the backs bowing outward. Not a problem, just a little bit of trivia for the set. You can see a little bit of the curving in the black outline border on the back scan.

If you want to read the rest of the backs I have them all posted here: 2026 Walthers Titans of Steel America 250

They are really nice cards and I'm glad I saw the Facebook ad for them. I would never have known they existed if not for that and I would have missed them. 

This is the first train-exclusive set in my collection since...1938 Wills Railway Equipment! I know there have been some others after them but they have not made their way into my collection, at least not yet. Airplanes are much more common to see on cards than trains are. 

Although I do love trains I believe the last time I took a train ride was 1994 or 1996, when it was a school field trip. I don't remember for sure anymore, it was that long ago. 

I have the willpower of a turnip.

 I thought I was strong willed. I persevere through health problems and stuff in large part through willpower. I have to use a lot of willpower every single day to not eat my favorite foods, either because they are too carb heavy or make me literally sick. I have packs of cards I've had stashed since 2012 or so, unopened, waiting for me to me to be ready (when I finish scanning my entire collection) . So I thought I had it. 

In June of this year I went to a local Wal-Mart and bought a box of Prizm WNBA, which I genuinely did not enjoy. I have not enjoyed Chrome/Prizm/Finest style cards for years, and it felt like the final straw. I've been working over a blog post in my head about how I'm done buying that style of card. I just always regret it when I do and wished I hadn't wasted the money. I never like the cards. I'm only going to collect what I actually love, not just buy it because I feel like I have to. 

This past Sunday, I went to a different local Wal-Mart, and saw a blaster of 2026 Select NASCAR. This is the only set on the year that has photos from this year, but they are all messed with and crappy as all Chrome sets are. I wasn't going to get it. I wasn't going to waste my money again. 

I couldn't do it. I couldn't leave a NASCAR set I've never held in my hands before behind. 

Did I regret it? Yes. Will I do it again? Probably. I love NASCAR too much to leave without it. Even though the money I spent on one blaster of this could have bought be 3 1/64 diecasts, which is my main hobby and I am badly backlogged on collecting. 

Listen, I never said I was sane. I just said I was a collector. 

First card out of the box. Look how unreadable the writing is on his uniform. That's what I mean about messed with photos. If I didn't know what they were supposed to say, I doubt I would be able to figure it out based on the card. 

It's not a glitch of the scanning process. They are this blurry and unreadable in hand. 

The best thing about Select, if there is any bright side, is that this is the only set that has a full slate of car cards. Panini generally doesn't include car cards in NASCAR sets, which is very stupid. 

This car is from 2015. I would say it's an odd choice to have an 11 year old car that had a best finish of 12th shown in the set, but it's Panini [shrug]

I did get my first card from the return...or debut, since they pretend the Rams are not Dodges anymore...of Ram to NASCAR.

and it's a driver I've met in person which is cool.

One cool thing about this year's Select is that they have included some IMSA drivers in the set. IMSA is my second favorite form of Motorsports and is very, very rare to see on cards. Off the top of my head, the last time they got any cards was in 2013. Both of these people are making their debut in my collection here. 

I got my first card of Keelan Harvick.

The third-generation driver is only 13 years old so it will be 5 more years before he's allowed to run in Cup, but it will happen. (only three more years until he can do Trucks) He's one of the top prospects in the sport and that's only partially because he's Kevin Harvick's son. He and Brexton Busch are both sons of drivers who are on pace to be superstars. 

I was happy to pull Dale Jr's base card. I am actively trying to get him to 1000 cards. My all time favorite sports person he's now less than 50 cards away. I have several in my COMC account waiting to be shipped, too. 

I was very surprised to pull this card. It's a Gold Flash version and SN 03/10.

His best finish in this truck last year was 7th at Rockingham, which they announced this week will not have any races in 2027, that's even more disappointing than this blaster was. 

The big draw for the Chrome/Prizm sets is usually the parallels, and while, yes, they do have the same blurry messed with photos, they are pretty darn cool and it's easier to overlook that fact. 

The regular Prizm is the most common. I got three in my blaster.

The Orange Flash Prizms are I believe exclusive to the blasters. I also have to give Panini credit for including this car/team. This was a 4th Roush-Fenway-Keselowski car that attempted the Daytona 500, but crashed during the qualifying race and didn't qualify. All 4 of the Roush cars ran tributes to Greg Biffle, who drove for the team from 1998-16. He was killed in a plane crash in December and there have been a lot of tributes to him throughout the season. You can see the round memorial decal right over the B post on the namerail. They also used his number font on all 4 cars. 

There was one standard insert in the blaster, which I actually like. This is a Flash Prizm parallel, but the Select Skills design and logo are a flashback to the 1995 Select set's main insert, which were holofoil.

Here's one from the original 1995 set, which is one of my favorite NASCAR sets ever. This is the first time Panini has ever acknowledged the only true Select set that I know of. 

My favorite card in the blaster is this one, despite the fact that you can't read the sponsor at all due to the Chrome/Prizm technology.

The Modifieds are NASCAR's oldest division, but VERY rare to see on cards. Select usually includes one or two a year, Beers won the 2025 championship. Before they started including them in Select, the last Modifieds on cards were 1991, and the last before that would be 1950. Yeah, like I said, rare.

So, that's that. Do I regret it? Yeah, a bit. On the other hand, no. It's NASCAR. And that outweighs my dislike of this technological gimmick that has taken over the hobby. Will I buy more Chrome/Prizm cards in the future? Sigh, yes, I know I will. But only NASCAR. There are enough other real NBA, WNBA and NHL cards made that I don't need to buy Topps Chrome, Panini Prizm or O-Pee-Chee Platinum to be able to take part in my sports. But NASCAR gets the exception.