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Saturday, May 14, 2022

Collecting by Opportunity

I consider myself a collector by opportunity. I have so many sets I'm working on, so many concepts I'm working on, that there is ALWAYS something to collect. So I like to sort by lowest price and pick off as many cards as I can before I run out of money.  

                                             
This card is from 1948-49 Bowman, and is the only card Howie Dallmar ever got. 
From 1953-54 Parkhurst, my 3rd oldest hockey card.

1994-95 Service Line, an NBA set I didn't know existed. The fact that it was only available in Europe is no excuse! 
A standalone inset from 1995 Upper Deck
I've always rooted for Bobby Dotter...mostly because he was car #08. So when I saw this autograph I had to get it.
One of the earliest relic cards ever made. This single card insert is from 1996 Pinnacle. 
Searching by SN -> lowest price is one of my favorite things to do so you will see a lot of them in this post, and they will appear in chronological order of release. 
Autographs are usually more expensive so I don't get as many of them but I still will when I can. 

This is a parallel of an insert, an Emerald Proof, with green foil. Each driver in the insert got three cards, and you could fit them together to make a larger image. 
I have no idea where this card came from.
The other side has a tire from Harvick.

I probably could have put the eTopps cards in the promo thread.
Red flag! 

My favorite autograph insert ever. I would really love to complete this set of any other, but I don't think it will ever happen. I lack some of the biggest names, like Jeff Gordon and Tony Stewart, still. I pulled the Dale Jr. from this set from a single pack purchase, still my favorite pull ever. 

I had no idea this was going to look so cool when I got it. The relic piece appeared black on COMC, but it's actually shiny chrome. 
A fairly generic insert card, which I got because it's one of only 2 Chicago Stags cards ever released. 
Raced used, SN and shows the car...doesn't get much better than that. 
When I was searching SN by lowest price, this card of Damir Markota came up, and since I knew he was somebody missing from my collection, it was an easy choice to add this one to my account. 
I really like how the background for the material is black, which shows off the holes in the jersey better. Believe it or not but this is a base card from this set.
I liked this card so much I bought two copies! 
Loved the Platinum parallels in Press Pass. 
It's hard to see but this card is numbered to 25 copies. Look on his left sleeve.
I really like the 2013-14 Contenders set.
I now have two of the many parallels of this card. I guess I'm building a rainbow. Being more than happy to collect cards of prospects that didn't "make it" opens up some nice cards. 
Green Flag prizm parallel, this is both race used and numbered. 
I wish Compendium was actually available to buy in packs.
Not the greatest photo, but a 29 cent addition to my set build.
I am working on this set slowly but surely. 
This is a Fast Break parallel. 
This is a Fast Break Parallel  of the Retro Series insert. It's kind of jarring to see this technology used on a Buffalo Braves card, but that's actually what drew me to it in the first place.
When I got this card, I thought it was my first of him, but I was mistaken. 
This card, besides being SN 01/25, holds a little more meaning than that. When I began collecting hockey officially, it was the end of the 2016-17 season. 2017-18 was my first full season, and the very first card I pulled out of the first pack of my first season was the base version of this card. 
I don't remember how much I paid for this but knowing me it wasn't much. Nice patch. 
Green parallel and SN5, and a car photo. Win all around!
Two big pieces of sheet metal here. 
My only card of him.
Erik Jones must not be too popular because his relics are not too expensive.
Never been a huge fan of Wally's but a great shot of the 1997 car there. 
Super sparkly, the scan doesn't do it justice.
My love of the UD Exclusives parallel is well known. I'll get any that I can afford.
Action Packed should be embossed...not just a photo with a filter run over it. 
I was inspired to add a card of her to my collection after hearing how she was helping to free a man wrongly convicted for murder.
My only hat headband relic
When I first got into the sport Rusty was a favorite of mine and I am glad to add this autograph to my collection.
and finally my first card of Cody Ware. 
 

6 comments:

  1. That's a good way to collect. ... Yes, that Buffalo Braves card is odd.

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  2. I've been utilizing the "sort by lowest price" strategy on COMC and targeting set needs as well. By the way, those NASCAR memorabilia cards are fantastic. Don't follow the sport, but love all of the different kinds of race-used memorabilia embedded into cards.

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  3. I used to search the site like this too, usually with pretty good results. Now that I've been pulling back from collecting, and trying to thin out my collection even more, this sort of purchasing doesn't really work for me anymore.

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  4. I used to search the site like this too, usually with pretty good results. Now that I've been pulling back from collecting, and trying to thin out my collection even more, this sort of purchasing doesn't really work for me anymore.

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  5. You can barely see Bob's name on the Buffalo Braves card! Great pick-ups though!

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  6. Greg...that oddness is what attracted me to it in the first place.
    Mark...the race used cards are some of my favorites in my collection. The sheet metal pieces are my absolute favorites.
    Jon...good, less competition for me on NBA cards 😁
    Jafronius...it's not any easier to read in hand either!

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