Raleigh Card Show Post 1 of 3 - The Eclectic Quarter Boxes

I've decide that I've made enough progress on my trade post back log that I could finally reward myself by sharing some of the cards that I found at the card show the weekend before last. Like many of you who have the fortune of going to shows in your area, most of the vendors at the Raleigh Card Show are the same time after time. Lucky for me, I've found some really great stuff at some of these tables. Today, I'll focus on a vendor that I've come to think of as the 'random guy'. He usually has a mixture of quarter, dollar, and $5 boxes. I have yet to make it past his quarter boxes. They're some of the most eclectic, treasure filled boxes I've ever dug through. This past show was no different. Often times I end up finding cards that I had no idea even existed.

These oddballs however don't fit that description, but that doesn't make them any less exciting to find. At a quarter a piece, there was no way I was leaving these in those boxes. I'm going to put some effort into completing the Deckle edge set once I finish up the '68 Game set. In fact, I've already got a pretty great start. After adding this one, I only need 8 more to finish the set. Unfortunately, I've got some big names in those 8. I'll post my set needs at some point in the near future.

Let's move on to some cards that I never knew existed. Of these six, three were completely new to me. There was also one that I had never seen in person, only online. I have several cards from the Purina set, but it was awesome to find this Rickey mixed into those stacks. I've also got a few of the SP Holoview inserts. These take me back to my younger collecting days. I loved these, but always had to admire them from afar since back then they were all pretty pricey. Fortunately, these are largely forgotten in the modern collecting landscape so I can reminisce and finally own a few of these. Bo knows holograms! 

I had heard that there was a card of Larry Bird playing baseball, so a few years back, I searched for it. I found a few copies online, but never picked one up and soon forgot all about it, until this show. Finding this beauty made me do a double take. I was thrilled, and couldn't pull it out of the stack I was flipping through fast enough! That Nolan Ryan threw me for a loop. I had seen the Classic Best minor league set before, but I didn't know that Ryan had a card in it. As it turns out, this is a promo that shows him in a Jacksonville Suns uniform. I knew of another Jacksonville Ryan card out there from an Obak issue, but not this one. I don't officially have a collection that it fits into, but I couldn't leave it behind. I was probably most shocked to come across those USA Baseball Training Site cards of Tino Martinez and Jim Abbott. Again, I had no idea these existed and I couldn't pull them out fast enough. Two former Yankees, playing for Team USA on oddball issues...sounds like a winner to me! Plus, how could you not love Abbott at bat?

The unexpected finds didn't stop there. This Joe Torre from an Atlanta PD release was an odd find. It was the only PD card that I found. When I came upon it, I had visions of picking a handful of others to share with the Braves collectors that I trade with regularly, but it wasn't to be.

Wait, 1993 Topps? Why on Earth would I pull those out of an otherwise interesting bunch of quarter boxes? Hmmm, let's take a closer look.

That would be the Rockies Inaugural Year gold foil stamp on those '93 Topps cards. I love how Mattingly seems to be ready to catch the gold foil stamp and apply the tag!

In keeping with the theme of most of the cards I picked from this guy's quarter boxes, I had never seen these in person prior to this show. All in all, I grabbed around 40 of these. I knew I wouldn't find the Jeter RC, but I was shocked to find Mattingly, Griffey Jr, Bonds, and a bunch of other HOF players. That wraps up my quarter box dig. Stay tuned for parts 2 and 3 of my show recap where I'll explore dealer made repacks, cheap relics/autos, and some other discount boxes. Thanks for reading!