I added two more Grand Slam prints to my collection today.
I received a Willie McGee print back from a mail-in signing and he signed it just as I asked. They also placed the Beckett sticker on the back, as I requested.
And I mailed one directly to Bert Blyleven, who always does a great job and writes a nice little thank you post-it. Bert offers his own authentication sticker, which is available if you request it. I asked for it on both of the items I sent, which also included a 1976 Topps.
I have had bad luck getting a nice 1978 Topps signed by Jim Palmer.
I purchased one way back when I started collecting that has a very light ballpoint signature. I don't know why I bought it. I probably thought it was a good deal and didn't realize he signed ttm at that point.
In one case, I sent one that had some gum residue, which I didn't notice, and is obvious once he signed over it.
My previous attempt looks like his pen wasn't working great, or there was more residue on the card.
So I was very careful selecting a card for this request. It is nicely centered, which can be tough with this set, and made sure there was no residue. He signed it pretty nicely and I am satisfied with this one. I wouldn't normally keep trying to get a better signature on most cards, but for some reason this card stands out to me. Maybe I remember it from when I was 11 years old. But because his fee is so reasonable for a Hall of Famer ($10), I wanted to get a really nice card for my set.
Tom Parsons also signed for me ttm. He signed his 1965 Topps and joined Bob Skinner and Bill Mazeroski on a 1964 Pirates team card. I have his 1965 Topps completed with Cleon Jones, but had this one lying around for some reason and decided to include it.
Cleon Jones is a fairly spotty signer ttm, at just a 61% success rate on SCN. I have been lucky and am 3 for 3 with requests to him and have included some money with my requests which it seems not everyone does. However, to complete the 65 Topps with Parsons, I sent it in to a signing at a cost of $29. I wanted to be sure I completed it and I wanted him to use a ballpoint to try to match Parson's signature.
Maybe I'll try to get Jones to complete this one ttm this time. He hasn't had a return for about six weeks so I'll wait until I see some more recent returns coming in.
Finally, I upgraded my 1958 Topps Wes Covington. I hadn't really been looking for one but I saw this card on eBay and it really stood out to me. Mr. Covington was kind enough to sign one for me ttm back in 2004. It's nice, but he personalized it, and the card did get a little scuffed in the mail. He passed away in about 2011.
But this PSA/DNA-authenticated card has a very clean, blue sharpie signature and the card itself is very nicely centered and in great shape. It's just a super-nice example of this card and I couldn't resist it. I had some credit card points that paid for about 75% of it.
Although I saw it on eBay, I bought it directly from the seller's web site, which I've done in the past as well. He doesn't charge sales tax on his web site unless you are in his state, and the prices are a bit cheaper than his prices on eBay. He also charges less shipping on his web site versus eBay, and no shipping if your order is over $100. I spent some time trying to find a relatively small purchase on his site to get over $100 and the free shipping, but decided the $3.50 charge was better than paying another $20 for something I didn't really want.
Today I sent off 12 more cards to be graded and authenticated by JSA/CGC. including my 2006 Allen & Ginter Harmon Killebrew card. I'll be super happy if that one gets a 10. I am VERY nervous about putting it in the mail though. I would hate to lose it. I listed it's approximate value as $500.00 for insurance.
I also sent out four ttm requests as I've been a bit slow lately. I'll try to get some more out over the next few days. I have a few ttm returns on their way from players I sent pens to so I'm tracking them with Pirate Ship. Pete Hamm (again), Camilo Pascual (again) and hopefully a few more grand Slam prints. I'm up to 28 signed prints now, with four more out ttm and three out to signings. I also bought a bunch more to get signed.
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