Something different, I think

Since I was tired of looking at Tiffany's face at the top of my other blog, I decided to grab a box from the garage to see if I could find anything interesting.  Of course, it's not hard considering the shear volume of boxes that are out there.  So today I wanted to share with you an odd find that I had never seen before.

Behold, a set of 1992 First Edition Baseball Hall of Fame Heroes Cards, err Official Baseball Card Stamps.  What in the world are baseball card stamps.  Well in 1992, the St. Vincent Philatelic Services, Ltd. decided to manufacture and release a 12 card set of standard size cards featuring some of baseballs well known HOFers.  Of course, being the Philatelic Service that they were, the cards doubled as peel-away stamps and are actually official legal postage in St. Vincent and the Grenadines.

The cards have an interesting design, featuring a head shot of the player in a black/white/sepia color over a faded gold two tone background.  The borders deckle edge to simulate a stamp design and there is a clean yellow boarder around it.  Each card has enough for $4.00 worth of postage. 

The backs feature a plain white background with all the pertinent text you would expect to find on the back.  Everything from when they were born, died, where they were from, and their position are printed on the top.  The states included most, if not all of their playing history including World Series stats. 

As you can see by the back of the box, the players include Ty Cobb, Whitey Ford, Lou Gehrig, and Babe Ruth.  The set also features Satchel Paige which is kind of cool since you don't see many cards of him out there other than from the last 10-15 years.  The sides of the box are also printed with the inscription "A Unique First In The Trading Card Industry" on one side, and "Baseball Card Stamp Set Is Legal For Postage" on the other side.  Here are a few scans of some of the cards, both front and back.

Here are 9 of the player stamps.  You can click on the image to zoom in and get a better look.

 

And here is what the backs look like.

I couldn't find much about these anywhere so I really don't know what the print run was.  Since it was in the early 90s I can only imagine it was quite large.  Plus, if people actually peeled them and used them, that could make the print run less.  I'm still not sure if they were actually printed in St. Vincent or the Grenadines or if they came out of some dusty warehouse in Miami.  I check around on Ebay for sales of these.  You can pick up sets anywhere from about $5 all the way up to $40 depending on where you look.  There are even FDC versions already on envelopes floating around out there.  

Definitely something a little different. But that is always expected when you pull a random box from the garage. 

Tiffany

 

No, not that Tiffany.  Tiffany baseball cards.  You know those weird glossy cards that Topps put out between 1984 and 1991?  

Well, I found some mixed in with a pile of 1988 and 1989 Topps cards that I was prepping for the bonfire.  Upon initial review, there is really no difference between these cards and their regular counterparts.  But where they stand out is with the high gloss finish to the fronts and the brightly colored backs.  At first, you may think they are from the Traded sets as those generally have a shade or two brighter back than the base set.  But these don't have the "T" designation after the number and they are the same photos on the fronts.  

Topps released the Tiffany cards as a "super" premium set for the collector that was able to fork out an arm and a leg for a set.  They were only packaged for sale by hobby dealers in a full set, not as a wax box or rack pack like the regular cards.  The sets themselves were limited by over production era standards to anywhere from 5,000 to 25,000 sets, not serial numbered.  The 1991 set is believed to be the lowest print run set at the 5,000 mark.  

Since they seem to be scarce, you can generally find these selling for quite a bit more than their base set counterparts.  For example, a 1986 Topps Traded Will Clark rookie went for between $.50 and $5.00 on Ebay while the same card in the Tiffany version went for over $50.00.  

I'm not saying I pulled anything $50 worthy here, it's just interesting to get to see these in person.  As a childhood collector, neither myself or any of my friends could afford a Tiffany version of any of these cards.  I remember seeing singles at card shows back in the late 80s/early 90s with price tags on them upward of a few hundred dollars.  What kid can fork out that kind of cabbage?  None that I know, that's for sure. 

So here's a few from the garage that have been rescued from their eminent doom.

 

1989 Jose Canseco

   

1988 Jose Canseco

1989 Wade Boggs

1989 Paul Molitor

1989 Will Clark

1988 Will Clark

1988 Ryne Sandberg

1988 Don Mattingly

On the scans of a few of them you can notice that they look to be a little brighter than their regular release brethren.  Scanner doesn't pick up shiny very well so you don't get the gloss.  Instead of the gray cardboard like the base set, these are printed on a white card stock that is a little thinner, which makes the colors pop a little more.  Notice the backs where you can see the color of the cards is much brighter than what you would normally find on an 1989 or 1988 set, especially the 1989s.  If you believe everything they print on the internet like I do, apparently these were printed in Ireland instead of Pennsylvania. 

I didn't find any other years of these yet, but now that I know they are out there, I will be more careful before sending these late 80s nightmares off to Hades where they belong.


PS.  Did you click on that album cover up top?  Go ahead.  Try it.

Random 8 (Episode 3)

Since the point of starting this blog was to showcase what was in this giant collection, I figured I better get on the stick.  So with that, I bring you another episode of The Random 8.  These are 8 cards pulled, at random, from a box that I may be currently going through.  Why 8?  Because that is how many fit comfortably on my scanning bed.  These can be anything, all sports, even non-sport.  I'll even attempt to comment.  Also, if I ever show anything you might want, let me know before it goes back to the garage or gets put up for sale.

(From left to right, Top to bottom)


1.  1998 Donruss Jeff Bagwell (Hit List) - I was always a fan of Jeff Bagwell.  The tandem of he and Craig Biggio was one of the best in baseball at the time.  Donruss again put out the Hit List set only in 1998, they included it in the regular issue of the set.  It looks like an insert but is sequentially numbered with the base cards.  Sadly, Bags can be found in the common boxes these days.   


2.   1997 Leaf Gary Sheffield (Legacy) - Again, another cool looking card that appears to be an insert but is not.  Leaf included the Legacy cards as regular set issued cards.  The set was broken up into two 200 card series so this one came out of Series II.  Sheff was another guy I always liked growing up and thought he was underrated as a player.  Unfortunately, like many of my childhood "heroes", he was no stranger to controversy and tarnished himself by making friends with good ole' Barry.  I think I lost respect for him somewhere between the racial comments he was making in almost every interview back in 2006 or 2007.  To think, for a while there, there was a slim chance that he could have suited up again this year. 


3. 1984 Donruss Kevin McReynolds RC - I'll admit that I hardly remember Kevin as a Padre.  He spent from 1983-1986 with San Diego and apparently wasn't horrible but not enough to keep him from being traded.  I remember him mostly as a Met (although he would play for the Royals later on).  If my recollection serves me correctly, Kevin was on a stolen base tear back in 1988.  He set the record for most SB's without being picked off.  In my little trading card circle which consisted of about 5 kids from the neighborhood, his cards were most definitely not "commons" at the time.  Afterall, he was better than Rickey Henderson according to one of my friends at the time.  If only...


4.  1987 Fleer Bo Jackson - This was the most sought after Bo Jackson card amongst the kids in my neighborhood.  That was until the 1990 Score "BO" card came out featuring the over the shoulder pads bat picture that has since become iconic.  I remember picking one of these up from a show at the Ramada Inn and being the envy of the neighborhood.  $20 was a lot to spend on one card back then.  I think I'd be lucky to get $2 for it now.  Funny how times change.  I guess I should have traded it for the Don Mattingly RC and Darryl Strawberry RC I was offered when I had the chance. 


5.  Skybox/Hoops Isaiah Rider - Here we have another fallen, waste of potential talent in Isaiah JR Rider.  I thought this guy was going to be huge.  After coming out of UNLV, he was drafted by the T-Wolves with the #5 pick overall.  But like most modern-era players, the quick jump from poor college athlete to filthy rich pro went to his head.  Drugs, legal problems, assault charges, and other distractions sent him on a downward spiral after just two seasons.  He was never the same after that.  I think he may actually hold the record for the most suspensions in the shortest amount of time.  You'd have to fact check me on that one though.


6.  Topps Gallery David Justice - I'm not 100% on this one anymore but I think this may be a promo sample.  Since I can't seem to find where I put this one, I will refrain from further comment. 


7.  1990 Donruss Harold Baines All Star (Variation B) - What random pile-o-junk would be complete without the obligatory 1990 Donruss card?  The answer...none.  Here we have Hammerin' Harold and his acknoledgment for being in the 1989 All Star Game.  But if you notice the former owner of the card's meticulous attention to detail, you will see the sticker that designates this as Variation B.  Wait for it.... It took me a minute or two after finding this to see the problem.  The line in the header of the card is going through the star instead of behind it.  That's it.  I hardly think this card was worth $20.00 for that, then or now, or ever for that matter (no offense to Mr. Baines.


8.  1987 KMart 25th Anniversary Brooks Robinson - Arguably one of the best 3rd basemen of all time, Brooks Robinson was one of many all time greats to be included in the 25th Anniversary set by Kmart back in 1987.  The set was manufactured by Topps and included a set of 33 glossy cards featuring "Stars of the Decades", meaning the 60s, 70s and 80s.  Also included was that ever popular stick of gum.  The cards were packaged in a box similar to a pack of playing cards.  Other stars included Hank Aaron, Roberto Clemente, Mickey Mantle, Wade Boggs, and George Brett.  I was actually shocked to see graded versions of some of these on Ebay going for $10-20.  Crazy. 

Another Random 8

Since the point of starting this blog was to showcase what was in this giant collection, I figured I better get on the stick.  So with that, I bring you another episode of The Random 8.  These are 8 cards pulled, at random, from a box that I may be currently going through.  Why 8?  Because that is how many fit comfortably on my scanning bed.  These can be anything, all sports, even non-sport.  I'll even attempt to comment.  Also, if I ever show anything you might want, let me know before it goes back to the garage or gets put up for sale.

 (From left to right, Top to bottom)


1.  1993 Skybox Ultraverse II Origins Mantra Promo Card - Another non-sport promo card from a random box.  This one is from the Ultraverse II set produced by Skybox in 1993-1994.  These cards feature artwork created by some of the biggest comic artists of the time.  This particular card features Mantra, a man trapped in a women's body.  The background story, and I'm not a comic guy so bare with me, is that a warrior who was immortal for some reason or another has to become a mortal woman and a sorceress.  How's that for a story line.  The character was created by the comic artist Matt Barr.  There are also autographed versions of these floating around the universe too.

2.  1999 Topps Gold Label Class 1 Todd Hundley - I was always a fan of the Topps Gold Label series.  Any sport, any year.  I like the card stock, the reflective/glossy surface, and the design with multiple cut out shots of the player.  The backs, on the other hand, need some work.  They only show career totals with average stats and career best.  Although, this years set has a short write up on the player.

3.  1992 Wild Card Decision '92 Ross Perot (and George Bush) - This is still sealed in the promo pack it came from originally back in 1992.  Apparently a ton of these were given out during the various campaigns as "special cards" or promos.  They also put out parallels just like the football versions with numbers stripes that could be redeemed and traded through their Trading Card Center.  These were manufactured by AAA Cards.

4.  1992 Topps Stadium Club Batman Returns Promo - These were put out right before the movie was released and featured 100 cards.  The cards show movie photos, behind-the-scenes shots, and also included some production artwork.  I think it would have been cool if they inserted these at random into the baseball and football sets back then.  Could you imagine pulling one of these out of those poorly packaged cellophane wrappers?


5.  1996 Upper Deck A Cut Above Ken Griffey Jr. #CA3 - Another die-cut card by Upper Deck.  The subtitle on this one is "Fun Loving".  "Once in spring training, when he lost a bet for a steak dinner to manager Lou Piniella, he paid up by bringing a live cow into Piniella's office."  That's no bull.  Get it?  Bull.


6.  1980 Topps Star Wars Empire Strikes Back Series II Star Pilot Luke Skywalker - This was from the second series of ESB cards.  It features 132 cards with 33 stickers.  On the back is a trivia question.  "What is the first spaceship ever to be seen in a STAR WARS movie?"  The answer is on card 148.

7.  1993 Gil Elvgren's Ladies of Naughty Nostalgia Promo Pin up Girl - These were produced by Comic Images through Gil Elvgren's publishing company Brown & Bigelow back in 1993.  The cards all feature pin-up girls from the 40s and 50s and were contained in a 90 card set.  There were also three bonus Super Spectra-Scope and three Opti-Prism cards randomly inserted in packs.  I'm surprised I haven't seen more of these around considering the popularity of pin-up art.


8.  2004 Topps Opening Day Gary Sheffield #105 - Nothing special.  Just a base card.  It was just weird that it was sandwiched between some of the ones above.  By this point, Sheff had been in the league for 18 years.  Here we see him contributing to his 2003 Braves season RBI record (which was held by Hank Aaron).

What (if anything) Is The Effect Of Serial Jersey Numbers

I have come across some stuff in a football box that has intrigued me.  Apparently at some point or another, the person that owned this collection at one time felt that it was fun/important/profitable/etc. to accumulate serial numbered cards.  This box has a ton of them.  But something I took note of was the small stack that was separated out in the back of the box.  These cards had notations made on the penny sleeves indicating that the serial number was the player's jersey number.  So I guess my question to all the blog readers/collectors out there is, does serial numbering that shares the same jersey number as the player bring a premium value to the card?

Here are a few examples:

Here is a 1999 Fleer  Trophy Collection Brian Griese of the Denver Broncos.  The card is number 139TC from the set and is serial numbered, (if you click on the picture you can zoom in on the bottom right corner) 14/20.  As we can all see by Brian's wonderful demonstration of how to receive a snap for a field goal/extra point, he dons number 14.  I'm not aware of the current BV on the card and I was unsuccessful at finding any auctions on Ebay or listings on COMC for this one.  I did find a few dealers with the card offered anywhere from $40-60.  Does the fact that his number is the serial number increase the desirability and value of this one?

My second example is this 1999 Donruss Zoning Commission card of Curtis Martin.  As we can see here, Curtis sports his #28 as he puts on the brakes in the endzone.  The card is die-cut on the sides as you can see by the scan.  If we flip the card over...

we see it's number ZC16 and the set is serial numbered out of 1000.  It just so happens that this one is #28, the same number as his jersey.  By checking with COMC, I can see that many of the cards minor stars are listed between $1.50-2.50 while the superstar players are about $8.  Regardless of what I think, Mr. Martin is probably going to be part of the bottom tier when considering the hierarchy of popularity.  The Bay has these selling from $.99-$10 depending on where you look but there was only 1 completed auction for poor Curtis here at $2.99 with no bids.  So I'm definitely going with the $1.50 price tag on this one.  Does the fact that it is numbered the same as his jersey kick this one up a notch?

But what about for superstars?  My final example (and believe me I could keep going with this) is this fine specimen.  It's a 1998 Pacific Dynagon Turf Titanium Turf John Elway #'D/99.  I found this weird case in a box with nothing in it so I thought the Elway would look nice...it does.  Pacific was always good for putting out a billion insert sets into their product and this was no exception.  This comes from a 20 card set with a print run of only 99 cards.  If we flip Mr. Elway over, we find...

that the card is numbered 7/99.  Again, his jersey number is the serial number.  One thing about this set that I found is that despite the player selection, the print run seems to inflate the price.  If we go by BV alone, many of the mid to lower tier players are listed at $20.  Heck, even Ryan Leaf has a $15 tag on him and we know that is ludicrous.  I haven't seen any completed auctions from this set.  There are a few from the 1999 set though with much lower pricing including the Curtis Martin for a buck (man, that guy get's no hobby love).  The current ones for sale are ranging from $10 for guys like Terrell Davis, Napoleon Kaufman, or Corey Dillon; up to $140 for the likes of Peyton Manning.  Sportsbuy has the Marino for $91.  So between the Manning and the Marino, I would probably put Elway at about $100-120.  Does that #7 stamped on the back push this one higher?

I'm curious to hear the hobby communities take on this one. 

Random 8

I haven't been spending much time going through the garage haul lately.  With the weather, work, and other things, there just hasn't been the time. 

Since the point of starting this blog was to showcase what was in this giant collection, I figured I better get on the stick.  So with that, I bring you the Random 8.  These are 8 cards pulled, at random, from a box that I may be currently going through.  Why 8?  Because that is how many fit comfortably on my scanning bed.  These can be anything, all sports, even non-sport.  I'll even attempt to comment.  Also, if I ever show anything you might want, let me know before it goes back to the garage or gets put up for sale.

(left to right; top to bottom)

1.  1991 Impel Marketing, Inc., Marvel National Safe Kids Campaign Trading Card Treats; She-Hulk - Did you know that while driving her flying chartreuse convertible, She-Hulk must yield the right of way to passing pigeons as well as pedestrians?  No really, it says that on the back.  Seriously.

2.  1991 Pepsi Griffey's Set; Ken Griffey Jr. "Throwing from the outfield" #2 -   I remember seeing dealers selling these by the dozens back in the early 90s.  That was back when anyone with a camera and some funds for printing could make a card set.

3.  1993-94 Upper Deck Shawn Bradley #163 Rookie Card - Bradley was the 2nd pick overall by the 76ers in 1993.  I remember the big deal with Bradley, other than his shot blocking, was the fact that he only played his freshman year at BYU.  This is before the rash of post high school draft declarations that are rampant in the NBA today.  Bradley spent two years as a missionary before declaring for the draft.  He was a hair short of being elected to the Utah House of Representatives last fall.

4.  1993 Magic The Gathering "Castle" - Ooooohh! Look.  A Castle.  I never understood these things.  I didn't get the game, the cards, the lifestyle (yes, there was a lifestyle).  I guess it was just too complicated for me.

5.  1997 Lucasfilms Inc. Star Wars "Cloud City Engineer" - I have no problem with Star Wars on any scale but like the Magic card above, these are part of some kind of game that involves dice and cards and cloaks of invisibility and...I just don't get it.

6.  1992 Topps Stadium Club Troy Aikman #695 - This set was always one of my favorites.  I always liked the Skills Rating on the back that show how the player rates on a variety of stats.  Aikman has a 4.7 arm strength, 4.2 mobility rating, 4.6 leadership score, and 4.5 defensive read skill.  I can only assume the scale is out of 5.

7.  1991 Pro Set Walt Disney's Little Mermaid "Sebastien" Stand Up card #9 - You know if the Little Mermaid ever did become a real human, you know she would have cooked up this crab with some butter.  That's what I would have done.

8.  1995 Topps Vampirella Gallery Tall Format Dealer Promo card #P1 - According to the Vampirella Revealed website, this card is the same as card #19 in the set.  It has artwork by Jose Gonzalez and was included in the Vampirella Strikes #1 comic.  There were 6 of these in all.  As you can see by the card, it is a "tall-boy".  As you can also see, wherever she is, it's a little chilly.

A Handful For Sale

I've been pulling random cards from boxes over the last few days and throwing them up on Ebay.  There is a pretty varied mix of stuff from baseball, golf, and basketball.  I will have some football up too in the next few days I think.  No hockey yet, though.  I guess I haven't found it in my heart to part with any of those that I have found yet. 

If you are interested in browsing, the link is on the side bar.

A Couple Odds & Ends

I suppose you can consider this a leftover post since for some reason i have a couple odd-ball items sitting on my desk.  One is a baseball item and the other is apparently a basketball item.  Let's start there.

In the same box as the Look N' See cards, I came across this small, tissue-like wrapper that almost got chucked into the garbage pile.  Garbage pile, you ask?  Box after box after box of these cards seem to have various pieces of flotsam and jetsam.  For those not familiar with either the maritime jargon (or the metal band for that matter), flotsam and jetsam is simply a term I am using to refer to all the little pieces of junk that have broken away from larger items, like plastic from rigid top loaders, or price tags that have fallen off, wrappers sans cards, or dust bunnies (lots of dust bunnies).  At first glance, I figured this was just the wrapper from something.

 

At second glance, I almost thought it was a condom.  Almost.  That was until I picked it up and realized it was not from this world, I mean country.  Whatever this was, it was from Vitoria, Spain, I think.  To the cloud...I mean Wiki...

"Naipes Heraclio Fournier S.A. is a playing card manufacturer that was founded in 1868 and is based in Vitoria, Spain. Though it has been owned by The United States Playing Card Company since 1986, not only does it continue to maintain separate manufacturing operations, but it also manufactures certain USPC products sold by its parent company in the States (i.e., Congress bridge playing cards).

It was founded by Heraclio Fournier in 1868. He died in 1916. His grandson Félix Alfaro Fournier took on the administration of the company and started a card collection. In 1970 he acquired the card collection from Thomas De la Rue. His collections formed the Fournier Museum of Playing Cards, now property of the Province Government of Alava."

Alright then.  So this must be from some kind of set they produced in the 80s that featured NBA players, since that is what is printed on the wrapper.  See there, "Gran promocion <<NBA>>.  Upon further review, it would appear that this is from 1988 and is from the Fournier NBA Estrellas set which featured a companion set of stickers.  Since this is 23 years old, the glue has kind of worn off the sides so the contents are accessible.  If you couldn't see through the initial scan image, here is what was inside.

Now I see the irony in thinking it was a condom wrapper.

The next strange item that fell from a box of randomness comes in the form of a baseball card.  Of course, this wouldn't be any normal card.  What fun would that be?  Instead, it's a card of none other than Charlie Hustle himself, Pete Rose.  The card looks like it may have been printed sometime in the 1980s, but by whom is a mystery.  There is no company logo on the front.  There is no date either.  The design doesn't give it away like many of the 1980s card sets.  The only identifying marks are in the caption at the bottom.

"Pete Rose breaks Ty Cobb's All Time Base Hit record!"  Pretty unassuming since I'm sure there were hundreds of other items produced when this feat occurred.  So let's go to the back.  There has to be something there.


Blank.  Blank?  Blank!  Ok.  This has got to be cut from something.  Like a box bottom.  Or a cereal box.  Or a package of some sort.  I don't know but I will get to the bottom of this one.  So far, I have come up with nothing.  If anyone out there knows what this is or where it came from, please share.

Look N' See what I found

I haven't posted any finds on here in a while because I really haven't found anything out of the ordinary.  Not that this site is soley dedicated to the strange and unusual but most of the major card brands through the years have been seen time and time again.

The other day I grabbed a box to thumb through while watching something stupid on TV.  I found a small snap-tite jewel case that had some odd sized cards rattling around in them.  Just from the looks of the sides, since they were sandwiched between some 1984 Topps Baseball and some 1987 Topps Football, they looked old.  Only one way to find out...

As in most of what I have been finding that "looks" old, these have seen better days.  There are predominant creases, mis-cuts, off centering issues and of course the corners are rounded and worn.  But none of that changes the fact that until now, I had never seen these before.  So off to the interwebs for some information.

First things first...some observations.  My first thought was that these were obviously from a set that features predominant figures in US History and possibly World History.  Since there was no date stamp, I surmised that they were probably from the early 60's or possibly the 50s.  The fact that it said T.C.G. on the bottom was a tip off that they were made by Topps.  Other than that I had no clue.  In case you didn't already know, and it's hard to believe after what I found out that anyone other than me doesn't, here is what we found out. 

Look 'n See was in fact produced by Topps in 1952.  Apparently, these were pretty popular and have become one of the biggest 1950's non-sport sets traded today.  If you check Ebay, you will find quite a few listings.  In fact, when you search for 1952 Look N' See, I came up with 789 individual auctions.  What does that basically mean to me?  It means that these were probably produced in a much more significant volume than any of the other 1950's non-sport sets.  Also, unlike other trading card sets, these were available to purchase for a continued amount of time through the early 50s.  Some older collector's remember these being available as late as 1954.

The most sought after card is the Babe Ruth.  Despite the scarcity of some of the other cards, the Ruth still garners three figures in most cases even in less than Excellent condition.  Although not impossible to find, the scarcest card, as reported by many dealer's and collector's, is the Rembrandt.  

The backs of the cards feature hidden answers to trivia questions that are printed on the cards.  After a brief biography of the subject, the question is printed in a box such as the one above, "What famouse general did Gen. Ridgway replace in Korea?"  There was a small piece of red cellophane included in each pack that kids could place over the back to reveal the answer.  Not only would the answer appear, but the orange backs would disappear as well as the biography. 

Apparently, these were produced in in two series.  Card numbers 1 through 75 were followed by numbers 76 through 135.  Topps split the first 75 cards into subsets with seven titles.  Card numbers 1 through 9 depicted Presidents; numbers 10 through 31 featured Famous Americans; numbers 32 through 42 were of Military Leaders; and cards 43 through 46 pictured Famous Women.  Other headings included Explorers (6 cards), Men of the West (11), World Figures (5) and Inventors (7).  

The backs list a secondary numbering system for each subset.  For example, the George S. Patton card is denoted as "No. 3 of 11 Military Leaders." The cards in series 1 are all grouped together.  However, series 2 is all over the board.  Collector's speculate that since series 1 flew off the shelves, they rushed series 2 before planning the configuration (go figure even in the 1950s Topps had quality control problems.) 

Overall, though, I think the best part about these is the caricature artwork on the front.  A very nice set if you can find it in good condition.  I found a full set sell on Ebay for around $800 and you can get most individual cards fairly cheap with the exception of the more scarce figures.  So far these are the only three that I have found but like most interesting things, I have a feeling there may be more out there in the garage.

Quick self promotion - Basketball items ending tonight!! Kobe, Jordan, REFRACTORS, Shaq, Rookies, Inserts, etc.

There are still a bunch more basketball cards from the Garage up on the Bay.  If you are interested, the link is over on the right side toward the top.  Almost all the auctions start at $.99. 

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